Daniel Ash
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Daniel Ash | |
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 Ash at the 2008 Lollapalooza festival.
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Daniel Ash |
| Born | July 31, 1957 in Northampton, England |
| Genre(s) | Alternative rock, gothic rock, post-punk, electronic |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, saxophone |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Associated acts | Bauhaus, Love and Rockets, Tones on Tail |
Daniel Ash (born 31 July 1957, in Northampton, England) is a textural guitarist for Bauhaus, Tones on Tail, Love and Rockets, and solo projects.
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[edit] Life and work
After going to concerts in his teenage years, he made a decision to be on a stage in some way. He started playing guitar around the age of 15, but confessed to have been very lazy and only learned three chords and nothing more for about three years. Ash began playing in cover bands, often together with future band mates David J and Kevin Haskins whom he knew since kindergarten. His first gig was in the Glasgow Rangers Workman's Club.[citation needed]
Ash had become friends with Peter Murphy in his teenage years. Ash went to art school and Murphy to work in a printing factory. They met up five years later and Ash suggested forming a band. Rigging up a makeshift rehearsal space, Ash played an Echo 12 - bar blues, while Murphy sang a series of newspaper articles. Four weeks after, they formed Bauhaus, and recorded "Bela Lugosi's Dead".
That song, released in 1979, became one of the most influential songs in gothic rock music even though they saw themselves as a "dark glam" band and have always distanced themselves from the gothic label. From early on, he was intent on sounding original, and often tried to "make the guitar not sound like a guitar". He worked to develop a guitar style that included other-worldly and atmospheric sounds by the use of an EBow. He typically has used a Telecaster[1] guitar, HH Electronics amplifiers and Marshall 4x12 cabinets for his stage gear. Later in his career, he relied heavily on the Fernandes Sustainer system to achieve similar sounds to the EBow.
After nearly five years of recording and performing, Bauhaus broke up and Ash put together Tones on Tail with Bauhaus drummer Kevin Haskins. As Ash described them: "We were a motley crew of individuals who essentially wanted to sound like a band from Venus or Mars!" In 1984, Tones on Tail was disbanded, and Ash founded Love and Rockets in 1985 with Kevin Haskins and David J, also of Bauhaus. In an interview in June 2009, Ash emphatically stated that he had no further plans to play with Love and Rockets.[1]
Ash has stated that guitar solos do not interest him much since they rely on a musician's ego. He cares much more for the craft of songwriting and the overall production of a song rather than a focus on guitar or any other single instrument.[2] During the last ten years, he has been experimenting more with electronic music, both with Love & Rockets and solo, limiting the use of guitar as an extra element to the songs. Since the last reformation of Bauhaus however, he has been returning to a more guitar based rock sound.
In 2008, Bauhaus released "Go Away White" their first studio album in 25 years and a reunited Love and Rockets played at Coachella Music and Arts Festival.
In June 2009 he released a cover of the David Essex song "Rock On" featuring singer Zak Ambrose (of the band Ambrose) on vocals.[1] Recorded at the Swing House rehearsal and recording complex in Hollywood, the track is on the Swing House Sessions Vol 1 E.P..
His 4th solo album is due for release in 2010.
Ash is also known as a lifelong motorcycle enthusiast having ridden and customized bikes since he was a teenager and he has expressed his zeal on the Love and Rockets "Motorcycle" E.P.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Studio albums
| Year | Album details |
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| 1991 | Coming Down
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| 1992 | Foolish Thing Desire
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| 2002 | Daniel Ash
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| 2005 | Come Alive
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[edit] Singles, EPs and promos
| Year | Album details |
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| 1991 | "This Love"
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| 1991 | "Walk This Way"
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| 1992 | "Get Out of Control" |
| 199? | "Here She Comes"
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| 2000 | Daniel Ash EP
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| 2000 | "Burning Man"
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| 2001 | "Spooky"
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| 2002 | Burning Man x6 + 1
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[edit] Other
- 1991 - "Heaven Is Waiting", a B-side from the "This Love" and "Walk This Way" singles, was included on the Beggars Banquet Records compilation album Money Is Not the Answer
- 2000 - "Trouble" from Daniel Ash appeared in the 2000 film American Psycho
- 2001 - Ash provided vocals and guitar on the title track from DJ Keoki's album Jealousy
- 2003 - Ash recorded a version of "Fever" for the FX (TV network) program Nip/Tuck, which was included on the Nip / Tuck: Original TV Soundtrack
- 2004 - "Come Alive" from Daniel Ash appeared in the computer role-playing game Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines
- 2008 - Ash provided guitar on several tracks from the rock opera film Repo! The Genetic Opera.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c "Daniel Ash: Rock On". SuicideGirls.com. 22 June 2009. http://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Daniel+Ash%3A+Rock+On/. Retrieved on 2009-06-22.
- ^ THE Wonder YEARS. | Guitar Player (, 2001)
[edit] External links
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