TTT - The God Machine

10 months ago

Hello music lovers! 🎵

It's Tuesday, time for #threetunetuesday, and a chance for me to share something I'm listening to.
My last post here was a week ago, Modern Lovers, and continue with the music, I'm recalling memories from the past together with you.

In today's post, I'm going to recall a band that we listened to passionately in my company, albeit for a short time, in the nineties, because it came like a bolt from the blue but also quickly faded into oblivion.

The God Machine was an American trio from San Diego. The members were friends from their youth and were active on the music scene from 1990 to 1994. First, they called themselves Society Line but, not being interesting to anyone there, they went to London, lived on the edge of survival for a year or so, but then somehow got a deal with Fiction Records (that was The Cure's label) and in 1993 released their first album 'Scenes From The Second Storey', which caught the attention of music critics and the public.
In 1994, when they started recording their second album 'One Last Laugh In A Place Of Dying', their bassist suddenly fell into a coma and died in a hospital of a brain haemorrhage.
They finished the album, dedicated it to their deceased friend Jimmy Fernandez, and stopped with the band. Frontman Robin Proper-Sheppard later joined the indie rock band Sophia.

The God Machine's music is not so easy to define, they started out as an alternative rock band with dark, metal, and industrial rock influences.
Some have also classified them as grunge, but they never felt themselves part of the movement. Their sound is very dynamic, from slow virtuosic guitar riffs to industrial metal pummelling in one song, but all of it, especially on the second album, is characterized by one big sadness and endless self-questioning from singer and frontman Robin.

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For those of you who are not (yet) familiar with #threetunetuesday or #ttt - these are tags you need to set when you post.
It's a music initiative started by @ablaze, and with his words, the jist is as follows:

Every Tuesday I'm going to share 3 songs that I like to listen to and I invite your feedback in the comments below. Better still, why not have a blast of your own Three Tune Tuesday and mention me in the post and I'll come and find the post and upvote it. If you could also use #threetunetuesday tag that would be great, as that is what I use when sifting through all the entries every Wednesday. It'll be a sweet way for us all to discover new music. You'll also be in with a chance of winning the reward.

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So, to continue with the music, I've picked out a few clips.

The God Machine - In Bad Dreams

The song is from their second album One Last Laugh In A Place Of Dying, which was released after the death of their bassist in 1994. This is the first song of theirs that I heard and I will always remember the exceptional guitar riff that, along with the lyrics, is the driving force of this song.

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The God Machine - Dream Machine

The song is the first song on the debut album Scenes From The Second Storey. Hard rock, almost metal with a precise and slow rhythm until the halfway point, then it continues with industrial and ends in a repetition.

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The God Machine - Alone

The song is from their second album, with a distinctive guitar riff that goes fast in the ears and a vocal that builds up into a full-blooded rock song and then slows down again towards the end. It's not grunge, it's not metal, it's The God Machine style.

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And live recording, for a bonus :)

The God Machine - Home

This is one of the few live recordings of the band. The song is from their debut album, recorded at the Astoria Theatre London in May 1993 for ScottishTeeVee.

That's all for today, thank you for your attention. I hope today's selection was interesting and put you in a relaxed mood like it did me :)

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This is my 33rd post for #threetunetuesday, which was started by @ablaze. I hope what I'm sharing is interesting for others too, because then it makes sense.

If you're curious about the latest music, follow me on #newtunes, or take a look at my rare recordings at 3speak channel - video, or Seckorama's Music Podcast - audio.

The front image is mine, created in Night Cafe Studio and edited in Photoshop.

Music4life!

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Stay Healthy!