Liquid Liquid is an American no wave and

dance-punk Dance-punk (also known as disco-punk, punk-funk or techno-punk) is a post-punk subgenre that emerged in the late 1970s, and is closely associated with the disco, post-disco and new wave movements.Rip It Up and Start Again: Post Punk 1978-1984 ...

group, originally active from 1980 to 1983. They are best known for their track "Cavern," which was covered—without proper permission or attribution—by the

Sugar Hill Records Sugar Hill Records is an American bluegrass and Americana record label. It was founded in Durham, North Carolina in 1978 by Barry Poss and David Freeman, the owner of County Records and Rebel Records. Poss acquired full control of Sugar Hil ...

house band as the backing track for Melle Mel's

old school rap Old-school hip hop (also spelled old skool) is the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music and original style of the genre. It typically refers to the music created around 1979 to 1983, as well as any hip hop that does not adhere to contem ...

classic " White Lines (Don't Don’t Do It)."Spear, Justin. "Punk-Funk-Adelic", ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * ' ...

'', September 2006. The group released a series of extended plays, including the acclaimed 1983 12" EP ''

Optimo Optimo Espacio ('Optimum Space') was a weekly Sunday-night club based in Glasgow, Scotland at the Sub Club on Jamaica Street, as well as a collective moniker for the night's resident DJ duo. Having run every week since it was founded in 1997, on ...

''. In 2008, the band reformed and have played in multiple countries.

History

Liquid Liquid emerged from downtown New York's no wave scene. The group's original records were pressed in very limited quantities on

99 Records 99 Records was an American independent record label, active from 1980 to 1984. The label was home to musicians in the no wave, post-punk, post-disco, and avant-garde scenes in New York City. History British designer Gina Franklyn sold British fa ...

, and can now fetch high prices. "Cavern" originally appeared on the EP, ''Optimo'', recorded by Don Hunerberg. Though the pressings were small, the music has had a lasting and far reaching impact. A music video for "Cavern" was produced by

Michael Sporn Michael Sporn (April 23, 1946 – January 19, 2014) was an American animator who founded his New York City-based company, Michael Sporn Animation in 1980, and produced and directed numerous animated TV specials and short spots. Sporn was nominate ...

. After "Cavern" was sampled for Grandmaster + Melle Mel's

classic, "

White Lines (Don't Don't Do It) "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Melle Mel, released as a 12" in 1983 on Sugar Hill Records. The song, which warns against the dangers of cocaine, addiction, and drug smuggling, is one of Mel's s ...

," 99 Records took Sugarhill to court over its unauthorized use, and after an expensive court battle, won compensation. Before they could collect, however, Sugarhill went into receivership. 2000 The song was also included on the '' Disco Not Disco'' compilation album. The first three EPs, plus live material, were reissued in 1997 by

Grand Royal Grand Royal was the Los Angeles, California-based vanity record label set up in 1992 by rap group Beastie Boys in conjunction with Capitol Records after the group left Def Jam Recordings. ''Grand Royal'' was also the name of a magazine written a ...

(US) and

Mo' Wax Mo' Wax was a British record label founded by James Lavelle in 1992. The label was not co-founded by Tim Goldsworthy, as is often reported. Steve Finan became co-owner shortly after. Mo' Wax came to recognition for being at the forefront of t ...

(UK). After the collapse of both these labels, Domino Records released the music from all three original 12"s plus extra tracks and early live recordings as ''Slip In And Out Of Phenomenon'' in 2008. In October 2008 the band returned to the UK after a prolonged hiatus, playing at London's

Barbican Theatre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhibi ...

alongside the Glasgow-based DJ duo

, who named themselves after the eponymous Liquid Liquid song and EP. Liquid Liquid performed in 2009 at the

Villette Sonique Villette Sonique is an annual music festival in Parc de la Villette in Paris, France, featuring a combination of experimental music, noise rock, Electronic music, electronic and other genres. The festival is usually held the last week of May. The ...

Festival in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, as well as in Lincoln Center, where they followed the 200 Guitar Orchestra. On April 2, 2010, the band performed "Cavern" with

The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

on ''

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by comedian Jimmy Fallon. About pag ...

'' and announced they were to play more shows in Britain, at the Offset Festival and ATP Release The Bats in London. On April 2, 2011,

LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy, co-founder of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals, various instruments), Nancy Whang (synthesizer, keyboards, vocals), Pat Mahoney (dr ...

played their farewell gig at Madison Square Garden in New York City with Liquid Liquid as supporting act.

Musical style

Liquid Liquid's music is essentially groove-based and influenced by a variety of sources, including

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

dub reggae Dub is an electronic musical style that grew out of reggae in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It is commonly considered a subgenre of reggae, though it has developed to extend beyond that style.Dub: soundscapes and shattered songs in Jamaican re ...

Afrobeat Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles (such as traditional Yoruba music and highlife) and American funk, jazz, and soul influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting ...

, and

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 ...

in its

do-it-yourself "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

garage approach. Their songs do not follow standard pop song form, having no defined verses or chorus. Vocalist Salvatore Principato is known to use his voice as an instrument, focusing more on pitch and rhythm than words and lyrics.

Band members

* Salvatore Principato - vocals (1980–1983, 2008–present) * Dennis Young - guitar, marimba, keyboards (1980–1983, 2008–present) *

Richard McGuire Richard McGuire (born 1957) is an American illustrator, graphic novelist, children's book author, and musician. His illustrations have been published in ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', and ''Le Monde''. His short story ''Here'' is a ...

- bass, keyboards (1980–1983, 2008–present) * Scott Hartley - drums, percussion (1980–1983, 2008–present)

Solo projects

McGuire is a graphic designer and filmmaker. Principato produces remixes and often tours as a DJ and Young plays in various musical projects.

Discography

* ''

Liquid Liquid Liquid Liquid is an American no wave and dance-punk group, originally active from 1980 to 1983. They are best known for their track "Cavern," which was covered—without proper permission or attribution—by the Sugar Hill Records house band as ...

'' 12" EP (99-07, 1981) * ''Successive Reflexes'' 12" EP (99-09 1981) * "Bellhead"/"Push" 7" single (99-11EP7, 1981 - extremely rare record of re-recordings by Liquid Liquid, recorded, mixed & mastered in one day - Nov. 24, 1981. The band destroyed most copies and it was never made available, but some still exist.) * ''

'' 12" EP (99-11, 1983) * "Dig We Must" 12" (99-LL1, 1984) * ''Liquid Liquid'' 2xLP/CD (Mo Wax/Grand Royal, 1997) *''Slip In and Out of Phenomenon'' 3xLP/CD ( Domino Records, 2008) DJ Bill Bahlman spun his mix of new wave, dance punk and electro at most of Liquid Liquid NYC shows. He also recorded many of these live shows. These live tapes were incorporated into the studio EP's.

References

External links

*
Liquid Liquid at the Barbican
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liquid, Liquid American post-punk music groups American post-disco music groups Musical groups established in 1980 Musical groups disestablished in 1983