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Mission of Burma

Background information
OriginBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genre(s)Post-punk
Indie rock
Years active1979-1983
2002-present
Label(s)Ace of Hearts
Matador
Websitemissionofburma.com
Members
Roger Miller
Clint Conley
Peter Prescott
Bob Weston
Former members
Martin Swope

Mission of Burma is an American post-punk band formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1979. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other Post-punk was a popular musical movement in the mid to late 1970s following on the heels of the initial Punk rock explosion of the early 1970s Indie rock is genre of Alternative rock that primarily exists in the independent Underground music scene In the Music industry, a record label can be a Brand and a Trademark associated with the Marketing of music recordings and Music Ace of Hearts Records is a Boston -based independent label founded in 1978 by Rick Harte, who also produced all its releases Matador Records is an Independent record label, famous for a roster of highly-respected Indie rock artists and bands Roger Miller is an American singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist best known for co-founding the groups Mission of Burma and Birdsongs of the Mesozoic. Clinton J Conley is an American Rock and roll musician from Boston Massachusetts. Peter Prescott (b 26 Oct 1957, Nantucket Massachusetts, US) is a musician from Boston Massachusetts. Bob Weston is an American Musician, producer, Recording engineer, and record mastering engineer Martin Swope (b 1 Jun 1955, Ann Arbor, Michigan, US) was the tape manipulator and sound engineer for the Boston-based postpunk band The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Post-punk was a popular musical movement in the mid to late 1970s following on the heels of the initial Punk rock explosion of the early 1970s The band was formed by Roger Miller (guitar), Clint Conley (bass), Peter Prescott (drums) and Martin Swope (tape manipulator/sound engineer). Roger Miller is an American singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist best known for co-founding the groups Mission of Burma and Birdsongs of the Mesozoic. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles Clinton J Conley is an American Rock and roll musician from Boston Massachusetts. The electric bass guitar (also called electric bass, or simply bass; ˈbeɪs as in "base" is a Stringed instrument played primarily with the Peter Prescott (b 26 Oct 1957, Nantucket Massachusetts, US) is a musician from Boston Massachusetts. A drum kit (also drum set or trap set) is a collection of Drums Cymbals and sometimes other Percussion instruments such as cowbells Martin Swope (b 1 Jun 1955, Ann Arbor, Michigan, US) was the tape manipulator and sound engineer for the Boston-based postpunk band Miller, Conley and Prescott share singing and songwriting duties. Like many of their post-punk contemporaries, Mission of Burma's efforts are largely concerned with extending punk's original vocabulary without losing its essential rebellious spirit. Using rapid shifts in dynamics, unconventional time signatures and chord progressions along with tape effects, Mission of Burma challenges the prevailing idioms of punk while attempting to retain its power and immediacy. In Music, dynamics normally refers to the volume of a Sound or note, but can also refer to every aspect of the execution of a given piece either stylistic The time signature (also known as " meter signature" is a notational convention used in Western Musical notation to specify how many beats A chord progression (also chord sequence and harmonic progression or sequence) is a series of chords played in order

In early years the band's audience was limited to the Boston area, with all their recordings released on the small Boston-based record label Ace of Hearts. Ace of Hearts Records is a Boston -based independent label founded in 1978 by Rick Harte, who also produced all its releases Despite initial success, Mission of Burma disbanded in 1983 due to Miller's development of tinnitus caused by the volume of the band's live performances. Tinnitus (tɪˈnaɪtəs or /ˈtɪnɪtəs/ from the Latin word for " Ringing " is the perception of sound within the human ear in the absence of corresponding The band released only one album in its original form, Vs.. Vs is an Album by the Post-punk band from Boston Massachusetts Mission of Burma. Mission of Burma reformed in 2002, with Bob Weston replacing Swope, and has since recorded two more albums, ONoffON and The Obliterati. Bob Weston is an American Musician, producer, Recording engineer, and record mastering engineer ONoffON is the second album by post-punk group Mission of Burma, their first studio recording after their nineteen year hiatus In September 2005 Mission of Burma began recording their third studio album the second since their 2002 reunion

Contents

History

Formation and early history

Mission of Burma's history began with a short-lived Boston rock group called Moving Parts. The Moving Parts was a late 1970s Boston-based Rock music band The band included Roger Miller, who had moved to Boston from Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Clint Conley, who came from Darien, Connecticut. Roger Miller is an American singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist best known for co-founding the groups Mission of Burma and Birdsongs of the Mesozoic. Ann Arbor is a city in the US state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. Clinton J Conley is an American Rock and roll musician from Boston Massachusetts. Darien is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. [1] While the members were all friendly, Conley and Miller wanted a more hard-rocking sound than keyboardist Eric Lindgren wanted to pursue. When Moving Parts broke up amicably in December 1978, Miller and Conley began practising. The pair auditioned drummers by playing "out" music, such as Sun Ra and James Brown, until the applicant left. Sun Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, Legal name Le Sony'r Ra; James Joseph Brown Jr (May 3 1933 – December 25 2006 commonly referred to as "The Godfather of Soul" the "King of Funk" and "The They eventually recruited ex-Molls drummer Peter Prescott, who had admired the music of Moving Parts. Peter Prescott (b 26 Oct 1957, Nantucket Massachusetts, US) is a musician from Boston Massachusetts. [2]

They took their name from a "Mission of Burma" plaque Conley saw on a New York City diplomatic building; he thought the phrase had a "sort of murky and disturbing" quality. A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one State or an international Inter-governmental organization (such as the United Nations) present in Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. The City of New York Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting Negotiations between representatives of groups or states [2] Mission of Burma made their debut in April 1979 as a trio. Later that month Miller wrote a song, "Nu Disco", that he felt would be improved by a tape loop. Tape loops are loops of prerecorded Magnetic tape used to create repetitive rhythmic musical patterns or dense layers of sound [3] Miller then contacted Martin Swope, with whom he had earlier written some John Cage and Karlheinz Stockhausen-inspired pieces for piano and tape. Martin Swope (b 1 Jun 1955, Ann Arbor, Michigan, US) was the tape manipulator and sound engineer for the Boston-based postpunk band WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> John Milton Cage Jr Swope was immediately enlisted as the group's live audio engineer and occasional tape-effects artist. His latter role grew gradually, until by 1981 he was adding tape work to most of the group's songs, and was regarded as an integral part of the group, appearing in group photographs and receiving equal credit on recordings.

From the start, Mission of Burma received support from local music magazine Boston Rock, who printed a lengthy interview with the band before they released their first record, and Boston college radio station WMBR. WMBR is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT–run student broadcasting station licensed in Cambridge Massachusetts and broadcasting on 88 The station played Conley's "Peking Spring" repeatedly, and it became the station's most-played song of 1979. Mission of Burma wanted to release the song as a single, but by the time they had found a label, they felt the song had run its course. [4]

Signals and Vs.

By 1981, the band signed a record deal with the Boston-based record label Ace of Hearts. Ace of Hearts Records is a Boston -based independent label founded in 1978 by Rick Harte, who also produced all its releases Their debut recording was a single of Conley's "Academy Fight Song" backed with Miller's "Max Ernst" (titled after the dada artist). Max Ernst ( 2 April 1891 &ndash 1 April 1976) was a German painter, Sculptor, Graphic artist, and For other meanings see Dada (disambiguation DaDa is a Concept album by Alice Cooper, released Rick Harte's layered production was far more refined than the band's ragged live performances, and the band initially objected to the single. However, the first pressing of the single sold out quickly, and the band thereafter trusted Harte's judgement.

Their debut release, the EP Signals, Calls, and Marches, was released in 1981. An extended play ( EP) is a Vinyl record, CD, or Music download which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify Signals Calls and Marches is the first EP by Boston -based band Mission of Burma, released in 1981 (see 1981 in music) By the end of that year, the EP had sold out its initial pressing of 10,000 copies. [5]

In 1982, Mission of Burma released their only full-length studio record Vs.. Vs is an Album by the Post-punk band from Boston Massachusetts Mission of Burma. The album has since seen wide praise; one review notes "very few American bands from the 1980s released an album as ambitious or as powerful as Vs., and it still sounds like a classic. Vs is an Album by the Post-punk band from Boston Massachusetts Mission of Burma. "[6] "New Nails" seems to set the stage for Sonic Youth, with jagged guitar and shouted lyrics like "The Roman Empire never died / It just changed into the Catholic Church. Sonic Youth is an American Alternative rock band formed in New York City in 1981 The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial "

Breakup and aftermath

In 1983, after the release of Vs. , the group disbanded due to Miller's worsening tinnitus, attributed in large part to their notoriously loud live performances -- during their farewell tour, Miller took to augmenting his usual small foam earplugs with rifle-range earphones onstage. Tinnitus (tɪˈnaɪtəs or /ˈtɪnɪtəs/ from the Latin word for " Ringing " is the perception of sound within the human ear in the absence of corresponding

Miller and Swope then turned their attention to their side project, the quieter Birdsongs Of The Mesozoic (cofounded with their old friend Lindgren), which they both left in the '90s, Miller to produce several solo efforts and film scores, and Swope to semi-reclusion in Hawaii. Birdsongs of the Mesozoic is a musical group founded in Boston Massachusetts in 1980. Prescott remained active in the Boston music scene, forming Volcano Suns and later Kustomized and The Peer Group. Volcano Suns was an American Alternative rock band from Boston Massachusetts Other than producing Yo La Tengo's debut record, Conley dropped out of music (working as a producer for Boston television station WGBH); in 2001 he returned with Consonant. Yo La Tengo is an American Indie rock band based in Hoboken, New Jersey. For the radio station specifically see WGBH (FM. WGBH is a non-commercial Television and Radio broadcast service located in Boston Consonant is an Alternative rock group formed by singer/guitarist Clint Conley in 2001

Reunion

In 2002, Mission of Burma reunited and began playing reunion shows with Bob Weston of Shellac (and formerly Prescott's Volcano Suns bandmate) replacing Swope at the mixing board and tape manipulation. Shellac (sometimes referred to as "Shellac of North America" is an American Noise rock group composed of Steve Albini (guitar and vocals Bob In an interview Miller relates that "when we approached Bob Weston to fill Martin's position, we told him he could use current digital technology which accomplishes Martin's antics in an easier fashion. A sampler is an electronic musical instrument closely related to a Synthesizer. However, Bob opted for maintaining the original integrity, and uses a tape deck. "[7] Weston began using a sampler in 2007. Weston regularly joins the band onstage during encores, playing bass while Conley plays second guitar.

A new album, ONoffON, was produced in 2004 by Bob Weston in conjunction with Rick Harte and the band, and released on Matador Records on May 4. ONoffON is the second album by post-punk group Mission of Burma, their first studio recording after their nineteen year hiatus "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Matador Records is an Independent record label, famous for a roster of highly-respected Indie rock artists and bands Events 1256 - The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV The album finished 90th in the Village Voice Pazz & Jop critic's poll. This article is about a New York newspaper For the Ottawa Hills Ohio magazine see The Village Voice of Ottawa Hills. The Pazz & Jop critics' poll is a highly influential poll of music critics run by The Village Voice newspaper Snapshot, a live recording of the reunited MoB, is an iTunes exclusive. iTunes is a proprietary digital media player application introduced by Apple Inc

In September 2005, the band began recording their third studio album, tentatively titled (among other names) Aluminum Washcloth. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Production duties this time were again handled by Bob Weston. Rechristened The Obliterati, the new album was released on Matador on May 23, 2006 and was named as the 33rd best record of 2006 by Pitchfork Media and placed 50th in the Pazz & Jop poll. In September 2005 Mission of Burma began recording their third studio album the second since their 2002 reunion Matador Records is an Independent record label, famous for a roster of highly-respected Indie rock artists and bands Events 1430 - Siege of Compiègne: Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to relieve Compiègne Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork, is a Chicago -based daily Internet publication devoted to music criticism and commentary The Pazz & Jop critics' poll is a highly influential poll of music critics run by The Village Voice newspaper

As of early 2008, the band's live repertoire contains half a dozen new songs, and they expect to record a new album sometime during the year.

On March 18, 2008, Matador Records re-released remastered versions of Signals, Calls, and Marches, Vs. , and The Horrible Truth About Burma.

Musical style

Miller's songs were typically more unorthodox, both lyrically and structurally. Conley's were somewhat more conventional and even anthemic: critic Franklin Bruno described Conley as a "hook machine",[8] and his songs have probably been most widely covered by other artists. A hook is a Musical idea, often a short Riff, passage or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a Song appealing and to "catch the Though Miller and Conley handled most of the singing and songwriting, Prescott contributes a few songs per record as well; he usually sings in a tuneful, drill sergeant's bellow. A drill instructor (or Drill Sergeant) is a Non-commissioned officer in the Armed forces with specific duties that vary by country

Live performances

Prescott explained Swope's methods in a 1997 interview: "What Martin did . . . was tape something that was going on live, manipulate it, and send it back in (via the soundboard) as a sort of new instrument. In professional audio, a mixing console, or audio mixer, also called a sound board or soundboard, is an electronic device for combining You couldn't predict exactly how it would sound, and that got to be the really fun thing I think we all liked. We wanted to play this hammer-down drony noise stuff, but we also wanted another sound in there. Noise rock (also known as noise punk) describes one variety of Post-punk Rock music that became prominent in the 1980s "[5] Swope's tapework ranged from subtle and nearly subaural (such as the quiet shifting feedback sounds in Conley's "That's When I Reach For My Revolver"), to prominent and even jarring (such as the high-pitched two-note squeal in Miller's "Red"). Journalist Michael Azerrad later wrote: "A lot of people never knew about Swope's contribution and were mystified by how the musicians onstage could wring such amazing phantom sounds from their instruments. Michael Azerrad is an American Author, Journalist and Musician. " Though his contribution is widely considered an integral part of Burma's sound, Swope very rarely appeared onstage, only occasionally appearing to play second guitar during encores.

Their live performances were notoriously hit-or-miss, and were usually far more rough-edged than their recordings; the Horrible Truth of their live album (The Horrible Truth About Burma) being an in-joke about their inconsistency. Boston critic and scenester Tristam Lozaw described Mission of Burma live: "When they were good, they were very very good, but when they were bad they were horrid . . . But that was the nature of the beast . . . Because they took chances, you never knew whether you were going to get one of the most spectacular experiences of your life or if it was going to be a ball of incomprehensible noise. " (Azzerad, 106) While the band's improvisational side and the unpredictable chaos of Swope's tape work contributed a little to this inconsistency, the two main factors were (as Lozaw implies) the live sound and the pacing and timing of their sets. When faced with a venue where the sound system or room acoustics weren't up to the task of conveying clarity along with the band's trademark volume, Swope always refused to compromise, and opted for volume. The band's set lists (composed by committee a few minutes before going on stage) could range from well-constructed to seemingly picked at random, and (aside from "Secrets" as a frequent opener and "All World Cowboy Romance" or a cover as an encore) there was a general reluctance to repeat any song placement or sequence that had worked in the past.

Legacy

In the decades following their demise, Burma's reputation grew to nearly legendary proportions. Contemporary music critics point to their work as a pivotal turning point in North American independent music. Many bands have cited Burma as an inspiration, including Nirvana, Superchunk, Jawbox, The Grifters, R.E.M. (who regularly covered "Academy Fight Song" on their Green tour), Sonic Youth, Drive Like Jehu, Throwing Muses, Yo La Tengo, Fugazi, Pixies, Sugar, Guided by Voices, Catherine Wheel, Graham Coxon, Pegboy and Moby - the last four of which have covered Conley's "That's When I Reach For My Revolver. Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen Washington. Superchunk is an Indie rock band from Chapel Hill North Carolina, consisting of singer/guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Jawbox was a post hardcore/indie rock band from Washington DC The Grifters was a nationally popular and influential 1990s Indie rock band based in Memphis who released albums on Doink Sonic Noise Shangri-La Records REM is an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by Michael Stipe ( lead vocals) Peter Buck ( Guitar Sonic Youth is an American Alternative rock band formed in New York City in 1981 Drive Like Jehu was an American Post-punk / Post-hardcore band led by Rick Froberg and John Reis, formed in 1990 in San Diego Throwing Muses are an Alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport Rhode Island, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997 when its members began concentrating Yo La Tengo is an American Indie rock band based in Hoboken, New Jersey. Fugazi are an American alternative / post-hardcore band that formed in Washington D Pixies are an American Alternative rock band formed in Boston Massachusetts in 1986 Sugar was an American Alternative rock band of the early 1990s led by former Hüsker Dü vocalist/guitarist Bob Mould. Guided by Voices (often abbreviated as GBV) was an American Indie rock band originating from Dayton, Ohio. Catherine Wheel were a four-piece Alternative rock band from Great Yarmouth, England. Graham Leslie Coxon (b 12 March 1969) is an English Guitarist, Singer-songwriter, Multi-instrumentalist and painter Pegboy is a US-American punk band from Chicago, founded 1990 by John Haggerty (who played guitar with Naked Raygun) along with his brother Joe Richard Melville Hall, also known as Moby (born September 11, 1965 in Harlem, New York) is an American DJ " It should be noted here that when Moby covered the song for an MTV video, he changed the lyrics to "That's when I realize it's over. " When questioned why, Moby responded that he did not want to promote gun violence. Gun violence is the broadly defined category of Violence and Crime committed with the use of a Firearm; it does not include the safe lawful use of firearms

Discography

Main article: Mission of Burma discography

Studio albums

Notes

  1. ^ Azerrad, 2001. Studio albums Vs (Ace of Hearts 1982 Forget (Taang! 1988 ONoffON (Matador 2004 Vs is an Album by the Post-punk band from Boston Massachusetts Mission of Burma. ONoffON is the second album by post-punk group Mission of Burma, their first studio recording after their nineteen year hiatus In September 2005 Mission of Burma began recording their third studio album the second since their 2002 reunion p. 96
  2. ^ a b Azerrad, 2001. p. 97
  3. ^ Azerrad, 2001. p. 98
  4. ^ Azerrad, 2001. p. 99
  5. ^ a b Mission impossible: The story behind the legend of a seminal Boston band
  6. ^ allmusic {{{ Vs. > Review }}}
  7. ^ electronics
  8. ^ Music: Twenty-Two Years Later. Published in Seattle Weekly. Seattle Weekly is a freely distributed Newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States.
  9. ^ Previously unreleased songs by Taang! Records

References

External links

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