Broadcast
Formed: 2004
Location: Birmingham, England
Genre: Indietronica, Dream Pop, Hauntology
Years Active: 2004 -
Meaning of the Name: Evocative imagery of radio transmissions
Core Members: Trish Keenan & James Cargill
Way of Working: Collaborative
Essential Releases
The Book Lovers
EP (1996)
Early work showing their powerful, atmospheric style.
The Noise Made
By People (2000)
A foundational album blending their heavy sound with fresh concepts.
Haha Sound (2003)
Explores a more diverse range of sounds while retaining their core identity.
Tender Buttons (2005)
A stripped-back album, highlighting intricate electronic textures and melodic vocals.
Broadcast's music always felt out of time. A haunting blend of melancholic electronica and eerie, detached textures made in the late-90s-early 2000s that sounded like it was constructed by atomic age technology, such as the 50's ever-present radio waves and analogue transmissions.
This contradiction, electronic music with a retro aesthetic, lay at the heart of their appeal. Broadcast straddled the past and the present with one foot in each, as if to remind us that one couldn't stand without the other.
Other electronic music of the time, such as Death in Vegas's old moniker Dead Elvis, seemed happy to make a clean break from the past as if it was something to be shrugged off, but Broadcast was inspired by techniques pioneered by the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop, such as tape manipulation. The Radiophonic Workshop were responsible for creating "impossible sounds" used in sci-fi shows such as Doctor Who and the retro-futuristic label fits Broadcast well.
Yet, at the heart of their robotic soundscapes was Trish Keenan's distinct voice, the undeniable human touch, the ghost in the machine. Her vocals, already poignant, became heartbreakingly so after her death from Swine Flu in 2011.
Now, listening to tracks like 'Ominous Clouds', where Trish bravely sings about battling depression, it feels as if she's still in the room, her voice a timeless bridge between the biological and the technological. For many, Broadcast's cult status endures because, like James Cargill said of making music "for her," fans simply aren't ready to let Trish go.
Skills
*This is a work in progress. Values are subjective.Emotional Impact
55
Mental Impact
75
Originality
90
Artistry
65
Authenticity
60
Live
85
Production
85
Musicianship
70
Singing
75
Songwriting
85
Danceability
65
Fun
60
Consistency
95
Range
70
Cool
85
Charisma
55
Commercial & Critical Success
Awards
Certifications
Charts
Critics >>>
- GQ: Tender Buttons - Best Electronic Albums of All Time: #8
- Pitchfork: The Noise Made By People - Best Albums of the 2000s: #177
- Pitchfork: Haha Sound - Best Albums of the 2000s: #121
- Pitchfork: Echo's Answer - Best Songs of the 2000s:: #178
