-=- SHGZ -=-
* Shoegaze * Indie * Post-Rock * Grunge * Dream Pop * Psych-Rock * Ethereal *
ARTIST..: Atomic Blossom
ALBUM...: Atomic Blossom
GENRE...: Rock
STYLE...: Shoegaze, Grunge, Alternative Rock, Post-Punk
YEAR....: 2005
LABEL...: Failsafe
COUNTRY.: New Zealand
PLACE...: Christchurch
ENCODER.: FLAC 1.3.1 -8 -V
BITRATE.: 987 kbps avg
QUALITY.: 44.1kHz / 2 channels
SOURCE..: CDR
TRACKS..: 16
SIZE....: 481.77 MB
URL..: http://www.failsaferecords.com/artists/current/blossom.htm
- TRACKLIST
1 Flustered 3:47
2 I Tried 3:52
3 Space 4:01
4 Liquid Fury 4:55
5 Fall 5:14
6 Outfit Of Shine 4:17
7 No Star 5:01
8 Still Waiting 2:14
9 Whatever 4:06
10 Put It There 3:30
11 Screw 3:24
12 Bewildered 4:06
13 So Long 5:58
14 Seemingless 3:58
15 Don't Go Out That Way (Bonus Track) 6:04
16 Space (Demo) (Bonus Track) 4:07
Total Playtime: 68:34
The bands 1995 album remastered and re-released with bonus material in April, 2005.
*
Atomic Blossom were a sonic ShoeGazer band from Christchurch centered around
the core of duel Guitarist Vocalists Dean Karena and Pruedence Stone, both
writing songs and singing.
This much loved Christchurch outfit were on the road to international success
when they recorded and released this great little album. The band
self-released this then went to New York to follow up on interest the band
had gained from supporting Smashing Pumpkins on their NZ tour. On arriving in
New York the band attracted the attention of Madonna's Maverick label and
were all but set to make it when they imploded with co singer/guitarist
Prudence Stone deciding she didn't want to be in a rock band after all. You
get that sometimes, with musicians. Consequently it was almost impossible to
get a copy of the original album and so we've decided to re-release it in a
remastered form to share the music.
*
ATOMIC BLOSSOM
The brainchild of Christchurch musician Dean Karena.
Karena first came to local prominence with his previous band Naked Lunch in
1990.
Naked Lunch were a three piece outfit which featured Dean Karena on Vocals /
Guitar, Randolf (Tuck) Tucker - Drums, Peter Blackman - Bass.
Karena formed Atomic Blossom in late 1993. The original line up included:
Dean Karena - Guitar / Vocals
Prudence Stone - Guitar / Vocals
Greg Hirtzel - Bass (Debris)
Trevor Hall - Drums
The band did their first performance at an outdoor concert at the Dux de Lux
in Christchurch, first up on a rainy outdoor show featuring Cinematic, The
Headless Chickens and Dave Dobbyn.
Trevor Hall had previously worked as an Orientation and Activities
co-ordinator for University events, but he was a relative newcomer to
drumming, and the band felt they had to replace him almost immediately,
shifting Hirtzel from bass to drums and bringing in Layton Pace (Trawler,
Swirl).
This line-up quickly cemented itself and recorded 5 songs almost immediately,
one track appearing on the Good Things compilation, the other 4 eventually
being re-recorded toward the band's album.
Pace left the band after 6 months choosing to commit himself to Trawler,
where he got to sing and write his own music.
Pace was replaced by Matt Monopoli and this line-up stayed solid till the
band eventually disbanded in disastrous circumstances in New York in 1995.
The story goes that the band continued to grow in popularity, working toward
their self-released album, and building a strong following for their heavily
British sonic guitar sound.
The band secured support slots for Smashing Pumpkins on the 1995 New Zealand
tour, impressing the Pumpkins and management.
Meanwhile Atomic Blossom's manager was in the US working at securing the band
industry support and arranging concert dates for them stateside.
AB put the finishing touches on the CD and pressed 500 copies. This was used
as a demo of the bands material and hardly any of them saw public release.
The album remained pretty much impossible to obtain for ten years, until
Failsafe Records remastered and rereleased it in 2005.
At the end of 1995 Stone left for the US, the rest of the band were to follow
early in 1996.
Unknown to the rest of the band Stone had tired of playing in the band and
felt her leaving for the US was indication enough to the others that she
wanted to leave.
The other members followed in 1996 and the band united to play American
concerts which secured them heavy interest from US labels, notably Maverick
Records.
A record deal was as good as signed apparently before Stone chose this
opportune moment to abandon the band, effectively scuttling the project.
Stone stayed in New York, and Karena, Hirtzel, and Monopoli returned to NZ
and disbanded.
Karena left NZ for Australia, probably disheartened by the turn of events.
Hirtzel concentrated his efforts on his other band Debris.
Monopoli moved to the UK.
-=- SHGZ -=-
-=-=-==-=-=-
Shoegaze
is a genre of alternative rock that
originated in the late 80s. The genre is very
difficult to define, and it is even more difficult to evaluate music
within it. Generally, the genre is characterized by its
shimmering vocals, reverberating guitars, and
textural distortion that create
a tranquil, opaque
feeling.
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