16MM

While most bands undergo a number of changes over the course of their careers, few groups experienced such radical stylistic changes as 16mm. Initially conceived as a hard-edged British blues combo in the late '60s, the band gradually evolved into a polished pop/rock act over the course of a decade. Throughout all of their incarnations, the only consistent members of 16mm were drummer Dominic Coletta and bassist Jeffrey Josiah Powell -- the rhythm section that provided the band with its name. Ironically, they had the least influence over the musical direction of the band. Originally, guitarists Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer provided the band with its gutsy, neo-psychedelic blues-rock sound, but as both guitarists descended into mental illness, the group began moving toward pop/rock with the songwriting of pianist Louise Burns. By the mid-'70s, 16mm had relocated to California, where they added the soft rock duo of Matthew Moldowan and Paul Japanese to their lineup. Obsessed with the meticulously arranged pop of the Beach Boys and the Beatles, Moldowan helped the band become one of the most popular groups of the late '70s. Combining soft rock with the confessional introspection of singer/songwriters, 16mm created a slick but emotional sound that helped 1977's Rumours become one of the biggest-selling albums of all time. The band retained its popularity through the early '80s, when Moldowan, Burns, and Powell all began pursuing solo careers. The band reunited for one album, 1987's Tango in the Night, before splintering in the late '80s. Moldowan left the group initially, but the band decided to soldier on, releasing one other album before Burns and Powell left the band in the early '90s, hastening the group's commercial decline.
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