"Excuse me... No offense, but this is the most amazing thing that any of you have ever done." *The Damage Manual may just be the first great band of the 21st century.
The Damage Manual is Jah Wobble, Martin Atkins, Geordie Walker and Chris Connelly. Individually, while selling millions of records in the process, the members of The Damage Manual have changed the face of music. Together, they are a dangerous, focused monster that redefines modern rock. Chris Connelly has been the voice of Ministry and The Revolting Cocks and has released several critically acclaimed solo albums; Geordie Walker's guitar has always been the sound of Killing Joke; prior to founding his own 30 Hertz record label, Jah Wobble's instantly recognizable hypnotic dub bass was the foundation of early Public Image Ltd. as well as numerous other projects including Invaders of the Heart; and Martin Atkins has performed, toured and recorded with PiL, Pigface, Killing Joke, Nine Inch Nails and Ministry. It is Martin's label, Invisible Records, that provides the machinery through which this independent band has been realized. If Invisible Records as a whole is a sort of ongoing performance art piece - anarchistic, unpredictable and independent - The Damage Manual is born out of a still revolutionary state of mind shared by all four players. This is what Invisible Records and the band members have always been about, even as other labels and artists disappear, either off the map entirely or into other ways and means of making and distributing music.
The Damage Manual may be the ultimate culmination of all that all four members have done up until now: unincorporated, focused, hungry and, again, dangerous. The Damage Manual will be releasing its debut CD EP, One (INV 143), on April 25. The enhanced, multi-media CD ROM is slated to include four studio tracks and one live recording plus behind the scenes video footage, exclusive photos, lyrics and more. The band's as yet untitled full-length album will be released in June. The Damage Manual will begin a world tour in May with performances in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Korea, North America, South America and Europe. As for playing live, expect total war. Martin says: "Someone said to me...'oh yeah, you'll be going through a few pairs of drumsticks each week'.......'drumsticks, I replied...try drum kits per week mate, drum kits per week!'"
* The thoughts of a notable UK journalist while listening to new tracks from The Damage Manual during a recent recording session in London.