Melanie Woods (musician) explained

Melanie Woods
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Alias:Mel Woods
Birth Date:5 May 1969
Birth Place:London, England
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Background:person
Years Active:1990–present

Melanie Woods (born 5 May 1969) is an English musician and carpenter. She was the drummer and a vocalist for the rock band Sidi Bou Said in the 1990s. After their dissolution, she performed vocals on the first two albums of the North Sea Radio Orchestra and joined the cult rock band Cardiacs in 2004, performing on the single "Ditzy Scene" and playing on the subsequent 2007 tour before the band went on an indefinite hiatus.

Woods subsequently joined Kavus Torabi's psychedelic rock band Knifeworld on vocals, percussion and glockenspiel, and the Duran Duran tribute act Joanne Joanne as their drummer. She appeared on the 2010 Tim Smith tribute album Leader of the Starry Skies with Knifeworld and Sidi Bou Said, and the Cardiacs single "Vermin Mangle", released in 2020. Woods has also performed on solo albums by Claire Lemmon and Tim Bowness.

Early life

Woods was born on 5 May 1969 in London, England.[1] [2]

Musician career

1990–2001: Sidi Bou Said and Umbrella Heaven

Woods formed the rock band Sidi Bou Said in 1990[3] on drums and vocals alongside guitarist and vocalist Claire Lemmon and bassist Gayl Harrison.[4] They released their debut album Broooch in 1993.[5] The following year, Woods appeared as a member of the band Umbrella Heaven with Lemmon on "Perverted Pleasure",[6] the lead single of the 1995 album Do You Hate Me?.[7] Sidi Bou Said's two succeeding studio albums—Bodies (1995) and Obsessive (1997)—and Umbrella Heaven's second CD Chosen to be Frozen (1997) also featured Woods.[8] [9] [10] Reflecting on a recording experience of Sidi Bou Said in 1995, Woods said "Looking back on it now, we would have done it differently but then we wouldn't have known that."[11] After Sidi Bou Said disbanded in 1998, Woods performed drumming and percussion on Lemmon's solo album Cleaner (1999).[12] In 2000, Woods was featured in the lineup of the band Ponce alongside Jim Smith of Cardiacs.[13] She did not perform on Umbrella Heaven's final album Light Sleeper (2000) before the group split up in 2001.[14]

2002–2008: North Sea Radio Orchestra and Cardiacs

Woods performed vocals in the North Sea Radio Orchestra, a contemporary chamber group formed in October 2002 by composer Craig Fortnam and his wife Sharron. She was part of the North Sea Chorus on the band's first two albums—North Sea Radio Orchestra (2006) and Birds (2008)—which drew plaudits from classical publications and indie music magazines.[15] [16] In 2004, Woods joined the lineup of the cult rock band Cardiacs as a vocalist alongside Lemmon and Sharron Fortnam, as well as percussionists Cathy Harabaras (who previously played on Cleaner and with Umbrella Heaven) and Dawn Staple. The band started work on new compositions and recordings for an album provisionally titled LSD, releasing the single "Ditzy Scene" in 2007 and touring until winter of that year.[17] [18] Cardiacs frontman Tim Smith, who produced Sidi Bou Said, had a cardiac arrest in 2008 which left him with the condition dystonia and put the group on indefinite hiatus.[19] Woods was in the band's formation when they stopped their activities that year.[20] [21]

2009–present: Knifeworld and Joanne Joanne

Kavus Torabi of Cardiacs and the North Sea Radio Orchestra enlisted Woods in his psychedelic rock band Knifeworld,[22] initially as a special guest on their debut album (2009).[23] Knifeworld covered the Cardiacs song "The Stench of Honey" on the album (2010), which also features a Sidi Bou Said cover of "Victory Egg" where Woods and Lemmon "cascade across barrages of machine-gun drums with a graceful elegance".[24] The sextet released the four-track EP Clairvoyant Fortnight in 2012. According to Rob Hughes of Prog, the title track finds Torabi and Woods "trading vocals over deliciously knotty rhythms".[25] She continued to provide vocals for their albums The Unravelling (2014) and Bottled Out of Eden (2016),[26] [27] sharing vocal duties with Torabi and brass player Chloe Herington,[28] as well as playing percussion and glockenspiel.[29] Bottled Out of Edens closer "Feel the Sorcery" features vocals from the former Cardiacs percussionist, which leads to a "sax and harmony- heavy climax."[30] In an interview with Echoes and Dust, Torabi mentioned potentially making Woods the second drummer of the band with Ben Woollacott.[31] Woods is also the drummer of the all-female Duran Duran tribute act Joanne Joanne.[32] She featured on Tim Bowness's solo album Late Night Laments (2020) with Torabi.[33] The same year, the Cardacs song "Vermin Mangle" was released exclusively on Bandcamp as a single from LSD after Smith's death. In the song, Woods plays around the rhythm of drummer Bob Leith.[34]

Carpentry career

Woods has been a qualified carpenter and joiner to NVQ level 3 since 1999[35] and makes fitted furniture. Before finding her passion in carpentry, she worked in a high street bank and as a musician.[36] She is also a part-time carpentry tutor.[35]

Discography

With Umbrella Heaven

With Claire Lemmon

With North Sea Radio Orchestra

With Cardiacs

With Joanne Joanne

With MX Tyrants

With Tim Bowness

Notes and References

  1. 1522162144049041409. JoanneJoanneUK. Happy Birthday to our amazing drummer, Melanie Woods. Seen here taking a break from behind the kit to celebrate herself. Joanne Joanne. 5 May 2022. 1 May 2023.
  2. Web site: North Sea Radio Orchestra Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More . 17 December 2022 . AllMusic.
  3. Book: Larkin, Collin . The Encyclopedia of Popular Music . . 2016 . 9780195313734 . 4 . Sidi Bou Said . Colin Larkin . Print publication 2006; published online 2009 . Oxford Reference.
  4. Web site: Bush . John . Sidi Bou Said Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More . 17 December 2022 . AllMusic.
  5. Web site: Sidi Bou Said – Broooch Album Reviews, Songs & More . 17 December 2022 . AllMusic.
  6. "Perverted Pleasure" . Umbrella Heaven . 1994 . Boogle Wonderland Records . UK . . vinyl single liner notes . BWL014.
  7. Web site: Umbrella Heaven . 17 July 2020 . Do You Hate Me? . 17 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  8. Web site: Bush . John . Sidi Bou Said – Bodies Album Reviews, Songs & More . 17 December 2022 . AllMusic.
  9. Obsessive . . 1997 . Ultimate . UK . . CD album liner notes . TOPPCD053.
  10. Web site: Umbrella Heaven . 18 July 2020 . Chosen To Be Frozen . 17 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  11. Book: Leonard, Marion . Gender in the Music Industry: Rock, Discourse and Girl Power . . 2007 . 9781351218245 . 2017 . Search "Melanie Woods" . At time of interview drummer and vocalist in the all-female three-piece band Sidi Bou Said, based in London. Interview conducted at Warwick University, Coventry, 13 May 1995..
  12. Web site: Lemmon . Claire . 30 March 2021 . Cleaner . 18 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  13. Web site: Palmer . Mac . 22 March 2000 . For those not on the cardiacs-news mailing list . 15 November 2024 . Google Groups.
  14. Web site: Umbrella Heaven . 20 July 2020 . Light Sleeper . 17 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  15. Web site: North Sea Radio Orchestra . 5 November 2021 . North Sea Radio Orchestra . 17 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  16. Web site: North Sea Radio Orchestra . 18 November 2021 . Birds . 17 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  17. Web site: Sgrignoli . Marco . 20 July 2022 . Cardiacs – biografia, recensioni, streaming, discografia, foto . 23 July 2022 . . it.
  18. Web site: Lawson . Dom . 2 March 2021 . Cardiacs' best albums – a buyers guide . 18 December 2022 . Classic Rock.
  19. Web site: 22 July 2020 . Tim Smith, the lead singer of Cardiacs, has died aged 59 . 18 December 2022 . Far Out Magazine.
  20. Web site: Gallato . Fabio . 22 July 2020. È morto Tim Smith, frontman dei Cardiacs . 18 March 2023 . ImpattoSonoro . it.
  21. Book: Bell, Adrian . Aylesbury Bolton Wolverhampton Hove: A Little Man and 101 Cardiacs Gigs . Iron Bell Publishing . 2011 . 978-0-95-687950-9 . Sullivan County, New York . 12.
  22. Web site: Evans . Matt . 3 August 2011 . On A Knife Edge: An Interview With Kavus Torabi . 18 December 2022 . The Quietus.
  23. Web site: Knifeworld . 18 December 2022 . UK Festival Guides.
  24. Web site: Shepherd . Sam . 26 November 2010 . Various Artists – Leader Of The Starry Skies: A Tribute To Tim Smith. Songbook 1 . 18 December 2022 . The Line of Best Fit.
  25. Web site: Hughes . Rob . 20 June 2012 . Knifeworld: Clairvoyant Fortnight . 25 June 2023 . Prog.
  26. Web site: Kitching . Sean . 30 September 2014 . Reviews Knifeworld . 18 December 2022 . The Quietus.
  27. Web site: Roberts . Chris . 21 April 2016 . The Lead Review: Chris Roberts On Knifeworld's Bottled Out Of Eden . 18 December 2022 . The Quietus.
  28. Web site: Dalton . Stephen . 22 June 2015 . Knifeworld Live in Bristol . 26 October 2023 . Prog.
  29. Web site: Johnston . Emma . 2 July 2014 . Life At The Sharp End . 24 June 2023 . Prog.
  30. Web site: Hamnett . Alun . 18 May 2016 . Bottled Out Of Eden . 15 November 2024 . Record Collector.
  31. Web site: Piko . Cameron . Interview: Kavus Torabi from Knifeworld, Guapo and Gong . 18 December 2022 . Echoes and Dust.
  32. Web site: Cole . Paul . 30 June 2014 . originally published 29 June 2014 . Duran Duran: Watch Joanne Joanne – the Duran Duran tribute act with a difference . 18 December 2022 . Birmingham Live.
  33. Web site: Munro . Scott . 3 July 2020 . Tim Bowness shares abstract video for new single I'm Better Now . 18 December 2022 . Prog.
  34. Book: Benac, Eric . The Cardiacs: Every Album, Every Song . 27 August 2021 . On Track . Sonicbond Publishing . 9781789521313 . 171.
  35. Web site: Woods . Melanie . About me . 15 November 2024 . Melanie Woods.
  36. Web site: 5 Little Known Facts About A Career in Carpentry . 15 November 2024 . Wealthy Student.
  37. New Friend . Umbrella Heaven . 1997 . Boogle Wonderland Records . UK . . CD EP liner notes . BWL021.
  38. Web site: 5 June 2020 . The Golden Greats of Umbrella Heaven . 18 December 2022 . Bandcamp.
  39. Web site: Stream Joanne Joanne music . 15 November 2024 . SoundCloud.
  40. Web site: 21 October 2016 . Masters . 15 November 2024 . MX Tyrants . Bandcamp.

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