Comsat Angels
Encyclopedia
The Comsat Angels were a post-punk
band
from Sheffield
and Doncaster
, England
, active from 1978 to 1995. Their music has been described as "abstract pop songs with spare instrumentation, many of which were bleak and filled with some form of heartache." They have been credited as being an influence to current post-punk revival
bands, such as Blacklist
, Editors
and Interpol
. The Comsat Angels toured heavily in the UK
and in western Europe
, especially in The Netherlands. They also toured the United States
twice. Their music has been extensively reissued and recompiled since 1995 by various record labels.
short story The Comsat Angels, the foursome's core lineup (lasting 1978–1992) consisted of:
They debuted with an EP
, released in 1979, named "Red Planet". This release attracted Polydor A&R man Frank Neilson and the band signed a three-album
recording contract
. These three LPs
, Waiting for a Miracle
(1980), which included the single
"Independence Day", probably their best known song
, Sleep No More (1981) and Fiction
(1982), are regarded by some as their best, but only sold modestly.
In their early years, the group shared live stages with bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Yellow Magic Orchestra
, Depeche Mode
, U2
(an 18-date tour in 1981), Captain Beefheart
, The Sound
, Wall of Voodoo
, and Gang of Four
. In 1982, they performed two songs on BBC Television
's Old Grey Whistle Test
television program
. A U.S. tour in 1982 had to be cancelled after a week, due to Bacon contracting appendicitis
.
and recorded Land
(1983), delving into a more commercial, new wave
-oriented sound. The album spawned the single "Will You Stay Tonight?" which met with some US radio success. Fifth album 7 Day Weekend (1985) also followed a more pop-oriented trend. However, it also failed on the charts
, resulting in the band being dropped by a second record label. Their single "I'm Falling" was featured in its entirety in the movie
Real Genius
with Val Kilmer
. The movie never released an official soundtrack
, but gave the band perhaps its widest audience.
and supporter in Robert Palmer, who was enjoying the height of his popularity at this point in the '80s. Palmer saw to it that The Comsat Angels were signed to Island Records
, and he executive-produced their next album, Chasing Shadows
(1986) and even sang on one song, "You'll Never Know." This album's music is viewed as the band's return to their dark, brooding roots.
The U.S.-based Communications Satellite Corporation threatened to take legal measures against the band for supposedly plagiarizing their name. Because of this, the band were renamed C.S. Angels in the United States.
radio with their next recording, Fire on the Moon (1990). The group changed its name to Dream Command
for this record, likely because of pressure from the Communications Satellite Corporation and their record label. Neither the band nor their label were happy with the album, which was released (in the U.S. only) in small quantities. Few people in the UK even knew about it until The Comsats were mentioned in Q
magazine's "Where Are They Now?" section.
as an additional guitarist. (He appeared on "I Wanna Destroy You", later released on the compilation From Beyond 2.) This was another turning point for the band, as they set about writing and recording new material on their own terms and finally hooked up with RPM Records (and with Caroline Records
in the U.S.), who then released The Comsats' Radio 1 (BBC) sessions from 1979 to 1984 as Time Considered As A Helix Of Semi-Precious Stones. (The title was taken from a Samuel R. Delany
short story).
Shortly afterwards, RPM released a new Comsats single, "Driving", and album My Mind's Eye
, in 1992. (The album was released in the U.S. on Caroline Records, under the band name C.S. Angels, with two bonus tracks.) The music press praised the album, citing several current shoegaze-type bands (e.g., Curve
, Catherine Wheel
) who were influenced by The Comsats' sound. Melody Maker
s review stated:
RPM also issued the Dutch radio sessions collection Unravelled before the final studio album The Glamour
in 1995. The Glamour was the first studio album to feature new members Simon Anderson and Terry Todd (who appeared on Unravelled) after the departure of Kevin Bacon, who was now concentrating on production work at the band's Axis studio in Sheffield. No singles were released from The Glamour, and there were songs from these sessions (e.g., "Hyperprism" and "Evanescent") that were only included on the 2007 reissue of the album.
. In July 2008, he posted five songs recorded in the mid-1990s on his Myspace
page. The rest of The Comsat Angels regrouped in the late 1990s under the new moniker Soup, with new vocalist Peter Hope, but soon disbanded.
The band reformed for a gig on April 26, 2009 as part of the Sensoria music festival at the Sheffield O2 Academy. They played tracks from their first three albums, which includes what many consider to be their masterpiece Sleep No More. Mark Kermode introduced the band on stage, describing them not only as his personal favourite act of all time but as "the greatest band in the world." The band completed a UK tour of three cities (Glasgow, Manchester and London) during October 2009.
On 8 August 2010, it was announced that The Comsat Angels will play Plug in Sheffield on the 11th December 2010.
of Depeche Mode covered "Gone" on his 1989 EP, Counterfeit
. In 1992, Silkworm
covered "Our Secret" as the B-side
of their "The Chain" 7-inch single. Joel RL Phelps, formerly of Silkworm, covered "Lost Continent" on his 1999 album, Blackbird.
Jack Rabid, publisher of The Big Takeover
magazine, has been one of the band's biggest supporters since the early 1980s.
Bob Sacco, Web entrepreneur and Comsat Angel fan Bob Sacco came up with the idea for the first Comsat Angels web site circa 1996. Tony Kinson designed and wrote the web site.
Mark Kermode
, film critic for BBC Radio Five Live
, championed The Comsat Angels when reviewing the Ian Curtis
biopic Control, stating that The Comsat Angels were "the band that Joy Division
should have been". In May 2008, Kermode interviewed British poet Simon Armitage
on BBC Two
's The Culture Show
and the two discussed their love of the band.
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
from Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
and Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, active from 1978 to 1995. Their music has been described as "abstract pop songs with spare instrumentation, many of which were bleak and filled with some form of heartache." They have been credited as being an influence to current post-punk revival
Post-punk revival
The post-punk revival was a development in alternative rock of the late 20th and early 21st centuries in which bands took inspiration from the original sounds and aesthetics of garage rock of the 1960s and post-punk and New Wave of the late 1970s...
bands, such as Blacklist
Blacklist (band)
Blacklist is a band from Brooklyn, New York composed of Josh Strawn , Ryan Rayhill , Glenn Maryansky , and James Minor . They are one of the flagship bands of painter Pieter Schoolwerth's Wierd Records imprint...
, Editors
Editors
Editors are a British indie rock band based in Birmingham, who formed in 2002. Previously known as Pilot, The Pride and Snowfield, the band consists of Tom Smith , Chris Urbanowicz , Russell Leetch and Ed Lay .Editors have so far released two platinum studio...
and Interpol
Interpol (band)
Interpol is an American indie rock and post-punk revival band from New York City. Formed in 1997, the band's original line-up consisted of Paul Banks , Daniel Kessler , Carlos Dengler and Greg Drudy . Drudy left the band in 2000 and was replaced by Sam Fogarino...
. The Comsat Angels toured heavily in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and in western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, especially in The Netherlands. They also toured the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
twice. Their music has been extensively reissued and recompiled since 1995 by various record labels.
Early history
Named after the J. G. BallardJ. G. Ballard
James Graham Ballard was an English novelist, short story writer, and prominent member of the New Wave movement in science fiction...
short story The Comsat Angels, the foursome's core lineup (lasting 1978–1992) consisted of:
- Stephen FellowsStephen FellowsStephen Fellows is a singer, songwriter and musician. From 1978-1995, he was frontman for the band the Comsat Angels. He has also been manager for the band Gomez and has helped guide the band the Little Glitches....
– vocals, lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
; - Kevin BaconKevin Bacon (producer)Kevin Bacon is a British musician and record producer best known for his work with fellow brit Jonathan Quarmby under the moniker 'Bacon & Quarmby', as well as being bass player in his band The Comsat Angels....
– bassBass (instrument)Bass describes musical instruments that produce tones in the low-pitched range. They belong to different families of instruments and can cover a wide range of musical roles...
; - Mik Glaisher – drumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s; - Andy Peake – keyboardKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
s.
They debuted with an EP
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
, released in 1979, named "Red Planet". This release attracted Polydor A&R man Frank Neilson and the band signed a three-album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
. These three LPs
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, Waiting for a Miracle
Waiting for a Miracle
Waiting for a Miracle is the debut album by The Comsat Angels, released in September 1980 on Polydor Records. The album was reissued on CD twice, in 1995 by RPM records and in 2006 by Renascent, with different track listings...
(1980), which included the single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"Independence Day", probably their best known song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
, Sleep No More (1981) and Fiction
Fiction (Comsat Angels album)
Fiction was released in 1982 on Polydor Records. It was The Comsat Angels' third album. The album was reissued on CD twice, in 1995 by RPM Records and in 2006 by Renascent, with different track listings . The album peaked at #94 in the UK charts in September 1982.Fiction was less gloomy than the...
(1982), are regarded by some as their best, but only sold modestly.
In their early years, the group shared live stages with bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Yellow Magic Orchestra
Yellow Magic Orchestra
Sakamoto first worked with Hosono as a member of his live band in 1976, while Takahashi recruited Sakamoto to produce his debut solo recording in 1977 following the split of the Sadistic Mika Band...
, Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
, U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
(an 18-date tour in 1981), Captain Beefheart
Captain Beefheart
Don Van Vliet January 15, 1941 December 17, 2010) was an American musician, singer-songwriter and artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. His musical work was conducted with a rotating ensemble of musicians called The Magic Band, active between 1965 and 1982, with whom he recorded 12...
, The Sound
The Sound
The Sound were an English post-punk band, formed in 1979 and dissolved in 1988. The band was fronted by Adrian Borland and evolved from his previous band, The Outsiders...
, Wall of Voodoo
Wall of Voodoo
Wall of Voodoo was an American New Wave group from Los Angeles best known for the 1983 hit "Mexican Radio". The band had a sound that was a fusion of synthesizer-based New Wave music with the spaghetti western soundtrack style of Ennio Morricone.-Formation:...
, and Gang of Four
Gang of Four (band)
Gang of Four are an English post-punk group from Leeds. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill...
. In 1982, they performed two songs on BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
's Old Grey Whistle Test
Old Grey Whistle Test
The Old Grey Whistle Test was an influential BBC2 television music show that ran from 1971 to 1987. It took over the BBC2 late night slot from "Disco Two", which had been running since January 1970, while continuing to feature non-chart music. It was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers...
television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
. A U.S. tour in 1982 had to be cancelled after a week, due to Bacon contracting appendicitis
Appendicitis
Appendicitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the appendix. It is classified as a medical emergency and many cases require removal of the inflamed appendix, either by laparotomy or laparoscopy. Untreated, mortality is high, mainly because of the risk of rupture leading to...
.
Jive years
Having failed to live up to Polydor's expectations with the first three albums, the record label let the band go. After this, they went on to sign with Jive RecordsJive Records
Jive Records was a record label based in New York City, operating under RCA Music Group. Jive was primarily known for a string of successes with hip hop artists in the 1980s, and in teen pop and boy bands in the late 1990s. The word "jive" was inspired by Township Jive, a form of South African...
and recorded Land
Land (Comsat Angels album)
Land was released in 1983 on Jive Records. It was The Comsat Angels' fourth album. The album was reissued on CD with 5 b-sides as bonus tracks in 2001 for Jive's Connoisseur Collection....
(1983), delving into a more commercial, new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
-oriented sound. The album spawned the single "Will You Stay Tonight?" which met with some US radio success. Fifth album 7 Day Weekend (1985) also followed a more pop-oriented trend. However, it also failed on the charts
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
, resulting in the band being dropped by a second record label. Their single "I'm Falling" was featured in its entirety in the movie
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
Real Genius
Real Genius
Real Genius is a 1985 satirical comedy film directed by Martha Coolidge. The film's screenplay was written by Neal Israel, Pat Proft and Peter Torokvei. It stars Val Kilmer and Gabriel Jarret....
with Val Kilmer
Val Kilmer
Val Edward Kilmer is an American actor. Originally a stage actor, Kilmer became popular in the mid-1980s after a string of appearances in comedy films, starting with Top Secret! , then the cult classic Real Genius , as well as blockbuster action films, including a supporting role in Top Gun and a...
. The movie never released an official soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
, but gave the band perhaps its widest audience.
Change of label
The band found a fanFan (person)
A Fan, sometimes also called aficionado or supporter, is a person with a liking and enthusiasm for something, such as a band or a sports team. Fans of a particular thing or person constitute its fanbase or fandom...
and supporter in Robert Palmer, who was enjoying the height of his popularity at this point in the '80s. Palmer saw to it that The Comsat Angels were signed to Island Records
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
, and he executive-produced their next album, Chasing Shadows
Chasing Shadows (album)
Chasing Shadows was released in 1986 on Island Records, but has yet to be reissued. It was The Comsat Angels' sixth album and was put out on CD, cassette and LP....
(1986) and even sang on one song, "You'll Never Know." This album's music is viewed as the band's return to their dark, brooding roots.
The U.S.-based Communications Satellite Corporation threatened to take legal measures against the band for supposedly plagiarizing their name. Because of this, the band were renamed C.S. Angels in the United States.
Dream Command
For the follow-up, they talked Island into letting them build their own studio. The band decided to try for AORAlbum-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
radio with their next recording, Fire on the Moon (1990). The group changed its name to Dream Command
Dream Command
Dream Command was an alternate name for the band The Comsat Angels which was used briefly in their history. In 1990, they released one album under this name , but never performed live with it and never used it again....
for this record, likely because of pressure from the Communications Satellite Corporation and their record label. Neither the band nor their label were happy with the album, which was released (in the U.S. only) in small quantities. Few people in the UK even knew about it until The Comsats were mentioned in Q
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
magazine's "Where Are They Now?" section.
Second change of label
Around 1990, they recruited Sheffield musician Nick RobinsonNick Robinson (origami)
Nick Robinson is a British paperfolder best known for publishing books of paper aeroplanes. He was awarded the Sydney French medal in 2004 by the British Origami Society. He has written over thirty books of origami including Origami for Dummies. His origami designs are usually simple and elegant...
as an additional guitarist. (He appeared on "I Wanna Destroy You", later released on the compilation From Beyond 2.) This was another turning point for the band, as they set about writing and recording new material on their own terms and finally hooked up with RPM Records (and with Caroline Records
Caroline Records
Caroline Records started out as a subsidiary of Richard Branson's Virgin Records label during the early to mid 1970s. The label originally specialized in putting out budget price LPs by mainly progressive rock and jazz artists generally not considered to have a great deal of 'mainstream' or...
in the U.S.), who then released The Comsats' Radio 1 (BBC) sessions from 1979 to 1984 as Time Considered As A Helix Of Semi-Precious Stones. (The title was taken from a Samuel R. Delany
Samuel R. Delany
Samuel Ray Delany, Jr., also known as "Chip" is an American author, professor and literary critic. His work includes a number of novels, many in the science fiction genre, as well as memoir, criticism, and essays on sexuality and society.His science fiction novels include Babel-17, The Einstein...
short story).
Shortly afterwards, RPM released a new Comsats single, "Driving", and album My Mind's Eye
My Mind's Eye (Comsat Angels album)
My Mind’s Eye was released in 1993 on RPM Records, Caroline Records in the US and rereleased by Thunderbird Records in 2001. The album was reissued with additional tracks by Renascent in February 2007....
, in 1992. (The album was released in the U.S. on Caroline Records, under the band name C.S. Angels, with two bonus tracks.) The music press praised the album, citing several current shoegaze-type bands (e.g., Curve
Curve (band)
Curve was an English music group formed in 1990 chiefly around the collaboration of singer/songwriter Toni Halliday and bassist/guitarist/programmer Dean Garcia.-History:...
, Catherine Wheel
Catherine Wheel
Catherine Wheel were a four-piece alternative rock band from Great Yarmouth, England. The band was active from 1990 to 2000, experiencing fluctuating levels of commercial success, and embarking on many lengthy tours.-Biography:...
) who were influenced by The Comsats' sound. Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
s review stated:
"My Mind's Eye could easily have been recorded by ghosts, such is the dexterity of The Comsat's approach and the haunted nature of their anguished restraint... Every snapping bassline and icebound guitar fragment has a place, a purity and a passion that chills... At the heart of their hurtling hailstorm lies Steve Fellows' punishing baritone. The man sounds like he's singing from a carriage on the soul train to hell, all sweat and worry as the songs rage around him like they've come for a debt."
RPM also issued the Dutch radio sessions collection Unravelled before the final studio album The Glamour
The Glamour (album)
The Glamour was released in 1995 on RPM Records and on Caroline Records in the US. In 2007, Renascent reissued the album as a double CD with 7 additional tracks....
in 1995. The Glamour was the first studio album to feature new members Simon Anderson and Terry Todd (who appeared on Unravelled) after the departure of Kevin Bacon, who was now concentrating on production work at the band's Axis studio in Sheffield. No singles were released from The Glamour, and there were songs from these sessions (e.g., "Hyperprism" and "Evanescent") that were only included on the 2007 reissue of the album.
Post-break up
The Comsat Angels disbanded in late 1995 following UK dates to promote The Glamour. Steve Fellows released an instrumental album, Mood X, his first (and so far only) solo release, on RPM in 1997. He also began managing the band Gomez that year after discovering them. Currently, he is said to be working on a more traditional song-based solo album, as well as helping the band Little GlitchesLittle Glitches
Little Glitches are a four piece folk/indie band from Sheffield, UK. The band formed in 2004 after collaborating and writing together in previous bands. The band consists of Andrew Bolam , Gavin Harris , Iain Stewart , and Sam Smith...
. In July 2008, he posted five songs recorded in the mid-1990s on his Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page. The rest of The Comsat Angels regrouped in the late 1990s under the new moniker Soup, with new vocalist Peter Hope, but soon disbanded.
The band reformed for a gig on April 26, 2009 as part of the Sensoria music festival at the Sheffield O2 Academy. They played tracks from their first three albums, which includes what many consider to be their masterpiece Sleep No More. Mark Kermode introduced the band on stage, describing them not only as his personal favourite act of all time but as "the greatest band in the world." The band completed a UK tour of three cities (Glasgow, Manchester and London) during October 2009.
On 8 August 2010, it was announced that The Comsat Angels will play Plug in Sheffield on the 11th December 2010.
Latter-day recognition
The Comsat Angels' albums were out of print for years, but rpm Records had re-released the first three Polydor albums on CD by 1995, while another British label Renascent Records reissued several of them in 2006 and 2007, adding out-takes and other tracks. Martin GoreMartin Gore
Martin Lee Gore is an English songwriter, lyricist, singer, guitarist, keyboardist, remixer and DJ. He is a founding member of Depeche Mode and has written the vast majority of their songs...
of Depeche Mode covered "Gone" on his 1989 EP, Counterfeit
Counterfeit e.p.
Counterfeit e.p. is the first solo recording by Martin L. Gore, the primary songwriter for the band Depeche Mode.Released in 1989, Counterfeit is a six-song E.P. of cover songs, hence the name, implying that the songs were not written by Gore...
. In 1992, Silkworm
Silkworm (band)
Silkworm was an indie rock band active from 1987 to 2005.The members were Tim Midgett, Joel RL Phelps, Andy Cohen, and Michael Dahlquist. Phelps left the band in 1994. Matt Kadane of Bedhead and The New Year played keyboards on Italian Platinum and It'll Be Cool...
covered "Our Secret" as the B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
of their "The Chain" 7-inch single. Joel RL Phelps, formerly of Silkworm, covered "Lost Continent" on his 1999 album, Blackbird.
Jack Rabid, publisher of The Big Takeover
The Big Takeover
The Big Takeover is a bi-annual music magazine published out of New York City since 1980 by critic Jack Rabid.-Overview:The Big T usually appears in June and December, with most recent issues coming in around 200 pages. The review section, featuring Jack’s Top 40 for the issue, is regularly 60-80...
magazine, has been one of the band's biggest supporters since the early 1980s.
Bob Sacco, Web entrepreneur and Comsat Angel fan Bob Sacco came up with the idea for the first Comsat Angels web site circa 1996. Tony Kinson designed and wrote the web site.
Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode is an English film critic, musician and a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. He contributes to Sight and Sound magazine, The Observer newspaper and BBC Radio 5 Live, where he presents Kermode and Mayo's Film Reviews with Simon Mayo on Friday afternoons...
, film critic for BBC Radio Five Live
BBC Radio Five Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
, championed The Comsat Angels when reviewing the Ian Curtis
Ian Curtis
Ian Kevin Curtis was an English singer and lyricist, famous for leading the post-punk band Joy Division. Joy Division released their debut album, Unknown Pleasures, in 1979 and recorded their follow-up, Closer, in 1980...
biopic Control, stating that The Comsat Angels were "the band that Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
should have been". In May 2008, Kermode interviewed British poet Simon Armitage
Simon Armitage
Simon Armitage CBE is a British poet, playwright, and novelist.-Life and career:Simon Armitage was born in Marsden, West Yorkshire. Armitage first studied at Colne Valley High School, Linthwaite, Huddersfield and went on to study geography at Portsmouth Polytechnic...
on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
's The Culture Show
The Culture Show
The Culture Show is a weekly BBC Two Arts magazine programme. It is broadcast in the UK on Thursday nights at 7pm, focusing on the best of the week's arts and culture news, covering books, art, film, architecture, music, visual fashion and the performing arts...
and the two discussed their love of the band.
Studio albums
- Waiting for a MiracleWaiting for a MiracleWaiting for a Miracle is the debut album by The Comsat Angels, released in September 1980 on Polydor Records. The album was reissued on CD twice, in 1995 by RPM records and in 2006 by Renascent, with different track listings...
(1980, Polydor) (reissued in 1995 on RPM and in 2006 on Renascent) - Sleep No More (1981, Polydor) NZ #44, UKUK Albums ChartThe UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
#51 (reissued in 1995 on RPM and in 2006 on Renascent) - Fiction (1982, Polydor) UK #94 (reissued in 1995 on RPM and in 2006 on Renascent)
- Land (1983, Jive) (reissued on Connoisseur in 2001) UK #91
- 7 Day Weekend (1985, Jive) (reissued on Connoisseur in 2001)
- Chasing ShadowsChasing Shadows (album)Chasing Shadows was released in 1986 on Island Records, but has yet to be reissued. It was The Comsat Angels' sixth album and was put out on CD, cassette and LP....
(1986, Island) - Fire on the Moon (as Dream CommandDream CommandDream Command was an alternate name for the band The Comsat Angels which was used briefly in their history. In 1990, they released one album under this name , but never performed live with it and never used it again....
) (1990, Island) (U.S. and Netherlands only) - My Mind's Eye (1992, RPM/Caroline [U.S.]) (U.S. version has bonus tracks "There Is No Enemy" and "Magonia") (reissued on Thunderbird in 2001 and in 2007 on Renascent)
- The GlamourThe Glamour (album)The Glamour was released in 1995 on RPM Records and on Caroline Records in the US. In 2007, Renascent reissued the album as a double CD with 7 additional tracks....
CD/ dbl. LP (1995, RPM) (reissued in 2007 on Renascent as double CD)
Singles and EPs
- "Red Planet" 7" (1979, Junta) (black and ltd. red vinyl versions)
- "Total War" 7" (1980, Polydor)
- "Independence Day" 7" (July 4, 1980, Polydor)
- "Eye Of The Lens" 7"/ dbl. 7"/ 12" (1981, Polydor)
- "(Do The) Empty House" 7"/ dbl. 7" (1981, Polydor)
- "It's History" 7" (1982, Polydor)
- "After The Rain" 7" (1982, Polydor)
- "Will You Stay Tonight?" 7"/ 12"/ 12" pic. disc (1983, Jive)
- "Island Heart" 7"/ 12" (1983, Jive)
- "Independence Day" (re-recording) dbl. 7"/ 12" (1984, Jive) UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#71 - "You Move Me" 7"/ 12" (1984, Jive)
- "Day One" 7"/ 12" (1984, Jive)
- "I'm Falling" 7"/ 12" (1985, Jive) UK #90
- "Forever Young" 7"/ 12" (1985, Jive)
- "The Cutting Edge" 7" / 12" (1986, Island)
- "Celestine" (as Dream Command) CD single (1990, Island) (U.S. only)
- "Driving" 12"/ CD EP (1992, RPM/ Thunderbird)
- "Shiva Descending" CD EP (1993, Crisis) (Holland only)
- "Field Of Tall Flowers" 12"/ CD EP (1994, RPM/ Thunderbird)
- "The Cutting Edge" (version from Unravelled) CD EP (1994, Crisis)
Compilations and live albums
- Enz (1982, Polydor) (released only in The Netherlands)
- Time Considered as a Helix of Semi-Precious Stones – The BBC Sessions 1979–1984 (1992, RPM) (Reissued in 2006 by Renascent)
- Unravelled (1994, RPM) (Dutch radio sessions)
- From Beyond 2 (2000, Cherry Red)
- To BeforeTo BeforeTo Before is a double CD of demos and out-takes released by Renascent in 2007. The tracks cover the years 1978 to 1993 and were salvaged from old cassette tapes, DATs and bootlegs. CD One covers some of the earliest years of the band and includes the entire Red Planet EP, The Comsat Angels' first...
(2007, Renascent)