Coil (band)

Coil
Coil, circa 2004. Left to right: John Balance, Peter Christopherson
Coil, circa 2004.
Left to right: John Balance, Peter Christopherson
Background information
Also known asBlack Light District, ELpH, Time Machines, Sickness of Snakes, The Eskaton
OriginLondon, England
Genres
Years active1982–2004
Labels
Past membersJohn Balance
Peter Christopherson
Stephen Thrower
Drew McDowall
William Breeze
Thighpaulsandra
Ossian Brown
Websitethresholdhouse.com

Coil were an English experimental music group formed in 1982 in London and dissolved in 2005. Initially envisioned as a solo project by musician John Balance (of the band Psychic TV), Coil evolved into a full-time project with the addition of his partner and Psychic TV bandmate Peter Christopherson (formerly of pioneering industrial music group Throbbing Gristle). Coil's work explored themes related to the occult, sexuality, alchemy, and drugs while influencing genres such as gothic rock, neofolk and dark ambient.[7] AllMusic called the group "one of the most beloved, mythologized groups to emerge from the British post-industrial scene."[7]

After the release of their 1984 debut EP How to Destroy Angels, Coil joined Some Bizzare Records, through which they released two full-length albums, Scatology (1985[8]) and Horse Rotorvator (1986). In 1985, the group began working on a series of soundtracks, among them the rejected score for the first Hellraiser film. After departing from Some Bizzare, Coil established their own record label, Threshold House, through which they produced and released Love's Secret Domain (1991). Financial difficulties slowed the group's work in the early 1990s before they returned to the project on releases such as Astral Disaster (1999), and the Musick to Play in the Dark series composed of Vol. 1 (1999) and Vol. 2 (2000), as well as releasing several projects under aliases such as Black Light District, ELpH, and Time Machines.[7]

Balance and Christopherson were the only constant members; other contributors throughout the band's career included Stephen Thrower, Danny Hyde, Drew McDowall, William Breeze, Thighpaulsandra and Ossian Brown. With involvement from these members, the group also started several smaller independent vanity labels, including Eskaton and Chalice. The group's first live performance in 16 years occurred in 1999, and began a series of mini-tours that would last until 2004.[9] Following the accidental death of John Balance on 13 November 2004, Christopherson formally announced that Coil as a creative entity had ceased to exist, ending the Coil discography with The Ape of Naples (2005). Posthumous releases and compilations of unreleased material have since followed this. Christopherson died in 2010, which means the all of original members of Coil had already died. [10]

  1. ^ "Psychic TV and Coil's Drew McDowall announces debut solo album Collapse". Fact. 20 August 2015. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  2. ^ a b Aston 2016, p. 366: "In 1985, UK duo John Balance and Peter Christopherson, a.k.a. electronic experimentalists Coil, recorded a new cover of 'Tainted Love' as a benefit for the Terrence Higgins Trust, the charity named after one of Britain's first AIDS casualties."
  3. ^ Ed Howard (2003). "Coil – Artist Profile". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 5 December 2017. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  4. ^ Smith, Richard (11 December 2004). "Obituary: John Balance". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 January 2014. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  5. ^ Zaldua, Chris (20 May 2017). "Industrial legend Drew McDowall on Coil and confronting global crisis". Fact Magazine. Archived from the original on 20 April 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  6. ^ "Scatology – Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 16 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  7. ^ a b c Ankeny, Jason. "Coil | Biography & History". AllMusic. All Media Network. Archived from the original on 16 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  8. ^ "Coil - Scatology". Discogs. Archived from the original on 15 February 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  9. ^ "Live Archive". Brainwashed. 2004. Archived from the original on 6 February 2005. Retrieved 12 February 2007.
  10. ^ Breihan, Tom. "Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson of Throbbing Gristle, Coil, and Psychic TV Passes Away". Pitchfork. Retrieved 4 September 2024.