The Comsat Angels

ORIGINAL LINE-UP:
Steve Fellows - Guitars & Vocals
Kevin Bacon - Bass Guitar
Mik Glaisher - Drums
Andy Peake - Keyboards & Vocals
LATER TO INCLUDE:
Simon Anderson - Guitar
Terry Todd - Bass Guitar

The Comsat Angels are one of the most underrated bands of the post-punk era. They produced nine studio albums and played hundreds of gigs during the years 1979-1995, never achieving the commercial success they so richly deserved. In 2009, they reformed for a reunion concert in their hometown of Sheffield, which was followed by a three-city tour of the UK.

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My Minds Eye, The Glamour and To Before are available on iTunes.

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Waiting For A Miracle, Sleep No More and Fiction are available for download at Lost Tunes. (Note: Lost Tunes store is being refurbished and is temporarily unavailable.)

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For an in depth article about the April 2009 reunion featuring an interview of Steve Fellows, click here.

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INTERESTED IN CONNECTING WITH OTHER COMSAT FANS?

Join the Sleep-No-More mailing list at Yahoo.com. Since 1998 this has been the main gathering place for those who believe that the Comsat Angels are one of the greatest overlooked bands of all time. People from all over the world have traded thousands of messages, and some, having met each other at the April reunion, have formed real life friendships. To join, simply sign up for an account with yahoo.com and send an email to sleep-no-more-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

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A SHORT HISTORY OF THE COMSAT ANGELS

The four original band members, Steve Fellows, Mik Glaisher, Andy Peake and Kevin Bacon, began playing together during the late 1970s. After several incarnations under different band names, they became the Comsat Angels, naming themselves after a J.G. Ballard short story. Their first record was Red Planet, an EP that attracted the attention of legendary DJ, John Peel. He gave them the exposure they needed to get their first recording contract with a major label, Polydor. The Comsats released three albums in 1980-82: Waiting For A Miracle, Sleep No More, and Fiction. They toured extensively in the UK and Europe, gaining a large following in the Netherlands, and some critical acclaim. But they couldn't manage to "break through" with a big hit single. An American company (Communications Satellite Corporation) threatening to sue over their name, and a US tour cut short by illness, added to their frustrations. Polydor dropped them after 1982.

The Comsats then signed with Jive, who paired them up with synth-pop producer Mike Howlett in an effort to make them more mainstream. 1983's Land sacrificed much of the band's original quality and the plan backfired. Their second Jive album, 7 Day Weekend, suffered even more in its attempt to craft radio-ready singles, though it did gain them exposure for the use of "I'm Falling" in the movie Real Genius.

After leaving Jive, the band spotted Robert Palmer championing them on TV and contacted him. Within an hour, Palmer's weight with his label, Island Records, earned the Comsats a new deal. The album Chasing Shadows was somewhat of a return to the band's earlier style, but it too died a commercial death. The band persuaded Island to help them set up their own place to record, and Axis Studio was built in their native Sheffield. Though much of their new record, Fire On The Moon, was done by 1987 it wasn't until 1990 that the record saw issue and under a new alias, Dream Command.

At this point, the Comsats finally gave up on pleasing record label executives or consumers and started producing music on their own instinct. They inked a deal with indie labels RPM/Thunderbird in the UK and Caroline in the US, releasing My Minds Eye in 1992. Kevin Bacon opted to leave the Comsats after the record; Terry Todd came in as Bacon's replacement on bass, and Simon Anderson was added as second guitarist. The band issued The Glamour in 1995, a heavier rock version of their sound, influenced by the grunge era. At the end of a UK tour that summer, the band called it quits.

THE COMSAT ANGELS REUNITED

Following the breakup of the Comsats, the band members went their separate ways. Fellows released an album of experimental guitar music called Mood X and also managed the band Gomez. Bacon moved on to a career as a music producer. And Glaisher became part of a blues trio called Chicken Legs Weaver. Prompted by an offer to reform for a one-time gig, and with renewed interest amongst fans (one of them BBC film critic Mark Kermode), the band decided to get back together. Their Sheffield concert on April 26, 2009 was attended by fans from as far away as the US and Australia and led to a successful October tour which included Glasgow, Manchester and London.

For more information about the Comsat Angels, visit the Sleep-No-More website and the Comsat Angels article on Wikipedia.