LFO (British group)
Encyclopedia
LFO is an English
techno
act on the Warp Records
label. LFO were pioneers of the bass-heavy techno music of the late 1980s to mid-1990s. Originally, the group was composed of Gez Varley and Mark Bell. LFO is now Bell alone.
The group's name is derived from the abbreviation for the term low-frequency oscillator, a synthesizer
function widely used in electronic music
.
and gave their first track, the eponymous "LFO", to Nightmares on Wax
. The popularity of the demo in clubs led to the track being released by the Sheffield-based Warp Records in 1990
, and it was a Top 20 hit in the U.K., reaching number 12 in the singles charts in July.
Their follow-up single, "We Are Back", was released in the summer of 1991
.
DJ Martin (Martin Williams) is credited as a cowriter and coproducer of the track "LFO" but was not a member of the group. Mark Bell explains:
Later signed to Tommy Boy Records
in the U.S., the duo remixed Afrika Bambaataa
's "Planet Rock", Erasure
's Love to Hate You
, as well as songs from Björk
, Radiohead
, Depeche Mode
, Laurent Garnier
, and The Sabres of Paradise
.
Varley left in 1996 and formed Feedback with Simon Hartley (a.k.a. Wild Planet). Mark Bell produced Homogenic
with Björk and Exciter
with Depeche Mode. Bell performed with Björk on her 1997 Homogenic
tour and 2007/2008 Volta
tour.
The song "Freak" was used in the 2005 film Hard Candy
and in the 2010 film Enter the Void
.
In 2009 the Warp20 (Recreated)
compilation featured covers of two early LFO songs, "LFO" by Luke Vibert
and "What is House? (LFO Remix)" by Autechre
.
In late 2010 it was announced that LFO will be appearing at the Bestival
Music Festival in Isle of Wight (between 8–11 September 2011)
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...
techno
Techno
Techno is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan in the United States during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988...
act on the Warp Records
Warp Records
Warp, commonly referred to as Warp Records, is a pioneering independent British record label, founded in Sheffield in 1989, notable for discovering some of the more enduring artists in electronic music....
label. LFO were pioneers of the bass-heavy techno music of the late 1980s to mid-1990s. Originally, the group was composed of Gez Varley and Mark Bell. LFO is now Bell alone.
The group's name is derived from the abbreviation for the term low-frequency oscillator, a synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
function widely used in electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
.
History
Varley and Bell met while studying at LeedsLeeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
and gave their first track, the eponymous "LFO", to Nightmares on Wax
Nightmares on Wax
George Evelyn, better known as Nightmares on Wax and also known as DJ EASE , is a DJ from Leeds, UK. His music is released on Warp Records and was one of the first releases on the label. Evelyn got his start in the music industry through an interest in hip hop and on joining a local breakdancing crew...
. The popularity of the demo in clubs led to the track being released by the Sheffield-based Warp Records in 1990
1990 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1990.-Events:*January 21 – MTV's Unplugged premieres on cable television with British band Squeeze...
, and it was a Top 20 hit in the U.K., reaching number 12 in the singles charts in July.
Their follow-up single, "We Are Back", was released in the summer of 1991
1991 in music
See also:* 1991 in music Record labels established in 1991-Summary:The year 1991 is the year that grunge music made its popular breakthrough. Nirvana's Nevermind, led by the surprise hit single "Smells Like Teen Spirit", becomes the most popular U.S. album of the year...
.
DJ Martin (Martin Williams) is credited as a cowriter and coproducer of the track "LFO" but was not a member of the group. Mark Bell explains:
"We gave a tape of our recordings to DJ Martin who helped loads with arranging our tracks so it'd work on the dancefloor. We'd just been messing around with drum machines since we were like thirteen, tapping away at them like they were arcade games, making tapes to play our mates at school. Anyway, DJ Martin would play our cassettes in his sets and people would go mental - in a good way - cos they were totally raw."
Later signed to Tommy Boy Records
Tommy Boy Records
Tommy Boy Entertainment is an independent record label started in 1981 by Tom Silverman.-History:...
in the U.S., the duo remixed Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa is an American DJ from the South Bronx, New York who was instrumental in the early development of hip hop throughout the 1980s. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the three originators of break-beat deejaying, and is respectfully known as the "Grandfather" and the Amen Ra of Universal...
's "Planet Rock", Erasure
Erasure
Erasure are an English synthpop duo, consisting of songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell. Erasure entered the music scene in 1985 with their debut single "Who Needs Love Like That"...
's Love to Hate You
Love to Hate You
"Love to Hate You" is a song by Erasure which was released in 1991 as the second single from the duo's fifth studio album Chorus.-History:...
, as well as songs from Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
, 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...
, Laurent Garnier
Laurent Garnier
Laurent Garnier , is a French techno music producer and DJ. Garnier began DJ-ing in Manchester during the late 1980s. By the following decade, he had a broad stylistic range, able to span deep house, Detroit techno, trance and jazz...
, and The Sabres of Paradise
The Sabres of Paradise
The Sabres of Paradise was a British experimental group formed in London, England in 1992. Although their roots were in the acid house scene, they later produced more dub-inspired work. Andrew Weatherall formed the group with engineers Jagz Kooner and Gary Burns and became responsible for the...
.
Varley left in 1996 and formed Feedback with Simon Hartley (a.k.a. Wild Planet). Mark Bell produced Homogenic
Homogenic
Homogenic is the fourth studio album by Icelandic musician Björk, released in September 1997. Produced by Björk, Mark Bell, Guy Sigsworth, Howie B and Markus Dravs, it was released on One Little Indian Records...
with Björk and Exciter
Exciter (album)
Exciter is Depeche Mode's tenth studio album, which was released on 14 May 2001 in the UK and May 15 in the US. It uses more digital music technology compared to their other albums. It was produced by Mark Bell of Björk and LFO fame...
with Depeche Mode. Bell performed with Björk on her 1997 Homogenic
Homogenic
Homogenic is the fourth studio album by Icelandic musician Björk, released in September 1997. Produced by Björk, Mark Bell, Guy Sigsworth, Howie B and Markus Dravs, it was released on One Little Indian Records...
tour and 2007/2008 Volta
Volta (album)
Volta is the seventh studio album by Icelandic musician Björk, released in May 2007. It was produced by Björk, Mark Bell, Timbaland and Danja. The music of Volta was a new style for Björk, focusing on similar sounding music combining African beats and other instruments with songs in tribute to Africa...
tour.
The song "Freak" was used in the 2005 film Hard Candy
Hard Candy (film)
Hard Candy is a 2005 psychological thriller film focusing on the confrontation between an assumed sexual predator and a not-so-innocent 14-year-old girl....
and in the 2010 film Enter the Void
Enter the Void
Enter the Void is a French film written and directed by Gaspar Noé, starring Nathaniel Brown, Paz de la Huerta, and Cyril Roy. Set in the neon-lit nightclub environments of Tokyo, the story follows Oscar, a young American drug dealer who gets shot by the police, but continues to watch succeeding...
.
In 2009 the Warp20 (Recreated)
Warp20 (Recreated)
Warp20 is a compilation album released by Warp Records in 2009. It contains covers of Warp artists, such as Aphex Twin, LFO, Boards of Canada and Grizzly Bear by other Warp artists, such as Plaid, Autechre and Mira Calix.-Track listing:...
compilation featured covers of two early LFO songs, "LFO" by Luke Vibert
Luke Vibert
Luke Vibert is a British recording artist and producer known for his work in many subgenres of electronic music. Vibert began his musical career as a member of the Hate Brothers, only later branching out into his own compositions...
and "What is House? (LFO Remix)" by Autechre
Autechre
Autechre are an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both natives of Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are one of the most prominent acts signed to Warp Records, a label known for its pioneering electronic music and through which all Autechre albums...
.
In late 2010 it was announced that LFO will be appearing at the Bestival
Bestival
Bestival is a four-day music festival held at the Robin Hill country park on the Isle of Wight, England. It has been held annually in late summer since 2004. The event is organized by DJ and record producer Rob da Bank and is an off-shoot of his Sunday Best record label and club nights. The initial...
Music Festival in Isle of Wight (between 8–11 September 2011)
Singles
- LFO (1990) #12 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 ...
- July 1990 - We Are Back (1991) #47 UK - July 1991
- What Is House? EP (1992) #62 UK - February 1992
- Tied Up (1994)
- Freak (2003)
Albums
- FrequenciesFrequencies (album)Frequencies was the debut album by the British techno act LFO, originally released in 1991 by Warp in the UK and by Tommy Boy in the US....
(1991) #42 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... - Advance (1996) #44 UK
- SheathSheath (album)Sheath is the third album by the British IDM act LFO, originally released on Warp Records in 2003.- Track listing :# "Blown" – 6:02# "Mum-Man" – 3:40# "Mokeylips" – 4:02# "Snot" – 2:55# "Moistly" – 4:12# "Unafraid to Linger" – 4:35...
(2003)