Moloko
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 Photo shoot in 2003. Left to right: Mark Brydon and Róisín Murphy
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| Background information | ||
| Origin |  Sheffield, England |
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| Genre(s) | House, Electronica, Trip-hop, Dance | |
| Years active | 1995–2004 | |
| Label(s) | Echo Records | |
| Website | http://www.moloko.co.uk/ | |
| Former members | ||
| Róisín Murphy Mark Brydon |
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Moloko were an electronic / pop group from Sheffield, England, consisting of Róisín Murphy and Mark Brydon.
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[edit] Origin of band name
The band's name originates from the novel A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, in which it means either "milk" (the name of a milk drink Alex and his 'droogs' consume, and the Russian word for milk) or "method of narcotic ingestion". (Fellow electronic Sheffield band Heaven 17 had also taken their name from the novella when they formed in 1980.)
[edit] History of band
Murphy was born in Arklow, and had no prior professional experience as a singer. Brydon already had an extensive resumé within the dance music community as a remixer and member of pop/house acts House Arrest and Cloud 9. They met at a party in Sheffield, when Murphy approached Brydon using the chat-up line, "Do you like my tight sweater? See how it fits my body!" This line would later become the title of their debut album, recorded while the pair were dating.[1]
The first two albums Do You Like My Tight Sweater? and I Am Not a Doctor gained notice in the underground dance scene. The band broke into the mainstream when "Sing It Back", an album track from I Am Not A Doctor, was remixed by house music producer Boris Dlugosch. The track was a massive hit in Ibiza, and this remixed version broke into the top-five of the UK singles chart in 1999, helped by a psychedelic video featuring the attractive Murphy in a very short metallic "flapper" dress and cap. "Sing It Back" was eventually featured on 110 music compilations.[2]
In 2000 Moloko started touring as a full band along with percussionist Paul Slowly, keyboardist Eddie Stevens, and guitarist Dave Cook.
The band also had chart success with "The Time Is Now", the first single from the third album, Things to Make and Do. This album had relied less on the leftfield beats of the previous albums, and featured more organic instrumentation.
Murphy and Brydon ended their relationship in 2003. After their breakup, they recorded and released their fourth studio album, Statues. Statues continued a segue into more traditional instrumentation, along with electronica elements from their earlier releases. Statues incorporated the theme of the couple's split: all of the songs deal with a troubled and/or ending romance.
In 2004 Moloko released a live DVD, 11,000 Clicks, recorded on stage at the Brixton Academy. It contained many of their well known songs including "Indigo", "Sing It Back", and "The Time Is Now".
After concluding the tour supporting Statues, Moloko mutually parted ways, with Murphy launching a solo career. However, in 2006 Murphy and Brydon, along with long-time Moloko Cook, played a select number of acoustic radio performances to promote the Moloko best of album Catalogue. While both currently pursue projects outside of Moloko and state that there are no plans for Moloko at the moment, Murphy has been keen to stress that the group are not necessarily defunct and that she has no interest in "burying" the project.[3]
For the time being, Róisín Murphy continues to work on her second solo album, to be released some time in 2007, while Mark Brydon is working on a number of smaller projects in his own studio.
[edit] Discography
- Moloko - Sing It Back excerpt (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- An excerpt from Sing It Back
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
[edit] Albums
[edit] Remixes and Compilations
[edit] Live albums
[edit] Singles
- "Where Is The What If The What Is In Why?" (1995)
- The Moloko EP (1995)
- "Dominoid" (1996) [UK chart run: 65-out]
- "Fun For Me" (1996) [UK chart run: 36-66-out]
- "The Flipside" (1998) [UK chart run: 53-out]
- "Sing It Back" (1999) [UK first release chart run: 45-73-out]
- "Sing It Back" (1999) [UK re-release chart run: 4-9-13-21-26-40-44-54-69-out]
- "The Time Is Now" (2000) [UK chart run: 2-4-11-16-25-38-36-44-58-75-out]
- "Pure Pleasure Seeker" (2000) [UK chart run: 21-37-41-48-68-out]
- "Indigo" (2000) [UK chart run: 51-out]
- "Familiar Feeling" (2003) [UK chart run: 10-31-41-65-out]
- "Forever More" (2003) [UK chart run: 17-30-47-73-out]
- "Cannot Contain This" (2003) [not released in UK]
[edit] Awards and Honors
"Best International Live Act" - Belgian TMF Awards 2004
[edit] Moloko in other media
Moloko's music has appeared in several video games:
- "Sing It Back (Can 7 Supermarket Mix)" appeared in the Konami music simulation games beatmania(European PlayStation version) and beatmania APPEND GOTTAMIX 2 ~Going Global~.
- "Sing it Back" has appeared in Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories and SCEE's Eye Toy: Play.
- "Familiar Feeling" is one of the songs in the Konami dance simulation game Dancing Stage Fusion.
The Song "The Time Is Now" is also featured in the Ford Focus adverts for Sky Sports News in the UK
[edit] References
[edit] See also
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
