Necromancy
Witches ARC204
- Pantheara Leo
- Sackcloth And Ashes
- Haven
- Save Your Praise
- Death In The Snow
Necromancy were formed in late 1981 by Mark Manning (AKA `Speed’, keys and Vocals) and Andy Couzens (Guitar) and then joined by Pete Webb (Bass) and later Pete Gill (Drums). They started playing gigs in 1982 and were soon mixed in with the local punk and the emerging positive post-punk scene that eventually got tagged Gothic in 1983. They emerged with bands such as the Screaming Dead (From Cheltenham), Lunatic Fringe, The Decay Sisters, Smart Pills (from Bath) and were the first proto Goth band that Bristol had. Their demo’s produced at Steve Street’s SAM studio were embraced by Dave Massey (Local Journalist) who wrote some great reviews of the band in Sounds and NME. The bands music developed from an early punk, bar chord, heavy bass thrash sound to a more atmospheric post-punk mix that highlighted the bands potential which Massey implored record companies to take note of. They always performed with a big light show, their own sound system and various visuals. The mixture of personalities and differing influences however led to Pete Webb leaving the band in late 1983 to form the `Idiot Sideshow’ and Andy Couzens leaving in mid 1984. The band continued playing until around 1985 when Pete Gill and Mark Manning called it a day.
Pete Webb Jan 2011
