The Victorian English Gentlemens Club
Encyclopedia
The Victorian English Gentlemens Club are a three piece experimental indie art rock band based in Cardiff
, Wales
.
. Their self-titled debut album
was released in Autumn 2006; first single "Impossible Sightings Over Shelton" debuted at number ten on the UK Indie Chart
. While writing the next album, the band performed at SXSW festival in Austin, Texas
in both 2007 and 2008, released a French language
version of the previous single "La Mer" (as a split 7" with the Paris
based band, This is Pop), and did several support and headline tours in UK and Europe.
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
.
Name
The name of the band is correctly spelt without an apostrophe. On their website, the band acknowledges they are "aware that there should be" an apostrophe. The name originated from style of the artwork of singer Adam.Debut album
The band was formed when Taylor and Mason met at Art College in Cardiff in 2004. Joined by drummer Daman they made their recording debut in early 2006; with the limited-edition "The Tales of Hermit Mark" / "My Son Spell Backwards" released in the spring and double A-side "Amateur Man" / "Ban the Gin" following that summer, both on Fantastic Plastic RecordsFantastic Plastic Records
Fantastic Plastic Records is a London based record label. It was independent until 15 June 2007 when the Sanctuary Group was bought by the Universal Music Group.-Current artists:* Bearsuit* Bricolage* Guillemots* Luke Haines* New Cassettes* Oppenheimer...
. Their self-titled debut album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
was released in Autumn 2006; first single "Impossible Sightings Over Shelton" debuted at number ten on the UK Indie Chart
UK Indie Chart
The UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered...
. While writing the next album, the band performed at SXSW festival in 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...
in both 2007 and 2008, released a French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
version of the previous single "La Mer" (as a split 7" with the Paris
Paris
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...
based band, This is Pop), and did several support and headline tours in UK and Europe.
Love on an Oil Rig
Love on an Oil Rig was the band's second full length album. Like the first album, it was recorded with the original lineup of Taylor, Mason and Daman. It was released on 14 September 2009 on CD and 12" Vinyl on This Is Fake DIY Records in the UK, and Flowershop Recordings in Europe. The first single from it was "Parrot", released on Yellow Vinyl. The album was toured across the UK and Europe with Steph Jones and Dan Lazenby joining the band for live performances after drummer Daman's departure. Touring included a performance in the upper galleries of the National Museum of Wales in November 2009 to open SWN festival, after releasing a song written and recorded for an artwork in the current exhibition there. In the same year they also performed in a forest, on a mountain, in a kitchen and a theatre.Current
James Griffiths became the band's drummer in April 2010. The band are currently writing and recording the third album, due for completion in 2010 and release in early in 2011 on This Is Fake DIY Records. The sound of the band has progressed from their early post punk minimalism, to a darker, heavier and rawer sound.Studio albums
- 2006: The Victorian English Gentlemens ClubThe Victorian English Gentlemens Club (album)The Victorian English Gentlemens Club is the debut album by The Victorian English Gentlemens Club.-Track listing:# "The Tales of Hermit Mark" - 2:52# "Stupid as Wood" - 2:55# "My Son Spells Backwards" - 1:55...
- 2009: Love on an Oil Rig
- 2011: Bag of Meat
Singles
- "The Tales Of Hermit Mark/My Son Spells Backwards" (Double A-Side 2006) (Fantastic Plastic Records)
- "Amateur Man/Ban The Gin" (Double A-Side 2006) (#170 UK) (Fantastic Plastic Records)
- "Pedestrian" (2006) (7" Split single) (Fantastic Plastic Records)
- "Impossible Sightings Over Shelton" (2006) (#161 UK) (Fantastic Plastic Records)
- "Stupid As Wood/La Mer" (2007) (7" Vinyl in Wooden Sleeve) (Fantastic Plastic Records)
- "La Mer (French Language Version)" (7" Split single) (LSM Records)
- "Parrot" (2009) (7" Yellow Vinyl) (This is Fake DIY Records)
- "Watching The Burglars" (2009) (This is Fake DIY Records)
- "Bored In Belgium" (2010) (7" Vinyl) (This is Fake DIY Records)
- "A Biting Wind Followed by an Occasional Drift of Snow (Was no Way to Cure a Hangover)" (2010) (This is Fake DIY Records)