Musicians - The Sisters of Mercy

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	Musicians - The Sisters of Mercy

The Sisters of Mercy are a band that emerged out of the British post punk scene in 1980-1981. After achieving early underground fame in UK, the band had their commercial breakthrough in mid-1980s and sustained it until early 1990s, when they stopped releasing new recorded output as a strike against their record company. Currently, the band is kept alive as a touring outfit only.

The group have recorded three original studio albums, of which the last was released in 1990. Each album was recorded by a different line-up, the only constant member was singer and songwriter Andrew Eldritch.

The group ceased recording activity in 1994, when they went on strike against their record company TimeWarner, which it accused of withholding royalties and incompetence. Although TimeWarner eventually let the band go in 1997, they have not signed to another label, and have chosen not to go the "independent label" route, despite showcasing numerous new songs in their live set.

Since 1985, when other original members left, The Sisters of Mercy is the artistic vehicle of Andrew Eldritch. Some ex-members of the group established bands Mission UK and Ghostdance.

The band cited Leonard Cohen and Motörhead, as well as the The Stooges and Suicide as among their influences. The latter two bands are respectively considered to be proto-punk and punk, and as such the band shares influences with other bands in the first wave of what is termed "goth" music. Whilst the band enjoys a considerable fan base with overlapping interests in so-called dark culture, The Sisters of Mercy consider themselves first and foremost a rock band. They have actively discouraged their association with "goth" via regular public statements in the press, not to mention stipulations in their standard contract riders. Nevertheless, this has not stopped them from regularly appearing at festivals where this music is featured, such as M'era Luna. For further discussion on this point, see here.

Bands influenced by The Sisters of Mercy include James Ray Gangwar, Corpus Delicti, The Merry Thoughts, Rosetta Stone, Systems Of Romance, Dreamtime (band), and Marionettes, among others.

History

Foundation (1980)

The band was formed in Leeds, England in 1980 by F-club regulars Gary Marx and Andrew Eldritch to satisfy their intent to hear themselves on the radio; somewhere in the process band t-shirts were made and a single, "Damage Done/Watch/Home of the Hit-men", was recorded and released.

The name was influenced by Robert Altman's film McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), which featured the Leonard Cohen song of the same name ("because The Captains of Industry weren't as funny"), and was supposed to reflect the ambiguity of a rock'n'roll band - "half saints, half prostitutes" * .

*(anybody who has seen the film will understand this joke)'

On the single (claimed by the band to have been played twice by John Peel) Gary Marx played guitar through a practice amplifier and Andrew Eldritch was on drums. The partners each wrote and sang on a song.
Early years (1981-1983)
The band regrouped with Craig Adams on bass, while Eldritch's drumming was replaced by a drum machine, leaving him to concentrate on vocals. The drum machine was christened Doktor Avalanche, and all of its numerous successors kept this name. Andrew Eldritch took over lyrics-writing, Doktor-programming, and record-producing duties, while sharing the music-writing with Marx and (occasionally) Adams.

This became what is generally recognised as the first real Sisters line-up. It began with a vintage piece of murky mythology: according to legend, the Doktor/Eldritch/Marx/Adams incarnation of the band played a gig in Leeds, England in early 1981. However, no-one is quite sure where this took place. For historic purposes, the band and fans have often celebrated the anniversary of the February 16, 1981 concert, in Vanbrugh College, York, England - the band's second ever gig in the form. In 2001, it was the scene of the band's 20th anniversary concert, complete with iced cupcakes for the audience.

Later in 1981, Ben Gunn established himself as the second guitarist after several others came and went. Eldritch's melancholic baritone, Craig Adams's pulsating bass, Doktor Avalanche's beat and Gary Marx's flowing guitar led the band to early underground success. Gunn did his best not to spoil the picture.

The band's singles were regularly featured in UK independent charts; some became single of the week in various UK indie magazines. John Ashton of Psychedelic Furs produced the early classic "Alice". "The Reptile House EP" is another example of early Sisters work and marks the maturing songwriter Eldritch (who wrote, produced and (reportedly) played all instruments on it).

The live performances featured many cover versions: among those, a medley consisting of Sister Ray (by Velvet Underground) / Ghostrider (by Suicide) / Louie Louie (by Richard Berry) became a live staple. Only three of them, The Stooges's "1969", The Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter" and Hot Chocolate's "Emma" were eventually recorded and released on Sisters records (all as b-sides).
[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for The Sisters of Mercy ]

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