A Short History of 808 State

Soon after techno appeared out of Detroit it transformed into acid house. Acid house was a term used to describe the fast beats and trebly bleeps of the music. It culminated in the hit single 'We Call It Acieed' by D-Mob. In the UK between 1987 and 1988 the focus point for all things acid house was the club night Shoom run by DJ Danny Rampling. However there was much more interesting music happening in the north of Britain. There was a small record shop in Sheffield called Warp. It became a record label called Warp Records. The fledgling label signed Nightmares On Wax and LFO, both making a darker type of techno which put the emphasis back on the bass, rather that the bleeps. Cabaret Voltaire singer Richard Kirk released a single called 'Sweet Exorcist'. It managed to make a link between industrial music and techno. At the same time, in Manchester, another record shop led to the formation of 808 State. The new band comprised of the owner of Eastern Bloc Records, Martin Price, a friend of his from the nearby cafe, Graham Massey, a couple of local DJs, Darren Partington and Andy Barker, and Gerald Simpson. They started in 1988. Within the space of just two years they had released four albums. Two of them coming out on their very own Creed label. They had managed to become popular pretty quickly, maybe due to the rising dance scene in Manchester. The main venue in Manchester was called G-Mex and 808 State could easily sell it out.

808 State's debut album was called 'Newbuild'. It is based on somewhat outdated techno and the band's sound was based around the outdated Roland 808 drum machine, the same drum machine used by Afrika Bambaataa almost a decade earlier. On top of the beats were layered samples and synthesizers and some turntables. Another bit of kit they seemed to enjoy was the Roland TB303. The sound this produced was spikey and, if truth be told, not really very nice. What 808 State had done was develop a new type of energy in their music. It didn't inspire hand thumping or arm waving and didn't inspire chin-stroking either. Their style and overall sound can be heard in the music of other bands like Stakker-Humanoid, Altern-8, Autechre, Squarepusher and Boards Of Canada. The big thing about the album though was that it was good acid house. The genre soon went down hill but 808 State nailed it and included techno in their sound, and the techno they used wasn't the e pretty sort either. But it was the attitude of the band and the music which seemed to make guitar bands stop and listen. It led to a reconsideration of what dance music was and could be, and ultimately it led to the short lived but very enjoyable baggy Madchester scene.

In 1989, 808 State had a chart busting single. It was called 'Pacific State'. and sounded much nicer and prettier than their earlier work. They had started to do some work with some song writing singers. This enabled 808 State to get the techno aesthetic to be widely accepted and move across accepted musical and genre based boundaries. After this single the band became more diverse in their musical approach. The attention they had from having a hit single seemed to open doors for the band. They went on to work with Ian McCulloch, Bernard Sumner, James Dean Bradfield, and Bjork. Indeed Bjork worked with members of the band sometime before she released her solo album. It could be that her time spent with some of 808 State showed her the way in terms of new rhythmic possibilities and possible textural directions in which to travel.

At the start of the nineties 808 State released '808:90' and 'Ex:El'. Both showed how the band could build sophisticated, technologically sussed, dance music. They marked the beginning of the end for the either / or choices of dance or rock. Popular music was now informed by both and would never be the same again. Gerald Simpson has released some fine albums in the guise of A Guy Called Gerald and 808 State have continued to periodically release some excellent music.