Forgemasters was a British

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 ( electroa ...

act composed of Robert Gordon, Winston Hazel and Sean Maher. Their single "Track with No Name" was the first release by

Warp Records Warp Records (or simply Warp) is a British independent record label founded in Sheffield in 1989 by record store employees Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell and record producer Robert Gordon.Southern, Richard (2003) "Label of Love: WARP", X-RAY, ...

and would help define the sound of Warp and bleep techno.

History

Robert Gordon, Sean Maher and Winston Hazel were colleagues in the FON record shop and studio in Sheffield. Gordon was an engineer at FON Studio and co-founder of

. The name Forgemasters was taken from a local heavy engineering firm,

Sheffield Forgemasters Sheffield Forgemasters is a heavy engineering firm located in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The company specialises in the production of large bespoke steel castings and forgings, as well as standard rolls, ingots and bars. The comp ...

. Their single "Track with No Name" was the first release by Warp Records. It was of a

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

subgenre, the primarily Sheffield based bleep techno, and written in four hours one evening at Gordon's home studio. Dave Simpson, writing in '' Fact'' in 2012, described it as "driven by an eerie pulse, a sound which would soon be called a ‘bleep’ and become the distinctive signature of hardcore northern techno and, for its first two years, the sound of Warp." Matt Anniss, writing for '' Resident Advisor'' in 2014, called it "one of the defining records of the era".

Discography

Singles and EPs

* "Track with No Name" (

Warp Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a ...

, 1989) – released in association with Outer Rhythm * ''The Black Steel E.P.'' (

Network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematics ...

, 1991) * ''Quabala EP'' (Hubba Hubba, 1992)

Singles with contributions by Forgemasters

* "Network Retro #8: Back 2 Back Classics" (Network, 1993) – "Somebody New" by MK* / "Track with No Name (Communique Mix)" by Forgemasters

Compilation album appearances

* '' Warp 10: Influences, Classics, Remixes – Warp 10+2: Classics 89–92'' (Warp, 1999) – includes "Track with No Name" * ''Rob Gordon Projects'' by Rob Gordon (Source, 1996) – includes "Clap Your Hands", "" icand "Presence"

Remixes

* "Man Machine (Cyber - Subsonik) mix", Man Machine (Outer Rhythm, 1989) – "Man Machine (Cyber - Subsonik)" and "Man Machine (Elektro - Genetik)" mixed by Forgemasters * "15 Inches+" (Rebuilt by Forgemasters) – The Wad (Earth, 1997). Included on ''7 Hills Clash – Rebuilt EP'' * "Commercial Rain (Rub-A-Dub Mix)" –

Inspiral Carpets Inspiral Carpets are an English rock band, part of the late-1980s/early-1990s Madchester movement. Formed in Oldham in 1980, the band's most successful lineup featured frontman Tom Hingley, drummer Craig Gill, guitarist Graham Lambert, bassi ...

(

Mute Muteness is a speech disorder in which a person lacks the ability to speak. Mute or the Mute may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Mute'' (2005 film), a short film by Melissa Joan Hart * ''Mute'' (2018 film), a scien ...

, 1990). Included on "Commercial Rain"/"She Comes in the Fall (Remixes)"

References

External links

* {{Discogs artist, Forgemasters English electronic music groups English techno music groups Musical groups from Sheffield British musical trios Warp (record label) artists Rhythm King artists