Gunship (band)

Gunship (stylized as GUNSHIP) is a British Synthwave band formed in 2010 by Dan Haigh and Alex Westaway and later joined by drummer Alex Gingell. GUNSHIP's music has been described as "influenced by the soundtracks of 80s film, television shows, video games & cartoons"^[1] and "a neon soaked, late night, sonic getaway drive, dripping with luscious analog synthesizers, cinematic vocals and cyberpunk values, exploding from the front cover of a dusty plastic VHS case which has lain forgotten since 1984."^[2] The band are credited with helping to popularize the synthwave scene and evolving it by adding rock song structure and extensive use of vocals to a predominantly instrumental genre.

History

While their other musical act (Fightstar) was on hiatus, Westaway and Haigh decided to focus on their other musical venture, GUNSHIP. They are joined by their long-time collaborator and close friend, Alex Gingell. Until today, they have released a self-titled album, which has been well received by the audiences and critics alike.

Musical Style

GUNSHIP have a reputation for creating innovative and interesting music videos^[3][4][5] and have collaborated with film director John Carpenter on their claymation homage to 1980s nostalgia "Tech Noir" co-written and directed by GUNSHIP and Lee Hardcastle. John Carpenter is quoted as describing GUNSHIP as “nice and cool.” and that Gunships ‘Tech Noir’ is “One of my favorite songs of the year. Gunship rules.” He also went on to say “It would be fun to collaborate with Gunship.”^[6][7] GUNSHIP have also created the "first music video made in the GTA 5 Rockstar editor" ^[8] for their song "The Mountain" and made a music video entirely from pixel art with Jason Tammemagi for their song "Revel In Your Time" ^[9]

Reception

The band's self-titled debut album received excellent reviews from both electronic and rock press alike ^[10] and was credited with sounding simultaneously like "they dropped straight out of the decade itself."^[11] and for its excellent modern production^[12] "first of all, the production on this album is absolutely pristine – every fuzzy, reverb-soaked layer of analogue synthesizer sounds perfectly placed in the mix, balanced by melodramatic drum patterns that always stay true to their influence rather than taking a more standard EDM trajectory." mixed by producer Carl Bown ^[13] "It could easily earn a place in synthwave history as one of the first crossover albums".^[14] In a commentary about a band, a critic wrote, "There’s no doubt the level of effort they put into everything resonates deeply in the 80s retro community and beyond".^[15]

Equipment and Gears

Gunship have a large collection of synthesizers and use a combination of genuine vintage synthesizers and modern synths to achieve their sound including the Juno 106, DSI Prophet 12, DSI Prophet 6, MOOG MiniMoog, MOOG Mother 32, and various Oberheim units.^[16]

Discography

Studio albums

• GUNSHIP (album) (2015)

Members

• Alex Westaway – vocals, multi-instruments
• Dan Haigh – multi-instruments
• Alex Gingell – multi-instruments

Collaborators

The first GUNSHIP album featured collaborations with:^[17]

• Lou Hayter (New Young Pony Club, Tomorrows World)
• Charlie Simpson (Fightstar, Busted)
• Martin Grech
• Stella La Page

Remixes

The following artists have remixed GUNSHIP songs:

• Carpenter Brut (Tech Noir)
• Makeup and Vanity Set (Black Sun On The Horizon)
• Miami Nights 1984

References