FOR MORE VIDEO AND STUFF, GO TO www.alunared.com
A LUNA RED (1999-2003) were an electro-punk band from Vancouver BC. Although they first entered the public eye in May of 2000 at a sweaty basement show in Vancouver, their inception was in the summer of July 1999 as a casual recording project between Jack Duckworth and Erica Neumann .
In the spring of 2000 the duo became a trio with the addition of William Winslow-Hansen on keyboards/samplers/sequencers and in three months wrote their debut album, "The Death Birds". This album was recorded in spurts throughout 2000, then finally released in early 2001 on local Vancouver label Global Symphonic (Sunset Rubdown / Frog Eyes / The Organ). The album, although backed with very little publicity, received favourable reviews in a wide variety of North American publications.
The band toured Western US twice in the year 2001, the second tour with LA's goth-punkers The Nightmare Syndicate which brought their music to a wider US audience. Despite their venturings with shows and tours, 2001 was a relatively quiet year for the band due to Neumann's departure from the band (Larissa Loyva then joined), working with an added drummer; Graham Jackson, Winslow-Hansen being involved in a serious car accident, and Duckworth's intense touring with his other band, Radio Berlin.
A Luna Red pooled their focus again for 2002. The band wrote a bunch of new material at the Vancouver studio The Hive for their next album "SLMZK!", which was released on LP and CD by the US label Action Driver. This recording was more "live off the floor" punk/jazz style than the more studio-y debut.
Loyva left to focus on her other project's and Sean Ebare stepped in. A string of live shows that year put the band back on the wagon again with dates in the states that summer. The band will also released a 12" 45 EP with San Francisco's Ghost Orchids.
In the summer/fall of 2002 A Luna Red recorded the tracks "It Is Your Anthem" and "The Electric Blood" for the ELCTRK! which was released on the US label Gold Standard Labs which was released in early 2003. That was around the same time core memb ers Winslow-Hansen and Jackson left to form Droom. The band continued through a good portion of 2003 with JJD, Sean Ebare, and new drummer Neal Simpson until the fall of 2003 when JJD's dedication to Radio Berlin and everyone's interest in moving on dissolved the band.
Their sound was built on strong rhythms, electronic dance-panic mayhem, and good song composition without resorting to pop music clichés. Rough musical reference points for the band include Skinny Puppy, DAF, The VSS, Big Black, Nomeansno, PiL, The Faint, Einsteurzende Neubauten, Cabaret Voltaire, and Coil.
There has been discussion here and there about culling the unreleased tracks into some sort of release. That will come when time permits. Thanks.
JJD : PRIMES , JJ WAX , WINNING / WILLIAM WINSLOW-HANSEN : DROOM , FORGOTTEN TOMORROW / ERICA NEUMANN : FUCKMORGUE / GRAHAM JACKSON : DROOM / LARISSA LOYVA : P:ANO , LEVIATHANS
