Marc Moreland
Encyclopedia
Marc Moreland was an American rock musician. He was the former guitarist for new wave band Wall of Voodoo
, punk band The Skulls
, and rock bands Pretty and Twisted and Department of Crooks. He also released a solo album under the name Marc Moreland Mess.
In the late '70s and early '80s, Moreland also played guitar for one of the earliest American punk
bands, The Skulls
. He wrote some of the band's earliest songs, including "Victims" and "Babies".
, later the vocalist and synth player for Wall of Voodoo. Acme Soundtracks office was across the street from the Hollywood punk club The Masque and Ridgway was soon drawn into the emerging punk/new wave scene.
Moreland, guitarist for punk band The Skulls, began jamming with Ridgway at the Acme Soundtracks office and the soundtrack company morphed into a New Wave band. In 1977, with the addition of Skulls members Bruce Moreland
(Marc Moreland's brother) as bassist and Chas T. Gray as keyboardist, along with Joe Nanini
, who had been the drummer for Black Randy and the Metrosquad, the first lineup of Wall of Voodoo was born.
The Wall of Voodoo sound was noted for Moreland's unique guitar style — a mixture of twang
y spaghetti western
-style melodies, angular postpunk riff
s and well-placed guitar feedback.
The band had a sizeable hit with the song "Mexican Radio" in 1982, which received considerable play on the newly-aired MTV. "The germ of the song came from Marc Moreland," Ridgway says. "Marc and I used to go to rehearsal in my '67 Mustang and we were really fed up with Los Angeles radio. We were very cynical and we thought it was much better to tune into these Mexican radio stations that would waft in across the border — of course, now the stations are all over Los Angeles. Anyway, when we'd come across one of these stations playing mariachi music, we'd get all excited — 'Great, man, I'm on a Mexican radio!' I didn't think a thing about it until one day, Marc came in with this little one-minute (demo tape) sketch of that great guitar lick and him singing, 'I'm on a Mexican radio,' kind of mumbling it. I thought, 'Wow, that is just inspired and twisted,'."
By 1983 Ridgway had left the band and was replaced by a new lead singer, Andy Prieboy
. Moreland remained a constant member of the band until their split in 1989. After this, Moreland went on to work in various other projects.
. Moreland and Napolitano had previously worked together on a Carpenter's cover, Hurting Each Other, for the album If I Were a Carpenter in 1994. Pretty and Twisted released a self-titled album in 1995.
Of working with Moreland, Napolitano said:
"I co-wrote more with Marc on this record than with Jim in the last five years. I think we are more like-minded. I think that we both have been closer to the same ideal, and a great group is always the sum total of the individuals that comprise the group. This band is the sum total of the individuals that are in it — we're different than Concrete Blonde. I just feel like we are at the same place at the same time."
-based Kitchen Whore Records
, and featured contributions from PJ Harvey
's John Parish
and Jean-Marc Butty.
by Concrete Blonde
. Lead singer Johnette Napolitano wrote the song about being in love with an alcoholic, and confirmed the song was about Moreland in the Concrete Blonde D.C. Sessions concert in 2002. About Moreland, Johnette said:
"I had met Marc Moreland in Australia the first time (Concrete Blonde) toured. That was the first country we toured outside of America. We were opening for Wall of Voodoo in Australia and we just became tighter than anything in a very short time. There was a lot of mutual worship there."
After his death, Moreland was the subject of the song Jerry #5 by his former band, The Skulls. The song appeared on their album The Golden Age of Piracy.
, France
, at the age of 44.
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:...
, punk band The Skulls
The Skulls (U.S. Band)
The Skulls were a Los Angeles punk band formed in 1977, and later reformed in 2000. Their final show was in Corona, California in March 2006. The Skulls had several line-ups with only one consistent member, vocalist Steven William "Billy Bones" Fortuna....
, and rock bands Pretty and Twisted and Department of Crooks. He also released a solo album under the name Marc Moreland Mess.
Early life
Moreland grew up in West Covina, California and was a student of West Covina High School and Coronado High School.In the late '70s and early '80s, Moreland also played guitar for one of the earliest American punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
bands, The Skulls
The Skulls (U.S. Band)
The Skulls were a Los Angeles punk band formed in 1977, and later reformed in 2000. Their final show was in Corona, California in March 2006. The Skulls had several line-ups with only one consistent member, vocalist Steven William "Billy Bones" Fortuna....
. He wrote some of the band's earliest songs, including "Victims" and "Babies".
Wall of Voodoo
Moreland was a founding member of Wall of Voodoo. Wall of Voodoo had its roots in Acme Soundtracks, an unsuccessful film score business started by Stan RidgwayStan Ridgway
Stanard 'Stan' Ridgway is an American multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter known for his distinctive voice, dramatic lyrical narratives, and eclectic solo albums and was the original lead singer of the band Wall of Voodoo...
, later the vocalist and synth player for Wall of Voodoo. Acme Soundtracks office was across the street from the Hollywood punk club The Masque and Ridgway was soon drawn into the emerging punk/new wave scene.
Moreland, guitarist for punk band The Skulls, began jamming with Ridgway at the Acme Soundtracks office and the soundtrack company morphed into a New Wave band. In 1977, with the addition of Skulls members Bruce Moreland
Bruce Moreland
Bruce "Ravens" Moreland is an American rock musician. This singer, songwriter, and guitarist has worked with such bands as Wall of Voodoo , The Weirdos, Nervous Gender, and Concrete Blonde among others...
(Marc Moreland's brother) as bassist and Chas T. Gray as keyboardist, along with Joe Nanini
Joe Nanini
Oliver Joseph Nanini was a drummer, most famous for being part of the New Wave group Wall of Voodoo during their heyday in the 1980s. He was known for using pots, pans and other objects as drums. He, along with Stan Ridgway and Bill Noland, left the band after their performance at the US Festival...
, who had been the drummer for Black Randy and the Metrosquad, the first lineup of Wall of Voodoo was born.
The Wall of Voodoo sound was noted for Moreland's unique guitar style — a mixture of twang
Twang
An old onomatopoeia for the sound of a vibrating string - for instance of a bow or a musical instrument, or the sound of a vibrating spring of an air gun....
y spaghetti western
Spaghetti Western
Spaghetti Western, also known as Italo-Western, is a nickname for a broad sub-genre of Western films that emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's unique and much copied film-making style and international box-office success, so named by American critics because most were produced and...
-style melodies, angular postpunk riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
s and well-placed guitar feedback.
The band had a sizeable hit with the song "Mexican Radio" in 1982, which received considerable play on the newly-aired MTV. "The germ of the song came from Marc Moreland," Ridgway says. "Marc and I used to go to rehearsal in my '67 Mustang and we were really fed up with Los Angeles radio. We were very cynical and we thought it was much better to tune into these Mexican radio stations that would waft in across the border — of course, now the stations are all over Los Angeles. Anyway, when we'd come across one of these stations playing mariachi music, we'd get all excited — 'Great, man, I'm on a Mexican radio!' I didn't think a thing about it until one day, Marc came in with this little one-minute (demo tape) sketch of that great guitar lick and him singing, 'I'm on a Mexican radio,' kind of mumbling it. I thought, 'Wow, that is just inspired and twisted,'."
By 1983 Ridgway had left the band and was replaced by a new lead singer, Andy Prieboy
Andy Prieboy
Andy Prieboy is a musician, author, and former morgue attendant. He was born in Los Angeles, California and raised in East Chicago, Indiana....
. Moreland remained a constant member of the band until their split in 1989. After this, Moreland went on to work in various other projects.
Pretty and Twisted
Moreland played guitar in the band Pretty and Twisted with Johnette NapolitanoJohnette Napolitano
Johnette Napolitano is an American singer, songwriter and bassist best known as the lead vocalist/songwriter and bassist for the alternative rock group Concrete Blonde.- Solo career :...
. Moreland and Napolitano had previously worked together on a Carpenter's cover, Hurting Each Other, for the album If I Were a Carpenter in 1994. Pretty and Twisted released a self-titled album in 1995.
Of working with Moreland, Napolitano said:
"I co-wrote more with Marc on this record than with Jim in the last five years. I think we are more like-minded. I think that we both have been closer to the same ideal, and a great group is always the sum total of the individuals that comprise the group. This band is the sum total of the individuals that are in it — we're different than Concrete Blonde. I just feel like we are at the same place at the same time."
Department of Crooks
In 1995 Moreland met vocalist/guitarist Sheldon Ferguson and keyboardist Frederika in Las Vegas. After the demise of Pretty and Twisted, Moreland said he had given up music. However, the three musicians clicked and formed the band Department of Crooks. They released an album titled Plan 9 From Las Vegas and had moderate success both in the USA and Europe.Marc Moreland Mess
In 2002 Moreland released his first and only solo album titled Take it to the Spotlight. This was the only album which featured Moreland on lead vocals. The album was released on CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
-based Kitchen Whore Records
Kitchen Whore Records
Kitchen Whore Records is a San Jose, California-based independent record label that released recordings by artists such as Lisa Dewey, Bethany Curve, Marc Moreland and Mute Angst Envy. The label was started in 1997.-Artists:*Bethany Curve* Gina Chiala...
, and featured contributions from PJ Harvey
PJ Harvey
Polly Jean Harvey is an English musician, singer-songwriter, composer and occasional artist. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments including piano, organ, bass, saxophone, and most recently, the autoharp.Harvey began her career in...
's John Parish
John Parish
John Parish is a British musician and producer best known for his work with singer and songwriter PJ Harvey,. His sister is the actress Sarah Parish.-Partial discography:Solo*Rosie *How Animals Move...
and Jean-Marc Butty.
Mentions
Moreland was the subject of the song JoeyJoey (Concrete Blonde song)
"Joey" is a song from Concrete Blonde's third and most successful album Bloodletting. The song was released in 1990 and was sung by Johnette Napolitano...
by Concrete Blonde
Concrete Blonde
Concrete Blonde is an alternative rock band based in the United States. They were initially active from 1982 to 1995, and again from 2001 to 2004, and once again in 2010.-Biography:...
. Lead singer Johnette Napolitano wrote the song about being in love with an alcoholic, and confirmed the song was about Moreland in the Concrete Blonde D.C. Sessions concert in 2002. About Moreland, Johnette said:
"I had met Marc Moreland in Australia the first time (Concrete Blonde) toured. That was the first country we toured outside of America. We were opening for Wall of Voodoo in Australia and we just became tighter than anything in a very short time. There was a lot of mutual worship there."
After his death, Moreland was the subject of the song Jerry #5 by his former band, The Skulls. The song appeared on their album The Golden Age of Piracy.
Death
Marc Moreland died of liver failure on Wednesday, March 13, 2002 in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, 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...
, at the age of 44.