The God Machine: Great Lost band?

R.I.P. Jimmy Fernandez.

Yes. To explain further -- okay, so I heard about them via MM in 1991 and after (had to give them some attention, them being San Diego and all), and enough articles and things cropped up that when the album came out I should give it a listen. And Scenes from the Second Storey, as I go into more detail here, was and is pretty damn amazing. Was lucky enough to see them on their one American tour opening for Cop Shoot Cop, put on a hell of a show, then interviewed them afterwards. Jimmy and Ron were both chatty and relaxed, but I remember Robin in particular being VERY intense, and not in an unfriendly way -- just looking at me directly throughout, intelligent and talkative, focused. Wish I had the tape that was on, it's long lost.

And then Jimmy died the following year. Fuck.

Great way around covers too -- Bauhaus, Echo and the Bunnymen, Peggy Lee and the KLF? Genius.

I always regret not going to see them.

Remembering.

Absolutely brilliant band (and a nice piece, Ned). My first encounter of the God Machine was a two-minute snippet from some European festival on 120 Minutes. I don't even remember which song it was, but it made quite an impression. A few weeks later I found Scenes... at my local library (in the north of Holland!) and voila.
I also remember the happy shock when I discovered the source of the opening sample of 'Dream Machine', in one of the final scenes of Bertolucci's The Sheltering Sky.

A few years later, after a Sophia concert, I asked Robin if he ever played any GM songs any more. He said he only played 'Boy by the Roadside' now and then, when he was by himself.

Brilliant band.

Thanks very much. Sometimes I wonder if they are THE great lost band of that time.

They are.

hah i posted on this thread 8 years ago. Saved me retyping the story about Sophia supporting Mogwai.

I think i sent nathalie mp3s of the albums iirc

GM was probably the only band that's attempted to pick up where the Cure left off after 'Pornography'.

Insta-sold.

I think I saw these fellas on Ned's 136 list when I browsed it a couple weeks ago?

Where to start, etc.?

Get both albums and you've got most everything, but definitely search out the various singles as you can -- Home, The Desert Song, Ego, the original Purity EP.

then get some bootlegs

Ah yes, okay, I'll search the albums first.

YouTube'd a few tracks and this sounds waaaayy up my alley. Fantastic.

the god machine piss all over the cure btw

Okay let's not get ahead of ourselves Herman...

Without a doubt, one of the best bands I have seen live, in the 150-200 capacity Hull adelphi. It was rammed and GM floored everybody with their gorgeous - and at that time fairly original-quiet/LOUD.

For some reason,Robin PS's incongruous baseball cap sticks in my mind along with the drummer's felt ball drumsticks.

That and the freakouts by Jimi. A tragic loss.

Sorry, I meant Jimmy. Respect.

Yeah, a ferocious live band. I recall seeing them in a lot of places like the New Cross Venue, the Underworld, and various Sausage Machine venues. They also played a great + powerful set on the second stage at Reading one year. They were sort of on the periphery of the Camden 'lurch' scene, and certainly played with most of those bands despite not really fitting it, sound-wise.

Well obviously, from the few songs I've now already heard, Jimi's got nothing on Jimmy...

xp

I used to have an album by this lot, can't remember much about the way it sounded except that it was a bit miserable. I should dig it out.

Haha one of my first posts up there in 2003. Still love these guys but have to admit that as a comfy mid-30sth I usually find it too intense to listen to them anymore.

God damn, Scenes from the Second Storey is fucking awesome. I think I have the Home cd single somewhere with their lovely version of Fever.

I don't hear The Cure here, hmm?

Sorry for the bump, just enjoying the record.

It's there, trust me. But it may take a little time to fully sink in.

no apologies for bumping; now unsuspecting folks like myself get the privileged of hearing them for the first time...

Ned, you're writing of Disintegration era Cure, I guess?

Nope -- to quote myself:

"It's All Over" in particular leapt out at me, the burnt, sad acoustic guitar-led song smack dab in the middle of the album, rivalling anything as gripping as what the Cure did in Faith/Pornography days, to echo Fabrice there.

This band could do with a nice lil' box set collecting all their odds and ends

When I saw this thread was being revived I hoped it might finally mean there was an e.p. compilation appearing. Would love a single cd collection with all those e.p.s with the various cover versions.

Glad I got to see them several times.

There are some live sets and videos that have been shared on torrent sites over the years. hope I still have the drive that has taht stuff on somewhere active.
Not sure what happened to Austin, I know that Robin Proper-Shepherd went on to Sophia.
Also interested to know if he had played guitar much before they became a 3 piece with him on guitar. I'd heard he's previously been a vocalist with limited instrumental experience. Certainly made a good job of what i've heard.

Checked out the last Sophia album that came out last year (they are relatively "indie"-big here in Belgium & Netherlands) but it felt kinda bland. Still, I'm very happy Robin's managed to make a good living out of music.

I found out last night that you can get the 2 God Machine lps reasonably cheaply on Amazon after they were reissued in 2010.
Wondering what kind of audience awareness of them there is or was at that point which was really posthumous for them as a band.
have they been covered at all?

Would love those studio covers from the e.p.s there were some really good ones in there.
Trying to think if there were many more things they covered live.

e.p. versions of songs also on lps tended to be different too I think. Some of them heavier or more impactful at least.

Finally tried to do them some justice.

http://thequietus.com/articles/24109-the-god-machine-scenes-from-the-second-story-review-anniversary

awesome!

Excellent, indeed

Thanks, Ned! Came here to post that link.

Too kind, all of you.

Great piece, thanks so much!

It reminded me of buying One Last Laugh... and then weirdly not being able to listen to it for weeks, I recall wondering to myself if people ten years older than me had the same problem when Closer came out.

This is intense, RPS smashes his guitar in the first few seconds so the song becomes a vocals, bass, drums and extended Voix Bulgares freak out jam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJmZbBdCxK0

Thanks Ned. I feel we're really reaching the point where, without efforts to keep their memory alive, this band will be completely forgotten, engulfed under the waves of time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOF-XAeNG_o

Have hoped there might be an e.p. compilation at some point. I think I didn't get them all at the time so would like a one stop you could find them at.

Yeah, that would be nice for sure.

God, what a band. That live set is fantastic.

Just idly noting that Scenes OG vinyl currently going for £530 on Discogs.

missed this three weeks ago - thank you Maresn3st!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ3hVzKDP8s

someone needs to reissue this stuff, yes, the second hand prices for the vinyl and even the CD are stupid

It would be nice, yes.

I suppose I could ask around re: masters ownership, my best friend knows Robin.

but I'd guess they are lost, missing, or tied up in some shit

definitely look into an e.p. collection.

& I don't think they had a live lp during their lifetime did they?

No - two albums, 4 EP's, and that's it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcNSoYBrqjc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucoUoCl_LyI

thank you! sounds great

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvBOp49nYgs

thank you again!

No problem, I'll keep posting them when they come up, it's a shame there's not a good radio recording or a live album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFjYDt9eeu8

Thank you! The frustration remains - you just know someone at some venue must be sitting on a soundboard recording but they're keeping quiet...

At this point what I would really want is a remaster of the first album which always sounded a bit muffled

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsKXeyrafrg

<3

Where do they keep finding these? :-)

The channel is kinda amazing in its own way, with scores of mid-tier toilet circuit indie gigs going back to the shambling era and a sprinkling of larger concerts.

If you want to hear what Milk, Sun Carriage, or The Chesterfields sounded like then this is your channel :)

omg that channel is all my early-90s London toilet circuit support band nightmares returning to life! He even has a live set by a band I auditioned for once, a tryout which was thankfully a failure.

Well now you have to tell us which band.

It'd be about the only mention of them on the internet apart from the Youtube set so I'll spare any self-Googling band members the embarrassment.

Clue: it wasn't Lush

Gay Dad?

Ron Austin is apparently going to be on this show today at 4 pm BST (although there is a Mixcloud archive by the looks of things) talking about TGM and his new project Mercylane.

www.Madwaspradio.com

Very cool.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZV9jNvekes

Holy shit. Vinyl represses for both albums. Rough Trade has them, too

https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/poprock/detail/-/art/the-god-machine-scenes-from-the-second-storey/hnum/12032575

Fascinating. But glad to know there's interest and demand.

I’m still grateful to that £1 CD copy of the second album that sold for £40 on eBay when I was a student, making up the remainder of that month’s rent.

Now I’ll be the best part of £40 for the vinyl reissue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9aEKLjtirk

<3

I got my reissues last friday

How are they sounding? I've been listening to Scenes a lot lately. I have the original CD but would like the vinyl.