About Me
This Heat were a British experimental music group formed in late-1975 in Brixton, London by multi-instrumentalists Charles Bullen (guitar, clarinet, viola, vocals, tapes), Charles Hayward (drums, keyboards, vocals, tapes) and Gareth Williams (keyboard, guitar, bass, vocals, tapes).This Heat were active in the ascendancy of British progressive rock and punk rock, but stood apart from those scenes due to a radically inventive approach that touched on numerous different styles and genres, but was always confrontational and politically charged. Their commercial success was limited, but This Heat are widely considered a missing link between progressive rock (especially krautrock) and such later experimental genres as post-punk, industrial music, post-rock, and noise rock.Their first radio airplay came in early 1977 from legendary DJ John Peel, to whom they sent a demo tape recorded in the band's 'Cold Storage' studio, which they'd converted from a disused meat factory. During this time, they also recorded a session with Ghanaian percussionist Mario Boyer Diekuuroh, parts of which later appeared on a 1982 split cassette with Albert Marcoeur, released by the French experimental rock magazine Tago Mago.The band’s influences included Can, Lee "Scratch" Perry and Throbbing Gristle.Their self-titled debut album was recorded between February 1976 and September 1978, and was released in August 1979. It was characterized by heavy use of tape manipulation and looping, combined with more traditional performance, to create dense, eerie, electronic soundscapes. Also released in this period was an EP, Health & Efficiency, which foreshadowed the more rock-oriented sound of their second album.Deceit (1981), the band's second and final album was produced with help from noted reggae mixer Martin Frederick. Deceit found the band incorporating more influence from punk rock, and consolidating the world music influences in their work. Although, like all of This Heat's releases, it sold poorly, Deceit is now seen as a classic of the post-punk era comparable in quality and invention with Closer, Chairs Missing or Metal Box.This Heat split up in 1982 after completing their final European tour with bassist/vocalist Trefor Goronwy (whose earlier band Dog 2000 with Andy Bole recorded in Cold Storage) and keyboardist Ian Hill joining Bullen and Hayward. Hayward went on to form Camberwell Now with Goronwy and ex-This Heat soundman Stephen Rickard, and remains musically active. Charles Bullen had a solo venture called Lifetones, and released one record, For a Reason, in 1983 on his Tone of Life imprint. Bullen later released the album Internal Clock under the name Circadian Rhythms in 1998.In 1993 a new album of previously unreleased This Heat recordings was unearthed. Repeat featured three long tracks, including the title track, a 20 minute remix of "24 Track Loop". Out of Cold Storage, a box set of all the band's official recordings, was released in June 2006 on This is!, a new Recommended Records sub-label set up by Charles Hayward and Charles Bullen to re-release This Heat's back catalogue. The set comprises This Heat, Deceit, Health and Efficiency, Made Available and Repeat, plus Live 80/81, a CD of concert recordings. Williams later formed Flaming Tunes with Mary Currie and released a cassette of new material, in a much softer style than that of This Heat. He died in late 2001.
