Iris was an American

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

band, formed by

Reagan Jones Reagan Jones (born March 2, 1973 in Lufkin, Texas) is an American singer-songwriter, best known as the lead singer of synthpop band Iris. Jones formed Iris with Matt Morris in 1993, and remained the original vocalist for the band until its dis ...

and Mat Morris in 1993. After the release of their first album '' Disconnect'', Matthew Morris was replaced with

Andrew Sega Andrew Gregory Sega ( ; born May 20, 1975), also known as Necros, is an American musician best known for tracking modules in the 1990s demoscene as well as for composing music for several well-known video games. He was a member of the synthpop d ...

, who pushed the band's sound in a more experimental electronic direction. Their final album, ''

Six 6 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 6 or six may also refer to: * AD 6, the sixth year of the AD era * 6 BC, the sixth year before the AD era * The month of June Science * Carbon, the element with atomic number 6 * 6 Hebe, an asteroid People ...

,'' was released in September 2019. Iris disbanded in 2021.

History

The band was initiated in 1993 as Forgiving Iris, with members Reagan Jones (

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

), Matt Morris (keyboards/ programming). Irisat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

The two had met in college and, influenced by artists such as Erasure and

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...

, began playing covers locally in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. In 1998 they changed their name to Iris and released their debut full-length, '' Disconnect'', which netted them "Best Band" and "Best Album" awards at the American Synthpop Awards in 2000. Its single "Annie, Would I Lie To You?" was one of the best-selling records in label

A Different Drum A Different Drum was an independent record label and online store based in Smithfield, Utah, founded in 1996. The label specialized in synthpop and related genres. A Different Drum has released hundreds of albums, singles, and compilations and ...

’s history. After several shows that followed, Reagan Jones and Matthew Morris started having arguments about their musical direction. Morris became focused on his personal life, and wasn't interested into going back to the studio for the second album. Jones met

through the original singer of

CTRL In computing, a Control key is a modifier key which, when pressed in conjunction with another key, performs a special operation (for example, ); similar to the Shift key, the Control key rarely performs any function when pressed by itself. ...

Joel Willard in 2001, and told him that he was looking for someone new to work with. Sega and Jones started working on some test tracks, the first of which would later become "Unknown". They felt that the chemistry between the two worked out so well that they started working on the new record that would become '' Awakening''. Sega added guitars and pushed the band's sound into a more experimental electronic direction. They released their second album ''Awakening'' throughout Sega's new label,

Diffusion Records Andrew Gregory Sega ( ; born May 20, 1975), also known as Necros, is an American musician best known for tracking modules in the 1990s demoscene as well as for composing music for several well-known video games. He was a member of the synthpop d ...

. Their next record, ''

Wrath Anger, also known as wrath or rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experience physical effects, su ...

'' (2005) took a more aggressive approach. Its first single, "Appetite" went No. 1 on mainstream radio in Poland. A European tour followed, including festivals in Moscow and London. In 2008, Iris released their first CD/DVD combo, ''

Hydra Hydra generally refers to: * Lernaean Hydra, a many-headed serpent in Greek mythology * ''Hydra'' (genus), a genus of simple freshwater animals belonging to the phylum Cnidaria Hydra or The Hydra may also refer to: Astronomy * Hydra (constel ...

''. It featured 3 brand new tracks, as well as remixes from bands like Mesh,

Alpinestars Alpinestars is a manufacturer of clothing and protective gear for motorsports and action sports founded in 1963, and located in Asolo, Italy. Its lines include specialized products for MotoGP, motocross, motorcycling, Formula One, WEC, V8 S ...

, Datguy, Benz & MD, plus a 40 minute "behind the scenes" tour diary DVD. In 2010, Iris released '' Blacklight'' through Infacted Recordings. After finishing its supporting tour in the U.S., the duo parted ways due to a tour argument. There was more than a year of silence between the band members, which ended when Jones sent Sega three demo songs. In 2014, Iris signed with Dependent Records and released '' Radiant'' through the label, followed by ''Six'' in 2019. Iris disbanded in September 2021. Dependent Records confirmed their split, saying that it was caused due to "personal differences".

Members

Final line-up

, songwriting,

(1993–2021) *

- keyboards,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

s, programming,

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

(2002–2021)

Former members

* Matthew Morris - keyboards, programming, production (1993–2002) * Marc Schultz - keyboards

Additional touring members

* Ned Kirby (

Stromkern Andrew Gregory Sega ( ; born May 20, 1975), also known as Necros, is an American musician best known for tracking modules in the 1990s demoscene as well as for composing music for several well-known video games. He was a member of the synthpop d ...

) - keyboards,

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

* Brian Pearson - guitars * Blitz Carthey -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Discography

Studio albums

*'' Disconnect'' (2000) *'' Awakening'' (2003) *''

'' (2005) *'' Blacklight'' (2010) *'' Radiant'' (2014) *''Six'' (2019)

Singles & EPs

*''Danger Is The Shame'' (1999) *''Saving Time'' (1999) *''Annie, Would I Lie To You'' (1999) *''Lose In Wanting'' (2000) *''Unknown'' (2002) *''Appetite'' (2005) *''It Generates'' (2006) *''Hell's Coming With Me / Appetite (Remixes)'' (2006) *''Lands Of Fire 2008'' (2008) *''Closer To Real'' (2010) *''Radiant Turbulence'' (2014) (Joint EP with

Seabound Seabound is an electronic music duo from Germany. Their lyrics are in English and for the most part explore the human psyche and the way that everyday events can affect a person psychologically, hence the band's slogan: "Seabound: Journey into Y ...

) *''Phenom EP'' (2014) (Included in ''Radiant Complete Edition'')

Other albums

*''Reconnect'' (2003) - Remix Album, covering tracks from ''Disconnect'' *''Hydra'' (2008) - Remix Album (covering tracks from ''Wrath'' and ''Awakening''), plus three new tracks ("New Invaders", "Stop Breaking Your Own Heart", "Nobody Wins") and a DVD with interviews, live show cuts, etc. *''Radiant Complete Edition'' (2014) - Collector's Edition Album of ''Radiant''. A two vinyl & two CD version, which includes ''Phenom EP'' with its new songs ("Sing, Dark Choir" and "Inside We Are All One") on one of the CDs. *''Six (Luxus)'' (2019) - 500 Copy Limited Edition Album of ''Six''. Includes two more songs ("I Wanna Be Adored" and "Price I Have To Pay") and three remixes by other bands, as well as an artbook.

References

External links

* * *
Iris
at Gothicparadise {{DEFAULTSORT:Iris Electronic music groups from California Electronic music duos Musical groups from Los Angeles Musical groups established in 1993 American synth-pop groups American electronic rock musical groups 1993 establishments in California Dependent Records artists Musical groups disestablished in 2021