The Chameleons
The Chameleons were an English rock band from the environment of the post-punk.
Band History
The Chameleons were founded in 1981 in Middleton / Greater Manchester (England). In contrast to similar types of bands such as U2, Joy Division, Psychedelic Furs and Echo & The Bunnymen they succeeded with their darkly melancholic dominated by faded twin guitar songs, no significant commercial breakthrough. Nevertheless, their 's 1983 debut album Script of the Bridge is now counted among the major plates of the post-punk. In 1985 he was the second album What Does Anything Mean? Basically. As with the third album Strange Times finally announced major success and the last single Swamp Thing, at least in the short term entry into the UK's Top 100, the band split after the death of their manager, and his father's friend Tony Fletcher in 1987 to surprising. This was due to internal squabbles between singer and bassist Mark Burgess and guitarist Dave Fielding.
After the band members had pursued various side and solo projects in the following years ( including The Sun And The Moon, The Reegs, Invincible ), the band reformed in 2000 and took the acoustic albums Strip and This Never Ending Now, and new material on, which was released on the album Why Call It Anything. Despite some benevolent reviews the comeback-album but sold poorly. After initially successful tours through Europe and the USA the band's career thus came again to a halt, and it came in 2002 - on the band's own website - for renewed discord. Today, bands like Interpol and the Editors of The Chameleons called the Dark Wave duo Soul in Isolation its name from the eponymous song by the group.
Since 2005 is the front man of " Manchester's most underrated band", Mark Burgess, again with a new formation on the go - simply by its nickname "Bird" named. In autumn 2005, the trio toured as the opening act for New Model Army by the UK and then played a few concerts in Italy. In spring 2007, a club tour followed by the United States. The band has since been working on new songs. For several years, Mark Burgess and John Lever also give concerts under the name Chameleons Vox, in which they present with other guest musicians the old The Chameleons songs live.
2008 was the occasion of his 25-year anniversary of the debut vinyl album by The Chameleons Script of the Bridge re-released as a deluxe edition - remastered and with bonus material. In 2009 they had a collector's edition of their second studio album What does anything mean? Basically, are also remastered and included a bonus CD containing demo versions of the album title. Mark Burgess ' in the spring of 2010, published in self-published autobiography View From A Hill offers an insight into the music scene in Manchester between post-punk, New Wave and Britpop.