steven brown
biography



Left-field American new wave band Tuxedomoon formed in San Francisco in 1977, initially around the creative nucleus of multi-instrumentalists Steven Brown and Blaine L. Reininger. The duo were subsequently joined by bassist Peter 'Principle' Dachert.

After signing with the cryptic Ralph label, home to The Residents, the band recorded the seminal albums Half Mute (1980) and Desire (1981), before relocating to Europe in order to pursue a more overtly avant garde agenda. By now the group also included vocalist Winston Tong and visual director Bruce Geduldig.

The group moved first to Rotterdam, then Brussels. From their hectic concert and recording schedule between March 1981 and April 1983, four important recordings emerged, beginning with the score for a Maurice Bejart ballet in March 1982, released as Divine. The album Suite En Sous-Sol followed shortly after, and a trio of classic singles for Les Disques du Crepuscule: Ninotchka, Time to Lose and The Cage. The most ambitious project from 1982, an 'opera without words' called The Ghost Sonata, performed in Italy in July, remained unreleased until 1990.

Blaine L. Reininger left the band in April 1983, leaving the band to recruit Luc van Lieshout and plot their next move. The album Holy Wars emerged in 1985, followed by Ship of Fools (1986) and You (1987).

The core Tuxedomoon trio of Brown, Reininger and Principle reunited for a successful world tour in 1988, and with Luc van Lieshout continue to perform and record. Ten Years In One Night (Live) (1990), Cabin in the Sky (2004) and Bardo Hotel (2006) bring the story up to date.

Steven Brown's solo career began in 1983, with the first of two albums recorded with Benjamin Lew for Crammed Discs. Steven's first solo album proper, Music for Solo Piano (Sex and Sorrow), remains one of his finest, and was released by Crepuscule in 1984. Begun as a collaboration with Blaine L. Reininger, the album offered ten outstanding instrumentals for piano, clarinet and violin, including Close Little Sixes, Waltz and r.w.f - the latter a homage to German film director Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Much of the album was close in style to Music #2, the touchstone piano and violin duet recorded by Tuxedomoon.

Steven's next project was to score a production of Edward Albee's play Zoo Story. His second solo album proper, Searching for Contact, offering a more electronic edge than before, and including a linked four song cycle centered on Last Rendezvous, and referances the gay literature of Genet and Burroughs. The Italian language project Brown Plays Tenco was also released in 1987.

In 1988 Blaine L. Reininger rejoined Tuxedomoon, and he and Steven embarked on a series of projects as a duo. The pair also composed the soundtrack for the Patrick de Geetere film De Doute et de Grace, and the ballet score Croation Variations. 1990 also saw a live album from the pair, Live in Lisbon.

Steven's third full solo album was the accomplished Half Out, recorded for Crepuscule in 1991. Other releases include the soundtracks Music for Film and Theatre and La Grace du Tombeur, as well as his alternative band project Ninerain.

In 1993 Steven relocated from Brussels to Mexico City, and continues to record solo as well as with Tuxedomoon.

STEVEN BROWN solo discography:

Douzieme Journee (with Benjamin Lew) (1983)
Music for Solo Piano (1984) (CD on LTM)
Zoo Story (1984)
A Propos d'un Paysage (with Bejamin Lew) (1985)
Searching for Contact (1987) (CD on LTM)
cont Brown Plays Tenco (1988) (CD on LTM)
Music for Film and Theatre (1988)
Reads John Keats (1989)
La Grace du Tombeur (1990) (CD on LTM)
Live in Lisbon (with Blaine L. Reininger) (1990)(CD on LTM)
De Doute et de Grace (1990)
Croatian Variations (with Blaine L. Reininger) (1990)
Half Out (1991) (CD on LTM)
Nine Rain (1996)
Joeboy in Mexico (1997)
Rain of Fire (2001)

Steven Brown Online:
http://www.mundoblaineo.com/even_steven.htm
http://www.joeboy.de

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