Flannel were a 1990s band based in Brighton

Brighton

Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...

, 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...

. Their style has been described as "anarcho-narco", meaning that they were influenced by anarchist politics and narcotic-using lifestyles. This should not be taken too literally; far from being simple advocates of drug culture, their music often contained serious social references and messages. It attempted to blend unadulterated good fun with more than a little bit of intelligence and conscience.

The band played some conventional venues such as pubs, but were most often to be seen at squat parties, direct action

Direct action

Direct action is activity undertaken by individuals, groups, or governments to achieve political, economic, or social goals outside of normal social/political channels. This can include nonviolent and violent activities which target persons, groups, or property deemed offensive to the direct action...

 protest sites such as the Newbury bypass

Newbury bypass

The Newbury bypass, officially known as The Winchester-Preston Trunk Road , is a stretch of dual carriageway road which bypasses the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England...

 and Reclaim the Streets

Reclaim the Streets

Reclaim The Streets is a collective with a shared ideal of community ownership of public spaces. Participants characterize the collective as a resistance movement opposed to the dominance of corporate forces in globalization, and to the car as the dominant mode of transport.-Protests:Reclaim The...

, and summer festivals. They also committed "guerilla gigs" in shopping centres, parks and other "highly inappropriate" places. In the later 1990s, they shared stages with political comedians Mark Thomas

Mark Thomas

Mark Clifford Thomas is a left-wing English comedian, presenter, political activist and reporter from south London. He first became known as a guest comic on the BBC Radio 1 comedy show The Mary Whitehouse Experience in the late 1980s. He is best known for political stunts on his show, The Mark...

 and Rob Newman

Robert Newman

Robert Newman is a British stand-up comedian, author and political activist. In 1993 Newman and his then comedy partner David Baddiel became the first comedians to play and sell out the 12,000-seat Wembley Arena in London...

.

The tune (Let's all go to a) Ketamin Party received a surprise airing on the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

's 1998 Children in Need

Children in Need

Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...

 charity show.

During 2005 the band had technically chosen to split up but continued performing because, they announced, they were very happy with the arrangement.

In November 2005 the bass player, Bloke, died in an accident in the south of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

Lead singer and guitarist Cosmo continues to make and perform music in the Flannel vein from his base in Cardiff

Cardiff

Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...

.

Members

• Bloke (bass)
• Cosmo (guitar and vocals)
• Fat Stan (drums)
• Mohammed el Gimley (tablas) (until 1997)
• DiscoDaveDaRave (keyboards) (until 1997)

Releases (not an exhaustive list)

• Just Another Screwed Up White Kid with a Guitar (1996, produced by Al Scott, who had worked with The Waterboys
  The Waterboys
  The Waterboys are a band formed in 1983 by Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Scotland, Ireland and England. Edinburgh, London, Dublin, Spiddal, New York, and Findhorn have all served as homes for the group. The band has played in a...
  
   and The Levellers
  The Levellers (band)
  The Levellers are an English rock band, founded in 1988 and based in Brighton, England. Their musical style is said to be influenced by punk and traditional English music.-1988-1990:...
  
  )
• Gravy Train (1997)
• Shameless Acts of Self Promotion (1997)
• Vogue Gyratory (a collection of demos)
• (What this world needs is a) New Kind of Man (1998)
  • Featuring (Let's all go to a) Ketamin Party (1998)
• The National Gunpowder Plottery (2002)

Collaborations and connections

Both Cosmo and Bloke's partner, Sally, were involved in a previous Brighton band, Moist

Moist (folk rock band)

Moist was, in 1993 and 1994, a band based in Brighton, England, which performed in a loosely folk-rock style.This band was somewhat lower-profile than its Canadian namesake and upon learning of the name clash, arranged to change its name; however, the Brighton band disbanded soon afterwards, for...

.

External links

• Load of old Flannel ("official" site with news, photos and music downloads)
• Tribute site for Bloke