Jane From Occupied Europe were a band that originated
from Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. Band members had appeared previously in
other local bands, most notably Bubblegum Splash [Subway Records] and a popular
Wiltshire band, Mrs Taylor’s Mad. They were part of what was an interesting
scene of music that stemmed from the area around the mid to late 80’s, including
bands like The Badgeman [Paperhouse Records], The Mayfields, and Mad Cow
Disease. The band was formed by Jim Harrison, vocals & guitar, Colin
O’Keefe, guitar, Dave Todd, bass, David Ware, guitar, keyboards & vocals,
and Phil Eason, drums & percussion. So one would assume that they took
their name from the second album by Swell Maps and that’s true. They once told
the NME: “Swell Maps thought up some really great titles and, er… we just
ripped it off.”
Whilst their sound has been bracketed under the ‘Shoegazing’ mantle, there’s an awful lot more going on here, from serious guitar feedback to flutes and strings (real ones too, not synthesizer ones), and a drummer who's really into Psychocandy. Basing their core sound around a broad number of styles and influences, including psychedelia, punk, and garage, there are tracks like Loss and Synaesthesia that lean a bit towards early post-rock. This is a really damn good album, a bit uneven, though, and I'm not huge on their singer. But it's definitely a shame these guys didn't do more.
Whilst their sound has been bracketed under the ‘Shoegazing’ mantle, there’s an awful lot more going on here, from serious guitar feedback to flutes and strings (real ones too, not synthesizer ones), and a drummer who's really into Psychocandy. Basing their core sound around a broad number of styles and influences, including psychedelia, punk, and garage, there are tracks like Loss and Synaesthesia that lean a bit towards early post-rock. This is a really damn good album, a bit uneven, though, and I'm not huge on their singer. But it's definitely a shame these guys didn't do more.