Cult new wave band The Names returns with a brand new 2-track single
Cult Belgian post-punk/new wave band The Names return with a brand new 2-track single
Out now via Spleen+ is a brand new single from the cult Belgian post-punk/new wave band The Names. “Far From The Factories” holds two tracks and can be downloaded right now from Bandcamp.
“Far From The Factories” evokes the characteristic sound style of the band mixing post-punk guitar work, new wave basslines and atmospheric melodic keyboard elements. The B-side is the track “Apophenia”.
Both tracks are a first sign of the new album which will be released later this year on Spleen+.
About The Names
Emerged during the late 1970s/early 1980s vibrant post-punk era on the legendary Factory Records label (Joy Division, New Order, …), The Names (formed around frontman Michel Sordinia) have continued to perform and release new material since the band reformed in the 2000s.
The initial lineup of the band included Sordinia, guitarist Marc Deprez, and drummer/keyboardist Christophe Den Tandt. Robert Frankson and vocalist Isabelle Hanrez were short-term members. Initially performing locally as The Passengers, they renamed themselves before releasing their first single, “Spectators of Life”, in 1979 through WEA to gauge interest in local new wave music.
Following a Joy Division performance in Brussels, Factory Records signed them. With new drummer Luc Capelle, The Names recorded “Nightshift” in Manchester with producer Martin Hannett in August 1980. This single exemplified their style: a dark, restrained modern rock akin to Magazine, Comsat Angels, and Joy Division/New Order. In February 1982, they recorded a session for John Peel’s BBC Radio 1 show, released as a digital EP, “Radio Session 1982”, in 2009.
Their collaboration with producer Hannett continued, overseeing their next single, “Calcutta” (Factory Benelux, 1981), and their first album, Swimming (Les Disques du Crepuscule, 1982). Their last single, “The Astronaut”, was released in 1982 on Les Disques du Crépuscule, produced by Hannett, who had left Factory Records. As the post-punk era waned, the band disbanded.
In 1985, LTM Recordings released “Postcard Views”, a cassette featuring studio and live tracks. Expanded versions of Swimming, renamed “Swimming + Singles”, were released in 1991 and 2000 by Factory Benelux and LTM Recordings, respectively. A 2013 reissue by Factory Benelux included the 1982 John Peel session.
In 1995, the original trio of Sordinia, Deprez, and Den Tandt formed Jazz, releasing “Nightvision”. LTM’s 2001 compilation “Spectators of Life” featured The Names’ B-sides, live tracks from 1979-1982, and two Jazz tracks.
The Names reunited for A Factory Night in Brussels in December 2007. In April 2009, they released “Monsters Next Door” on Str8line. After Den Tandt’s departure in December 2009, Christophe Boulenger joined. In 2015, now a quartet with new drummer Laurent Loddewyckx, they released “Stranger Than You” on Factory Benelux. A 2016 compilation, “In Mutation”, by Les Disques du Crépuscule included a Deprez 1981 solo single and a 1982 live performance.
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