I have had a big and somewhat embarrassing crush on Ken Andrews (the guy in the green) since about 1993. I've met him many times and he never remembers me. Sigh. I've interviewed him three times, have friends who have recorded with him, have friends who have co-produced and mixed with him, even gone out to Mexican food with him. Still nothing. Obviously, I'm a little disappointed at my lack of impact on the guy, but this doesn't lessen the fact that I loved his band. So I will now slip out of whiny groupie mode and tell you about Failure, and why I love them so.
A friend introduced me to Failure in early 1992 via a song called "Dipped In Anger" on a 7" found at a radio station we worked at. To me it sounded like (early 80's band) Japan funneled through that era's grunge factor, and they were from the smoggy depths of LA. Their first CD, Comfort, was ok - a bit thumpy, but that was the work of producer Steve Albini. Andrews took over that job on the next two records, Magnified and Fantastic Planet. Andrews and Greg Edwards, the druggy half, switched guitar and bass duties, did some keyboard work and even some of the drumming. The songs were beautiful spaced out heroin jams, waves of melody working influences like Kyuss and Depeche Mode. Their love of cinema was reflected in the music too, as incidental tracks were included to transition you along to the next song, since they were all about listening to the album as a whole. True believers in pop, experimentalism, and all out rock, Failure's music was heavy and gorgeous at the same time.
When they finally busted up, the rumors claimed it was because of Greg's drug abuse. Seeing the band live was a testament to that; I remember being afraid that Greg was actually melting into the floor at some shows. The lyrics were very drug heavy, which further supports that theory. Since the bust-up of Failure, Andrews has done tons of production work for the likes of Creeper Lagoon, Pete Yorn, Icarus Line, and BRMC among many, many others. He also did a fabulous solo project called On - which I loved for being unabashedly new wave - and another band called Year of the Rabbit. Edwards, on the other hand, has been playing around with a band called Autolux for the last few years, a band that - in typical LA fashion - has been living off the hype of a demo that's been floating around since about and has finally released their first new CD (which, of course, contains the demos). And they're awesome live. As is Ken.
But I'm biased.
