Delicate AWOL
Encyclopedia
Delicate AWOL were a British experimental rock
band active between 1998 and 2005. The band were notable for their cross-pollination of various musical forms (including indie rock
, art-rock, post-rock
, jazz
, Latin
and out-rock), for their links with British post-rock band Rothko
, for their activities in promoting the London underground music scene of the early 2000s, and for establishing the brief-lived but well-regarded indie record label Day Release. Members of the band later went on to avant-folk
duo Tells
and the later Rothko line-up.
-influenced sound incorporating electronica
, elements of Brazilian music and electric-period Miles Davis
. At various times, the band cited influences including Mogwai
, Cocteau Twins
, Low
, art rock from 1990s Chicago (such as Tortoise
and The For Carnation
) and Montreal (Godspeed You! Black Emperor
) and 1970s Britain (King Crimson
). Reviewers sometimes compared them to the bands Stereolab
, Bardo Pond
, Movietone
, Pram
, Tarwater
and Parlour
.
Ensconcing themselves in Toby Robinson’s Moat Studios in Stockwell, the band began to work on refining their sound. In 1999, Ross and Version set up the Day Release record label to release their own future recordings and those of others. (Releases on the label eventually included material by Robinson’s Krautrock project The Nazgul, singer songwriter David Hurn
, Godspeed You! Black Emperor
spinoff Trois Pistoles, The Monsoon Bassoon
, and many others).
In mid-1999, Delicate AWOL released their debut EP Random Blinking Lights. At this stage, the band was still very much in their indie rock
stage, with an abrasive edge, relatively simple rhythms, Version playing heavy distorted guitar and Ross singing in an incantatory tone reminiscent of Patti Smith
. The band had also developed an all-instrumental alter ego called Forty Shades Of Black, under which name they released a simultaneous single called "Belisha" (displaying a taste for experiments with pace, rhythm and texture). Despite Ross and Version’s initial plans for an instrumental Forty Shades Of Black album, the Forty Shades Of Black project was soon reabsorbed into Delicate AWOL to expand the band’s working methods.
A tour of England and Scotland to promote the new releases ended in near-disaster when the band’s rhythm section mutinied mid-tour. Delicate AWOL completed their tour obligations at King Tut's, Glasgow, as a two-piece of Ross and Version, but met with such a positive audience reception that the split ultimately strengthened their working relationship. Returning to London, Delicate AWOL began recording their debut album (to be titled Our Genome) as a duo.
Delicate AWOL released the "Hurray for Sugar" single in the summer of 2000 - a delicate, whispering song which clearly indicating that the band had moved on from their more abrasive beginnings. At around this time, the band expanded their sound by adding Tom Page’s brother Ben (percussion, keyboards) to the line-up, and Ross began to add more instruments to her live armoury (including ocarina
, melodica
and assorted small percussion instruments). The band’s next release was part of the Day Release "Four Seasons Singles Club", a series of releases each of which featured three EPs from three different artists. Delicate AWOL (along with Rothko and Jamie Owen) contributed to the "Autumn" issue (three tracks). Some of the pieces were the band’s most extended and experimental to date.
In November, the band performed at the fourth Terrastock
festival in Seattle, Washington State, USA.
direction, with Ross’ vocals assuming more of an ensemble/instrumental quality and various experiments with textures.
By this time, Delicate AWOL had also established themselves as a significant band within the London math rock
scene, sharing stages and audiences with bands such as The Monsoon Bassoon
, Rothko
, The Shrubbies (featuring future North Sea Radio Orchestra
members), Geiger Counter, Billy Mahonie
and others. For a while, they also ran their own club night, "Everywhere Is Mouse", in the basement of Helter Skelter music bookstore in Denmark Street
. The event attracted performers including The Monsoon Bassoon, Stewart Lee
and Al Murray
(performing as part of a band), Keith Burstein
and others.
Adding trumpeter Jo Wright (later known as Jo Downs) to the line-up, Delicate AWOL toured America during the summer and returned to play the fifth Terrastock festival (this time in Boston
) in October. The Driesh EP, released in autumn 2001 (with the band’s elegiac set-closer "Dust" as the lead track) ended the band’s middle period. One track - the instrumental "Evergreen China Prairie Tribunal" - pointed the way forward towards the next phase.
In 2002, the band signed a deal with the revived indie label Fire Records and wound up Day Release Records in order to concentrate on band work (David Hurn
also made the crossing from Day Release to Fire). The band’s second album, Heart Drops From The Great Space was released on Fire Records the same year and was accompanied by the 12-inch vinyl EPTime And Motion Studies Deep Underground. Both clearly demonstrated the evolution of the live band.
The entire band cemented their links with Rothko by providing most of the instrumentation on the 2004 Rothko album A Continual Search for Origins (the first Rothko album following the dissolution of the original three-bass Rothko lineup).
Ross and Version continued to make music together. A late version of Delicate AWOL is listed as having performed at the Tunnels club in Aberdeen
on April 10, 2005, with a line-up cited as Ross, Version, Neil Scollay (drums), Danny Ashton (guitar), Kate Mutsaers and Martha Buckingham (vocals) The same lineup (plus Marian Nagahiro) performed at Forgue Kirk near Huntly on April 30, 2005. However, Ross and Version began to find that their new compositions were unsuited to the restrictions of a settled band. The demise of Delicate AWOL was never formally announced, but Ross and Version quietly put the band to rest in order to reform as avant-folk/experimental duo Tells
. The projected third Delicate AWOL album - entitled Hope Your Wounds Heal - eventually materialised in 2006 as the first Tells album.
In 2009, Caroline Ross joined the live lineup of Brighton band Woodpecker Wooliams, singing and playing "flute, glock, omnichord, cheese-grater etc."
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
band active between 1998 and 2005. The band were notable for their cross-pollination of various musical forms (including indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, art-rock, post-rock
Post-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...
, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and out-rock), for their links with British post-rock band Rothko
Rothko (band)
Rothko were a London-based instrumental ambient group. The group mainly used bass guitars and keyboards to create their soundscapes. They derived their name from the painter Mark Rothko...
, for their activities in promoting the London underground music scene of the early 2000s, and for establishing the brief-lived but well-regarded indie record label Day Release. Members of the band later went on to avant-folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
duo Tells
Tells (band)
Tells are a British experimental band formed by the former core members of Delicate AWOL, Jim Version and Caroline Ross.-Sound:Tell's sound mixes aspects of avant-garde folk music with art-rock, jazz and improvised structures. Their music has a strong textural basis with a loose approach to rhythm...
and the later Rothko line-up.
Sound and influences
Between the formation and demise of the band, Delicate AWOL’s sound underwent an extensive transformation. Originally favouring a harsh, guitar-orientated urban indie sound, the band passed through a more ethereal art-rock mid-period and ultimately arrived at a more groove-orientated, jazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
-influenced sound incorporating electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
, elements of Brazilian music and electric-period Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
. At various times, the band cited influences including Mogwai
Mogwai
The word mogwai is the transliteration of the Cantonese word 魔怪 meaning "monster", "evil spirit", "devil" or "demon".-Mogwai/Mogui in Chinese culture:...
, Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
, Low
Low (band)
Low is an American indie rock group from Duluth, Minnesota, formed in 1993. As of 2010, the group is composed of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker , both founding members, and Steve Garrington ....
, art rock from 1990s Chicago (such as Tortoise
Tortoise
Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...
and The For Carnation
The For Carnation
The For Carnation are a post-rock band from Louisville, Kentucky who formed in 1994. The band was formed by Brian McMahan, who is the only constant group member. McMahan's previous band Slint hinted at the distinctive sound and sombre aesthetic he would create in The For Carnation...
) and Montreal (Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor is a Canadian post-rock band which originated from Montreal, Quebec in 1994...
) and 1970s Britain (King Crimson
King Crimson
King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...
). Reviewers sometimes compared them to the bands Stereolab
Stereolab
Stereolab are an alternative music band formed in 1990 in London, England. The band originally comprised songwriting team Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier , both of whom remained at the helm across many lineup changes...
, Bardo Pond
Bardo Pond
Bardo Pond are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1991, and who are currently signed to London based label Fire Records. The current members are Michael Gibbons , John Gibbons , Isobel Sollenberger , Clint Takeda , Jason Kourkonis , and Aaron Igler...
, Movietone
Movietone (band)
Movietone is an English post-rock band. They formed in Bristol, England in 1994. Core members are Kate Wright and Rachel Brook . Brook was also a member of Flying Saucer Attack during the first few years of the band's existence, and Wright is also currently the bass player for Crescent...
, Pram
Pram (band)
Pram are an experimental band who formed in the Balsall Heath/Moseley area of Birmingham, England in 1990.-History:Originally from Harrogate, North Yorkshire, Rosie Cuckston and Matt Eaton went to school together. They moved to Birmingham in the late 80s, schoolfriend Andy Weir keeping in touch...
, Tarwater
Tarwater
Tarwater is a German music duo comprising Bernd Jestram and Ronald Lippok. Tarwater have recorded several albums of mostly instrumental music usually tagged as post-rock.-History:...
and Parlour
Parlour
Parlour , from the French word parloir, from parler , denotes an "audience chamber". In parts of the United Kingdom and the United States, parlours are common names for certain types of food service houses, restaurants or special service areas, such as tattoo parlors...
.
Early years
Caroline Ross had been an early ‘90s London indie scenester, occasionally playing guitar or bass in various bands. At some point in the late ‘90s she teamed up with artist and occasional musician Jim Version. The duo’s first band was called Ripley, soon to be renamed Vaughan. By 1998, after line-up changes, this had metamorphosed into Delicate AWOL. Centred around Ross (vocals, guitar, flute) and Version (guitar), Delicate AWOL would undergo a few more personnel changes before arriving at their definitive line-up.Ensconcing themselves in Toby Robinson’s Moat Studios in Stockwell, the band began to work on refining their sound. In 1999, Ross and Version set up the Day Release record label to release their own future recordings and those of others. (Releases on the label eventually included material by Robinson’s Krautrock project The Nazgul, singer songwriter David Hurn
David Hurn (musician)
David Hurn is a British singer-songwriter.Originally from Cornwall, Hurn came to London in the 1990s to write and play music. He worked with a variety of groups and projects including the art-rock band Ever-Opening Flower'...
, Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor is a Canadian post-rock band which originated from Montreal, Quebec in 1994...
spinoff Trois Pistoles, The Monsoon Bassoon
The Monsoon Bassoon
The Monsoon Bassoon were a British independent rock band active between 1995 and 2001, notable for their exceptionally complex and energetic music. During their lifespan, the band won the NME's Single Of The Week award three times...
, and many others).
In mid-1999, Delicate AWOL released their debut EP Random Blinking Lights. At this stage, the band was still very much in their indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
stage, with an abrasive edge, relatively simple rhythms, Version playing heavy distorted guitar and Ross singing in an incantatory tone reminiscent of Patti Smith
Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....
. The band had also developed an all-instrumental alter ego called Forty Shades Of Black, under which name they released a simultaneous single called "Belisha" (displaying a taste for experiments with pace, rhythm and texture). Despite Ross and Version’s initial plans for an instrumental Forty Shades Of Black album, the Forty Shades Of Black project was soon reabsorbed into Delicate AWOL to expand the band’s working methods.
A tour of England and Scotland to promote the new releases ended in near-disaster when the band’s rhythm section mutinied mid-tour. Delicate AWOL completed their tour obligations at King Tut's, Glasgow, as a two-piece of Ross and Version, but met with such a positive audience reception that the split ultimately strengthened their working relationship. Returning to London, Delicate AWOL began recording their debut album (to be titled Our Genome) as a duo.
A stable line-up
Michael Donnelly (bass) and Tom Page (drums) were recruited into the band via an advertisement in 'Loot'. Ross and Version became so enthused with their new bandmates’ contributions that they scrapped the original version of Our Genome altogether and began rewriting and recording the album from scratch. (Some tracks from the original Our Genome - which had an almost entirely different tracklisting from the album eventually released under that name - surfaced later as EP tracks, and a few complete copies of the album are in private hands).Delicate AWOL released the "Hurray for Sugar" single in the summer of 2000 - a delicate, whispering song which clearly indicating that the band had moved on from their more abrasive beginnings. At around this time, the band expanded their sound by adding Tom Page’s brother Ben (percussion, keyboards) to the line-up, and Ross began to add more instruments to her live armoury (including ocarina
Ocarina
The ocarina is an ancient flute-like wind instrument. Variations do exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the body...
, melodica
Melodica
The melodica, also known as the "blow-organ" or "key-flute", is a free-reed instrument similar to the melodeon and harmonica. It has a musical keyboard on top, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. Pressing a key opens a hole,...
and assorted small percussion instruments). The band’s next release was part of the Day Release "Four Seasons Singles Club", a series of releases each of which featured three EPs from three different artists. Delicate AWOL (along with Rothko and Jamie Owen) contributed to the "Autumn" issue (three tracks). Some of the pieces were the band’s most extended and experimental to date.
In November, the band performed at the fourth Terrastock
Terrastock
Terrastock is a music festival organised periodically by Phil McMullen, formerly editor of the Ptolemaic Terrascope and since 2005 the publisher of the Terrascope Online website. The event typically features independent bands playing psychedelic rock....
festival in Seattle, Washington State, USA.
Mid-period
Our Genome was finally released by Day Release Records in the spring of 2001. It displayed a much-evolved band sound – more cohesive and dynamic, and considerably quieter, with added instrumentation (including horns) on several tracks. It featured none of the early singles and no previously released tracks, demonstrating the band’s intention to continue moving. The band were now heading in a post-rockPost-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...
direction, with Ross’ vocals assuming more of an ensemble/instrumental quality and various experiments with textures.
By this time, Delicate AWOL had also established themselves as a significant band within the London math rock
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
scene, sharing stages and audiences with bands such as The Monsoon Bassoon
The Monsoon Bassoon
The Monsoon Bassoon were a British independent rock band active between 1995 and 2001, notable for their exceptionally complex and energetic music. During their lifespan, the band won the NME's Single Of The Week award three times...
, Rothko
Rothko (band)
Rothko were a London-based instrumental ambient group. The group mainly used bass guitars and keyboards to create their soundscapes. They derived their name from the painter Mark Rothko...
, The Shrubbies (featuring future North Sea Radio Orchestra
North Sea Radio Orchestra
North Sea Radio Orchestra is an English contemporary music ensemble and cross-disciplinary chamber orchestra ....
members), Geiger Counter, Billy Mahonie
Billy Mahonie
- History :Formed in 1997, the original line-up consisted of Gavin Baker , Howard Monk , Hywell Dinsdale and Kevin Penney . Their first release was on the Fierce Panda record label, a split-single with Rothko, followed by a release on the Fierce Panda offshoot Livid Meercat...
and others. For a while, they also ran their own club night, "Everywhere Is Mouse", in the basement of Helter Skelter music bookstore in Denmark Street
Denmark Street
Denmark Street is a short narrow road in central London, notable for its connections with British popular music, and is known as the British Tin Pan Alley. The road connects Charing Cross Road at its western end with St Giles High Street at its eastern end. Denmark Street is in the London Borough...
. The event attracted performers including The Monsoon Bassoon, Stewart Lee
Stewart Lee
Stewart Lee is an English stand-up comedian, writer and director known for being one half of the 1990s comedy duo Lee and Herring, and for co-writing and directing the critically acclaimed and controversial stage show Jerry Springer - The Opera...
and Al Murray
Al Murray
Alastair James Hay "Al" Murray , is a British comedian best known for his stand-up persona, The Pub Landlord, a stereotypical xenophobic public house licensee. In 2003, he was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy...
(performing as part of a band), Keith Burstein
Keith Burstein
Keith Burstein is an English composer, conductor and music theorist. He is noted for his championing of tonal music as a valid contemporary composing style and for the humanitarian dimension of his compositions....
and others.
Adding trumpeter Jo Wright (later known as Jo Downs) to the line-up, Delicate AWOL toured America during the summer and returned to play the fifth Terrastock festival (this time in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
) in October. The Driesh EP, released in autumn 2001 (with the band’s elegiac set-closer "Dust" as the lead track) ended the band’s middle period. One track - the instrumental "Evergreen China Prairie Tribunal" - pointed the way forward towards the next phase.
The groove period
As a live act, the band were now becoming more and more influenced by the lighter and more fluid rhythms of jazz, with the rhythm section now embracing spacious groove and Latin-inspired rhythms, Wright improvising complex trumpet lines and Ben Page playing analogue-style synthesizers as much as percussion. Although Version’s overdriven guitar maintained a link to the band’s art-rock past, Ross was now a committed multi-instrumentalist with a vocal style that had begun to incorporate folk, Latin and swing stylings.In 2002, the band signed a deal with the revived indie label Fire Records and wound up Day Release Records in order to concentrate on band work (David Hurn
David Hurn (musician)
David Hurn is a British singer-songwriter.Originally from Cornwall, Hurn came to London in the 1990s to write and play music. He worked with a variety of groups and projects including the art-rock band Ever-Opening Flower'...
also made the crossing from Day Release to Fire). The band’s second album, Heart Drops From The Great Space was released on Fire Records the same year and was accompanied by the 12-inch vinyl EPTime And Motion Studies Deep Underground. Both clearly demonstrated the evolution of the live band.
The entire band cemented their links with Rothko by providing most of the instrumentation on the 2004 Rothko album A Continual Search for Origins (the first Rothko album following the dissolution of the original three-bass Rothko lineup).
Relocation and split
In 2003, Delicate AWOL (minus Wright, although she maintained a connection with the band) had relocated from London to Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. This was apparently an attempt to escape urban pressures, to liberate their musical creativity and to get more involved in community activity and the band’s other love (visual art). In fact, the move led to the slow dissolving of the band. Donnelly, who’d been reluctant to leave London, soon returned to the capital and joined Rothko full time. He was replaced for a while by the Aberdeen-based Philip Johnston (bass, flute, saxophone). In 2005 the Page brothers also left the band and returned to London - they would eventually join Donnelly in Rothko.Ross and Version continued to make music together. A late version of Delicate AWOL is listed as having performed at the Tunnels club in Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
on April 10, 2005, with a line-up cited as Ross, Version, Neil Scollay (drums), Danny Ashton (guitar), Kate Mutsaers and Martha Buckingham (vocals) The same lineup (plus Marian Nagahiro) performed at Forgue Kirk near Huntly on April 30, 2005. However, Ross and Version began to find that their new compositions were unsuited to the restrictions of a settled band. The demise of Delicate AWOL was never formally announced, but Ross and Version quietly put the band to rest in order to reform as avant-folk/experimental duo Tells
Tells (band)
Tells are a British experimental band formed by the former core members of Delicate AWOL, Jim Version and Caroline Ross.-Sound:Tell's sound mixes aspects of avant-garde folk music with art-rock, jazz and improvised structures. Their music has a strong textural basis with a loose approach to rhythm...
. The projected third Delicate AWOL album - entitled Hope Your Wounds Heal - eventually materialised in 2006 as the first Tells album.
Related projects
Another Rothko/Delicate AWOL connection occurred in 2005 when Ross worked with Rothko leader Mark Beazley on the album A Place Between (credited to Rothko/Caroline Ross). Ross also recorded two tracks for Susuma Yokota's Distant Sounds of Summer album.In 2009, Caroline Ross joined the live lineup of Brighton band Woodpecker Wooliams, singing and playing "flute, glock, omnichord, cheese-grater etc."
Albums
- Our Genome (2001, Day Release Records)
- Heart Drops from the Great Space (2003, Fire Records)
Singles & EPs
- "Random Blinking Lights" (1999, Day Release Records)
- "Hurray For Sugar" (2000, Day Release Records)
- "In a City of.... (I Saw Your Face First)"/"Busted Pony"/"Feelings Hardly Ever Mean a Thing" (2000, Day Release Records – included in "Autumn" triple CD EP box-set release as part of Four Seasons Singles Club)
- "Driesh" (2001, Day Release Records)
- "Time & Motion Studies Deep Underground" (Fire Records, 2003)
Miscellaneous
- Our Genome (2000 – original debut album with completely different content apart from one track - unreleased)