Noble Gas (band)
Noble Gas is an experimental music and sound collage band which originated in Los angeles in the late 1970s. The members have been involved in the arts and music for a combined of nearly 100 years.They took their name from the 18th Group of the Periodic Table of elements.
Overview
The core of the band is Mike Lutgen, and Lily Lutgen. Other contributors have included VonOrn, Professor Patty, Jim Carozza, CDack, Daxe, Willy Watt, The Mechanic, Dorothy Procko, Lou Lanza, John Fasig, and Joey Welz
Noble Gas has released a number of albums ranging from collage to more MusicAL affairs. These have mostly been released on their own label, Green Menace. In the late 1990s and into the 21st Century, they produced several recordings for Caprice International and Canadian American Records.
History
Early history
Noble Gas was conceived in 1978, in Los Angeles, California, though the group started to play New Jersey. They started out playing small parties, cafes, and Coffeehouses. The "Gassers", as they are known, are musicians, as well as mime players, and 3D animators. 1980 & 1981 saw the group stretching outside the bounds of synth-pop, jazz fusion, & progressive rock. 1982 to 1984 were very strong years for the band. The Release of the first home-brewed cassettes, "Invaders From Earth", and "Strange in your Windows". Sampling was added, as well as, more elaborate stage & theatrical performances. In 1985, after relocating to New Jersey, the performances developed even more and included monsters, aliens, robots, coordinated video and light sequencing, dead and live political figures, cross dressers, priests, and cowboys. Noble Gas appeared at science fiction conventions, Rave parties, avant-garde clubs, college concerts, and on the infamous Uncle Floyd Show on local cable a dozen times. Noble Gas has developed an underground reputation, as "The Band That Defies Description", as coined by Uncle Floyd himself. Changing their look to tell the story. There were also appearances on CTN cable in collaboration with Comcast Video, Chiller Theatre and other Science fiction conventions, Japanese TV, John "Android" Brock's shows,
Mid History
In 1993, they released their first CD "G.R.O.W. , Galactic Researchers of Weirdness", done on a small Casio Portable DAT. The music began to be heard on public sponsored and university radio stations throughout the United States. Noble Gas has appeared on five compilation discs on Caprice International Records, with Joey Welz (who was briefly a keyboardist with Bill Haley & His Comets in 1964-65). The band showcased the songs 'Cool Tek' and 'Exit 13a'. Other artists such as The Four Tops, Jimmy Jones (singer), and the Fireflies were also on these compilations.
In 1997, Noble Gas released their second disc called 4th Blowing of the Great Nose. And from 1997 to 2001, Noble Gas appeared on the compilation CDs, POY - Point of Yucca, Vol 2. & Vol 3 and contributed to the multimedia CD ROM compilation called 'Enhanced Gravity', all for Yucca Tree Records, [http://www.yuccatree.org.] From Switzerland in 1998, they released "Ocean of Space", their original video debut.
Current
From 2000 to date, Noble Gas's attention comes from the MP3 versions of the songs on the different sites around the web. In 2003-2004, the group released a third CD and a DVD with new songs and music videos. Noble Gas is now signed onto Canadian American Records. The third CD, One Foot Above the Ground, is complete. It is a return to the song structure of the first CD, G.R.O.W. The political aspects are less prevalent, but still there, with a concentration on more sensory surround sound. Ranging from spacey love songs, to surreal medieval adventures, always a lot to listen to and think AbOUT. There is in the works a much more highly polished and developed Ocean of Space Video. DVD - Noble Gas is now authoring DVDs. "Horizontal Gravity", "Ocean of Space" remake, and a history of Noble Gas is on DVD. Upcoming videos are "Kingdom of the Dumbking", "Black Hole Bounce", "Look Into My Eyes". The most current sound project is the "Bizaaro World Radio Network", a double CD of a radio show that was inspired by Don Joyce of Negativland, his radio show "Over the Edge", and The FiRESiGN Theatre. The band is also gearing up to play live again, in Air Studios 1 on 11/11 and some shows with the Constitutionalist Band Poker Face [http://www.pokerface.com.]
Discography
Albums
- ''Strange in Your Windows (1982)
- ''Invaders From Earth (1986)
- ''G.R.O.W. (1993)
- ''4th Blowing of the Great Nose (1997)
- ''Enhanced Gravity (1998)
- ''One Foot Above The Ground (2003)
- ''Bizarro World Radio Network (2005)
- ''Noble Gas Greatest Hits (2006)