The Suicide Club,if you have never heard of them,were simply one of the most under-rated bands to never earn themselves a recording contract.
Formed in 1984 in the Staffordshire town of Burntwood by guitarist Darrell Matthews and vocalist Tim Dunning.They played a highly original blend of Punk/Goth/Folk rock which in the intervening years has been copied by many but truly emulated by few.
Despite living a mere half a mile from each other,they first met at Cannock Chase Technical College in September 1984,where they were both enrolled on a Certificate of Further Education course in General Engineering.Darrell and Tim soon realised they shared a similar taste in music and a desire to take to the musical stage.By Christmas of that same year they were writing their own material.
At first,the only accompaniment to Tims ethereal vocals was the rough yet powerful strumming of Darrell on his six string.During this period they wrote songs like Doctor Death,Chigley and Boring Caveman,but these are now discounted by both as being a product of youthful exuberance,as the final Suicide Club sound wasn't realised until the introduction of their trademark drum machine.
A daily routine of writing songs on the 860 bus to college,lunchtime drinks in Stamps and regular band practices after a hard days education,meant that within months of forming they had a large repertoire of highly polished and original compositions.Songs like Asylum,Suicide,Desires of the Flesh and the unforgettable Mordor are all spin-offs from this period and are still recognised to this day as classic Suicide Club numbers.
Band practices always took place at either Darrell or Tims house,often in their respective bedrooms,but also in Tims garage or on occasions his kitchen,which provided superb acoustics and was very handy for their regular coffee breaks.
The instruments used by The Suicide Club were of the cheap off the shelf variety - basic electric guitar(make unknown),a bog standard microphone,a Soundmaster SR-88 drum machine and a fairly standard amplifier set up.But the various elements,however rough or basic on their own,put together made up a great uncomplicated sound,in some ways reminiscent of early Sisters of Mercy tracks.
The name The Suicide Club was just one of several sobriquets the pair considered before deciding that IT was in fact the one name that most suited their musical style.Notable others included Zebragroin and The Paradisians,which simply don't describe their sound half as well.
At the time there was no logical reason why that particular name was chosen other than the fact that it sounded right.But later inquiries have shown that The Suicide Club is also the title of a short story written in the 1880's by Robert Louis Stevenson and later made into a film starring Meriel Hemingway and Lenny Henry.And since Darrell and Tim split there has also been a Japanese horror movie,a crime thriller by John Warmus and a live album by the Sonic Subjunkies.All well worth investigating.
Influenced by such bands as Balaam and the Angel,The Cult,The March Violets and The Sisters of Mercy,Darrell was responsible for all the music,the programming of the drum machine and about one third of the lyrics.His blend of hypnotic drum beats and primeval melodies are still a joy to listen to today.
Tim wrote the other two thirds of the libretto and anyone who has listened carefully would surely agree that he was a lyrical genius.How could anyone forget that classic line from Chigley :-
'It's a nice place,It's a good place,There's lots of things to do;I like going down to Kwik Save and sitting on the loo'.
The first,in fact only,full callender year of the bands existence was 1985 and is widely acknowledged as their most productive,both in terms of quantity and quality.Songs such as Passion,City of Hope,For all Eternity and Destiny are all examples of their undeniable brilliance.
Sadly though,the following year saw the demise of The Suicide Club.Just as many of their musical influences either disbanded or redefined themselves,Darrell and Tim also had their own musical differences,and so The Suicide Club were duly confined to the depths of time.
There were no records made,no live appearances,no press cuttings.Infact the only things remaining are a few dusty old cassettes and some quite fond memories.
