Flying Saucer Attack #1

s good an intro them - which only served to and holds down a proper job as up in Bristol and found himself duction as any to heighten my desire to pin em well. So, none of us have 24 a job at the record shop. Eventu- the music of Fly down for the Terrascopic treat- hours a day, 7 days a week to de- ally he met a few people who had A ing Saucer Attack ment. If theres one thing I en- vote to making music, although a band, Lyndas Strange Vaca- is their August joy, its a challenge - and espe- we are all basically obsessive mu- tion, which consisted of Rachel 1993 45 for VHF Records of cially a challenge with obvious sic fans - which is how we got to (now in Flying Saucer Attack), Virginia, USA entitled Soaring rewards at the end, specifically the know one another. Kate (who still works with Rachel High. That was my prelude to chance to hear more by this fas- in a side-project, Movietone, the band, and although theyve cinating little band. Daves earliest musical history which has an LP coming out on subsequently released an album consists of self-releasing a 4-song the Planet label around the time (self-titled, private press, So anyway, to cut a long story 7" EP back in 1985 called Up you read this) and Matt, a.k.a. unreleased when I started writing short a couple of evenings worth & Down by HaHaHa - the band The Third Eye Foundation who this article and sold out by the of basic detective work elicited the later turned into Cherry Red re- has since been known to collabo- time Id finished it three weeks information that Dave FSA cording act Rosemarys Children, rate on a few Flying Saucer At- later) its still a splendid piece of worked by day in a record shop who I can recall writing about in tack tracks and now does his own vinyl. On the A-side, the afore- in Bristol, coincidentally a city faintly glowing terms when I was stuff - plus Dave on drums, oc- mentioned Soaring High, they not too far from me down here still on the staff of the Bucketfull casionally at least. Lindas set up a wall of feedback at the in the West of England. This of Brains back in a previous life- Strange Vacation rehearsed a lot, outset and layer jangly guitars place was previously renowned in time. A fine band who never fully recorded a few tapes for their own over the top of it which are picked Terrascope circles for being the realised any of their potential, amusement and did no gigs at all out by hushed vocals, the chorus shop to come up with the best Dave was asked to leave when and eventually broke up a few running along the lines of And excuse so far for not stocking the he did a Syd (I went nuts, basi- months after Dave joined. I needed something new in my Terrascope: uh, well wed like to cally. Hey kids, dont take Then... world, a dream to see me but we cant carry magazines at drugs....) and wound up at art through that serves to enhance all at the moment because we college instead, recording songs One day in 1992 I was round the very otherwordliness of the broke the thing the mags are dis- hed written onto cassettes for the at Rachels house and her brother composition. They continue in played in.... (not bad, eh?) - but hell of it with a pal named Acous- had just bought a 4-track this vein, the sound rising and on the more positive side, Dave tic Jon and eventually playing portastudio. A couple of hours falling and the feedback some- himself was a bit of a fan of the with a few friends there in 1990 later the Soaring High single times poking through to the front Scope and all of the music we or so calling themselves The Se- was born, although we never ex- of the mix and a booming bass write about and was more than cret Garden. Dave: pected it to be a single at the time. guitar underpinning the whole willing to spill the beans about the Flying Saucer Attack is all an thing until eventually the run-out mysterious Flying Saucer Attack, The Secret Garden had a vague accident really. I had a whole load groove beckons you to play the and whats more, treated me to a hope of getting signed to Crea- of songs and a whole load of ideas other side - which is entitled cassette of their (then) upcoming tion, as one of the gang left col- but didnt know what to do with Standing Stone, and features album which I have to say is a lege and did some sleeve designs them, or even if I wanted to do suitably Neanderthal production gem. Ten solid lengthy songs for Alan McGhee. We did a gig anything. As Flying Saucer At- values although the approach is which twist and curl their way supporting the House of Love - tack has stumbled along, weve basically the same. Its sonic, through various facets of space- our only ever gig as it happened - gradually dipped into the old swirling space-rock with a touch rock, psychedelia and typically and McGhee seemed to like it, songs and some of the old ideas, of the Krauts thrown in for good English pop experimentation, but we but measure - and I was hooked. about which more later. Already werent re- most Turns out the band are English hooked, I was now landed - the ally a band of and that the 45 had originally interview was confirmed, and the and what been self-released by the band results are reproduced below, mi- couldnt we back in January 93 in tiny quan- nus my questions which basically do any- do tities (already fetching upwards of just took the form of tell us thing - thirty quid a copy, collectors take about yourselves... worded in about it es- note). They had followed it up several different ways. Dave: even if pe- with a further single coupling wed cially Wish with Oceans which Flying Saucer Attack are me, wanted to. the achieved a modicum of visible Dave and my girlfriend Rachel. This was LP acclaim in the Weaklies and then Between us we do drums/cymbals, however - is lay fallow, until the guys at VHF bass, guitars, clarinet and feed- the first to- picked up on them and broke back (no keyboards whatsoever) time tally them into the American market although we dont really exist as Soaring High got aired in pub- fresh. A lot of the tracks have with the promise that an album a band - Rachels at college most lic. The Secret Garden reformed been concocted by trying to work was to follow in the not-too-dis- of the time, I works in the record recently (without me) amd Im with the 4-track, ie putting things tant future. Aside from the fact shop most of the time and our still on good terms with the on separately, playing all 4 tracks that the band featured two peo- patron Big Simon is the person chaps. back as a whole and seeing if ple by the name of Dave and who used to do the Heartbeat and theres anything interesting com- Rachel, they knew nothing about Riot City labels a few years ago Dave left college in 1990, ended ing out - like a pop version of the Faust Tapes really. Mixing example picks up that Germanic tive audiences very soon. Theres the sound, rather than the 80s beat so recently explored to great a new 7" planned for release in tendency towards separating eve- effect by Cul De Sac and weaves the early summer, and already rything. Basically, when we get a hallucinatory feedback through- talk of signing themselves to a chance to record we try to do out, adding vocals as almost an proper label - maybe even a Peel something that we werent expect- afterthought which all the same session. ing and create an effective surprise melody to listen out for. Dave: What we are basically try- our- A Silent Tide, Make ing to achieve is to make some selves, Me Dream and the good records. If the first sells al- aforementioned Wish enough, well be able to afford to though all follow similar paths do the next; if that one sells, we having to equal if not greater can do the next one - and so-on. said effect, only Sax & The quest for some form of mu- that Feedback losing its way sical beauty and ideal, an other were somewhat as the world, and our interests in also melody is discarded in strange phenomena such as into favour of more atonal UFOs is perhaps reiterating in- good riffing. Popul Vuh I directly that maybe life is a bit of songs, so sometimes well try for and II surround what for me is a crock of shit, just like you a song and let it brew slowly. The the centrepiece of the collection, thought it was. So I suppose its thing is, although we aim to a loosely-knit aggregation of political in a way. And, well, fly- achieve the best we can do, we thrums entitled Drowners/ ing saucers are just an aspect of dont feel confined by the Oceans II (The Drowners be- that anyway, the myth, the boundaries of contemporary ing a Suede cover version) that other, the hope for escape and taste.

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