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nce upon a time in the year 1989, operatically-trained
Tina Root and fillm scorer Susan Wallace met through San Fransisco's goth
music network. They saw in each other what was missing in their current
projects, and a new collaboration was born. Together, Tina's vocals
and Susan's keyboards and programming made for a wickedly dramatic mix,
one which they described as different musical styles cut up and reassembled...or
a Switchblade Symphony. |
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arly on, Switchblade Symphony won a dedicated
local following and sold self-released cassettes at shows. But when
Cleopatra Records signed Switchblade Symphony to release their first full-length
album, Tina and Susan were on their way to becoming the darlings of the
darkwave scene. 1995's Serpentine Gallery, with its lush layers
and industrial beats, gained the band critical acclaim and tour dates with
Christian Death. |
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n 1997 Bread & Jam for Frances
was
released, marking a new path for Switchblade Symphony, both in terms of
members and sound. Tina and Susan remained at the core of the group
and introduced drum loops and samples into their repetoire. They
continued to tour both on their own and with acts such as Frontline Assembly,
Gary Numan and legends Sisters of Mercy. |
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outed as a fusion of Switchblade Symphony's
earlier, darker work and their later experimentalism, 1999's Three Calamities
may also be their final album. The latest news is that while they
have not officially broken up, they are on hold for the moment. The
last thing Switchblade Symphony has released to date is a cover of 'Lucky
Star' for a Madonna tribute album.
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