Spacemen 3 - Playing With Fire [1989]

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Spacemen 3 were an English rock band who formed in 1982 and whose career spanned from the post-punk to acid house eras.

This influential group’s minimal sound, characterised by droning guitars, softly sung/spoken vocals and sparse or monolithic drumming would be adopted by the shoegazing movement that would eventually dominate the fringes end of British indie-rock, and influence a range of groups on both sides of the Atlantic (such as Galaxie 500, Loop, Bardo Pond and Earth). They can also be regarded as an example of post-rock and space rock. Spacemen 3 consisted of the core of Jason Pierce and Peter Kember (Pierce sometimes credited as J. Spaceman and Kember usually known as Sonic Boom), who formed the group in Rugby, Warwickshire, having met at art college. Other members of what would become a fluid lineup over the years included Pete Bain (Bassman, also of The Darkside), Natty Brooker, Sterling Roswell (Rosco), Will Carruthers, Jonny Mattock (Slipstream), and for the final few shows, Mark Refoy (also of Slipstream).

From the outset Spacemen 3 had a very defined set of aesthetic principles. They based almost their entire sound on their own concept of minimalism—droning guitars, feedback, as few chords as possible, pounding drums—with their motto “Taking drugs to make music to take drugs to”. Their minimalism bled into their stage show as well. Sitting down to play their guitars and covered in the spinning colours of a cheap psychedelic light show, their stage “act” was very anti-performance. Another striking aspect of Spacemen 3 was their willingness to cover and share their influences. Song titles, lyrics and interviews were peppered with references to bands and artists they believed shared their “minimal is maximal” aesthetic. The Velvet Underground, the Rolling Stones, the Stooges, the MC5, Captain Beefheart, free jazz musician Sun Ra, the Silver Apples, krautrock bands Kraftwerk and Neu!, 1960s garage punk such as the 13th Floor Elevators, Red Krayola, and the Electric Prunes; the Beach Boys, Jan and Dean and other surf bands; 1980s rockabilly groups the Cramps, the Gun Club, Tav Falco; blues and gospel acts like Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, the Staple Singers and John Lee Hooker; and the production techniques of Joe Meek, Brian Wilson and Delia Derbyshire were just some of the names mentioned by the band.