VIVE LE ROCK MAGAZINE
is proud to present
Flesh For Lulu
Plus Guests
Forged in the embers of London’s post-punk aftermath, FLESH FOR LULU came to life in a Brixton squat shared with the embryonic Godfathers and King Kurt. The original line up of Nick Marsh (Lead Voice/Guitar), Rocco (Guitar), James Mitchell (Drums) and Glenn Bishop (Bass) took their cues from the decadence of the Velvet Underground, the savagery of the Stooges and the big slinky grooves and melodies of 70′s glitter rock. Creating an exotic, chaotic sound and a darkly glamourous look that involved lots of black hair dye, heavy make up and torn fishnets. FLESH FOR LULU quickly became a fixture at London’s Batcave club where alongside Alien Sex Fiend, Siouxsie Sioux and Specimen they became architects of the original Gothic Rock style.
After taking part in the legendary Batcave Tour of 1982 FLESH FOR LULU signed on the dotted line with Polydor Records for the release of their explosive self-titled debut album which contained the singles ‘Subterraneans’ and ‘Restless’ which, along with ‘Roman Candle’ became staple dancefloor fillers on the emerging nationwide UK Goth scene.
More tours followed with The Cramps, Lords Of The New Church and The Damned before the band recruited ex-Specimen bassist Kevin Mills and began to hone their their songwriting skills, bringing in a more sophisticated ‘American song-book’ (Gram Parsons, Jonny Cash) influence that somewhat distanced them from the ‘Goth’ crowd. Although the heavy make-up, black leather and growing reputation for outrageous behaviour remained. Second album ‘Big Fun City’ and the ‘Blue Sisters Swing’ EP (produced by Craig Leon of Ramones and Blondie fame) both received acclaim from fans and critics alike, as did subsequent tours of Europe and the USA.
It was around this time that a somewhat unexpected career boost arrived in the shape of big time Hollywood teen movie director John Hughes who declared his love for the band by first planting a FLESH FOR LULU poster on Molly Ringwald’s bedroom wall in his smash hit ‘Pretty In Pink’ then featuring the song ‘I Go Crazy’ in that movie’s follow up, ‘Some Kind Of Wonderful’. As a result, a new, younger audience started attending their shows and the ‘Long Live The New Flesh’ LP (released shortly afterwards) became their biggest seller, spawning two more hit singles in ‘Postcards From Paradise’ and ‘Siamese Twist’.
This new Stateside success kept the group out on the road for the best part of 2 years before they flew to Australia to record a final album in their original incarnation, 1989′s ‘Plastic Fantastic’. Produced by Mark Opitz (AC/DC, INXS, Divinyls) the LP gave birth to the singles ‘Decline And Fall’ and ‘Time And Space’ which became their biggest US hit to date. Another trek across America, this time with John Lydon’s PiL followed, after which the band went their separate ways.
Post-FLESH, Nick and Rocco formed a new band, the guitar heavy Gigantic, releasing the album ‘Disenchanted’ on Sony/Columbia and touring the world before splitting in 1998. More recently Nick has embarked on a solo career, releasing the ‘A Universe Between Us’ LP. He also plays guitar with London’s premier gypsy-punk outfit The Urban Voodoo Machine, but the ghost of FLESH FOR LULU has always lingered, with their continued appearance on both 80′s movie and ‘Gothic Rock’ compilations and some high-profile cover versions of their songs by the likes of Paul Westerberg and the Goo Goo Dolls.
Now, in 2013 Nick has reformed the band with a new line up including Will Crewdson (Guitar) Mark Bishop (Drums) and Keith McAndrew (Bass). Look out for more touring, recording and inevitably, more chaos. LONG LIVE THE NEW FLESH!