Pendulum

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Pendulum
Pendulum at Glastonbury Festival 2009.
Background information
Origin	Perth, Australia
Genres	Electronic rock, alternative rock, drum and bass
Years active	2002 - present
Labels	Breakbeat Kaos, Ear Storm, Warner Music, Atlantic Records
Website	www.pendulum.com
Members
Rob Swire Gareth McGrillen Perry ap Gwynedd Paul Kodish Ben Mount

Pendulum are an Australian drum and bass/electronic rock production group and live band originally from Perth, Australia formed between producers Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen and Paul Harding. In 2003, they relocated to the United Kingdom. They have gained major popularity in the UK, and have started making a name for themselves overseas. After a shift in musical style incorporating a rock-oriented sound, Pendulum are now better known for their energetic live shows, with live band setup and advanced visual displays.

History

Pendulum formed in Perth, Australia and released their first single, "Vault", in 2003.^[1] After several other singles they released their debut album, Hold Your Colour, in 2005. Second album, In Silico, was released in May 2008. The second single from the album, "Propane Nightmares", was their biggest hit to date, peaking at #9 in the UK Singles Chart.

In 2008, Pendulum played at numerous European music festivals and undertook their first tour of North America. At the end of the year the band filmed a live DVD on December 4 and 5 2008, at the Brixton Academy, which was released in June 2009.^[2]. They toured Europe again in 2009 where they first announced work on their third studio album.

On the 1st December 2009 the band released UK tour dates in May 2010 which is scheduled to be their biggest tour to date, it sees the band play some huge music venues such as London's Wembley Arena, the Cardiff International Arena as well as many more. The tour is titled 'Live : New Album Tour' and along with these tour dates, the band also confirmed their third album would be titled Immersion and will be released in 2010. The May tour dates have been described by the band as 'the first chance to see Pendulum live in 2010; disbanding rumours that the band were to hit smaller venues for an early 2010 tour. Speaking about the new album, Immersion, Rob Swire said: "It's been two years in the making and I'm more excited about this record than anything we've ever done. We've been lucky enough to collaborate with some of our idols, played live alongside some of the biggest names in rock and electronic music, and finally set up a permanent studio in London. We've learnt so much during the process and this next record really does feel like a culmination of all those experiences."

Musical style

The Pendulum sound is typically heavy beats accompanied by low, buzzing basslines, overlaid with synthesized leads. When Pendulum started out as producers in Australia, their sound was considerably more drum and bass-influenced than the work they are known for today. Over time, this lead to a change of audience and listeners from underground to mainstream. See: Controversy and Rivalry.

Pendulum's current musical style consists of a fusion between drum and bass and rock, with the inclusion of acoustic instruments. Gareth McGrillen stated in an interview on Channel 4 that they use 13 computers during the live performances, all of which are mixing up the sounds produced by the instruments in real time.

Signature tunes such as "Vault", "Back to You", "Voyager" and "Toxic Shock", which were released on labels such as Uprising Records, Renegade Hardware and Low Profile Records, have a darker, more melodic air to them which is substantially absent from their later productions, which are generally leaning towards a mainstream, dance-driven sound. Early work such as "Another Planet" however, seems to indicate an early affinity with a more global sound, similar to other Breakbeat Kaos artists such as DJ Fresh and Adam F. Their new track "Ransom" played at Noisia set at WMC made a big agiotage about their third album, Immersion.

The group has produced various remixes of other artists also; the most well-known being their remix of "Voodoo People", originally by The Prodigy. Pendulum have also been remixed themselves. In 2006, their collaboration with the Freestylers - "Painkiller" - was remixed by NOISIA and released on Against the Grain Records. In 2008/2009, they remixed Led Zeppelin "Immigrant Song", Coldplay's "Violet Hill", Metallica's "Master of Puppets", Calvin Harris' "I'm Not Alone" and Plan B's "Stay Too Long".

Bassist Gareth McGrillen at Hertfordshire in 2007

Members

• Rob Swire – Lead vocals, synthesizer
• Paul Kodish – Drums
• Ben "The Verse" Mount – MC
• Peredur ap Gwynedd – Guitar
• Gareth McGrillen – Bass, secondary vocals

Discography

Studio albums

• Hold Your Colour (2005)
• In Silico (2008)
• Immersion (May 2010)

DVDs

• Live At Brixton Academy (2009)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pendulum

• Official website
• Pendulum on YouTube
• Louis Chatten Reviews Pendulum's iTunes Gig at Koko
• Pendulum at Discogs
• Pendulum at rolldabeats