Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

ECHOBELLY

British 'power pop' group. Personnel: Andy Henderson, drums; Glenn Johansson, guitars; Alex Keyser, bass; Sonya Aurora Madan, vocals; Debbie Smith, guitar. Their multiracial line-up has tended to evoke politically correct press responses, two women of an Asian and a West Indian background and three white musicians; the songs themselves dealt with general teenage angst themes like over-partying and narcissism, without specific cultural references. Madan's background tended to be overstated, and unlike contemporary South Asian groups based in Britain such as Fun-Da-Mental, Cornershop and Kaliphz which have sported their cultural colours prominently, Echobelly's debut album Everybody's Got One '94 largely dwelt on non-political themes; the Madan/Johansson writing team had gone on to better things, though songs such as 'Worms And Angels' hinted at much and remained cryptic. On released by Fauve '95 had more of that. 'King Of The Kerb' updated Otto Dix portraying a protection racketeer, while 'Pantyhose And Roses' was inspired by the accidental death of British MP Stephen Milligan, who hanged himself in an activity supposed to heighten sexual gratification, taking a non-critical view. Their appearance on Top Of The Pops promoting 'Great Things' wearing school uniforms threatened to overshadow their musical ability, but storms in teacups was ever a preoccupation of the British musical press. Echobelly's rise coincided with the resurgence of the single in Britain after several years of decline; by the '90s however, the term 'single' was a misnomer for the four- to six-track 'extended play' singles equivalent to the 45 EPs in days of yore; such releases coincided with the rise of 'designer' packaging, and Echobelly fitted right in. Lustra '97 on Epic was an opaque album, bouncy tunes combining uneasily with Madan's somewhat dark lyrics.