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"I'm what you might describe as the classic underachiever. I tread that fine line between boffin-dom and the grand amateur."- Andrew Weatherall, 1997.
Andrew Weatherall has always been good for a quote. From the deep, dark days of early acid house to the deep, dark days of the modern-day Two Lone Swordsmen if you're looking for an opinion on the largely insipid world of dance music then Andrew's always had that happy knack of cutting straight to the chase, delighting and upsetting in roughly equal measures.
The swaggering original moody DJ. The pop star producer. Bastion of the underground. One-time (ahem) Balearic figure-head. Electronic experimentalist. Peerless explorer of the minimal techno sound. Arch grumbler. Londoner. Honorary Yorkshireman. All these notions have been bandied about by punters and critics alike in a bid to pin down Weatherall's role in music. Yet none of them quite fits the bill. And even when they do hit the mark they're often far too paradoxical to make much sense. In the dull as ditch-water world of dance music personalities Andrew Weatherall comes across as a refreshing and involving character. This has always been reflected in all his musical output since those formative days remixing Primal Scream's rocky original into the pivotal 'Loaded'.
Weatherall's history goes back far to the beginning of the British acid house scene having swung gigs for himself at Danny Rampling's legendary Shoom night off the back of the sort of sounds showcased on Andrew's compilation for Nuphonic entitled 9 O'Clock Drop. Subsequent to this his connections with the original Boys Own record label (and fanzine) led to artist releases, remixes and a string of legendary London clubs such as Blood Sugar, Circulation, and of course Sabresonic (where the fledgling David Holmes cut his teeth). It was through Primal Scream though that Andrew first made his name. As the producer of Screamadelica he took The Primals, twisted them (best not to ask how) and in turn created the hybrid of narcotically challenged rock and acid house that is Screamadelica, now seen as a generation-defining release.
It was through the club Sabresonic and Andrew's remix productions that he tied in with Jagz and Burns forming the live/ studio Sabres of Paradise band. More often than not shows would see Andrew standing at the side of the stage possibly doing fuck all other than smoking fags. No one was quite sure. What is certain is that these experiences drew Andrew away from the Screamadelica-inspired lime-light that beckoned and back into the subterrain to develop the dark, experimental sounds he has subsequently become known and respected for.
After the demise of Sabres following a string of albums and singles, Andrew teamed up with fellow Sabres cohort Keith Tenniswood to form Two Lone Swordsmen. Keith himself has a string of prior musical convictions working with The Aloof, David Holmes and Red Snapper. More recently he has made his name releasing electro breaks under his Radioactive Man alias for the Rotters Golf Club imprint. Keith's ear for the production of low-end frequencies is unrivalled. Quietly toiling away in their Rotter's Club studio the pair honed their own brand of lo-fi emissions, eventually resulting in the Fifth Mission- Return to the Flightpath Estate, a sprawling, dense double CD soundtrack lurching between leftfield dancefloor and your fucked head all shot through with an alarming disregard for genre or expectations.
As if to confound admirers further Andrew also made deep house releases as Lino Square, Rude Solo and a whole host of yet to be discovered pseudonyms. After a couple more releases on his own Emissions label Andrew and Two Lone Swordsmen re-signed to Warp and became quietly prolific with a string of releases such as 'Sticky/ Gay Spunk', 'A Bag of Blue Sparks' and the second TLS album Stay Down, its title as revealing as it was succinct. In 2001, they unleashed Tiny Reminders, a stone cold classic of electro and martial machine funk. A major landmark, that was swiftly followed with a remix LP Further Reminders, where a host of their mates and collaborators (Calexico, Lali Puna, Villalobos and Decal amongst others) offered up their own reworks and reinterpretations of the TLS blueprint. Then nothing. Until now.
ARE
What the fuck are they up to now? This is what Andrew Weatherall and Keith Tenniswood expect you to think when you play their new album. Thats Weatherall singing. And Tenniswood playing guitar and bass, while a number of drummers take their turn on an old kit that was left for safe keeping in their bassment studio. A kit that once belonged to Jah Wobbles band, and then Killing Joke. Bringing the voodoo to From The Double Gone Chapel.
YOU
Two years in the making. Two years of hedonism channelled into music. When youre Andrew Weatherall and Keith Tenniswood, your international DJ schedule is booked up 12 months ahead, youre at rock gigs midweek, cramming as much life in as you can. Following a path of happy accidents, the third album by Two Lone Swordsmen took shape. For Weatherall there was also the sensation that he wanted to break free from all the sterile techno and electronica floating around and make something with more direct communication and soul. And whenever Weatherall starts feeling like hes had enough of techno, he goes back to his roots in rockabilly, rock n roll and dub, understanding that the visceral energy of any good dance music is the same as in a good rockabilly song. Its about making music WITH machines, not by machines.
BORED
After railing to all and sundry about how much he hated the cliché of the celebrity guest vocalist, Weatherall realised he didnt want anyone else to sing these pretty personal songs of twisted romanticism hed been writing. So into the vocal booth he went to have a stab at The Gun Clubs Sex Beat. It worked beautifully, Weatheralls brooding, deadpan intonations playing off the unmistakable TLS studio witchery. Raw power and raw emotion, for those familiar with Sabres of Paradise, this could be the even darker album following the murky depths of Haunted Dancehall.
YET?
In October 2006 Rotters Golf Club released an EP by Andrew Weatherall (the first under his own name), The Bullet Catcher’s Apprentice, and a compilation of long out of print Two Lone Swordsmen tracks, Emissions from the Archive Vol. 1. 2007 has seen not one but two new albums from TLS – Wrong Meeting, released as a limited edition vinyl box set In May, and Wrong Meeting II in June. The foot is on the gas again in a big way – come along for the ride.
