Amebix were an English punk rock band from Tavistock, Devon. A pioneer of the crust punk genre, Amebix's merger of anarcho-punk and post-punk with elements of heavy metal, particularly early extreme metal, inspired musicians who would go on to define the genres of grindcore, black metal, death-doom and metalcore.
Formed in 1978 as the Band with No Name, the band's two consistent members were brothers Rob "the Baron" Miller (vocals, bass) and Chris "Stig" Miller (guitar). The band's earliest releases were post-punk, before beginning to adopt elements of heavy metal music on their debut album No Sanctuary (1983). This album was one of the earliest examples of the crust punk genre, a style which the band would codify with its follow up Arise! (1985). Shortly after the release of their third album Monolith (1987), the group disbanded. The band reunited in 2008, along with drummer Roy Mayorga, a lineup which released their fourth album Sonic Mass (2011), before disbanding again in 2012.
History
1978–1980: Formation
In 1978, Rob Miller was involuntarily discharged from his role as an Air Training Corps
sergeant in 1978, due to being intoxicated while on duty when stationed in the
Netherlands.
The same year, his older brother, Chris "Stig" Miller returned to Devon from
Jersey. This led the pair to plan forming a band together.
They initially came together under the name the Band with No Name, in reference to
Clint Eastwood's character the Man with No Name.
This founding lineup included Rob Miller on vocals, Chris Miller on guitar, Clive Barnes on bass and Andy Hoare on drums.
In 1979, the band changed its name to Amebix,
1981–1984: Who's the Enemy and No Sanctuary
In 1981, Miller and Amebix relocated to
Peter Tavy and began living with new drummer Martin Baker in Glebe House, the former site of a
Saxon burial ground. However, soon after Baker's parents forced him to depart from the band, relocated to London where he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. The song "Largactyl" was written about his experience.
After Baker's departure from the band, the band moved to
Gunnislake in
Cornwall to live with newly recruited keyboard player Norman Butler. They then relocated to
Bristol, where they began
squatting with local punk bands like Disorder and
Chaos UK. They released their debut EP
Who's the Enemy on 28 August 1982 through Spiderleg Records, whom they had been turned onto in the brief period they were living with Crass. The EP peaked at number 33 on the UK Independent Singles and Albums Charts.
In 1983, they released single "Winter", which reached number 18 on the UK Indie Chart, staying on the chart for 7 weeks.[Lazell, Barry (1998) Indie Hits 1980–1989, Cherry Red Books, , p. 6] On 26 November 1983, they released the Second EP No Sanctuary, which reached the top 10 of the U.K. Independent Music Chart, and gained them the attention of Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra, who signed them to his record label Alternative Tentacles. This led to their subsequent European headline tour. While in Bologna, Italy, Miller and the other members of Amebix were arrested for vandalism of a squat.
1985–1987: Arise!, Monolith and first disbandment
Hiring drummer Robert "Spider" Richards in 1985,
the band's debut album
Arise! was released on 14 September 1985 through Alternative Tentacles. It peaked at number 3 on the U.K. Independent Music Chart.
They soon after relocated to Bath, Somerset and halted their squatting. In 1987 they released their second album Monolith through Heavy Metal Records.
2008–2012: Sonic Mass and second disbandment
In 2008, the Miller brothers reformed Amebix, accompanied by drummer
Roy Mayorga.
On 25 July 2010, they released the EP
Redux through Profane Existence.
On 22 July 2011, they released the 12" single "Knights of the Black Sun".
On 23 September 2011, they released their third studio album
Sonic Mass.
In November 2012, the band parted ways once again.
In 2014, Rob "The Baron" Miller joined forces with Jon Misery (Misery), Andy Lefton (War//Plague) and Michel "Away" Langevin of Voivod to form Tau Cross.
In 2019, Stig Miller and Mayorga briefly formed a band with Casey Chaos, recording eighteen songs but never releasing any or deciding on a name.
Musical style
Amebix began their career playing heavily music indebted to
Killing Joke. They first embraced metal influences on their 1983 album
No Sanctuary, which was one of the earliest releases in the
crust punk genre.
However, the album retained much of the band's early
post-punk sound, to the extent that
Altaride Chronicles magazine called the album "post-punk crust".
The crust punk sound was codified on their subsequent album
Arise (1985).
The group however continued to differentiate themselves from the other groups in the genre, by continuing to use elements of post-punk, with
Maximum Rocknroll writer Joao Seixas describing them as "expanding on what Killing Joke began with, a Motörhead-inspired sense of rock'n'roll songwriting, and adding a taste of what can be described as
deathrock-oriented post-punk guitar atmosphere."
Amebix have cited influences including Bauhaus, Killing Joke, Joy Division,
Legacy
By being one of the first bands to blend
anarcho-punk and heavy metal music, Amebix are often cited as one of the key bands that helped to create the
crust punk genre, and as being influential to many
Extreme metalBlack metal bands, especially
black metal bands.
[Peter Jandreus, The Encyclopedia of Swedish Punk 1977-1987, Stockholm: Premium Publishing, 2008, p. 11.]
They have been cited as an influence by musicians including Sven Erik Kristiansen of Mayhem,
Members
Final line-up
-
Rob "the Baron" Miller – vocals (1978–1987; 2008–2012), bass (1979–1987; 2008–2012)
-
Chris "Stig" Miller – guitar, backing vocals (1978–1987; 2008–2012), keyboards (1978–1979)
-
Roy Mayorga – drums, percussion, keyboards (2008–2012)
Past members
-
Clive Barnes – bass (1978–1979)
-
Andy "Billy Jug" Hoare – drums (1978–1981)
-
Ric Gadsby – bass (1979)
-
Martin Baker – drums (1981)
-
Norman Butler – keyboards (1981–1984)
-
Virus – drums (1981–1985; died 2015)
-
Jenghiz – keyboards (1984)
-
George Fletcher – keyboards (1984–1986)
-
Robert "Spider" Richards – drums (1985–1987)
-
Andy Wiggins – keyboards (1986–1987)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
-
No Sanctuary (1983, 12", Spiderleg Records)
-
Arise! (1985, LP/CD, Alternative Tentacles)
-
Monolith (1987, LP/CD, Heavy Metal Records)
-
Sonic Mass (2011, LP/CD, Easy Action & Amebix Records)
EPs
-
Who's the Enemy (1982, 7", Spiderleg Records)
-
Redux (2010, 12", CD, DD, Profane Existence)
Live albums
Compilation albums
-
The Power Remains (1993, LP, Skuld Releases)
-
No Sanctuary: The Spiderleg Recordings (2008, LP+7"/CD, Alternative Tentacles)
-
Bullshit Detector Vol 1: University Challenged (1980, LP, Crass Records, Bullshit Detector)
Singles
-
"Winter" (1983, 7", Spiderleg Records)
-
"Knights of the Black Sun" (2011)
Demos
-
Amebix (1979, self-released)
-
Right to Ride (1987, self-released)
External links
