EMF
Formed in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, in 1989 by James Atkin (b. 28 March 1969, Cinderford, Gloucestershire, England; vocals), Ian Dench (b. 7 August 1964, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England; guitar/keyboards), Derry Brownson (b. 10 November 1970, Gloucester, England; keyboards/samples), Zac Foley (b. Zachary Foley, 9 December 1970, Gloucester, England, d. 3 January 2002, London, England; bass), Mark Decloedt (b. 26 June 1969, Gloucester, England; drums), and Milf (DJ). All had previously been in local indie bands, with Dench in Apple Mosaic and Foley in the IUC's. The band claimed that EMF stood for Epsom Mad Funkers or, more controversially, and more attractive to the gutter press, Ecstasy Mother Fuckers. Parlophone Records countered that it stood for Every Mother's Favourites, which is hard to believe, given the band's notorious touring antics. Their record company signed them after just four gigs and without the advance warning of a demo. However, their opportunism was rewarded when the debut single "Unbelievable" became a Top 5 UK hit. The follow-up, "I Believe", was criticized in many quarters for being a straight rewrite, while many were also suggesting that the band had stolen Jesus Jones' pop/sample thunder. However, their ability to win over the teen-pop market was proved by debut album sales of over two million.
Listen to EMF
at Finetune.
Albums
- (2008) The Remixes
- (1998) Schubert Dip
Top Tracks
- Unbelievable
- I Believe
- Lies
- Children
- Long Summer Days
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