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Pitchshifter
Pitchshifter

ARGUABLY THE greatest British punk band of the last decade, that Pitchshifter have recently seen fit to re-emerge from a self-imposed hiatus thankfully proves that what they supply - radical, genre-breaking aggression with its roots in forward-thinking electronic music as much as in traditional punk rock - is still in demand. Having started life as an underground industrial band, their evolution into something more complex is the result of their hard-headed pursuit of originality and a total intolerance for bullshit. With the exception of the omnipresent Clayden brothers (JS on vocals and MD on bass), their line-up might have changed down the years but their objective to disturb, annoy and make people think has remained steadfastly in place. Forever outspoken, compassionate and entertaining, they continue to inspire both their hardcore fan-base and a legion of younger bands with their nonconformist work. It's good to have you back, chaps.

www.pitchshifter.com
Name: www.pitchshifter.com Label: GEFFEN Year: 1998
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Review: TORCHING THE rulebook with some righteous glee, this album made it officially alright for fans of confrontational rock music to like teeth-rattling breakbeats. JS Clayden's Bill Hicks-meets-Johnny Rotten act has never been bettered, uniting their most memorable tunes with lyrics that are ferocious, funny, sarcastic, thoughtful and full of bile, sometimes all at the same time.

Deviant
Name: Deviant Label: MCA Year: 2000
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Review: A MORE diverse offering that perhaps lacks some of their earlier bite, 'Deviant' is nonetheless the sound of Pitchshifter continuing to spread their wings and fly clear of the pack. Proof that when a band matures they don't have to suddenly become boring, not least because the original, banned artwork was replaced with something that poked fun at religion and sovereignty. Classy.

Infotainment?
Name: Infotainment? Label: EARACHE Year: 1996
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Review: THE LAST time you'll get to hear JS Clayden 'singing' like he's rinsing gravel out of his mouth with a sandblaster, 'Infotainment?' is Pitchshifter's final industrial-strength album. The hints that their sound would subsequently become more refined are here already in the politicking, drum 'n' bass beats and healthy distrust of authority. Some tracks were later reworked as live favourites.

Bootlegged, Distorted..
Name: Bootlegged, Distorted.. Label: PSI Year: 2003
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Review: WITH KILLER live shows a key part of their arsenal and a love for technology in their blood, this double-disc set: 'Bootlegged, Distorted, Remixed & Uploaded', of a live show and remix album is an enjoyable addition to the 'Shifter collection. Mark Clayden even proposes to his fiancee halfway through the live disc. Who says deconstructionist anarchist musicians don't have a heart? Bless.

Industrial
Name: Industrial Label: PEACEVILLE Year: 1991
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Review: IT TOOK until 1993's 'Desensitized' for Pitchshifter to truly hit their stride. 'Industrial', their debut, doesn't suffer from a lack of heaviness or conviction, but it does sound both lumpen and over-obvious when judged against their later output. The whole thing struggles and fails to step out of the shadow of underground legends Godflesh, who were clearly an early influence.

    Key Pitchshifter Tracks
  • (A HIGHER FORM OF) KILLING

    A CLASSIC oldie, recently resurrected by SikTh vocalist Mikee Goodman when he performed live with This Is Menace, Pitchshifter bassist Mark Clayden and drummer Jason Bowld's multi-frontmanned other band.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Desensitized', 1993.
  • (WE'RE BEHAVING LIKE) INSECTS

    AWASH WITH layers of galloping breakbeats and razorwire guitars, this is another fine slice of the machine-gun misanthropy the band dealt in so well before their renaissance.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Infotainment?', 1996.
  • DEAD BATTERY

    MORE SUSTAINED metaphors for unrealised potential. In the hands of a lesser band it'd be a depressing invitation for self-pity; here it's a call to arms.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Deviant', 2000.
  • DOWN

    A LOOSE, almost funky groove gets stepped on by more clusterfuck dynamics. Like having your ears pulled and twisted in a dozen directions at once.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Process Of Belief', 2002.
  • EIGHT DAYS

    JOB DISSATISFACTION and general disgruntlement never sounded so good. 'Just take me aside and shoot me' JS sighs, putting things in a nutshell nicely.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'PSI', 2002.
  • EVERYTHING'S FUCKED

    A SLOW-BURNING block of melancholy that started life as 'Everything Sucks (Again)' on the 'UN-UK EP', it builds to a satisfying crescendo.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Deviant', 2000.
  • GENIUS

    A PITCH-PERFECT swipe at over-prescribing everything and everyone as different 'dysfunctional', these four minutes should've done for them what 'Firestarter' did for The Prodigy.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'www.pitchshifter.com', 1998.
  • HIDDEN AGENDA

    A TIMELY reminder that 'Big Brother' is more than just a shit reality TV programme, this is claustrophobic borderline-paranoia given its own signature tune.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Deviant', 2000.
  • KEEP IT CLEAN

    MORE RANTING about dumbing-down and censorship disguised as political correctness, double-standards and sanctimony get a kick in the swingers here.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Deviant', 2000.
  • MAKING PLANS FOR NIGEL

    A HARD-to-find but excellent cover of XTC's new wave hit, this paternalistic nightmare is given a new lease of life by the brothers Clayden and co.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Genius', seven-inch vinyl single, 1998.
  • MICROWAVED

    THE AURAL equivalent of two defibrillators and a shot of adrenaline to the heart, for an anthem bemoaning the sanitised, unthinking signs of our times, 'Microwaved' sounds gloriously alive.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'www.pitchshifter.com', 1998.
  • MYKIND

    A WHISPERED, disorientating opening 10 seconds soon give way to a fine display of lyrical defiance, squarely aimed at any and all of their detractors.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'PSI', 2002.
  • PLEASE SIR

    THE ATOMIC bomb of a full-stop they put on their set-lists when they play live, this open letter to 'the man' is undoubtedly one of their finest moments.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'www.pitchshifter.com', 1998.
  • TO DIE IS TO GAIN

    MORE NIHILISTIC industrial fare from the early days. JS Clayden's calls to 'Purify me, purify me' manage to sound particularly cold-blooded and detached. In a good way, though, obviously.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Desensitized', 1993.
  • TOUCH ME I'M SICK

    WHEN MUDHONEY released this grunge classic in 1988, chances are no-one thought it'd be re-imagined as a skittish, beat-led oddity. But here it is. Brilliant.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Dead Battery' single, 2000.
  • TRIAD (LIVE)

    AND SO we come full circle. Originally found on 'Desensitized', this live-set jump starter shows how just how much Pitchshifter have constantly retuned and re-imagined themselves. In this case, literally to rapturous applause.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Bootlegged, Distorted, Remixed & Uploaded', 2003.
  • UN-UNITED KINGDOM

    THE CLOSEST they've come to paying a direct homage to the Sex Pistols, this does for the UK tourist board what Michael Moore does for handgun laws and 'Dubya'.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'UN-UK EP', 1999.
  • UNDERACHIEVER

    TRYING TO get its 'Lie to me/Patronise me/Talk to me like that/You know me like that' refrain out of you head is about as easy as scrubbing the loathing out of this tune.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Infotainment?', 1996.
  • VIRUS

    THE GREATEST embodiment of the gut-churning grooves found on 'Infortainment?', 'Virus' rides on the back of a monster riff flashing a shit-eating grin at totalitarianism.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'Infotainment?', 1996.
  • W.Y.S.I.W.Y.G.

    IT STANDS for 'What You See Is What You Get', which, in the case of this song, is a one of Pitchshifter's most combustible mixes of punk sermonising and demented breakbeats.

    Find on iTunes Find It: 'www.pitchshifter.com', 1998.
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