Alison Elizabeth Margaret Goldfrapp (born 13 May 1966) is an English musician and record producer, known as the vocalist of English
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electro ...
duo
Goldfrapp
Goldfrapp are an English electronic music duo from London, formed in 1999. The duo consists of Alison Goldfrapp (vocals, synthesiser) and Will Gregory (synthesiser).
Despite favourable reviews and a short-listing for the Mercury Prize, their ...
.
Early life
Goldfrapp was born on 13 May 1966, in
Enfield
Enfield may refer to:
Places Australia
* Enfield, New South Wales
* Enfield, South Australia
** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb
** Enfield High School (South Australia)
...
, London, the youngest of six children.
Her mother, Isabella Barge, was a nurse.
Her father, Nicholas Goldfrapp, had been an
army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
officer, and worked in advertising. Goldfrapp's surname is of German origin.
While Goldfrapp was growing up, her family moved frequently, eventually settling in
Alton, Hampshire
Alton ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England, near the source of the River Wey. It had a population of 17,816 at the 2011 census.
Alton was recorded in the Domesday Survey of 1086 as ''Aoltone' ...
, where Goldfrapp attended the independent
Alton Convent School. She sang in a choir at the school and has said that she loved being in a school with nuns.
However, she was forced to leave at age 11 after failing the senior exam,
and attended the local comprehensive school,
Amery Hill School. She moved into a
squat in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
aged 16.
At 24 years old, she attended
Middlesex University
Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...
where she studied fine art and mixed media.
Career
In 1994, she featured on the
Orbital album ''
Snivilisation'' and recorded songs "The Good" and "The Bad" with trip reggae outfit
Dreadzone
Dreadzone are a British electronic music group. They have released eight studio albums, two live albums, and two compilations.
Career
Dreadzone were formed in London, England in 1993 when ex-Big Audio Dynamite drummer Greg Roberts teamed up ...
, for their 'best of' album ''The Best of Dreadzone – The Good The Bad and the Dread''. Performing with them live resulted in two songs on the limited edition ''Performance'' album released in 1994. In the same year, Goldfrapp featured on
trip hop
Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with " downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic fusion of hip hop and electronica with slow tem ...
artist
Tricky's 1995 song "Pumpkin" and collaborated with Stefan Girardet on two songs on the soundtrack to the 1995 film ''
The Confessional
''The Confessional'' (french: Le Confessionnal) is a 1995 mystery-drama film directed by Robert Lepage.
The film is set in Quebec City, in two distinct time periods. In the present day, Pierre Lamontagne (Lothaire Bluteau) searches for his estran ...
''.
Goldfrapp was introduced to composer
Will Gregory
William Owen Gregory (born 17 September 1959) is an English musician and record producer. He is best known as the lead keyboardist, producer, and composer of the electronic music duo Goldfrapp.
Early life
Gregory was born in Bristol, the son ...
in 1999 after he had listened to her vocal contribution for "Pumpkin"; they then formed Goldfrapp and signed to
Mute Records.
In 2000, she was a featured vocalist on the songs "The Time Of The Turning" and "The Time of the Turning (Reprise)/The Weaver's Reel" from the release ''
OVO'',
Peter Gabriel's soundtrack album to the London
Millennium Dome Show
The Millennium Dome Show was a multimedia theatrical performance created to commemorate the year 2000 in the Millennium Dome in London, England. The show was directed by Pixar executive Pete Docter, who wrote the show alongside English musician ...
.
The pair began recording their debut album over a six-month period, beginning in September 1999, in a rented
bungalow in the
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
countryside.
The band's debut album ''
Felt Mountain
''Felt Mountain'' is the debut studio album by English electronic music duo Goldfrapp. It was released on 11 September 2000 by Mute Records. The album takes influence from a variety of music styles such as 1960s pop, cabaret, folk and electro ...
'' was released in 2000 and featured Goldfrapp's synthesized vocals over cinematic
soundscape
A soundscape is the acoustic environment as perceived by humans, in context. The term was originally coined by Michael Southworth, and popularised by R. Murray Schafer. There is a varied history of the use of soundscape depending on discipline, ...
s. Goldfrapp released their second album ''
Black Cherry
''Prunus serotina'', commonly called black cherry,World Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. wild black cherry, rum cherry, or mountain black cherry, is a deciduous tree or shrub of the ...
'' in 2003. The band recorded the album in
Bath, England. This album focused more heavily on
dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded da ...
and
glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...
-inspired
synths than its predecessor. ''Black Cherry'' peaked at number nineteen on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
and sold 52,000 copies in the US.
''
Supernature'', Goldfrapp's third album, was released in 2005. The album comprises pop and
electronic dance music prominently featured on ''Black Cherry'', but focuses more on subtle hooks instead of the large choruses that made up its predecessor. It has sold one million copies worldwide and earned the duo two nominations at the
2007 Grammy Awards for
Best Electronic/Dance Album
The Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards — a ceremony that was established in 1958 — to recording artists for quality albums in the dance music and electronica genres. Honors in several cate ...
and
Best Dance Recording
The Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Recording (formerly known as Best Dance Recording) is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists f ...
for the song "
Ooh La La".
''
Seventh Tree
''Seventh Tree'' is the fourth studio album by English electronic music duo Goldfrapp, released on 22 February 2008 by Mute Records. It was named after a dream Alison Goldfrapp had about a "very large tree". Taking inspiration from paganism and ...
'', Goldfrapp's fourth album, was released in 2008 and debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart.
The album is a departure from the pop and electronic dance music featured on ''Supernature'', featuring
ambient and
downtempo
Downtempo (or downbeat) is a broad label for electronic music that features an atmospheric sound and slower beats than would typically be found in dance music. Closely related to ambient music but with greater emphasis on rhythm, the style may b ...
music. The band were inspired by an
acoustic radio session they had performed, which led the duo to incorporate acoustic guitars into their music to create "warm" and "delicate" sounds.
In 2009, she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Music degree by the
University of Portsmouth.
Goldfrapp have released seven albums, most recently ''
Silver Eye
''Silver Eye'' is the seventh studio album by English electronic music duo Goldfrapp, released on 31 March 2017 by Mute Records. The album's first single, " Anymore", was released to digital music retailers on 23 January 2017 after its premiere on ...
'' in 2017. Hits include "
Strict Machine
"Strict Machine" is an electronic dance song written by British electronic music duo Goldfrapp and Nick Batt for Goldfrapp's second studio album, '' Black Cherry'' (2003). It was produced by Goldfrapp and describes laboratory rats in neuroscienc ...
", "
Ooh La La", "
Lovely Head
"Lovely Head" is an electronic song performed by British group Goldfrapp. The song was written and produced by Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory for the duo's debut album '' Felt Mountain'' (2000). It was released as the album's first single in M ...
" and "
A&E". The multi-platinum selling band have been nominated for the
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the B ...
, multiple
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
s and won an
Ivor Novello for "Strict Machine".
Goldfrapp scored the films ''
My Summer of Love
''My Summer of Love'' is a 2004 British drama film directed by Paweł Pawlikowski and co-written by Pawlikowski and Michael Wynne. Based on the 2001 novel of the same name by Helen Cross, the film explores the romantic relationship between two ...
'' and ''
Nowhere Boy
''Nowhere Boy'' is a 2009 British biographical drama film, directed by Sam Taylor-Wood in her directorial debut. Written by Matt Greenhalgh, it is based on Julia Baird's biography of her half-brother, the musician John Lennon. ''Nowhere Boy'' i ...
''.
In recent years, Goldfrapp has dedicated more time to her role as a photographer and director. She created and photographed the album artwork for ''Silver Eye'' and directed videos for singles "
Systemagic", "
Everything Is Never Enough
"Everything Is Never Enough" is a song performed by English group Goldfrapp, taken from their seventh studio album, ''Silver Eye'' (2017). It was released as the album's third single on 22 September 2017 by Mute Records. The song was written and p ...
" and "
Ocean
The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the wo ...
".
In September 2021, Goldfrapp were awarded the Ivor Novello 'Inspiration Award' which celebrates "peer recognition for the excellence of the Goldfrapp songwriting catalogue and in particular how it has inspired the creative talent of other creators".
Artistry
Voice
Goldfrapp has an expansive
soprano vocal range.
She is noted for her operatic abilities, particularly on the group's debut album ''
Felt Mountain
''Felt Mountain'' is the debut studio album by English electronic music duo Goldfrapp. It was released on 11 September 2000 by Mute Records. The album takes influence from a variety of music styles such as 1960s pop, cabaret, folk and electro ...
'' and prominently on the songs "
Utopia
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island societ ...
" and "
Pilots". Her delivery in a more contemporary voice has been described as "breathy", "sultry", "ethereal" and "startling".
Goldfrapp has been commended for her vocal versatility, morphing her voice to fit various genres such as
folk
Folk or Folks may refer to:
Sociology
*Nation
*People
* Folklore
** Folk art
** Folk dance
** Folk hero
** Folk music
*** Folk metal
*** Folk punk
*** Folk rock
** Folk religion
* Folk taxonomy
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Folk Plus or Fo ...
, pop, classical, dance,
trip hop
Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with " downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic fusion of hip hop and electronica with slow tem ...
and
electronica throughout her career. Goldfrapp has used a Korg MS20 Audio Envelope follower to manipulate her vocals, such as the song "
Lovely Head
"Lovely Head" is an electronic song performed by British group Goldfrapp. The song was written and produced by Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory for the duo's debut album '' Felt Mountain'' (2000). It was released as the album's first single in M ...
" in which her voice is altered to resemble a theremin. Vocally, Goldfrapp has been compared to
Marlene Dietrich
Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...
,
Siouxsie Sioux
Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), known professionally as Siouxsie Sioux, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. She was the lead singer of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees (1976–1996). They released 11 ...
,
Björk,
Kate Bush
Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single " Wuthering Heights", becoming the first female ...
and
Elizabeth Fraser of the
Cocteau Twins.
Compositions
Goldfrapp produces and writes most of her material alongside bandmate
Will Gregory
William Owen Gregory (born 17 September 1959) is an English musician and record producer. He is best known as the lead keyboardist, producer, and composer of the electronic music duo Goldfrapp.
Early life
Gregory was born in Bristol, the son ...
. She draws inspiration from a range of artists and musical genres. As a teenager she listened to
Kate Bush
Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single " Wuthering Heights", becoming the first female ...
,
T. Rex,
Donna Summer,
Joan Jett
Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...
,
Marc Bolan
Marc Bolan ( ; born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex. Bolan was posthumously inducted in ...
,
David Cassidy
David Bruce Cassidy (April 12, 1950 – November 21, 2017) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was best known for his role as Keith Partridge, the son of Shirley Partridge (played by his stepmother, Shirley Jones), in t ...
, and
Iggy Pop and The Stooges, and discovered
Serge Gainsbourg while working in Belgium.
While travelling through Europe in the early 1990s, she began listening to Polish
disco music and
cabaret
Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining o ...
music from the
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is ...
.
Other media, including film, have influenced Goldfrapp who cites
Roman Polanski
Raymond Roman Thierry Polański , group=lower-alpha, name=note_a ( né Liebling; 18 August 1933) is a French-Polish film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, tw ...
's 1966
psychological thriller
Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting.
In terms of context and c ...
''
Cul-de-sac'', the 1973
cult film ''
The Wicker Man
''The Wicker Man'' is a 1973 British folk horror film directed by Robin Hardy and starring Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland, Diane Cilento, Ingrid Pitt, and Christopher Lee. The screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, inspired by David Pinner's 1967 ...
'' and the
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
franchise as influences. She draws inspiration from
surrealism and nature, all of which appear in Goldfrapp's album artwork, which she designs in collaboration with Big Active.
Goldfrapp believes that "music is a visual experience" and therefore visualises her lyrics before writing them. While writing, Goldfrapp uses her vocals to create melodies and drumbeats. Her songwriting is characterised by its use of animals to describe human emotions and status.
Public image
While touring in 2004, sections of the group's stage show featured Goldfrapp in a white dress wearing a horse tail and dancers with deer heads, which were inspired by her interest in animals and mythology.
The artwork for Goldfrapp's album ''Seventh Tree'' featured her dressed as a
Pierrot
Pierrot ( , , ) is a stock character of pantomime and '' commedia dell'arte'', whose origins are in the late seventeenth-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne. The name is a diminutive of ''Pi ...
. Her new image, inspired by
paganism, featured her dressed in white or natural-coloured flowing gowns with loose curly blonde hair.
During 2010, Goldfrapp took on several new images to fit with their forthcoming album ''
Head First
Head First or Headfirst may refer to:
Music
* ''Head First'' (The Babys album) (1979)
* ''Head First'' (Badfinger album) (recorded 1974, released 2000)
* ''Head First'' (Goldfrapp album) (2010), or its title track
* ''Head First'' (Uriah Hee ...
''. The music on this album was more '80s-influenced, reflected in the artwork featured on the album's first single, "
Rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
", which features Goldfrapp in a pink jumpsuit. For their live shows, she wore spangly black leggings and a jacket covered in VHS tape which was blown about by two electric fans placed at front centre-stage. The shine of the plastic reflected the colourful stage lighting.
In 2013, Goldfrapp was invited by
the Lowry
The Lowry is a theatre and gallery complex at Salford Quays, Salford, Greater Manchester, England. It is named after the early 20th-century painter L. S. Lowry, known for his paintings of industrial scenes in North West England. The complex ope ...
, Salford, to curate an exhibition as part of their ‘Performer as Curator’ annual series. The exhibition was a collection of photography and paintings inspired by ideas of metamorphosis and fairytales.
Personal life
Goldfrapp confirmed she was dating film editor
Lisa Gunning
Lisa Gunning is an English film director, editor and writer.
She began her career in 1990s, following her graduation from University College London, where she studied English. In 1998, she met director Anthony Minghella while working on a spot f ...
in a February 2010 interview with ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'' saying, "I think of everything as being about a person and a relationship, and I am in a wonderful relationship with a wonderful person. It just happens to be with a lady... It's something I've thought about for a long time and it concurs with my philosophy on life and sexuality. I don't think it can or should be pigeonholed. I've thought about this since I was a teenager. I've always found it claustrophobic to think about having to put things into categories like that. My sexuality is the same as my music and my life. Why does it need a label?" Goldfrapp's relationships before this were with men.
In November 2020, it was announced that Goldfrapp was dating architect Peter Culley.
Goldfrapp is
dyslexic.
References
External links
Goldfrapp's official website*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldfrapp, Alison
1966 births
Living people
Alumni of Middlesex University
Ambient musicians
English electronic musicians
English people of German descent
English pop pianists
English record producers
English women singer-songwriters
English sopranos
British trip hop musicians
Goldfrapp members
Ivor Novello Award winners
LGBT composers
LGBT musicians from England
LGBT producers
LGBT singers from the United Kingdom
LGBT songwriters
LGBT writers from England
Musicians from Bath, Somerset
Mute Records artists
People from Alton, Hampshire
People from Enfield, London
Singers from London
Sony BMG artists
Synth-pop singers
Tambourine players
Writers from London
English women in electronic music
20th-century English women singers
20th-century English singers
21st-century English women singers
21st-century English singers
British women record producers
People with dyslexia
Squatters
20th-century women pianists
21st-century women pianists