- The Shapes (UK band)
The Shapes were an English
punk rock group that formed in the town ofLeamington Spa in the latter half of the 1970s.Different in many ways from their peers in the nascent
punk subculture , they were known for eschewing the more political stances that were fashionable at the time — instead producing works of a cartoonish and absurdist nature. Often compared to theThe Rezillos because of theirGerry Anderson -themed work, they released their first single, "I saw Batman in the Launderette" on their own Sofa records label. This led to national exposure, becoming a hit in the UK charts and leading to aJohn Peel session for Radio One on theBBC .They released singles on their own label and on the
Belfast independent labelGood Vibrations (home toThe Undertones ) until their breakup in 1982. Having achieved cult status, their records continued to be hotly traded. This demand resulted in a belated release of a full length retrospective of all of the singles, B Sides, radio sessions and demos as the collection Songs for Sensible People on Overground Records in 1997. The independent label Hyped to Death have released Shapes tracks as part of their compilation series from 2002 onwards in the USA. The most recent release being in 2007 on their Messthetics series of releases. Overground Records re-released Songs for Sensible People in its original format in January 2008, and another compilation including previously unreleased tracks is due for release in Japan on 1977 Records before the end of 2008. In mid 2008, it was annouced that The Shapes would reform in their original lineup for a tour of theUnited Kingdom to mark the 30 year anniversary of the first single.Original lineup
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Seymour Bybuss - Vocals
*Brian Helicopter - Bass
* Dave Gee - Drums
* Tim Jee - Guitar
* Steve Richards - GuitarThe Bybus/Helicopter/Richards/Jee/Gee lineup is the one that is most closely associated with The Shapes, and appears on all of the band's previously released work up to the retrospective release.
ee also
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Punk pathetique External links
* "The Shapes" [http://hyped2death.com/shapes history and website]
* [http://www.punk77.co.uk/groups/shapes.htm Punk77's feature on the band]
* [http://www.trakmarx.com/2003_04/050_shapes.htm Trakmarx interview with Seymour and Brian of The Shapes]
* [http://www.myspace.com/brianhelicopter A Shapes Myspace page with songs]
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