Medal were an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
band from
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
.
History
The band grew out of earlier band The Daisies, who had been active since the early 1990s and released the album "Kowloon House" in the US on
Capitol Records and the single "If I Was Barry White" in 1996 on
Regal Recordings
Regal Recordings is a British record label functioning as an imprint of Parlophone, Parlophone Records.
Background
Regal Records was a British record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings ...
in the UK. They also toured the US in 1995 supporting fellow Oxford band
Supergrass. The Daisies line-up of Jamie Hyatt (vocals, guitar), Mark Willis (guitar), Daniel Kemp (bass), and Simon Wickson (drums) were joined by keyboard player Richard Brincklow and the band became Medal and signed to
Polydor Records
Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...
.
[Strong, Martin C. (2003) "Medal", in ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, ] Early singles "Ordinary", "Possibility", and "Up Here For Hours" received a lot of airplay on
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
, and saw the band compared to
The Verve
The Verve were an English rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Simon Tong later became a member in ...
.
The band's debut album, ''Drop Your Weapon'', was released in June 1999 (on
A&M in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
), and support slots with label mates
Cast
Cast may refer to:
Music
* Cast (band), an English alternative rock band
* Cast (Mexican band), a progressive Mexican rock band
* The Cast, a Scottish musical duo: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis
* ''Cast'', a 2012 album by Trespassers William
...
,
The Bluetones
The Bluetones are an English indie rock band, formed in Hounslow, Greater London, in 1993. The band's members are Mark Morriss on vocals, Adam Devlin on guitar, Mark's brother Scott Morriss on bass guitar, and Eds Chesters on drums. A fifth m ...
and
The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols are an American alternative rock band, formed in Portland, Oregon, in 1994 by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström. They were later joined by keyboardist Zia McCabe and drummer Eric Hedford. H ...
followed.
The album prompted the description "Indescribably complicated and bewilderingly pretentious and that's only the cover" from the ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'', who compared the album to
Pink Floyd's ''
The Dark Side of the Moon
''The Dark Side of the Moon'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 1 March 1973 by Harvest Records. The album was primarily developed during live performances, and the band premiered an early version of ...
''.
[NME Reviews: Drop Your Weapon]
, ''NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'', 14 May 1999 After the ''Porno Song'' EP on Polydor, Kemp left the band (replaced eventually by former Fuzzgun bassist Ollie) and they were also dropped by Polydor, prompting them to set up their own El Producto label.
[Lawrence, Jon (2001)]
Review: Medal: Stuntman
", '' Drowned in Sound''
/ref> After two singles, the band issued their second album, ''Stuntman'', in 2001.
Discography
Singles
*"Ordinary" (1998) Polydor
*"Possibility" (1999) Polydor
*"Up Here For Hours" (1999) Polydor
*''Porno Song'' EP (1999) Polydor
*"Fingerprints" (2000) El Producto
*"Stuntman" (2001) El Producto
Albums
*''Drop Your Weapon'' (1999) Polydor
*''Stuntman'' (2001) El Producto
References
External links
The Family Machine Official Website
{{Authority control
English rock music groups
Musical groups from Oxford