ARTIST INFORMATION AND CONTACT

All of the artists who contributed to THE FIRE THIS TIME did so free of charge
until such times as the album was released. They have my undying gratitude.

Please support them.

MICHAEL STEARNS

Stearns is one of the premier electronic composers in America. Best known in the UK for his soundtrack of Ron Fricke's wordless 70mm film epic 'BARAKA', he is a veteran of IMAX soundtracks and six channel sound design. Stearns has additionally released over twenty solo and collaborative albums since 1977. Stearns' track for THE FIRE THIS TIME was written specifically for the project, though later released on his 2002 album 'THE STORM'. His support, patience, help, and above all his music, deserves special thanks as one of the prime motivators of the project. May the hugely anticipated collaboration with Lisa Gerrard that was planned for THE FIRE THIS TIME one day come to pass in another form.

ASHRA

German guitarist and electronic composer Manuel Gottsching is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of ambient and techno. His 'E2-E4' album, recorded in 1982, samples of which formed the basis of the million selling club hit 'Sueno Latino', pre-dated the advent of dance music by almost a decade. Since 1971 Gottsching has released over twenty five albums and soundtracks either as a solo artist or as his band ASHRA. His track for the album appeared in its' original form on his 1989 release 'WALKIN' THE DESERT'.

THE HIGHER INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

Bobby Bird began his career with the revolutionary 'Oscillate Sound System' in Birmingham in the early 1990's. He has released two critically acclaimed albums under the HIA name ('COLOUR FORM' and 'FREEFLOATER'), as well as two collaborations with BIOSPHERE ('POLAR SEQUENCES' and 'BIRMINGHAM FREQUENCIES') and one with DEEP SPACE NETWORK. He currently runs his own label, HEADPHONE RECORDS, on which he has released a collaborative album as SYSTEM ERROR. Bird's track 'LINES IN THE SAND' was written specially for the project. Excerpts of 'CONOID TONES' (a different track entirely from that of the same name on 'COLOUR FORM') which features in the track 'CHURCH BELLS' was originally written for 'The Gallery of The Future' event in 2000.

SOMA

Australian electro-pagans David Thrussell and Pieter Bourke have been working together for ten years, and have produced two hugely acclaimed albums on the EXTREME label, one of which, 'HOLLOW EARTH', was WIRE magazine's 'Album of the Year'. Thrussell also remixes and records solo albums under the name BLACK LUNG, and Bourke recently collaborated with DEAD CAN DANCE vocalist LISA GERRARD on the highly successful album 'DUALITY'. Soma's track was donated to THE FIRE THIS TIME from their personal archives, and is previously unreleased.

ORBITAL

Two men with lights on their heads, surrounded by banks of keyboards......an unlikely combination for a huge following and legendary stage presence. Yet ORBITAL have achieved an enduring place in British musical history, headlining Glastonbury twice, and producing a string of massively acclaimed and commercially successful albums. NME voted them as 'Britain's Best Band', and after ten years at the forefront of electronic dance music, brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll continue unrivalled to blaze a trail and break new ground. The track that appears on THE FIRE THIS TIME is a previously unreleased re-mix by BUMP 'N' GRIND of their seminal hit 'THE BOX', and was donated to the project.

PAN SONIC

Finnish composers and sound artists PAN SONIC first came to the public's attention with a series of minimalist techno albums and ep's on MUTE RECORDS. The austere purity of their sound design and relentless rhythm structures has gained them a large underground following, and the last three years has seen numerous tours and a critically acclaimed album. The track that appears on THE FIRE THIS TIME was originally released in 1996 as 'URANOKEMIA' on the 'OSASTO' ep.

BARBED

Little known to the public, but much lauded by their fellow contemporaries, Alex McKechnie and Alex Burrow have quietly released an album, 'BARBED', on THESE RECORDS, and several tracks on compilations. Their blend of appropriation and dense sound collages caught the attention of American media manipulators NEGATIVLAND who invited them to join them on their SOUND OF MUSIC tour. But underneath their deconstructive output lies a formidable musical talent. Their track was written specifically for THE FIRE THIS TIME.

SPEEDY J

Jochem Paap first came to prominence in the Dutch club scene as a DJ and highly sought after re-mixer. WARP released his first album 'GINGER' to huge critical acclaim, and the even more successful 'G-SPOT' followed. Paap then changed musical tack, constructing dark industrial soundscapes, and releasing two albums on NOVAMUTE. His latest album 'LOUDBOXER' marked a return to his techno beginnings and was widely acclaimed. The track featured in THE FIRE THIS TIME as 'NAILS IN THE WALL' originally appeared as 'TERRE ZIPPY' from his 2000 album 'A SHOCKING HOBBY'.

KAIT GRAY

A vocalist with extensive and diverse training including opera and jazz, Gray offered to step into the shoes of Diamanda Galas when Galas declined to be involved in the project. Her chilling and powerful vocal renditions were improvised specifically for THE FIRE THIS TIME, and recorded in an intense four hour session which reduced the sound engineer almost to the point of tears. Kait is currently putting backing tracks to some of COLDCUT's new material, as well as working with multi-media collective DHM.

APHEX TWIN

Described as anything from the new Brian Eno, to piss-taker extraordinaire, Richard D. James operates in a league of his own. Massively acclaimed, utterly unpredictable, James has released countless albums and singles under at least five different pseudonyms, ranging from ethereal and stunningly beautiful ambient soundscapes, to frenzied drum 'n' bass excursions. His most famous outings are probably the 'SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS' series. He also runs his own label REPHLEX, which puts out some of the most off the wall and downright interesting electronic music around. The track featured on THE FIRE THIS TIME is a re-mix by BLACK LUNG and SHINJUKU THIEF's Francois Tetaz of his classic track 'COME TO DADDY', the video of which has achieved legendary status, and launched director Chris Cunningham's career. This is only the second time that James has ever allowed anyone to re-mix one of his tracks. Hats off.

BASS COMMUNION

Steven Wilson is best known as front man of the progressive band PORCUPINE TREE, who have released nine albums to date, and one retrospective compilation. A highly accomplished singer/songwriter, Wilson wields one of the finest guitars in British music, and perhaps the best place to start for the uninitiated is the critically acclaimed 'SIGNIFY'. A prolific composer, Wilson also records ambient projects under the name BASS COMMUNION with one collaborative album and three solo albums to date, and as mutant psychedelic trailblazer IEM, also with three albums to date. The BASS COMMUNION remixes project will be available in summer 2002, as will the new PORCUPINE TREE album. Their web site is well worth a visit as rare and unreleased mp3 tracks are often posted there. His track for THE FIRE THIS TIME is a collaboration with Iraqi Oud player Nasser Shamma, and was written and recorded specifically for the project. I would like to extend particular thanks to Steven for his patience, skill and help in what must rank as one of the most bizarre recording sessions of recent times.

NASEER SHAMMA

BOLA

Rochdale's Darrell Fitton began to put out self-released e.p.'s in the mid 1990's, and additionally appeared on various compilations such as WARP's 'ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE' series. He signed to SKAM records and released several e.p.'s as BOLA, before his highly acclaimed album 'SOUP' was released in 1999. The 'MAUVER' e.p. followed, and his second SKAM album, 'FYUTI' was released early in 2002.  He also records under the name JELLO, and the excellent VOILE album is out now on PEACEFROG RECORDS. His track was written specifically for THE FIRE THIS TIME, and Darrell won the bottle of champagne for first-man-over-the-line, with his track arriving mere weeks after commissioning. Outstanding.

AMBA

Tom Middleton has earned enormous acclaim and success under several different names, the best known of which are THE JEDI KNIGHTS and GLOBAL COMMUNICATION, a collaborative outfit with Mark Pritchard. Their '76:14' album released almost ten years ago still ranks as one of the greatest ambient albums ever made. Constantly in demand as a DJ, producer and re-mixer, he has recently begun to record his own tracks under the name of AMBA.  Tom saved my skin at a critical time, agreeing at amazingly short notice to write and record the final track of the album. Unfortunately it wasn't quite right, and one of my most cherished memories of the whole project is of him quite literally playing different tunes down the phone until he reached one I wanted to use. This track on THE FIRE THIS TIME was donated from his personal archives and is previously unreleased.

I would also like to thank the following for their feedback and interest in the project:

LAURIE ANDERSON, DIAMANDA GALAS, BANCO DE GAIA, EAT STATIC,
PLAID, SHEILA CHANDRA, NATASCHA ATLAS, JANE SIBERRY, MIMI GOESE,
JOHANNES SCHMOELLING, KEN NORDINE, NEGATIVLAND, PRESSURE OF SPEECH,
LISA GERRARD, PATRICK O'HEARN, STEVE ROACH and BIOSPHERE

INDEX