Powder were a Britpop

Britpop

Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...

 band, who existed between 1994 and 1997, and released three singles

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 on Parkway Records. Signed in late 1994 by music public relations

Public relations

Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....

 agents John Best and Phill Savidge, they were the first band on the label

Record label

In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...

. Powder were fronted by Pearl Lowe

Pearl Lowe

-External links:*...

, with songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

s Mark Thomas on guitar and Tim McTighe on bass and James Walden on drums. Their first single "20th Century Gods", a Select Single Of The Month, sold out of its pressing of 1,500 within two days. This was followed by the release of "Afrodisiac" in June 1995, and appearances at music festival

Music festival

A music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...

s as well as prime-time 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...

 music special Britpop Now.

As the Parkway offices were situated in Camden

Camden Town

-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...

, Powder were subjected to a fair amount of criticism from the music press for being a "Scenester" band, though in fact none of them actually lived there. They also acquired a stigma for touring with Menswear, who were at that time continually mocked by the NME

NME

The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...

and Melody Maker

Melody Maker

Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...

.

After the release of their third and last single "Deep Fried" in November 1995, Powder stopped touring as Pearl was pregnant. By the time she was ready to tour again the band was finished, having announcing their split in spring 1996. Posthumous album MCMXCV, a compilation of all the tracks from their three singles, was released in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 in 1997.

Pearl went on to front Lodger

Lodger (British band)

Lodger were a British indie rock supergroup containing members of Powder, Supergrass, and Delicatessen. They released three singles and an album in 1998 before the members went on to different projects.-History:...

, and has also released a solo album.

Singles

• "20th Century Gods" / "Dizgo Girl" (Parkway Records 1995)
• "Afrodisiac" / "Shave Me" (Parkway Records 1995) - UK
  UK Singles Chart
  The 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 ...
  
  #72
• "Deep Fried" / "Memo From Turner" / "Sold Out" (Parkway Records 1995)