International Observer is a British-New Zealand

musical duo A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform Instrumental music, instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely ...

formed by Tom Bailey, musician and ex-lead singer of the British band the

Thompson Twins Thompson Twins were a British Pop music, pop band formed in 1977 in Sheffield. Initially a New wave music, new wave group, they switched to a more mainstream pop sound and achieved considerable popularity during the mid-1980s, scoring a string ...

, which rose to fame during the 1980s. Its debut album, ''

Seen Seen may refer to: * ''Seen'' (album), by Tom Bailey, 2001 * Seen (artist) (born 1961), American graffiti artist * Seen (Winterthur), a district of Winterthur, Switzerland * Shin (letter), or ''Seen'' in Arabic, a Semitic abjad See also * Xian ...

'', featured

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

visual artist Rakai Karaitiana as part of the project.

Career

Following from the ashes of both the

and subsequent group

Babble Babble may refer to: * ''Babble'' (That Petrol Emotion album), 1987 album by That Petrol Emotion * ''Babble'' (Coyne & Krause album), 1979 album by Kevin Coyne And Dagmar Krause * Babble (band), a later incarnation of the Thompson Twins * Babb ...

, Bailey had taken to producing the New Zealand band Stellar* while still residing in the country (Bailey would subsequently move back to Europe in 2005). The success of this collaboration allowed him to focus on his own music, which had moved into the world of dub music, or

chill music Chill-out (shortened as chill; also typeset as chillout or chill out) is a loosely defined form of popular music characterized by slow tempos and relaxed moods. The definition of "chill-out music" has evolved throughout the decades, and generally ...

, as it is sometimes referred to in New Zealand. The initial venture into the public consciousness was through playing festivals in New Zealand. The success of his two-hour sets allowed Bailey to build a following for International Observer. When time came to compile a studio recording, there were enough pieces to complete a boxed set. The debut release was ''

'', which was released initially on the project's own IO Audio label. However, when the album emerged in the UK, the Birmingham-based dub label Different Drummer took on the task of distributing the album. After the release of the debut album, and prior to Bailey's relocation to Europe, Karaitiana left the project. The second album '' All Played Out'' was released in 2005 only in New Zealand on the Round Trip label. The album contained unreleased music that had been initially recorded for the ''

'' album. In 2007, third album '' Heard'' saw a more international release on Dubmission Records, as Bailey moved back to Europe to live in France, and perform live at several dates in the UK. For the widening audience of the project, and with aspirations towards the US market, ''Heard'' contained a mixture of tracks from the ''All Played Out'' album, as well as "London" from the Seen EP, live and further unreleased cuts. The album also featured a cover created by his new wife and artist Lauren Drescher. The fourth album ''

Felt Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood ...

'' was released in 2009 and features a take on the classic folk song "

House of the Rising Sun A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

". In 2018, Bailey released his fifth album ''Free from the Dungeons of Dub'', which featured thirteen tracks from his ''Dungeons of Dub'' series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, ''Science Fiction''. Bailey formed an audio visual project The Bailey Salgado Project with the renowned astronomer José Francisco Salgado in 2010.

Discography

Albums

References

External links

Bandcamp siteUnofficial siteThompson Twins/Babble/IO newsgroup
{{DEFAULTSORT:International Observer Rock music duos