Martyn P. Casey

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Martyn P. Casey
Victoria, Australia
GenresAlternative rock, experimental rock, folk rock, garage rock
Occupation(s)Musician, composer
Instrument(s)Bass, guitar, vocals
Years active1982–present
LabelsHot, Island, Mute
Websitewww.martynpcasey.com

Martyn Paul Casey (born 10 July 1960) is an English-born Australian rock bass guitarist. He has been a member of the Triffids, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Grinderman. Casey plays either his Fender Precision Bass or Fender Jazz Bass.

Biography

Martyn Paul Casey was born in

Fremantle with his wife and children where he plays with The Painkillers.[2]

Career

The Triffids

Casey joined

Hunters and Collectors, to record and release their debut 12-inch vinyl album, Treeless Plain
, for Hot Records, a newly established Sydney-based independent label.

In late 1984, The Triffids moved to London, and recorded the EP

'Evil' Graham Lee on pedal steel guitar. In August 1985, they recorded their second album, Born Sandy Devotional, with Gil Norton (Echo & the Bunnymen). The group were hailed by the British media, were featured on the John Peel show and supported Echo & the Bunnymen
.

In 1986, with delays in issuing Born Sandy Devotional, the Triffids returned to Western Australia where they built an eight-track machine inside a shearing shed on the McComb family's farming property and recorded their third album

Holy Water", Calenture did not have the commercial impact expected. [citation needed
]

In 1989, the "

Stockholm
, was released in 1990 the year after The Triffids had split up.

Casey, a talented artist, provides a substantial amount of the art work for the 2009 rock biography on The Triffids, Vagabond Holes: David McComb and the Triffids, edited by Australian academics Niall Lucy and Chris Coughran, including the book's cover.[5]

The Blackeyed Susans

In 1989 Casey joined Bottomless Schooners of Old, made up of McComb on guitar, keyboards and vocals, Lee on pedal steel guitar, Robert Snarski (ex-Chad's Tree) on guitar and vocals, and Ashley Davis on drums.[1] The Bottomless Schooners of Old were a precursor to The Blackeyed Susans[3] He replaced Phil Kakulas who left the Blackeyed Susans for Sydney to play with Martha's Vineyard. Casey however did not appear on any of the band's recorded material and departed shortly after to join Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Casey joined Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds on bass in April 1990[4] while the band was touring to support their record The Good Son.[6] Guitarist Kid Congo Powers quit the Bad Seeds; Mick Harvey switched from bass to guitar and Casey was hired to fill the bassist's role. The line up of Nick Cave, Harvey, Blixa Bargeld, Conway Savage, Casey and Thomas Wydler then produced the 1992 album Henry's Dream. The next album was Live Seeds, released in September 1993, which reproduced many of the Henry's Dream songs in a more raw setting.

The Bad Seeds' went on to release Let Love In (April 1994) which contained classic tracks such as "Do You Love Me?", "Red Right Hand", and "Loverman". This was followed by band's biggest commercial success to date, Murder Ballads (February 1996), which was a culmination of Cave's long-time fascination with "the language of violence" and allowed for further bold experimentation in musical style. Collaborations with Kylie Minogue and PJ Harvey on the singles "Where The Wild Roses Grow" and "Henry Lee" respectively led to mainstream chart success and The Bad Seeds widest exposure ever. This album also saw the addition of two new Bad Seeds, Warren Ellis (Dirty Three) on violin, and Jim Sclavunos on percussion.

March 1997 saw the release of The Bad Seeds' tenth studio album,

The Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
, a collection that spanned the group's entire history. Over the next two years Nick Cave spent working on a variety of projects, with the Bad Seeds going into hiatus.

In 2000 the band entered London's Abbey Road Studios, resulting in the April 2001 release of

Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus (September 2004) was a double CD. It was the first album by the band in which Blixa Bargeld did not take part (Bargeld leaving the band to devote more time to Einstürzende Neubauten), drumming duties were split for the two albums, having Thomas Wydler and Jim Sclavunos
drum on each CD.

In March 2008, the band released their 14th studio album, titled

Jesus Christ. Casey remained a member of the Bad Seeds for the subsequent albums Push the Sky Away (2013), Skeleton Tree (2016), Ghosteen
(2019).

Grinderman

After heavy touring throughout 2005 with The Bad Seeds in support of

Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus
, Nick Cave began writing songs on guitar, an instrument he'd rarely played. His rudimentary playing gave the new material a rawer feel than much of the Bad Seeds' output.

The group entered the Metropolis Studios in London to record the original Grinderman demos and it was this material that would eventually become the basis for the band's debut album Grinderman. The album was recorded with producer Nick Launay in April at the RAK studios, London and mixed in October at the Metropolis Studios.[7]

The Forum in London on 20 June.[8]

Grinderman opened for The White Stripes at their Madison Square Garden show on 24 July 2007, followed by several of their own American tour dates.[9] The band then embarked on a theatre tour of Australia, opening for a Nick Cave 'solo' set, which consisted of the same band members.[10]

The band recorded a second album, Grinderman 2, released in September 2010. The band did a European and North American tour to promote the album's release.

Discography

The Triffids (1983–1990)

The Blackeyed Susans

no recorded output

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (1990–present)

Grinderman (2006–present)

References

  1. ^ a b c "Party Fears #9" (PDF). David Gerard. Summer 1983. Retrieved 7 January 2010.
  2. ^ "Wide Open Road S2 Ep 1". West Australian Music. 6 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b Australian Rock Database entries:
    • The Triffids: Holmgren, Magnus; Skjefte, Morten; Warnqvist, Stefan; Simonetti, Vince. "The Triffids". Passagen.se. Australian Rock Database (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 28 July 2002. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
    • The Blackeyed Susans: Holmgren, Magnus; Skjefte, Morten. "The Blackeyed Susans". Passagen.se. Australian Rock Database (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 12 February 2002. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
    • Lawson Square Infirmary: Holmgren, Magnus; Simonetti, Vince. "Lawson Square Infirmary". Passagen.se. Australian Rock Database (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 25 February 2002. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
  4. ^ .
  5. ^ Niall Lucy and Chris Coughran, eds. Vagabond Holes: David McComb and The Triffids (Fremantle: Fremantle Press, 2009).
  6. ^ "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds- Concert Chronology / Gigography". From The Archives. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
  7. ^ "Grinderman | Listen and Stream Free Music, Albums, New Releases, Photos, Videos". Myspace.com.
  8. ^ Grinderman| Music| This is London Archived 4 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Pitchfork: Grinderman Add U.S. Dates, Open for White Stripes". Archived from the original on 10 July 2007.
  10. ^ "Indie Initiative - Independent Bands, Music News and Resources Australia". Indieinitiative.com. Archived from the original on 1 September 2007.

External links