Plexi
Encyclopedia
Plexi was a gothic noise rock
band consisting of Michael Angelos (vocals, songwriting, bass), Michael Barragan (guitar, Echoplex
), and Norm Block (drums). No other members were ever in the band, though they occasionally utilized a Moog player during live performances. Their original name was Godseed. Their sound has been compared to bands such as Bauhaus
, Sonic Youth
, The Cure
, Bailter Space
, Swervedriver
, The Psychedelic Furs, My Bloody Valentine and Psi Com
. The band combined a mix of detached, wry, existential
, and romantic lyrics with a flamboyant blend of glam rock
and artsy avant-garde textures and noise. Guitarist Michael Barragan was known for regular use of an Echoplex
unit to create chaotic walls of sound.
The band members were known for their decadent appearance featuring black leather garb, heavy make-up, and arcane tattoos. These traits, along with their edgy, yet radio-friendly music, made the band stand out from other groups of its era. A blurb on the band in the 1997 CD Spring Lineup: A Compilation Of Sub Pop's Heavy Hitters read, "Embraced by the hardest rock enthusiasts and real favorites at the Viper Room
, Plexi is L.A.'s freshest Noxema girl."
." In a mere four days in January 1995, the band recorded a second EP. It was released by the Seattle label I.F.A., corresponding with a tour opening for Archers of Loaf
. The EPs attracted attention from larger independent labels, culminating in their "discovery" by a friend of Sub Pop band Sunny Day Real Estate
, Curtis W. Pitts. Plexi later claimed that "I.F.A." stood for either "I'll Fight Anyone" or "I'll Fuck Anything." Cats were prominently featured in the artwork for both EPs.
-esque album was given the ironic title Cheer Up
. After much delay due to personnel shakeups within Sub Pop, the album was released in October 1996. Leadoff track/single "Forest Ranger" had strange pop-culture references and a singalong line of, "When I was looking at you, I didn't mind your foggy weather/ I just wonder what it's like to die." The album also featured reworkings of "Magnet" and "Peel" from the second EP. Cheer Up featured cello by Rasputina
's Melora Creager on two tracks ("Ordinary Things" and "Star Star"). In an interview with Alternative Press magazine in Nov. 1996, Angelos professed his fandom of Aldous Huxley
and David Bowie
; upon being asked if Plexi's music might send the wrong message to suicidal listeners, Angelos laughed and responded, "Well, as long as I don't die..."
Plexi then toured with bands such as Bare Minimum, Zeke, Jack Off Jill
and Ednaswap, and played at an ESPN X Games qualifying competition in New Orleans. Cheer Up was reissued on Atlantic in the summer of 1997 with a slightly-remixed version of "Forest Ranger" and minor artwork variations. A video was shot for "Forest Ranger," directed by David Meyers
, and received significant airplay on M2. Plexi were the opening act on a large tour with labelmates Sugar Ray and Smashmouth later that year. Dave Navarro
was close friends with Barragan, even naming Cheer Up his favorite album of 1997 in a magazine poll.
, where they recorded a follow-up album in late 1998, the band dissolved. No official reason for the breakup was ever issued, though the band members remain friends. Angelos would later collaborate with Dave Navarro
on the Joy Division tribute track "Day of the Lords" under the outfit name Honeymoon Stitch. There was some suggestion by Navarro the recording session was complicated by substance abuse issues and their vocalist's inability to stay conscious and standing. Rumors of heroin addiction, mostly connected to the band's look, have never been substantiated specifically. Plexi have since played one-off gigs in the L.A. area between 2002 and 2006. "Forest Ranger" was used in the movie Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 in 2000. Block drummed in Jack Off Jill
for a while, then formed the Plexi-esque band Tape with future She Wants Revenge
leader Justin Warfield. Block and Barragan had been featured in the touring band of Mark Lanegan
for several years. Angelos has had roles in a few independent films, such as When (1999), and worked on recording a solo album in L.A. He currently lists his profession as music video producer.
Noise rock
Noise rock describes a style of post-punk rock music that became prominent in the 1980s. Noise rock makes use of the traditional instrumentation and iconography of rock, but incorporates atonality and especially dissonance, and also frequently discards usual songwriting conventions.-Style:Noise...
band consisting of Michael Angelos (vocals, songwriting, bass), Michael Barragan (guitar, Echoplex
Echoplex
The Echoplex is a tape delay effect, first made in 1959. Designed by Mike Battle, the Echoplex set a standard for the effect in the 1960s and was used by some of the most notable guitar players of the era; original Echoplexes are highly sought after....
), and Norm Block (drums). No other members were ever in the band, though they occasionally utilized a Moog player during live performances. Their original name was Godseed. Their sound has been compared to bands such as Bauhaus
Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
, Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
, The Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
, Bailter Space
Bailter Space
Bailter Space is an atmospheric noise rock band that formed in Christchurch, New Zealand in 1987 as Nelsh Bailter Space; they had previously recorded as The Gordons. Its members are Alister Parker , John Halvorsen , Brent McLachlan...
, Swervedriver
Swervedriver
Swervedriver are an English alternative rock band from Oxford. The band went on hiatus in 1998 before reforming in 2008 for a world tour, which included a performance at the high-profile Coachella Festival...
, The Psychedelic Furs, My Bloody Valentine and Psi Com
Psi Com
Psi Com was an American gothic rock band of the early 1980s. Prominent in the underground Los Angeles music scene, the group is noted for being the first band of the acclaimed vocalist Perry Farrell who went on to achieve greater fame in the band Jane's Addiction, as well as the bands Porno for...
. The band combined a mix of detached, wry, existential
Existentialism
Existentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
, and romantic lyrics with a flamboyant blend of glam rock
Glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
and artsy avant-garde textures and noise. Guitarist Michael Barragan was known for regular use of an Echoplex
Echoplex
The Echoplex is a tape delay effect, first made in 1959. Designed by Mike Battle, the Echoplex set a standard for the effect in the 1960s and was used by some of the most notable guitar players of the era; original Echoplexes are highly sought after....
unit to create chaotic walls of sound.
The band members were known for their decadent appearance featuring black leather garb, heavy make-up, and arcane tattoos. These traits, along with their edgy, yet radio-friendly music, made the band stand out from other groups of its era. A blurb on the band in the 1997 CD Spring Lineup: A Compilation Of Sub Pop's Heavy Hitters read, "Embraced by the hardest rock enthusiasts and real favorites at the Viper Room
Viper Room
The Viper Room is a nightclub located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California. It was opened in 1993 and was partly owned by actor Johnny Depp until 2004. The club became known for being a hangout of Hollywood elite, and was the site where actor River Phoenix died of a drug overdose on...
, Plexi is L.A.'s freshest Noxema girl."
Lipstick Glue: Early years
Plexi was said to have formed in 1993 when Michael Angelos, a former USC film student, met guitarist Michael Barragon in an L.A. bar and drummer Norm Block at a Taoist retreat. However, most of the band's inscrutable Sub Pop bio (i.e. a part about a Hasidic motorcycle gang) was fabricated for comedic value. In 1994, they recorded their first EP for the indie label Boys Life. As evidence of the band's dryly nonchalant humor, a 1995 magazine ad for the EP read, "If you buy only one album this year... Buy Nick Drake's Five Leaves LeftFive Leaves Left
Five Leaves Left, recorded in 1969, was the first of three albums by British folk musician Nick Drake. Like Bryter Layter but unlike Pink Moon, this album contains no completely solo songs...
." In a mere four days in January 1995, the band recorded a second EP. It was released by the Seattle label I.F.A., corresponding with a tour opening for Archers of Loaf
Archers of Loaf
Archers of Loaf is an American indie-rock band originally from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, formed in 1990. The group toured extensively and released a total of four studio albums, a collection album, numerous singles and EPs, and a live album which was released after the band broke up in...
. The EPs attracted attention from larger independent labels, culminating in their "discovery" by a friend of Sub Pop band Sunny Day Real Estate
Sunny Day Real Estate
Sunny Day Real Estate is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington. In the 1990s, the group expanded upon the grunge style that was popular in the local scene to make a more melodic sound. While not the first band to be classified as emo, they were instrumental in establishing the genre. In...
, Curtis W. Pitts. Plexi later claimed that "I.F.A." stood for either "I'll Fight Anyone" or "I'll Fuck Anything." Cats were prominently featured in the artwork for both EPs.
Cheer Up: Album release
From December 1995 to January 1996, their first full-length album was recorded for Sub Pop. The brooding, film noirFilm noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
-esque album was given the ironic title Cheer Up
Cheer Up
Cheer Up is the debut album by Plexi, released on Sub Pop Records on October 8, 1996. It was recorded by Jeff Powell at Oceanway Studios , Fox Force Five Studios , and Ardent Studios .-Overview:...
. After much delay due to personnel shakeups within Sub Pop, the album was released in October 1996. Leadoff track/single "Forest Ranger" had strange pop-culture references and a singalong line of, "When I was looking at you, I didn't mind your foggy weather/ I just wonder what it's like to die." The album also featured reworkings of "Magnet" and "Peel" from the second EP. Cheer Up featured cello by Rasputina
Rasputina
Rasputina is a cello-driven band based in New York that is renowned for their unconventional and quirky music style as well as their fascination with historical allegories and fashion, especially those pertaining to the Victorian era....
's Melora Creager on two tracks ("Ordinary Things" and "Star Star"). In an interview with Alternative Press magazine in Nov. 1996, Angelos professed his fandom of Aldous Huxley
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
and David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
; upon being asked if Plexi's music might send the wrong message to suicidal listeners, Angelos laughed and responded, "Well, as long as I don't die..."
Plexi then toured with bands such as Bare Minimum, Zeke, Jack Off Jill
Jack Off Jill
Jack Off Jill was an American alternative rock band from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, founded in 1992 by Jessica Fodera, Tenni Arslanyan, Robin Moulder, and Michelle Oliver. Though these four young women were the initial founders, twelve members rotated through the group in its lifespan, including...
and Ednaswap, and played at an ESPN X Games qualifying competition in New Orleans. Cheer Up was reissued on Atlantic in the summer of 1997 with a slightly-remixed version of "Forest Ranger" and minor artwork variations. A video was shot for "Forest Ranger," directed by David Meyers
Dave Meyers (director)
David "Dave" Meyers is an American music video director.-Career:Meyers has directed over 200 music videos including: P!nk's "There You Go", "Most Girls", "You Make Me Sick", "Get The Party Started", "Don't Let Me Get Me", "Feel Good Time", "Stupid Girls", "U + Ur Hand", "So What", "Please Don't...
, and received significant airplay on M2. Plexi were the opening act on a large tour with labelmates Sugar Ray and Smashmouth later that year. Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro
David Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
was close friends with Barragan, even naming Cheer Up his favorite album of 1997 in a magazine poll.
Caught Up: Amsterdamed & its aftermath
After embarking to AmsterdamAmsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, where they recorded a follow-up album in late 1998, the band dissolved. No official reason for the breakup was ever issued, though the band members remain friends. Angelos would later collaborate with Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro
David Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
on the Joy Division tribute track "Day of the Lords" under the outfit name Honeymoon Stitch. There was some suggestion by Navarro the recording session was complicated by substance abuse issues and their vocalist's inability to stay conscious and standing. Rumors of heroin addiction, mostly connected to the band's look, have never been substantiated specifically. Plexi have since played one-off gigs in the L.A. area between 2002 and 2006. "Forest Ranger" was used in the movie Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 in 2000. Block drummed in Jack Off Jill
Jack Off Jill
Jack Off Jill was an American alternative rock band from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, founded in 1992 by Jessica Fodera, Tenni Arslanyan, Robin Moulder, and Michelle Oliver. Though these four young women were the initial founders, twelve members rotated through the group in its lifespan, including...
for a while, then formed the Plexi-esque band Tape with future She Wants Revenge
She Wants Revenge
She Wants Revenge is an American musical duo, based in San Fernando Valley, California. The group's debut album She Wants Revenge was released in early 2006, with three singles to follow...
leader Justin Warfield. Block and Barragan had been featured in the touring band of Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan
Mark Lanegan is an American rock musician and songwriter. Lanegan began his music career in the 1980s, forming the grunge group Screaming Trees with Gary Lee Conner, Van Conner and Mark Pickerel. During his time in the band Lanegan would start a low-key solo career...
for several years. Angelos has had roles in a few independent films, such as When (1999), and worked on recording a solo album in L.A. He currently lists his profession as music video producer.
Albums
- Cheer UpCheer UpCheer Up is the debut album by Plexi, released on Sub Pop Records on October 8, 1996. It was recorded by Jeff Powell at Oceanway Studios , Fox Force Five Studios , and Ardent Studios .-Overview:...
CD/LP (Sub PopSub PopSub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...
, October 8, 1996) (Reissued on AtlanticAtlantic RecordsAtlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
in July 1997, on CD/cassette) - Full-length album recorded in Amsterdam (unreleased, 1998)
EPs, Singles
- Plexi EP (Boys Life, April 1995) (recorded in 1994)
- Tracks: "Simple Man" (3:04), "Na-Na" (4:08), "Second Sunday" (4:05), "Lipstick Glue" (3:32), "Ganesh" (1:13), "Hollow" (4:42)
- Plexi (a.k.a. I.F.A.) EP (IFA, 1995)
- Tracks: "Either Way" (2:28), "Magnet" (2:29), "Faith Is" (5:24), "Peel/ He" (5:26)
- "Part Of Me" (-:--) & "Caught Up" (2:30) one-sided 7" (Sub Pop, November 1995)
- "Roller Rock Cam" 1-track promotional CD single (Sub Pop, 1997)
- Mountains EP (Lava/ Atlantic/ Sub Pop, 1997)
- Tracks: "Mountains" (3:01), "Forest Ranger (live)" (4:12), "Change (live)" (2:48), "Simple Man (live)" (2:48) [Live tracks recorded 6/25/97 at The Dragonfly club in Hollywood, CA.]