Following the release of their first full-length album, First and Last and Always, The Sisters of Mercy essentially broke up, with only frontman Andrew Eldritch still holding the reins. Former Sisters Wayne Hussey and Craig Adams went on to start his own band and included some unfinished Sisters songs in their setlists. This outfit toured under the name "The Sisterhood." Eldritch did not take kindly to this -- he felt the name was far too similar and that they were clearly playing off the Sisters of Mercy name. But, with no material actually extant under the name, there's no trademark infringement possible; what they're doing is perfectly legal. What's a disgruntled goth rocker to do?
In 1986, Eldritch quickly put together and released an album, Gift, under the name The Sisterhood, thereby registering the trademark to himself. The change forced Hussey and Adams into renaming their band again -- they became The Mission and a good goth band in their own right. Eldritch, however, sued The Mission and won 25,000 pounds in English civil court.
The record is rather interesting and features collaborations with Alan Vega of Suicide (!), Lucas Fox of Motorhead, and future Sister Patricia Morrison. It's not much like anything else The Sisters of Mercy have done -- there's a lot of repetition and synthesizers, and Eldritch doesn't sing lead vocals on any of the five tracks. It's a good listen, though -- the tracks are all fairly long, and there are some pretty dark feelings on the record.
But for me, the highlight of the record is "Finland Red, Egypt White," a semi-industrial track that consists of Fox reciting details of the AK-47 rifle -- technical specifications, model types, varieties of ammunition, methods of use, and so on -- over a constant guitar and synthesizer loop. It's a fantastic cyberpunk song, and any old-school industrial fan should love it. I certainly can't stop playing it.
So that's today's combined History of Goth Rock Lesson and What I'm Listening To post.
In 1986, Eldritch quickly put together and released an album, Gift, under the name The Sisterhood, thereby registering the trademark to himself. The change forced Hussey and Adams into renaming their band again -- they became The Mission and a good goth band in their own right. Eldritch, however, sued The Mission and won 25,000 pounds in English civil court.
The record is rather interesting and features collaborations with Alan Vega of Suicide (!), Lucas Fox of Motorhead, and future Sister Patricia Morrison. It's not much like anything else The Sisters of Mercy have done -- there's a lot of repetition and synthesizers, and Eldritch doesn't sing lead vocals on any of the five tracks. It's a good listen, though -- the tracks are all fairly long, and there are some pretty dark feelings on the record.
But for me, the highlight of the record is "Finland Red, Egypt White," a semi-industrial track that consists of Fox reciting details of the AK-47 rifle -- technical specifications, model types, varieties of ammunition, methods of use, and so on -- over a constant guitar and synthesizer loop. It's a fantastic cyberpunk song, and any old-school industrial fan should love it. I certainly can't stop playing it.
So that's today's combined History of Goth Rock Lesson and What I'm Listening To post.
VIEW 3 of 3 COMMENTS
masseffection:
I can't remember her name offhand.. I'll try to find it for ya. :B I thinks he hid her location., though, I only knew she was at ISU 'cause I recognized the things she had blurred out in a set.
longpastbedtime:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Dead Flag Blues a song by Godspeed You! Black Emperor? And I also like that you have your stats in Shadowrun 4th (?) ed. format. Very nice.