Minefield

Artist Information

Biography

Minefield is the brainchild of Singer/Songwriter Tamara Kent. The beginnings of Minefield can be traced to some really bad demo tapes made when Tamara was a teenager. A bright girl with a curious mind, she had dreams of University, where she planned to study Music ‘seriously’. Unfortunately, Tamara didn’t make it into the local Music School as a Vocal major. Instead she studied medieval music and theory at an Agriculture School in Guelph, Ontario. After a few semesters there she realized she had received a first rate education and she was thoroughly bored. So…she packed her bags and left home to study Record Engineering. Over the next two years she spent many a night hovering over hot gear and not getting into any trouble whatsoever. Soon that would change.

Her first release was a 5 song ep called ‘After the Ball’. The disc was a favorite on Canadian College stations with its ambient textures and haunting, lush vocals.
She spent a lot of time with the ep and figured that whatever would follow would probably be a load of BS. Sure enough, War Machine, her first full length was thrust out into the world kicking and screaming late in 2002. She thought ‘shit…I made this thing…I might as well promote it’! She began working diligently to get the word out there. All her sleepless nights spent emailing bigwigs on her computer paved way for many Interviews, Web promotions and a Remix Album morbidly titled, ‘Decomposition: Re-inventing Minefield’.

As Minefield continued to evolve, Tamara decided to seek a record label to help develop her career. Upon relocating from Toronto, Ontario to her new home in Montreal Quebec, she connected with GESKA Records. The rest would be history in the making. With worldwide distribution to back her, Tamara began work on Minefields 3rd record of original material. ‘Seeing Red’, a 12 track sonic ride through the best parts of electronic/pop will be unveiled in the Spring of 2005. Until then you’ll just have to listen to whatever you’ve been listening to…whatever that might be? Tamara might suggest the 10th anniversary Deluxe Edition of The Downward Spiral complete with B-sides and Rarities, mixed in 5.1 surround and newly mastered. Then again…she might not. Who can say really?

Instrumentation

Tamara Kent: vocals, programming, synths

Discography

After The Ball (ep) - 2001
War Machine (full length) - 2002
Decomposition: Reinventing Minefield (remix disc) - 2004

For CD orders: www.geska-records.com
DJ's/Vinyl orders: www.interdimensional.com

*note*
Many Online Retailers now carry Minefield. Napster, I-Tunes, Puretracks etc.

For the purchase of high quality mp3's... please visit one of the above digital providers.

Audio

Lyrics

• Seeing Red
• You Don't Even Notice
• It's Too Late

Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Review of Decomposition (Remixes) [+ Show ]
  

  "It's Too Late - Hungry Devil's Remix", by far the best mix/track on the disc, is broken down to a l..."It's Too Late - Hungry Devil's Remix", by far the best mix/track on the disc, is broken down to a low rhythm, fatter synths, airy atmospheres and light piano, later slipping into a solid, danceable pace. The vocals slip from clear and haunting to static brilliance. The track dares you not to dance, not to succumb to Tamara's vocals, not to become entirely enamored.

• Decomp Review [+ Show ]
  

  The fact that "Decomposition: Reinventing Minefield" contains a quite wide variety of interpretation...The fact that "Decomposition: Reinventing Minefield" contains a quite wide variety of interpretations is great, there's dark ambience, industrial grooves as well as trip-hop beats. And though there are a lot of different remixers involved in this project the material remains at a quite high standard. But what really gets me hooked, the thing I love the most about this album, is the voice of Tamara Kent.
  

• Review of After The Ball [+ Show ]
  

  After the Ball shows off Tamara Kent in her element song writing element. Working with chief collabo...After the Ball shows off Tamara Kent in her element song writing element. Working with chief collaborator Neil Parfitt, the two have spun a tune that is minimal and engaging, peppered with moments and changes that keep it fresh and alluring. Easily the strongest and fullest tune on the short-release, Control smacks of Portishead. Here Tamara is easily heard spreading her vocal wings. This tune points to good things to come. Rounding the album out, the tune Life is mellow and introspective, with sweet harmonies and melancholy piano.

• Review of After The Ball [+ Show ]
  

  The opening "It's Too Late" is a cerebral, seductive piece that establishes Kent's desire to examine...The opening "It's Too Late" is a cerebral, seductive piece that establishes Kent's desire to examine both the light and the dark, a motif that she returns to throughout After the Ball (My light is just about as bright as that setting sun). While the melody is almost always tenebrous, the expression is remarkably countered. Kent's strength in songwriting lies in her ability to bare her emotions without displaying pity; she is focused and unrelenting: I want to be / and I will steal your soul / it's only up to me / and I will take it all ("Control").
  
  Unfortunately, Kent has decided to only give the listener five glimpses into the talent she offers. She's forgiven, of course, for the reason that this is an independently-produced recording financed by her own strong will. Introspective, delicate, and ultimately intense, After The Ball is a strong ambient pop recording that should go a long way to help Kent and Minefield establish a presence in the music industry that they are already all-too-familiar with.
  
  

• Review by Jett Black [+ Show ]
  

  Almost two years ago, MINEFIELD unleashed an erotic ambient ep of such amazing depth and quality th...Almost two years ago, MINEFIELD unleashed an erotic ambient ep of such
  amazing depth and quality that I knew this must be the diamond for
  which I was searching among all the rough upstarts beating down my
  INBOX.
  
  MINEFIELD begins with the refinement of lyrical subtleties and the
  vocal finesse of Tamara Kent. And along the way, MINEFIELD reveals a
  consortium of unique talent spidering up from the dark Underground of
  modern electronic dance movements.
  

• War Machine Review [+ Show ]
  

  Where After the Ball was definitely from a darkwave/downtempo space with attention- getting monster...Where After the Ball was definitely from a darkwave/downtempo space with attention-
  getting monster-production, War Machine is a more adult compilation of developed
  songwriting and confident, subtle pop production. While this record is unapolo-
  getically easy on the ears and a few of the hardest-core darkwavers may fall off
  the wagon in the process of releasing these more pleasant and progressive song
  treatments, producer Kent has somehow been able to balance an even more
  approachable vehicle for Minefield without losing any of the aspects loved in
  darkwave: introspective mood, dark intensity, forward power, atmospheres and
  sound treats, the foregrounding of the synthesizer.
  

Setlist

I Believe
Control
Touchdown
Creeping
War Machine
By Your Side
Seeing Red
Teclo (by: Polly Jean Harvey)
It's Too Late
Complication

general set length is approx. 40 minutes

Basic Requirements

Calendar