James Ray (rock musician)
Encyclopedia
James Ray is a rock singer and band-leader, best known as a member of Andrew Eldritch
's side-project The Sisterhood
and for his own band James Rays Gangwar.
He was also a founding member of James Ray And The Performance, a goth rock band, The MK Ultra and his current band 4080peru.
) was sent to The Sisters of Mercy
's record label, Merciful Release
. The band were signed, and after Ray's contribution to The Sisterhood
project "Gift", Merciful released the "Mexico Sundown Blues" single in July 1986.
The singles "Texas" and "Dust Boat" were also released on Merciful Release, followed by the compilation A New Kind Of Assassin.
The band's final line up included James Ray, Carl Harrison and Richard Harvey for the single release "Dustboat", which contained the B-side "A New Kind Of Assassin".
's "[My] Coo Ca Choo" closing the album. The opening track, "Rev Rev Lowrider" was released as a single. Non-album tracks released as singles were "Fuel", "Another Million Dollars" and "Without Conscience".
After this, Gangwar released the Third Generation LP on Surgery Records, a much more techno-based album, with fewer guitars, and a more trance-like feel. The song "Fuelled Up" draws heavily from the earlier song "Fuel," which in turn borrows heavily from the melody of "Knock on Wood
".
The final Gangwar album was Psychodalek.
After This Is This, Ray released Beluga Pop, a collection of ambient techno pieces, far removed from much of his earlier work. The MK Ultra did not release any singles.
Ray later wrote a novella
entitled "Psychodalek" under the James Ray moniker, and released an album of the same name as a soundtrack to accompany the book. Both the novella and the album are currently available to download from his website.
A further ambient
project, 4080Peru, was formed, writing long soundscapes. 4080Peru have also performed these tracks live. Ray is also currently working with the band 25men and still keeping up with Speedy Dave.
Andrew Eldritch
Andrew Eldritch is the English frontman, singer, songwriter and only remaining original member of The Sisters of Mercy, a band that emerged from the British post-punk scene, transformed into a gothic rock band and, in later years, flirted with pop and hard rock.Eldritch also programs the tracks...
's side-project The Sisterhood
The Sisterhood
For movie, See The Sisterhood The Sisterhood was a side project by Sisters of Mercy singer Andrew Eldritch that recorded songs, which he had intended for a second Sisters album, with guest musicians.- Background :...
and for his own band James Rays Gangwar.
He was also a founding member of James Ray And The Performance, a goth rock band, The MK Ultra and his current band 4080peru.
James Ray And The Performance
The Performance was a band started by James Ray and Carl Harrison. An early demo of tracks such as "Mexico Sundown Blues", "Dance" and "Edie Sedgwick" (the latter named after the actressEdie Sedgwick
Edith Minturn "Edie" Sedgwick was an American actress, socialite, model and heiress. She is best known for being one of Andy Warhol's superstars. Sedgwick became known as "The Girl of the Year" in 1965 after starring in several of Warhol's short films in the 1960s...
) was sent to The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy are an English rock band that formed in 1980. After achieving early underground fame in UK, the band had their commercial breakthrough in mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasing new recorded output in protest against their record company...
's record label, Merciful Release
Merciful Release
Merciful Release is a record label started by Andrew Eldritch, frontman with Leeds outfit The Sisters of Mercy. As Eldritch states in an early interview, he wanted to hear himself on the radio. He and Gary Marx played and recorded on the Sisters Of Mercy's initial single "Damage Done" and pressed...
. The band were signed, and after Ray's contribution to The Sisterhood
The Sisterhood
For movie, See The Sisterhood The Sisterhood was a side project by Sisters of Mercy singer Andrew Eldritch that recorded songs, which he had intended for a second Sisters album, with guest musicians.- Background :...
project "Gift", Merciful released the "Mexico Sundown Blues" single in July 1986.
The singles "Texas" and "Dust Boat" were also released on Merciful Release, followed by the compilation A New Kind Of Assassin.
The band's final line up included James Ray, Carl Harrison and Richard Harvey for the single release "Dustboat", which contained the B-side "A New Kind Of Assassin".
James Rays Gangwar
After The Performance, Ray formed James Rays Gangwar. The band were still contracted to Merciful for an album, so the band recorded the Dios Esta De Nuestro Lado LP, a more aggressive sounding album, still with the southwestern American influence, and a cover of Alvin StardustAlvin Stardust
Alvin Stardust is an English pop singer and stage actor.-Career:...
's "[My] Coo Ca Choo" closing the album. The opening track, "Rev Rev Lowrider" was released as a single. Non-album tracks released as singles were "Fuel", "Another Million Dollars" and "Without Conscience".
After this, Gangwar released the Third Generation LP on Surgery Records, a much more techno-based album, with fewer guitars, and a more trance-like feel. The song "Fuelled Up" draws heavily from the earlier song "Fuel," which in turn borrows heavily from the melody of "Knock on Wood
Knock on Wood (song)
"Knock on Wood" is a hit 1966 song written by Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper and originally performed by Eddie Floyd. The Eddie Floyd version peaked at number twenty-eight on the Hot 100, and spent one week at number one on the soul singles....
".
The final Gangwar album was Psychodalek.
The MK Ultra
After the release of Third Generation, Ray formed The MK Ultra, a solo effort, again releasing on Merciful Release. The first LP This Is This had a more dance-like feel than Third Generation, continuing to incorporate samples and Ray's own deep voice against the female backing vocals and techno rhythms. The first track, "Regeneration" is a remix of the title track from Third Generation.After This Is This, Ray released Beluga Pop, a collection of ambient techno pieces, far removed from much of his earlier work. The MK Ultra did not release any singles.
Ray later wrote a novella
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
entitled "Psychodalek" under the James Ray moniker, and released an album of the same name as a soundtrack to accompany the book. Both the novella and the album are currently available to download from his website.
Present day
In recent years, Gangwar have reformed, to play a handful of concerts, such as Wave-Gotik-Treffen.A further ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
project, 4080Peru, was formed, writing long soundscapes. 4080Peru have also performed these tracks live. Ray is also currently working with the band 25men and still keeping up with Speedy Dave.