Basczax were a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

band formed in

Redcar Redcar is a seaside town on the Yorkshire Coast in the Redcar and Cleveland unitary authority in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It is located east of Middlesbrough. The Teesside built-up area's Redcar subdivision had a population of ...

in August 1978.Ogg, Alex (2006) ''No More Heroes: a Complete History of UK Punk from 1976 to 1980'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 79-80

History

The band was formed by Mick Todd, who recorded a demo of "Karleearn Photography", which convinced Jeff Fogarty (saxophone) and Alan Savage (guitar, vocals) to join.Gimarc, George (2005) ''Punk Diary'', Backbeat Books, , p. 252, 272 The line-up was completed for early performances by Nigel Trenchard (keyboards) and Cog (drums), but these were soon replaced by former Blitzkrieg Bop members John Hodgson (keyboards) and Alan Cornforth (drums). Starting out as an anti-

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

, almost anti-music noise

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

, they supported

Gang Of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The gang ...

, amongst others in the early days. Basczax's first released material appeared on

Fast Product Fast Product was an independent record label, established in Edinburgh by Bob Last, his partner, Hilary Morrison and Tim Pearce in December 1977. Its first release was also the first single by the Mekons, released on 20 January 1978. The label ...

's '' Earcom 2''

mini-LP A mini-LP or mini-album is a short vinyl record album or LP, usually retailing at a lower price than an album that would be considered full-length. It is distinct from an EP due to containing more tracks and a slightly longer running length. A ...

in 1979, alongside

Joy Division Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...

. The band also released a

7" single In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...

on the Pipeline

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed dir ...

: "Madison Fallout"/"Auto Mekanik Destruktor" (1979), which reached #48 on the

UK Independent Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the rele ...

.Lazell, Barry (1998) ''Indie Hits 1980-1989'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 17 Basczax toured with

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Wirral Peninsula, Wirral, Merseyside, in 1978. The group consists of co-founders Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboar ...

(OMD), and appeared on the ''Check It Out'' TV show in 1980, performing "Ego Therapy". This lineup split in September 1980, with Hodgson and Cornforth going on to form "Makaton Chat" with ex-Deja Vu members Anthony Lindo, Graham Lipthorpe and Martin Alderdyce. John Hodgson now records under the name Fast Cakes, who released an album in August 2007 entitled ''LIVEYOUNGDIEFAST'', a second album in September 2012 entitled ''CALL OFF THE DOGS'' and a third in 2014 entitled ''LIFESTORY''. The three remaining members regrouped and continued. Eventually, after many lineup changes, the band mutated into Jank Mamba, and then The Flaming Mussolinis, who released two

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

s in the mid-1980s for

Portrait Records Portrait Records was a sister label of Epic Records and later of Columbia Records. Notable artists Cyndi Lauper and Sade signed with Portrait, but their contracts were absorbed by Epic after that incarnation of the label was shuttered. History ...

(

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

). Savage went on to form a band called Zoom, then another called Disraeli Gears, and released a

solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

CD in the 1990s on

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

-based "Northern Sky". A compilation of tracks recorded by Basczax between 1979-80 entitled ''The Best Of'' was released (initially download only) in 2009 on Spectra Records. In February 2010, four members from the 1979-80 line-up (Alan Savage, Jeff Fogarty, John Hodgson & Mick Todd) started recording together once again, with the view to releasing the first new Basczax material for almost 30 years. An album, entitled ''This Machine Rocks'' was released (download only) on 1 September 2010.

Discography

Albums

*''Terminal Madness'' (1979), Animated Tapes *'' Earcom 2: Contradiction'' (1979),

- with Thursdays and

*''This Machine Rocks'' (2010), Morbius ;Compilations: *''The Best of Basczax'' (2009), Spectra

Singles

*"Madison Fallout" (1979), Pipeline

References

External links

This Machine Rocks
{{DEFAULTSORT:Basczax English rock music groups English post-punk music groups English new wave musical groups Musical groups established in 1978 Musical groups disestablished in 1980 1978 establishments in England