Rob Swire

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Rob Swire
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Robert Swire-Thompson
Alias = Anscenic
Born = 1982, Perth, Western Australia
Instrument = Vocals, synthesiser, bass
Genre = Drum and bass, rock, electronica
Occupation = Singer, songwriter, musician, audio mixing, record producer
Years_active = 2002–present
Label = Hardline Rekordingz
Breakbeat Kaos
Associated_acts = Pendulum
URL = http://www.pendulum.com/
Notable_instruments = Starr Labs' Ztar Z6

Robert Swire-Thompson (born 1982), sometimes referred to by the stage name Anscenic, is best known as lead singer and producer of Australian drum and bass band Pendulum. Originally from Perth, Western Australia, he relocated to the United Kingdom in 2003 with fellow Pendulum co-founders Gareth McGrillen and Paul "El Hornet" Harding. Swire has since fulfilled a broad spectrum of roles as a member of Pendulum, ranging from song writing to singing while performing live with an unusual guitar-like MIDI controller – Starr Labs' Ztar Z6.

Biography

Early life

Swire was born and raised in Perth, Western Australia. He attended Scotch College, Swanbourne, graduating in 1999, where he first met fellow bandmate Gareth McGrillen. [ [http://namesdatabase.com/people/SWIRE-THOMPSON/ROBERT/17046547 Robert Swire-Thompson] . Names Database. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] Over the next three years he worked as a record producer for several local drum and bass, breakbeat and hardcore bands, during which time he occasionally used the stage name "Anscenic". He also made a couple of independent releases with former hardcore label Hardline Rekordingz, including a collaboration with the label's founder, Animal Intelligence, which was titled "Fat American Bitchcore". [ [http://www.discogs.com/release/1037911 Fat American Bitchcore (Lathe, 7", Cle)] . Discogs. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] Only twenty lathe cut copies of the record were distributed, to help promote the label's 2001–2002 tour of New Zealand. Swire also produced a track titled "Electrodes on the Skull" which was released alongside three tracks by other artists signed to the label at that time. [ [http://www.discogs.com/release/69568 Efil4Zanildrah Part 2 (12")] . Discogs. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.]

Pendulum

In 2002, Swire formed drum and bass act Pendulum with McGrillen and local DJ Paul "El Hornet" Harding. [ [http://www.pendulum.com/about.htm About Pendulum] . Official Pendulum website. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] Swire relocated to the United Kingdom the following year, along with the other members of the band, and the band soon gained widespread underground recognition for their track "Vault". [ [http://artists.letssingit.com/pendulum-mp85q/biography Pendulum biography] . LetsSingIt. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] Over the next two years Swire worked on material for the band's debut album, "Hold Your Colour", primarily as the band's songwriter and producer alongside McGrillen. The album was released in 2005, to considerable commercial success. When the band began performing live in October 2006, Swire became the band's lead singer in addition to playing a Ztar – a guitar-like MIDI controller – during live performances.

After the band's first tour they started work on a second album, "In Silico", for which Swire was chosen as the main vocalist. In addition, he continued his former roles of writer and producer, although he relegated the task of vocal mixing to a professional mixing engineer. Swire was also extensively involved in creating publicity material for the new album, as he explained during an interview with Lucy Chakaodza of "The Independent". [Chakaodza, Lucy. [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/the-5minute-interview-rob-swire-musician-831514.html The 5-minute Interview: Rob Swire, Musician] . The Independent. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.]

Music

Production

Swire has worked as a record producer since 1999, most recently for Pendulum while producing the album "In Silico", during which he was required to create demos, record the tracks, and mix the album. He is responsible for mixing most of the band's material, although more recently he has avoided mixing vocals, stating that, "Since I was doing the vocals, it's a bit harder to keep the objectivity on the engineer's side".Inglis, Sam. [http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jun08/articles/pendulum.htm Rob Swire: Recording "In Silico"] . Sound on Sound. Retrieved 12 August 2008.] To avoid spending too long worrying about sound quality, Swire drafted the demos for "In Silico" using Commodore 64 and Nintendo emulators, and basic synthesiser sounds.Moayeri, Lily. [http://remixmag.com/artists/rock/remix_pendulum/ Pendulum on In Silico] . Remix Magazine. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] To record the album, the band travelled to various studios where the live musicians, including Swire himself, recorded acoustic drums, guitars, bass and vocals. In addition to recording the various tracks that comprised each song, Swire recorded samples of the instruments used so that, if he wasn't happy with one of the tracks, he could then play the part himself using a keyboard sampler.

Performance

Swire has performed a wide range of instruments while recording material for Pendulum, including guitar and electric piano on "Hold Your Colour", [ [http://www.discogs.com/release/494991 Hold Your Colour (CD, Album)] . Discogs. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] and synthesiser, bass and percussion on "In Silico". [ [http://www.discogs.com/release/1381410 In Silico (CD, Album)] . Discogs. Retrieved on 18 September 2008.] He has also been the band's main vocalist since the release of "In Silico", for the purpose of creating a consistent sounding album. When performing live with the band, Swire typically plays a guitar-like MIDI controller, Starr Labs' Ztar Z6, in addition to performing vocals on tracks for which his voice was originally used.

Discography

*"Efil4Zanildrah Part 2" (EP, Hardline Rekordingz, 2002) – "Electrodes on the Skull"
*"Fat American Bitchcore" (EP, white label, 2002) with Animal Intelligence

References

External links

* [http://www.discogs.com/artist/Rob+Swire Rob Swire] at Discogs
* [http://www.myspace.com/robpendulum Rob Swire] at MySpace
* [http://www.rolldabeats.com/person/rob_swire Rob Swire] at rolldabeats