Clan of Xymox
| Clan of Xymox | |
|---|---|
 Ronny Moorings (2008) |
|
| General information | |
| origin | Nijmegen , the Netherlands |
| Genre (s) |
Dark Wave (1984–1986) New Wave (1987–1989) House , Dance (1991–1994) Rock , electronic music |
| founding | 1984 as Xymox |
| Website | www.clanofxymox.com |
| Founding members | |
| Ronny Moorings | |
Vocals, bass
|
Anke Wolbert (until 1991) |
| Current occupation | |
Vocals, instruments |
Ronny Moorings |
bass |
Mojca Zugna (since 1990) |
| Sean Goebel | |
Keyboard |
Daniel Hoffmann |
| Mario Usai | |
| former members | |
Keyboard |
Pieter Nooten (1984–1991) |
| Former Live Members | |
guitar |
Frank Weyzig Tom Ashton Rob Vonk (1997–1999) Paul Whittlesea |
| Jos Heijnen (1985) Will van Antwerpen (1985–1995) (alias Will Anvers ) Rui Ramos |
|
Keyboard |
Pieter Nooten Richard Wells Sharon Soffner (1997–1999) Nina Simic Denise Dijkstra Agnes Jaspers Yvonne de Ray |
Clan of Xymox is a band from Nijmegen that emerged from the Dutch squatter scene in 1984 and was one of the most important representatives in the dark wave environment in the 1980s .
Founding members were Ronny Moorings from The Hague and Anke Wolbert from Eindhoven , who, while studying in Nijmegen, made the decision to set up the band Clan of Xymox - initially under the name Xymox . Xymox was expanded to Clan of Xymox in 1985 for the debut of the same name , but again shortened to Xymox in 1987 .
After the band disappeared into oblivion in the 1990s, they celebrated their comeback in 1997, now again with their full band name and dark wave songs.
The beginnings (1984–1989)
Inspired by the musical optimism of the late 1970s and early 1980s, Ronny Moorings decided to start his own project. The inspiration came from Neue Deutsche Welle , which at that time came across the borders to the Netherlands with artists such as DAF , Die Krupps , the Einstürzende Neubauten and ghost drivers . Simultaneously, the British Gothic wave with groups such as Bauhaus , Virgin Prunes , The Cure , The Sisters of Mercy and many others spread across mainland Europe and left clear traces on Moorings.
Subsequent pleasures
In 1984, Ronny Moorings and Anke Wolbert laid the foundation stone for Xymox, but after a few appearances in the Netherlands, both of them terminated the project for a short time, as Anke moved to Amsterdam due to a change of studies . Ronny Moorings followed her some time later and together they composed and released their first EP Subsequent Pleasures in the 8-track recording studio Octopus Records. Anke Wolbert took over the vocals on the track Call It Weird . With this publication, limited to 500 copies, the still young project gained a little popularity in countries such as France, Germany and the Netherlands.
Xymox performed in Paris with Pieter Nooten, whom Moorings met in Nijmegen before moving to Amsterdam . Further concerts followed. The original version of this vinyl EP has developed over the years into a much sought-after collector's item, for which horrific sums of money are paid.
4AD
After a concert by the Cocteau Twins in Nijmegen, Moorings happened upon the duo Dead Can Dance , who supported the Cocteau Twins as a support act . The friendship that developed from this and a subsequent tour of the two groups helped Mooring's own project to become better known and, through the demo material recorded with Pieter Nooten (appeared on the 1994 re-release of Subsequent Pleasures ), to a record deal with the British label 4AD . After three concerts with Dead Can Dance, Pieter Nooten left the Xymox project due to personal problems.
Clan of Xymox
The recordings for the first album Clan of Xymox began. Pieter Nooten has been replaced by Frank Weyzig on keyboard for upcoming live performances. Nooten returned especially for the studio work, whereby Weyzig took over the guitar parts. With Jos Heijnen, Xymox used a live drummer for the first time, but he left the band while the album was being produced and was replaced by a drum computer .
Clan of Xymox was then successfully marketed and sold more than 100,000 units in parallel to a tour through Europe. With the release of the first album in 1985, the name of the band changed: "Xymox" became "Clan of Xymox". By participating in the famous John Peel sessions, the band was able to increase its level of awareness again.
Television presence
After a concert in Barcelona , filming began on the video clip A Day . This was shot in Cadaqués , part of it in front of Salvador Dalí's house. 4AD showed interest and bought the video, music channels such as MTV and Super Channel broadcast A Day across Europe and helped the band to gain further popularity.
Medusa
Despite internal project differences and the inadvertent deletion of the original version of the track Michelle during studio work, the 1986 album Medusa , which was produced by John Fryer , was completed. The record became an international success and exceeded the sales of the first long player Clan of Xymox . Titles such as Louise and Back Door as well as the new recording of Michelle became hits and increased the level of awareness of Clan of Xymox in parts of the USA and Mexico .
Twist of Shadows
In 1988 the single Blind Hearts / A Million Things was released , with which Clan of Xymox - now abbreviated back to "Xymox" - reached number 1 in the import charts in the USA. After a tour of the United States, the band split from 4AD and signed a contract with the major label Polygram .
Work on the third album Twist of Shadows began, and Anke Wolbert composed the band's next hit: Imagination . With the release of the album in 1989, further appearances followed in the USA, and by the end of the tour, the album Twist of Shadows had sold over 300,000 copies. With the commercial success, changes in the music of Xymox became increasingly noticeable, which gradually turned to a more catchy pop and dance style.
The Xymox Era (1989-1997)
Phoenix
In the meantime, Xymox had moved to London and were increasingly devoting themselves to pop and dance music, as had already been suggested in Twist of Shadows . Phoenix was the last album on which Anke Wolbert and Pieter Nooten took part in 1991, and soon afterwards both left the band. Nooten, who released the album Sleeps with the Fishes on 4AD with Michael Brook in 1987 , is now active as a solo musician.
Metamorphosis and Headclouds
After Phoenix fell short of expectations and Polygram broke up with the band, Ronny Moorings largely single-handedly recorded the albums Metamorphosis and Headclouds , which were heavily inspired by the Manchester Rave of that time and could no longer build on previous successes.
The return (since 1997)
Hidden faces
In 1997 Ronny Moorings ended the Xymox era, moved back to the Netherlands and returned with a new line-up. The album Hidden Faces was released on the German-American independent label Tess Records and marked the resurrection of Clan of Xymox. The record was produced by Dave M. Allen ( The Sisters of Mercy , The Cure ) and John A. Rivers ( Dead Can Dance ). Musically, the album offered a symbiosis of Gothic Rock guitars, wave keyboards and emotional singing, which was contemporary with the old Clan of Xymox era. After the release of Hidden Faces , Clan of Xymox went on tour in 1997/98 and played at various festivals such as the WGT in Leipzig or the Zillo Festival . The singles Out of the Rain and This World reached the top 10 of the German independent charts and high positions in the alternative charts worldwide.
Creatures
The album Creatures was released in 1999 on the North American label Metropolis Records and in Europe on Pandaimonium Records, while the albums Clan of Xymox and Medusa were re-released in the USA. The Gothic Rock sound was retained at Creatures , and the keyboard was also retained. This release was followed by an extensive world tour and appearances at various festivals, the Song Consolation was also released as a single. Creatures received positive reviews from the trade press around the world and reached high places in the alternative charts.
Live and Liberty
In 2000, Clan of Xymox toured Europe , the United States, Canada and Latin America . In August the live album Live with performances in South and Central America and the single Liberty was completed and released in October 2000 while they continued their European tour.
Notes from the Underground
The album Notes from the Underground was released in 2001 and has been dubbed by some critics as the best Clan of Xymox album to date. It reached first place in the Musicfolio charts of the USA and second place in the DAC charts as well as several other high positions in various charts worldwide. Even if a few tracks like Liberty or Something Wrong were strongly accompanied by guitar sounds , these receded a little on the album and the keyboard was given a little more space.
Remixes from the Underground and There's No Tomorrow
Remixes from the Underground was released in 2002 and contained all the tracks from Notes from the Underground in remix versions as well as the first video CD by Clan of Xymox. The remixes were purely electronic and came from well-known artists such as Front 242 or Assemblage 23 . A few months later, the single There's No Tomorrow was released.
Farewell
When Farewell was released in 2003 , the album reached first place in the DAC charts, second in the World DJ charts and other high positions in other alternative charts worldwide. These were the highest chart positions of Clan of Xymox to date, which even surpassed the success of Notes from the Underground . Musically it was more in the electro direction, even if the guitars did not disappear completely and in some pieces still formed the main part.
Best of album
In September 2004 a best-of album by Clan of Xymox was released. It contained some new recordings (i.e. no remixes) of some old tracks such as A Day or Louise from the 4AD era, as well as a collection of tracks that fans could vote on on the Clan of Xymox website. The best-of album also made it into the top 10 of some alternative charts and reached first place on the DAC charts.
Weak in My Knees and Breaking Point
In January 2006 the maxi-single Weak appeared in My Knees after Clan of Xymox had meanwhile moved from the Netherlands to Leipzig in Germany. This was a profound change for the band, which is why the new album was named Breaking Point . Musically, contrary to the two predecessors and the single, more emphasis was placed on quieter pieces, although some club titles were still included.
DVD Visible
In March 2008 the band released the DVD album Visible . In addition to many live recordings, the limited double disc edition also includes an interview with Ronny Moorings and other bonus material.
more publishments
After a label change to Trisol Music Group , the album In Love We Trust was released in 2009 , accompanied by the single Emily . Two years later, the long player Darkest Hour came out. In 2012 the record Kindred Spirits was released, on which only cover versions of songs by other artists, u. a. David Bowie ( Heroes ), Depeche Mode ( A Question of Time ), The Cure ( A Forest ) or New Order ( Blue Monday ). The album Matters of Mind, Body & Soul followed in 2014, the album Days of Black in 2017 and the album Spider on the Wall in 2020 .
Film music
In the 1980s, the song Stranger accompanied the final scene of the 21st episode of the television series The Hitchhiker . The track In Your Arms Again from the album Darkest Hour was used in David Fincher's 2011 film Verblendung . For the soundtrack of the thriller The Guest by Adam Wingard, three early Clan of Xymox songs were used in 2014: Masquerade , A Day and Cry in the Wind .
Discography
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