Amy Blue

Infobox musical artist
Name = Amy Blue


Img_capt = Amy Blue in January, 2007, at The George Tavern, London. Left to right: Simon Chatterton, JP Rutter, Danny Legg.
Landscape = yes
Background = group_or_band
Origin = London, United Kingdom
Instruments = Guitar, Bass, Drums, Laptop
Genre = Alternative rock
Electronica
Years_active = 2003–present
Associated_acts = evol-i
Smothermad
Recrimination
URL = [http://www.myspace.com/amyblue amyblue.co.uk]
Current_members = Simon Chatterton
JP Rutter
Lex Sampson

Amy Blue is a British alternative rock band comprising of Simon Chatterton (guitar), JP Rutter (guitar), and Lex Sampson (drums). The name of the group was taken from Gregg Araki's 1995 independent movie, The Doom Generation.

History

Amy Blue was formed in February 2003 by Simon Chatterton and JP Rutter. Chatterton was previously known for performing solo shows while at university in Northampton under nom de plume evol-i, and was a roadie for local hardcore band Jnr Loaded. The band took its roots from combining a mix of industrial noise and quiet atmospherics with traditional songwriting, all crafted for the best part of two years in a boiler room in Soho, London. The sound gradually shifted towards a "wall of noise" style reminiscent of early 90's shoegaze and grunge with glitch and IDM influences also at the forefront.

The band's first loud and energetic live shows comprised of Chatterton, Rutter and a laptop. December 2005 saw the release of their eponymous EP, which consisted of My Bloody Valentine-esque "The Language of Ghosts", post-hardcore "Won't You Follow Me", straight rock song "Silvery Sea", and doom rock closer, "Angel of Chaos". The sleeve was a manipulation of a Francis Bacon (painter) painting to emphasise the record's gothic feel without being labelled as such.

In December 2006, the band leaked tracks from their first EP as unreleased demos by The Smashing Pumpkins, long before any of the other band's new material had been revealed. Spin writer Billy Goodman interviewed Chatterton (referred in the final article as Simon Chatterman) to find out the origins of the songs and the hoax, which Chatterton admitted was to "piss off a few file-sharers". [ [http://www.spin.com/features/news/2006/12/061211_amyblue/ SPIN.com: Exclusive: Smashing Pumpkins Imposters Unmasked? ] ]

Bassist Danny Legg joined in June 2006, followed by drummer Lex Sampson in February 2007. The band were recording a follow-up EP, 'The Fortress & The Fatalist' as of late 2007. Legg left the band amicably in 2008.

Discography

*2005: 'Eponymous': 1. The Language of Ghosts, 2. Won't You Follow Me, 3. Silvery Sea, 4. Angel of Chaos
*2007: 'Red Headed Stepchild Records Sampler': UK indie-label compilation features Won't You Follow Me and The Language of Ghosts.
*2008: 'The Fortress & The Fatalist': Forthcoming Album.

External links

* [http://www.amyblue.co.uk/ The Band's Official Site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/amyblue Amy Blue on Myspace]

References