The Magnificents (Scottish band)
Encyclopedia
Biography
The group formed while its members attended the Edinburgh College of ArtEdinburgh College of Art
Edinburgh College of Art is an art school in Edinburgh, Scotland, providing tertiary education in art and design disciplines for over two thousand students....
. After playing a supposed one off gig of Northern Soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
covers for a friend's birthday party they began to write their own material and settled into a lineup of Tommy Stuart (vocals
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
/synths
Analog synthesizer
An analog or analogue synthesizer is a synthesizer that uses analog circuits and analog computer techniques to generate sound electronically. The earliest analog synthesizers in the 1920s and 1930s such as the Trautonium were built with a variety of vacuum-tube and electro-mechanical technologies...
), Steven McGregor (synths/vocals), Drew McFadyen (guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
/vocals) and Casey Miller (drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
).
Incorporating elements of Krautrock
Krautrock
Krautrock is a generic name for the experimental music scenes that appeared in Germany in the late 1960s and gained popularity throughout the 1970s, especially in Britain. The term is a result of the English-speaking world's reception of the music at the time and not a reference to any one...
, electro and noise music
Noise music
Noise music is a term used to describe varieties of avant-garde music and sound art that may use elements such as cacophony, dissonance, atonality, noise, indeterminacy, and repetition in their realization. Noise music can feature distortion, various types of acoustically or electronically...
they combine vintage analogue synthesizer
Analog synthesizer
An analog or analogue synthesizer is a synthesizer that uses analog circuits and analog computer techniques to generate sound electronically. The earliest analog synthesizers in the 1920s and 1930s such as the Trautonium were built with a variety of vacuum-tube and electro-mechanical technologies...
s with distorted guitar and the aggression of 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...
creating a sound described 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...
as, "a wonder to behold... synth-punk
Synthpunk
Synthpunk is a music genre combining elements of electronic music and punk rock. The term was coined by Damian Ramsey in 1999 as an attempt to retroactively identify a small sub-genre of punk music from 1977 to 1984 that involved musicians playing synthesizers in place of electric...
sass in excelsis; a tangle of disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
and hysterical sloganeering that sounds, precisely, like Nobody Else Ever". They soon gained a reputation as both a riotously exciting and volatile live act.
They recorded their first EP Kids Now at their own M-Bunker studio which was released on German label Erkrankung Durch Musique
Erkrankung Durch Musique
Erkrankung Durch Musique is a record label based in Munich, Germany. Specialising in electronic music it is run by the DJ, musician and producer Emanuel Guenther .-Releases:-External links and references:**...
in 2001. This led to the group's first tour overseas visiting Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and a series of supports with established alternative bands visiting Scotland such as Stereolab
Stereolab
Stereolab are an alternative music band formed in 1990 in London, England. The band originally comprised songwriting team Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier , both of whom remained at the helm across many lineup changes...
, Broadcast
Broadcast (band)
Broadcast are an electronic music band, founded in Birmingham, England. Original members were Trish Keenan , Roj Stevens , Tim Felton and James Cargill . Various drummers played with the band, including Keith York, Phil Jenkins, Jeremy Barnes, Steve Perkins, and Neil Bullock...
, Trans Am
Trans Am (band)
Trans Am is a three-piece band which originated in Bethesda, Maryland that was one of the originators of "post-rock" in the mid 90s. Their work centers on a cerebrally robotic, usually instrumental, semi-danceable, minimalistic format, with influences including Krautrock, heavy metal, hardcore...
and Enon
Enon
Enon was an indie rock band founded by John Schmersal, Rick Lee and Steve Calhoon. Currently, Enon is situated in Philadelphia, though the band is known for being part of the New York music scene.-Biography:...
.
After the release of 2003's more electronic
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
based 4 Claws Of The Underground EP on Scandinavia Records, the band recorded their self titled debut album
The Magnificents (Album)
The Magnificents is the debut album by the Scottish electro rock band The Magnificents.-Track listing:All tracks written by The Magnificents.# "Infidel Infidel " – 2:29# "Last Gasp Of Revenge" – 4:06# "The Apollo Creed" – 3:16...
. Now recording for KFM Records
KFM Records
KFM Records is a Scottish independent record label.KFM is an Edinburgh based label who's output ranges from moody hip-hop to caustic art rock.The label is owned and run by ex BMX world champion Scott McDonald....
the sessions took place at The Diving Bell Lounge Studio in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
. Released in early 2004, the album was generally well received and gained airplay from the likes of Vic Galloway
Vic Galloway
Michael "Vic" Galloway is a DJ on BBC Radio Scotland and BBC Radio 1, Vic presents a self-titled show on Radio Scotland every Monday from 8:05pm-10pm and does the BBC Introducing Scotland Radio 1 programme Wednesday evenings/Thursday mornings from 12:00-2:00am...
, Stuart Maconie
Stuart Maconie
Stuart Maconie is an English radio DJ and television presenter, writer, journalist, and critic working in the field of of pop music and popular culture. He is currently a presenter on BBC 6 Music, where he hosts an afternoon show five times a week , alongside Mark Radcliffe, called the Radcliffe...
and the late John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
. That same year the band were invited to Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
to play at the SXSW Music Festival and supported The Beta Band
The Beta Band
The Beta Band were a British musical group who received much critical acclaim and achieved cult status amongst avid followers of the underground and experimental music scene...
on their final UK tour.
The group have also recorded various live radio sessions, including for BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
, BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland is BBC Scotland's national English-language radio network. It broadcasts a wide variety of programming, including news, sport, light entertainment, music, the arts, comedy, drama, history and lifestyle...
and featured on the BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
programme Mixing It
Mixing It
Mixing It was a radio programme showcasing experimental music. Its original remit was to showcase "crossover" music that blurred the established boundaries between genres...
about experimental music
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
in Scotland.
In 2005 the band entered Metway Studio in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
and recorded three tracks with producer Damien Taylor which would eventually be on the band's second album Year Of Explorers
Year Of Explorers
Year of Explorers is the second studio album by the Scottish electro rock band The Magnificents.-Track listing:All tracks written by The Magnificents.# "Ring Ring Oo Oo" – 4:57# "Can't Explode" – 3:11# "Get It Boy" – 3:22...
. In 2006 they went on their most extensive tour to date, supporting fellow Scots Mogwai
Mogwai
The word mogwai is the transliteration of the Cantonese word 魔怪 meaning "monster", "evil spirit", "devil" or "demon".-Mogwai/Mogui in Chinese culture:...
on their European tour. Following this, work was completed on Year Of Explorers at Castle of Doom Studios
Castle of Doom Studios
Castle of Doom Studios, created in 2005 by record producer Tony Doogan and Mogwai, is a recording studio in Glasgow, Scotland.-Overview:It has been used by such artists as Mogwai, Malcolm Middleton, The Magnificents, Belle & Sebastian, Dirty Pretty Things, and Errors. The studios are located on...
with Mogwais' John Cummings
John Cummings (musician)
John Cummings is a Scottish musician and record producer, best known for being a member of Glaswegian band Mogwai, mostly playing guitar, as well as programming, keyboards and vocals.-Mogwai:...
producing. The album was preceded by the Ring Ring EP in May 2007 before its August release.
Trivia
- The song Get It Boy appears on the soundtrack of the EA Sports Euro 2008UEFA Euro 2008 (video game)UEFA Euro 2008 is the official video game of the Euro 2008 football tournament, published by EA Sports. It was developed collaboratively by EA Canada and HB Studios and was released in Europe and North America on April 18, 2008 and May 19, 2008 respectively...
computer game. - The song Kids Now featured in the Cartoon Network show Codename: Kids Next DoorCodename: Kids Next DoorCodename: Kids Next Door, also known as Kids Next Door or by its acronym KND, is an American animated television series created by Tom Warburton and produced by Curious Pictures in Santa Monica, California.. The series debuted on Cartoon Network on December 6, 2002 and aired its final episode on...
- The band design their own merchandise, sleeve artwork and video projections used at concerts.
Discography
- Kids Now EP - 2001
- Digital Dirt/The Third Claw (7" Single) - 2003
- 4 Claws Of The Underground EP - 2003
- The MagnificentsThe Magnificents (Album)The Magnificents is the debut album by the Scottish electro rock band The Magnificents.-Track listing:All tracks written by The Magnificents.# "Infidel Infidel " – 2:29# "Last Gasp Of Revenge" – 4:06# "The Apollo Creed" – 3:16...
- 2004 - Last Gasp Of Revenge/White Lies (7" Single) - 2005
- The Apollo Creed (Download Single) - 2005
- Ring Ring EP - 2007
- Year of ExplorersYear Of ExplorersYear of Explorers is the second studio album by the Scottish electro rock band The Magnificents.-Track listing:All tracks written by The Magnificents.# "Ring Ring Oo Oo" – 4:57# "Can't Explode" – 3:11# "Get It Boy" – 3:22...
(Album) - 2007 - Get It Boy (Download Single) - 2007