Rose McDowall
Rose McDowall (née Porter;[1] born 21 October 1959) is a Scottish musician who formed Strawberry Switchblade with Jill Bryson in 1981.[2]
- Pop
- new wave
- neofolk
- Singer
- musician
- Vocals
- guitar
- keyboards
- drums
History
McDowall was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1959. Her first venture into music was in the Poems, an art-punk trio formed in 1978 with her then-husband Drew McDowall. She then formed Strawberry Switchblade in 1981 with Jill Bryson. After signing with Warner Bros. Records, they enjoyed chart success with their single "Since Yesterday" in 1984; however, later singles and an album did not sell as well as expected. This and internal problems led to an acrimonious split in 1986.[1]
For the next six years, McDowall was primarily a guest vocalist or "floating member" of several different alternative bands, particularly in the neofolk genre. She contributed backing or lead vocals for Coil, Current 93, Death in June,[3] Felt, Alex Fergusson, Into a Circle, Megas, Nature and Organisation, Nurse with Wound, Ornamental, Psychic TV[4] and Boyd Rice on recordings as well as singing or playing guitar for live appearances. In 1993, she collaborated with Boyd Rice under the band name Spell, producing two singles and an album of 1960s pop, country and psychedelia covers for Mute Records. [1]
At the same time, she formed a folk rock band called Sorrow with then-husband Robert Lee.[5] Between 1993 and 2001, they released two albums and one EP through World Serpent Distribution and performed in Europe and the US. During this time, McDowall continued to record and perform with Current 93 and Coil, including the short-lived group Rosa Mundi. Robert Lee left the band in 2002. McDowall and her remaining bandmates continued to perform as Rosa Mundi until 2005 when she began performing under her own name.[1]
McDowall is best known as a vocalist, but also plays guitar, keyboards, melodica, and drums. Her signature instruments are a Washburn 12-string acoustic guitar, a Fender Coronado electric 6-string guitar and an electric harmonium.
She has three children: daughter Keri McDowall, from her marriage to Drew McDowall, as well as son Bobi Lee and daughter Velocity Lee, from her marriage to Robert Lee.
Discography
Rose McDowall
Year | Title | Format, notes |
---|---|---|
1988 | Don't Fear the Reaper | 7" and 12" on Rio Digital (unapproved release) |
1994 | Johnny Remember Me | Pic. 7" on Sympathy for the Record Industry (unapproved release) |
2004 | Cut with the Cake Knife | CD on Bad Fairy |
2005 | Alone | CD EP on Durtro – with John Contreras and Nurse with Wound |
Strawberry Switchblade
Spell
Year | Title | Format, Special Notes |
---|---|---|
1993 | "Big Red Balloon" | Single on Mute Records |
1993 | Seasons in the Sun | CD on Mute Records |
Sorrow
Year | Title | Format, Special Notes |
---|---|---|
1993 | Under the Yew Possessed | CD on Piski Disc |
1999 | Sleep Now Forever | CD on Piski Disc |
1999 | The Final Solstice (I/II) | CD on Piski Disc |
2001 | Let There Be Thorns | Maxi CD on Piski Disc |
2001 | Let There Be Thorns | Pic. 7" on Piski Disc |
Track appears on:
- Not Alone
Current 93
See: Current 93
Nature and Organisation
Year | Title | Format, Special Notes |
---|---|---|
1994 | A Dozen Summers Against the World | CD on Durtro |
1994 | Beauty Reaps the Blood of Solitude | CD on Durtro |
Backworld
Year | Title | Format, Special Notes |
---|---|---|
1999 | Anthems from the Pleasure Park | CD on Harbinger House |
2001 | The Fourth Wall | CD on Harbinger House – live recording |
References
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- ^ a b c d Graham, Ben (15 September 2015). "All Her Yesterdays: Rose McDowall Interviewed". The Quietus. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
- ^ Sutton, Michael. "Biography: Rose McDowall". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 May 2010.
- ^ Lester, Paul (14 April 2015). "Cult heroes: Strawberry Switchblade – the clue was in the name". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ Mandois, Sarah (7 October 2015). "Rose McDowall va continuer à vous mettre le coeur en miettes" [Rose McDowall will continue to put your heart in pieces]. Vice (in French). Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ McHugh, Stuart (11 September 2018). "Rose McDowall switches Strawberry for Sorrow". News Guardian. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
External links
- A 12-page January 2002 interview with Rose McDowall (single screen version)
- Rose McDowall on Discogs
- Rose McDowall on Facebook
- v
- t
- e
- Transparent
- Scatology
- Horse Rotorvator
- Gold Is the Metal (With the Broadest Shoulders)
- Love's Secret Domain
- Stolen & Contaminated Songs
- The Angelic Conversation
- Worship the Glitch
- A Thousand Lights in a Darkened Room
- Time Machines
- Astral Disaster
- Musick to Play in the Dark Vol. 1
- Queens of the Circulating Library
- Musick to Play in the Dark Vol. 2
- Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil
- Moon's Milk (In Four Phases) Bonus Disc
- The Remote Viewer
- Black Antlers
- The Ape of Naples
- The New Backwards
- Unnatural History
- How to Destroy Angels (Remixes and Re-Recordings)
- Unnatural History II
- Windowpane & the Snow
- Unnatural History III
- A Guide for Beginners: The Voice of Silver
- A Guide for Finishers: Golden Hair
- Moon's Milk (In Four Phases)
- The Golden Hare with a Voice of Silver
- How to Destroy Angels
- The Unreleased Themes for Hellraiser
- Born Again Pagans
- Spring Equinox: Moon's Milk or Under an Unquiet Skull
- Summer Solstice: Bee Stings
- Autumn Equinox: Amethyst Deceivers
- Winter Solstice: North
- elph.zwölf
- The Restitution of Decayed Intelligence
- "Panic/Tainted Love"
- "Wrong Eye/Scope"
- "Windowpane"
- "The Snow"
- "Airborne Bells/Is Suicide a Solution?"
- "Nasa-Arab"
- Discography
- Threshold House
- Eskaton
- Chalice
Category