CRANES (BAND)

'Cranes' are a British band, often described as gothic rock, Dream Pop or shoegazers. Formed in the mid 1980s in Portsmouth, England, they are best known for the soft, high-pitched vocals of lead singer Alison Shaw, memorably likened by the ''NME'' to "a beautiful siren being slowly strangled on a spiral staircase of hammer-horror guitars". Cranes took their name from the innumerable mechanical cranes around Portsmouth docks. Cranes saw an increase in popularity in 1992 when they toured with The Cure. The band fell silent for a period of about four years after 1997 but, they never truly broke up. Thus, they began writing music again to release ''Future Songs'' and a few years later ''Particles and Waves''. These albums signified a change in the overall style of their music, tending to a more ambient, ethereal sound. However, despite heading in a more electronic direction, the band maintained their signature sound, mainly revolving around Alison Shaw's child-like vocals.
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Contents

Discography

Albums

Singles & EPs

Notes

External links

Discography

Albums

★ ''Fuse'' (MC, 1986)

★ ''Self-Non-Self'' (1989)

★ ''Wings of Joy'' (1991)

★ ''Forever'' (1993)

★ ''Forever Remixes'' (1993)

★ ''Loved'' (1994)

★ ''La tragédie d'Oreste et Électre'' (1996)

★ ''Population 4'' (1997)

★ ''EP Collection, Vol. 1 & 2'' (1997)

★ ''Future Songs'' (2001)

★ ''Live in Italy'' (2003)

★ ''Particles and Waves'' (2004)

★ ''Live at Paradisio 1991'' (2007) (for download only)

Singles & EPs

★ ''Inescapable'' (1990) - 4 non-album tracks

★ ''Espero'' (1990) - 3 non-album tracks

★ ''Adoration'' (1991) - 2 tracks including a non-album B-side

★ ''Tomorrow's Tears'' (1991) - 4 tracks including 2 non-album tracks

★ ''Adrift'' (1991) - 3 tracks including 1 non-album track

★ ''Jewel'' (1993) - 3 different releases with remixes. One of them includes a non-album track

★ ''Forever Remixes'' (1993) - 6 remixes of a few tracks from the ''Forever'' album

★ ''Shining Road'' (1994) - 2 different releases each of them with 4 tracks including 2 (different) non-album tracks

★ ''Can't Get Free'' (1997) - 5 tracks including 4 non-album tracks

★ ''Submarine'' (2002) - 8 remixes of a few tracks from the ''Future Songs'' album

★ ''The Moon City/It's a Beautiful World'' (7", 2002) - 2 non-album tracks

Notes

The track ''Astronauts'' from the 2004 album ''Particles and Waves'' has been used as music for the American Express commercial with actress Kate Winslet.

External links

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★ Interview by Alexander Laurence (The Portable Infinite) © 2006