Seefeel

British electronic/post rock band

Seefeel is a British electronic and post rock band formed in the early 1990s by Mark Clifford (guitar, programming), Daren Seymour (bass), Justin Fletcher (drums, programming), and Sarah Peacock (vocals, guitar). Their work became known for fusing guitar based shoegaze with the production techniques of ambient techno and electronica. Initially forming as a more conventional rock band, Seefeel soon embraced electronic production and gained recognition for their 1993 debut EP More Like Space and first album Quique (1993), both on the British independent label Too Pure. The band subsequently released music on electronic labels Warp Records and Rephlex, and then went on an extended hiatus in 1997, with members pursuing the side projects Scala and Disjecta. Following the reissue of Quique in 2007, Clifford and Peacock relaunched Seefeel and were joined by Shigeru Ishihara (DJ Scotch Egg) on bass, and former Boredoms drummer Iida Kazuhisa (E Da). In 2010 they released the Faults EP (their first new recording in 14 years) followed shortly after by an eponymous LP in 2011, both on Warp.

Clifford originally began writing tracks for what became Seefeel in late 1991. He placed an advert at Goldsmiths College, London where he was a student, and it was answered by Fletcher who joined him on drums. Peacock became part of the group after Clifford answered an advert she had placed in the NME. but enhanced in the studio. Subsequently, the Plainsong EP was released along with an EP of remixes including two remixes of 'Time to Find Me' by Aphex Twin. These first two EPs, along with the remix EP, were later released in the US as a single CD Polyfusia, by Astralwerks. The band's first album, Quique, was released in October 1993. In his review for the Melody Maker, Simon Reynolds called the album "consummate, a blanched canvas for the imagination". Spin magazine's review stated "Seefeel, have struck a sublime groove midway between MBV's sensual tumult and Aphex Twin's ambient serenity" going on to add "you try to squint your ear in order to bring the music into focus, then give up, and just bask in the gorgeous, amorphous glow". Quique was re released in 2007 in redux form, containing alternate versions and material not released at the time. Reviewing this re issue Pitchfork stated that "Seefeel's music continues to sparkle 14 years later, an entire generation having built an ambient motorik noise pop aesthetic around Quique songs like 'Plainsong'" and adding "Quique still sounds timeless". The band also became a notable live act, receiving many positive reviews in the NME and Melody Maker. In his review in Melody Maker of their show at the Garage, London, just prior to the release of Quique, Simon Reynolds noted their performance was "like an orgasm turned into an environment, a honeycomb space of luminous, globular goo. You feel like you're actually inside the drugged or orgasmic body, a grotto of rushes, tingles, shivers, pangs, spasms" further adding that the band was "a pipe dream come true, and the best new band of '93". The band's first release on the label was the 1994 Starethrough EP. The band played several dates of their own as well as touring alongside Spiritualized. They also recorded a four track session at Maida Vale Studios in London for the John Peel Show on BBC Radio 1. Touring, however, took its strain on the band and they embarked on a self imposed hiatus which, although designed initially as a break, turned into a long absence. In 1996, Seefeel released (CH VOX) on Rephlex. After remixing "Time to Find Me", Richard James and Mark Clifford had become friends. James had asked Clifford and Seefeel to do a record for his Rephlex label and they had agreed. When signing to Warp Records, their contract recognised the promise made to James and following the release of Succour, Rephlex were given tracks recorded during these sessions and after but unreleased. Although intended as an EP, the record is considered by many to be the band's 'third' album. (CH Vox) reduced percussion to a bare minimum and brought aural tapestries of processed guitar and fragmented sounds to the forefront.

Following the re issue of their first album Quique in 2007, Clifford and Peacock discussed writing new material. Clifford recalls, "Sarah and I got together to do some interviews and we just talked and decided to exchange a few ideas to see if Seefeel was worth pursuing again". Daren Seymour and Justin Fletcher were not able to be a part of the rejuvenated band due to prior commitments and living outside the UK, so Clifford recruited Kazuhisa Iida (ex Boredoms) and Shigeru Ishihara (DJ Scotch Egg) on drums and bass respectively. They were asked by Warp to play at the label's 20th anniversary show in Paris in 2009 and Steve Beckett was so taken with their performance, he encouraged them to re sign to Warp and to record new material. They began writing new tracks and eventually decamped to Church Road Studios in Brighton, though material was eventually mixed at home. The first fruits of their sessions was the 2010 Faults EP, Boomkat noted "Seefeel have moved with the times, adjusting their trademark sound with characteristically fractal noise textures from Shigeru and more organic, pounding drums from Boredoms' E da. There's still a sunkissed bliss running throughout the album, but it's of a more sullied, toxic variety".

Mark Clifford has released music under the name Disjecta. Disjecta was named after a collection of essays by Samuel Beckett and was described as an outlet for his abstract constructivist electronica. Disjecta's music albums include Looking For Snags (1995), Clean Pit and Lid (1996) and True Love By Normal (2003). Clifford also released music under the name Woodenspoon. Clifford also formed other collaborative music projects. On meeting vocalist Sophie Hinkley at London's Milk Bar, the two formed the group Sneakster who released the album Pseudo Nouveau in 1999. Clifford also collaborated with Mira Calix recording material between 1999 and 2004. Their recordings were released as Lost Foundling in 2010. The remaining members of Seefeel, Sarah Peacock, Justin Fletcher, and Daren Seymour collaborated with former Seefeel member Mark van Hoen in their group Scala. Scala's sound was described by AllMusic as "More indebted to noise and trip hop than the looped sound wash Seefeel had been known for, the quartet also focused on a somewhat tighter song structure and emphasized Peacock's vocals."