Everything about Pitchshifter Band totally explained
Pitchshifter are a British
nu metal /
industrial metal band from
Nottingham.
Originally known as
Pitch Shifter, the band was started by Johnny A. Carter (lead guitar/programming) and Mark Clayden (bass/vocals), with Stuart Toolin (rhythm guitar) and
JS Clayden (backing vocals) in 1989. JS Clayden soon stepped up to the position of lead vocalist and co-programmer with the
Submit EP in 1992.
Through a few line-up changes and two incarnations, the band have released eight studio albums and numerous singles & EPs. They have collaborated in the studio with:
Jello Biafra (singer of
Dead Kennedys),
John Stanier (drummer of
Helmet),
Dave Jerden (producer of
Alice in Chains,
The Offspring) and '
Machine' (producer/remixer of
White Zombie,
Lostprophets). Pitchshifter have also remixed bands such as
Stereophonics and
Pigface, and commissioned remixes by the likes of
Therapy?,
Biohazard,
Luke Vibert, and
Fuzz Townshend amongst others.
Over the course of their career, Pitchshifter have played live in twenty five countries, with the likes of
Metallica,
Black Sabbath,
Iggy Pop,
Fear Factory,
The Offspring,
Bad Religion,
Deftones,
Quicksand,
Junkie XL,
Fugazi,
Incubus,
Ministry,
Staind,
Pantera and many more. The band has also graced the stages of many festivals worldwide such as
Ozzfest,
Warped Tour,
Reading Festival,
Livid,
Big Day Out,
Dynamo Open Air and the
Phoenix Festival.
Pitchshifter disbanded amicably after playing a “farewell for now” club tour of the UK in 2003 but have reunited from time to time to make random appearances in the UK at festivals (Bulldog Bash) and at large venues such as the
London Astoria and the
Nottingham Rock City. The last reunion shows on the "Back from the Dead Tour" in 2006 saw the band handing out free CD copies of the
None for All and All for One EP, containing two new songs to all concert attendees, fueling rumors that Pitchshifter continue to secretly write new material in the studio during their self imposed ‘indefinite hiatus’ (although these rumors have never been confirmed by front man JS Clayden).
Band History
The band can be analysed as having two eras, reflected by the transition of the band's name from ‘Pitch Shifter’ to ‘Pitchshifter’.
‘Pitch Shifter’ (1991-1996)
In the first era, they pioneered and helped push the boundaries of British industrial metal, first playing a style in the vein of and heavily influenced by the music of
Godflesh (albeit more linear and with less dynamics), which they termed ‘Death Industrial’ (not to be confused with the
power electronics variant); fusing very heavy, down tuned, guitar riffs with sludgy drum machines, samples and harsh, mechanical ‘
death grunt’ style vocals. Their work in this time has been acknowledged by members of
Fear Factory,
Neurosis and
Killing Joke for its sheer intensity
(External Link
).
They later experimented with various innovative techniques in electronic music, sampling and hip hop, to help create a very influential industrial metal/rock sound on their
Desensitized and
Infotainment? albums, establishing them as one of the most respected bands in the British alternative underground. The sound in this period can be viewed as the bridge between their earlier albums such as
Industrial and
Submit, and the subsequent gear shift on to the ‘Pitchshifter’ era.
‘Pitchshifter’ (1998-present)
The second era saw the band changing their sound significantly, now playing a fusion of rock, metal and dance music, with JS Clayden changing his singing style from what was more of a ‘shouty' style into what is now considered the 'Pitchshifter voice'. This new style of alternative music, fusing elements of rock, metal, drum and bass, trip hop, techno and more was unveiled on their
www.pitchshifter.com album, which is generally considered to be their breakthrough effort. Selected tracks from this album were featured in the video game
Test Drive 5.
The style was to become the band's trademark sound, which they pioneered and progressed over the release of further studio albums such as
Deviant and
PSI before their amicable parting of ways, garnering a large and loyal fan base on the way (who still follow them through their ‘indefinite hiatus’) and influencing bands such as
Lostprophets and
Hundred Reasons, both of whom who have supported the band on numerous tours.
Fans of the earlier material have been polarised over Pitchshifter's change in musical direction, with some fans openly embracing the ‘new’ style as a logical progression of the band's sound; with other fans rejecting it, deeming it to be overly radio friendly and/or musically shallow in the absence of the depth, bile and esoteric atmospheres of the older albums. It should be noted however, that front man JS Clayden has mentioned on several occasions that he dislikes the old albums and that he feels that they'd done all that they could with the style, so it's unlikely that they'd ever have released more material in the vein of the ‘Pitch Shifter’ era sound in any case.
Phoenix Festival
Pitch Shifter played the
Phoenix Festival in Long Marston, UK in 1995. The band's manager, armed with a tractor, arranged for an enormous crop circle replica of the band's famous “eye” symbol to appear in the adjoining field to the festival site during the night prior to Pitch Shifter's performance there. The crowd's enthusiasm for Pitch Shifter when they performed (in support of their Desensitized album) was so high that they rushed the stage, making Pitch Shifter's performance the first in the history of the festival to be stopped early.
Other activities
Mark and JS Clayden both now run their own
PSI Records label which saw the release of the first Pitchshifter DVD and more recently,
This is Menace's debut album which features members of Pitchshifter and a host of other vocalists, including
Casey Chaos from
Amen,
Matt Davies from
Funeral for a Friend and
Jeffrey Walker from
Carcass.
Former Pitchshifter guitarist,
Jim Davies, went on to continue playing with British hard dance band
The Prodigy before recently announcing his decision to leave. He has also worked with
Keith Flint's band
Flint,
DJ Hyper's band
Hyper, and now fronts his own band
Victory Pill, with The Prodigy live drummer
Kieron Pepper and with contributions from Pitchshifter drummer
Jason Bowld.
Jason Bowld hosts numerous drum clinics, and has a regular section in drum magazine rhythm.
Trivia
Pitchshifter's music has been used in video games such as: Test Drive 5, Rallisport Challenge 2, MX Superfly,Twisted Metal 4 and Twisted Metal III, as well as movies, trailers and soundtracks such as:, The Crow, Salvation, Brainscan, Catwoman, Paycheck, and lastly in commercials such as the Volkswagen 'Vortex' bug.
JS was a featured guest for a U.S. Pigface tour where he performed vocals for songs including Pigface's "Insect/Suspect" and Pitchshifter's "Genius."
Band members
Current band members
J.S. Clayden - Vocals/Programming
Mark. D. Clayden - Bass (also a member of This Is Menace, lead vocals on Industrial)
Jason Bowld - Drums (also a member of This Is Menace)
Dan Rayner - Lead Guitar (Live) (also a member of Drawbacks)
Tim Rayner - Rhythm Guitar (Live) (also a member of Drawbacks)
Former band members
Johnny A. Carter - Guitar/Programming
Stuart Toolin - Guitar (currently with Hordes of Satan)
Jim Davies - Guitar (also toured with The Prodigy)
Matt Grundy - Guitar (Live)
D.J. Walters - Drums (Live)
Matt Godfrey - Guitar (Live)
Collaborators
Jello Biafra - Vocal Guest
Nosaj - Vocal Guest
John Stanier - Drums
Keith York - Drums
Logan Mader - Guitar (on 'St. Anger' from Blackest Album 4)
Discography
Albums, singles and EPs
As 'Pitch Shifter'
As 'Pitchshifter'
DVDs
Further Information
Get more info on 'Pitchshifter Band'.
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