Audioweb are an English indie rock band, formed in 1991 in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. They were initially called The Sugar Merchants.

Career

Audioweb scored two

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

- "Policeman Skank...(The Story Of My Life)", and a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

's "

Bankrobber "Bankrobber" is a song by English punk rock band The Clash. The song was not released on any of their studio albums, instead appearing on their compilation ''Black Market Clash''. Upon its 1980 release as a single (initially available in the UK ...

". Famous admirers of the group were U2 and

Ian Brown Ian George Brown (born 20 February 1963) is an English singer and multi-instrumentalist. He was the lead singer of the alternative rock band The Stone Roses from their formation in 1983. Following the split in 1996, he began a solo career, re ...

. Audioweb supported U2 at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

in August 1997. Prior to this Stadium gig they supported

Cast Cast may refer to: Music * Cast (band), an English alternative rock band * Cast (Mexican band), a progressive Mexican rock band * The Cast, a Scottish musical duo: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis * ''Cast'', a 2012 album by Trespassers William * ...

at Glasgow's

Barrowlands The Barrowland Ballroom (also known as Barrowlands) is a dance hall and music venue in Glasgow, Scotland. History The original building opened in 1934 in a mercantile area east of Glasgow's city centre, built by Maggie McIver, the "Barras Queen ...

in March 1997. They also supported

Madness Madness or The Madness may refer to: Emotion and mental health * Anger, an intense emotional response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat * Insanity, a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns * ...

at Madstock '96 at Finsbury Park, London. Audioweb released their

material Material is a substance or mixture of substances that constitutes an object. Materials can be pure or impure, living or non-living matter. Materials can be classified on the basis of their physical and chemical properties, or on their geologi ...

on the Mother Records label. The band split up in 1999. Bassist McCann played for Ian Brown and Badly Drawn Boy and releases his own music under the name Fellow Traveller; Maxfield has drummed for Ian Brown since 2001; File has been working with the singer-songwriter

Finley Quaye Finley Quaye (born 25 March 1974, Edinburgh, Scotland) is a Scottish musician. He won the 1997 MOBO Award for best reggae act, and the 1998 BRIT Award for Best Male Solo Artist. Life Finley Quaye is the son of vaudeville pianist Cab Kaye and t ...

; while Merchant's 2007 - 2013 Manchester band, SupaJamma have released one mini album "That Was Then, This is Now" & four singles, "Madaboutit, It's Alright, Hope & Pray, We Run Tings" on Stereokill Recordings. Merchant is also the vocalist on the theme tune for the BBC show ''

Rastamouse ''Rastamouse'' is a stop motion animated children's television series created by Genevieve Webster and Michael De Souza and produced by Three Stones Media/The Rastamouse Company and DHX Media for CBeebies. The show follows crime busting mouse reg ...

''. Audioweb reformed in 2016. The band's first live performance after reforming was on 18 June 2016 at

Manchester City F.C. Manchester City Football Club are an England, English association football, football club based in Manchester that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English football. Fo ...

Etihad Stadium The City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester, England, also known as the Etihad Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is the home of Premier League club Manchester City F.C., with a domestic football capacity of 53,400, making it the 6th-largest ...

, supporting

The Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...

. The reformation was derailed in September 2017 when frontman Martin Merchant was charged with three counts of possession of a firearm and one count of possession of ammunition, and sentenced at Manchester Magistrates’ Court. Nevertheless, a new single, "King", was released in 2021.

Personnel

*Martin "Sugar" Merchant (vocals) *Sean McCann (bass) *Robin File (guitar) *Robert "Maxi" Maxfield (drums)

Discography

Albums

* ''

Audioweb Audioweb are an English indie rock band, formed in 1991 in Manchester. They were initially called The Sugar Merchants. Career Audioweb scored two Top 40 hits in the UK Singles Chart - "Policeman Skank...(The Story Of My Life)", and a cover vers ...

'' (1996) UK No. 70 * '' Fireworks City'' (1998)

Singles

* "Sleeper" (1995) UK No. 74 * "Yeah?" (1996) UK No. 73 * "Into my World" (1996) UK No. 42 US No. 10 * "Sleeper" (

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

) (1996) UK No. 50 * "

" (1997) UK No. 19 * "Faker" (1997) UK No. 70 * "Policeman Skank... (The Story of My Life)" (1998) UK No. 21 * "Personal Feeling" (1998) UK No. 65 * "Get Out of Here" (1998) * "Test the Theory" (1999) UK No. 56 * "King" (2021)

References

External links

Republic of Audioweb – unofficial Audioweb fansiteFellow Traveller

Republic of Audioweb – MySpace page'SupaJamma' Martin Merchants new band- MySpace page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Audioweb English rock music groups English electronic music groups Musical groups from Manchester Musical groups established in 1991 Musical groups disestablished in 1999 1991 establishments in England