The Answering Machine

Artist Information

Biography

The Answering Machine formed in 2005. Originally, a three piece with a drum machine the band have bloomed into a dynamic four piece with the inclusion of Ben Perry on Drums. Rising to critical acclaim supporting the likes of Good Shoes, Rumble Strips and Dirty Pretty Things, three singles and two UK tours the band are currently recording their debut album 'Another City, Another Sorry' with Dave Eringa (Idlewild, Manic Street Preachers). Appearances in Artrocker, the NME, the Guardian, V Magazine and on BBC Radio 1, Radio 6 and Channel 4's JD Sets have earned them celebrity fans such as Hedie Semaine and Rick Edwards and made their album eagerly awaited.
The band were invited by Manic Street Preachers to be their main support on their UK tour in 2009 and during the year the band also did tours with Bombay Bicycle Club and Twisted Wheel. The band appeared in the US in 2009 at showcases at the Viper Room and Mercury Lounge, also at Monolith Festival and in late 2009 they were in New York for one month of residencies there.
In 2010, the man were invited by Channel 4 TV's JD Set to perform the Buzzcocks tribute with guest singer Tim Burgess from the Charlatans and others.
Also in 2010, the band started writing their second album, entitled 'Lifeline'. The album was produced by frontman, Martin Colclough and mixed again by Dave Eringa. A free single, Animals, from the upcoming album was released in Oct 2010 followed by the release of the album title track, Lifeline on 14th Feb 2011. The album was released in Europe on 21st Feb 2011 and will be released in Japan via Fastcut Records in March 2011.
The band are attending SXSW in March 2011.

Instrumentation

Martin Colclough - Vocals. Guitar
Gemma Evans - Bass Guitar, "Bass"
Pat Fogarty - (Guitar)
Ben Perry - "Drums"
Luke Bellis - Keyboard.

Discography

Oklahoma - Single (Sold out in two days, played on Radio 1, XFM)
Silent Hotels - Single (Sold out, Played on Radio 1, XFM)
Lightbulbs - Single (Sold out, Played on Radio 1 - Steve Lamac's single of the week, XFM)
LP - Another City, Another Sorry (released June 2009)
Emergency/Oklahoma - Single (released Sept 2009)
Single - Animals (Released Oct 2010) (Played on Radio 6Music and XFM)
Single - Lifeline - Released 14th Feb 2011 (XFM Evening playlist plus plays on BBC R1 & R6)
LP - Lifeline - Released 21st Feb 2011 (Tracks played on BBC R1 & R6)

Links

• Facebook
• Last.fm
• Twitter
• MySpace

Audio

• LifeLine
  Listen  
• Animals
  Listen  
• Anything Anything
  Listen  
• 3 Miles
  Listen  
• Hospital Lung
  Listen  
• Rules
  Listen  
• Another City, Another Sorry
  Listen  
• Lightbulbs
  Listen  

Lyrics

• Animals

Video

Lifeline (single)

Photo Gallery

Press

• The Answering Machine [+ Show ]
  

  Location: NW1, Camden Date: Apr, 18 2008 Time: 10.30pm Appearance: The look is all about sm...Location: NW1, Camden
  
  Date: Apr, 18 2008
  
  Time: 10.30pm
  
  Appearance: The look is all about smart indie threads, well fitted jeans and checked shirts. Well-kempt bowl hair is also on the agenda as are dark-rimmed specs from the only female member of the band.
  
  In Summary: From Manchester, this unsigned foursome have notched up two small-scale single releases and are currently holed up in Salford recording demos for their debut record. The sound is like a slightly insecure indiepop version of the Strokes. Having finally added a drummer to the lineup after a longtime love affair with drum machine 'Mustafa Beat,' the band stir a good response from the packed, sweating room.
  
  Highlight: Last year's Silent Hotels, is met with a stage invasion that lasts for the final three songs. With the crowd up and dancing and singer Martin waving his guitar and stepping up on the monitors, there is even abortive attempt at crowd surfing. New songs Your Father's Books and opener Lightbulbs also go down a treat.
  
  Lowlight: They might not be pushing many boundaries, but unlike a lot of buzz-bands have the good sense to leave glowsticks and 80s shtick out of the equation. The songs are immediate enough to get the crowd going but whether they will stand up to repeat listens remains to be seen.
  
  Mood: From the loop drum sounds that greet them as they take to the stage, to their abrupt exit without encore, the knowing audience seems little less than in love. Maybe it's because it's Friday night. Maybe it's the alcohol. Spirits are high.
  
  Mark out of 10: 7
  
  Review in a sentence: Post-Strokesisms for the more discerning indie fan
  

• The Answering Machine, The Enterprise, London [+ Show ]
  

  Five months ago the Answering Machine were a trio and their drum machine. Now, after dates supportin...Five months ago the Answering Machine were a trio and their drum machine. Now, after dates supporting Dirty Pretty Things and the Rumble Strips, they have gained a drummer.
  
  
  Their drum machine Mustafa Beat may have met its demise, but actually the addition of a live drummer has helped them grow into their new role as an indie pop band to be taken seriously rather than the ramshackle Manchester university outfit they began as two years ago.
  
  The Answering Machine have oodles of charm. Catchy life-affirming and wide-eyed indie pop songs fuelled by Strokes-esque riffs and 1980s pop melodies are infectious. And there’s a youthful urgency to their songs. In “Silent Hotels”, shouty vocals chime in unison, while in “Oh Christina!”, after swapping guitars, mop-topped singer-guitarist Martin Colclough and guitarist Patrick Fogarty (dressed in almost matching indie retro outfits of shirt, black skinny jeans and white plimsolls) sing into the same mic like a shambolic brotherly duo. The band’s debt to the Strokes’ fuzzy guitars is most obvious in crowd favourite “Oklahoma”, and it’s here and in their latest November single – the joyously skipping “Lightbulbs” – that they show their best melodies and capture their audience. Sweetness is added by coolly detached bassist Gemma Evans’ gentle backing vocals and xylophone tinkling from drummer Ben Perry, particularly in the more complexly arranged “Emergency”.
  
  In some songs the guitars carry more tune than the vocals, but it’s the cute way they end the show, each taking drum sticks and tambourines to tap out an intricate marching rhythm, that leaves them etched on our minds.
  

• US Press reviews
  

  Listed on Heist or Hit page http://www.heistorhit.com/fwinki/images2.htm

• General UK
  

  Please see Heist Or Hit Records link http://www.heistorhit.com/fwinki/images1.htm

Setlist

Oh Christina
Obviously Cold
Animals
Lightbulbs
Emergency
3 Miles
Oklahoma
Lifeline

Basic Requirements

Calendar