Lowlife (band)

Lowlife were a Scottish alternative rock/dream pop band, active from 1985 to 1997. Although the group never obtained mainstream popularity, they developed a cult following that continues to this day.

The band was led by singer Craig Lorentson on lead vocals and also featured Cocteau Twins founding bassist Will Heggie after his departure from that group.

Pre Lowlife

Dead Neighbours were an early-1980s psychobilly band from Grangemouth, Scotland, originally consisting of Craig Lorentson (vocals), David Steel ( bass), Ronnie Buchanan (guitar), and Grant McDowall (drums). The group were managed by Brian Guthrie, brother of Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins, and had recorded an album, ''Harmony in Hell'' (1982), that briefly hit the lower regions of the UK independent record charts.

In 1983, Steel left Dead Neighbours in the middle of recording the band's second album, ''Strangedays/Strangeways''. Upon learning that Cocteau Twins' founding member and bassist Will Heggie had recently departed that band (after a lengthy and reportedly difficult European tour), Guthrie asked Heggie to help Dead Neighbours out in finishing the album's recording and join them on a tour opening for Johnny Thunders. Heggie agreed and, after the album was completed and the tour was done, he stayed on and began rehearsing new material with the band. Guthrie noticed that with Heggie, the entire chemistry of the group suddenly changed and they began forging a completely new, atmospheric sound very different from their original Cramps-influenced beginnings. Apparently unhappy with the direction they were clearly aiming for, Buchanan abruptly departed the band. A new guitarist was brought in, Stuart Everest, who adapted quickly to the band's updated vision. In 1984, the group retired the Dead Neighbours moniker for good and rechristened themselves as Lowlife.

1980s

In 1985, Lowlife recorded ''Rain'', a six-song mini-album. It was released on Nightshift Records, a label formed by Guthrie specifically to release material by the band. All subsequent Lowlife LPs, singles, and EPs would appear on Nightshift, with the exception of their final album, '' Gush'', which was released on the Anoise Annoys Records label. ''Rain'' was modestly successful, receiving generally positive reviews and sold well enough to appear on several independent charts in the UK, US and France.

In 1986, the band's debut album, ''Permanent Sleep'' was released and received critical praise from several UK and US music publications. ''Trouser Press'' noted that the album "... delves deeper into instrumental and vocal textures, with layers of strummed and picked guitar and slippery bass chords (shades of New Order) dominating the sound. Despite Lowlife's concentration on ambience, the affecting "Wild Swan" is a lovely song, punctuated by repeated guitar triplets fluttering overhead." ''Melody Maker'' said "Lowlife practice a mystical form of musical alchemy, with crystalline perfection." ''Sounds'' gave the album four stars and commented "Lowlife construct their deep atmospheres through hypnotically mysterious songs…"

An EP, ''Vain Delights'', was released in late 1986. The production of the EP was financed by the band's new association with Working Week, a recently formed publishing company run by Jeff Chegwin, twin brother of television presenter Keith Chegwin. ''Record Mirror'' called the release "Profound, melancholic, and reaches the parts other ephemeral pieces of plastic cannot reach." A song from the EP, "Hollow Gut", received airplay on BBC
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