Gunship (band)

Gunship
Origin United Kingdom
Genres Synthwave
Years active 2010-present
Labels Horsie in the Hedge
Associated acts Fightstar, Carpenter Brut
Website http://www.gunshipmusic.com
Members Alex Westaway
Dan Haigh
Alex Gingell

Gunship (stylized as GUNSHIP) is a British Synthwave band formed in 2010 by Dan Haigh and Alex Westaway and later joined by drummer Alex Gingell. GUNSHIP's music has been described as "influenced by the soundtracks of 80s film, television shows, video games & cartoons"[1] and "a neon soaked, late night, sonic getaway drive, dripping with luscious analog synthesizers, cinematic vocals and cyberpunk values, exploding from the front cover of a dusty plastic VHS case which has lain forgotten since 1984."[2] The band are credited with helping to popularize the synthwave scene and evolving it by adding rock song structure and extensive use of vocals to a predominantly instrumental genre.

History

While their other musical act (Fightstar) was on hiatus, Westaway and Haigh decided to focus on their other musical venture, GUNSHIP. They are joined by their long-time collaborator and close friend, Alex Gingell. Until today, they have released a self-titled album, which has been well received by the audiences and critics alike.

Musical Style

GUNSHIP have a reputation for creating innovative and interesting music videos[3][4][5] and have collaborated with film director John Carpenter on their claymation homage to 1980s nostalgia "Tech Noir" co-written and directed by GUNSHIP and Lee Hardcastle. John Carpenter is quoted as describing GUNSHIP as “nice and cool.” and that Gunships ‘Tech Noir’ is “One of my favorite songs of the year. Gunship rules.” He also went on to say “It would be fun to collaborate with Gunship.”[6][7] GUNSHIP have also created the "first music video made in the GTA 5 Rockstar editor" [8] for their song "The Mountain" and made a music video entirely from pixel art with Jason Tammemagi for their song "Revel In Your Time" [9]

Reception

The band's self-titled debut album received excellent reviews from both electronic and rock press alike [10] and was credited with sounding simultaneously like "they dropped straight out of the decade itself."[11] and for its excellent modern production[12] "first of all, the production on this album is absolutely pristine – every fuzzy, reverb-soaked layer of analogue synthesizer sounds perfectly placed in the mix, balanced by melodramatic drum patterns that always stay true to their influence rather than taking a more standard EDM trajectory." mixed by producer Carl Bown [13] "It could easily earn a place in synthwave history as one of the first crossover albums".[14] In a commentary about a band, a critic wrote, "There’s no doubt the level of effort they put into everything resonates deeply in the 80s retro community and beyond".[15]

Equipment and Gears

Gunship have a large collection of synthesizers and use a combination of genuine vintage synthesizers and modern synths to achieve their sound including the Juno 106, DSI Prophet 12, DSI Prophet 6, MOOG MiniMoog, MOOG Mother 32, and various Oberheim units.[16]

Discography

Studio albums

Members

Collaborators

The first GUNSHIP album featured collaborations with:[17]

Remixes

The following artists have remixed GUNSHIP songs:

References

  1. ↑ "GUNSHIP DEBUT LANDS | Metropolis Studios". www.thisismetropolis.com. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  2. ↑ "Gunship to re-release self-titled album on cassette with Commodore 64 game". Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  3. ↑ "Gunship Release One Of The Coolest Music Videos Ever". 2015-01-19. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  4. ↑ "The world's first music video made in GTA's Rockstar editor is amazing". Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  5. ↑ "Music Video Of The Week: Revel In Your Time - Gunship - Culturefly". 2015-08-12. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  6. ↑ "Gunship - Tech Noir - AltSounds". Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  7. ↑ "John Carpenter Talks To BD And Gunship (Interview)". 2015-08-27. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  8. ↑ Skipper, Ben (2015-06-03). "Gunship: The Mountain - First music video made in GTA 5 Rockstar Editor by 8-bit Bastard". Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  9. ↑ "GUNSHIP - Magical Pixel Art Video - Revel In Your Time - JetSociety" (in French). 2015-07-26. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  10. ↑ "GUNSHIP – GUNSHIP". Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  11. ↑ "Gunship - Gunship | Album Review - Good Music Matters". 2015-12-28. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  12. ↑ "ALBUM REVIEW: GUNSHIP – GUNSHIP « Bring the Noise UK". www.bringthenoiseuk.com. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  13. ↑ "Gunship - Gunship (album review ) | Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  14. ↑ "GUNSHIP – GUNSHIP". Retrieved 2016-09-13.
  15. ↑ Vehlinggo, Aaron (2015-08-27). "Has GUNSHIP Changed Everything?". Vehlinggo. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  16. ↑ Damme, Jean-Pierre Van. "GUNSHIP". Retrieved 2016-09-13.
  17. ↑ Damme, Jean-Pierre Van. "GUNSHIP". Retrieved 2016-09-13.
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