TheMoonflowers were aBristol-based rock band formed in 1987. The band was active as a performing and recording unit until 1997. To date they have released eight EPs and seven LPs on their own PopGod Records label, home to numerous other Bristol-based artists including Praise Space Electric (a Moonflowers spin-off featuring members of that band), Me, Ecstatic Orange, Mammal among others.
Famed for colourful and spectacular live shows, designed and built byLiam Yeates. They have toured extensively in the UK, Europe and Japan.
The band formed in 1987 and released their debutEP,We Dig Your Earth, in 1989.[1] After a one-off single onHeavenly Records the following year "Get Higher"), singer The Reverend Sonik Ray (born Sean O'Neill) set up his own Pop God label for subsequent releases.[1] The band received publicity after appearing in court for refusing to pay thepoll tax, and appearing naked in theNME to promote their "Warshag" single.[1] The band's debut album,Hash Smits, was released in December 1991, followed two years later by second albumFrom Whales to Jupiter: Beyond the Stars of Rainbohemia. May 1995 saw the release of theShake it Together EP and also an album that has been credited as having the longest title in history,We Would Fly Away (We Could Fly Away Never Look Back and Leave the World to Spin Silently in a Suicide Pact and all the Colours and Sounds That Pass Through Us in Space Fall Down to the Earth and Put a Smile on its Face).[1]
The band relocated to France where they spent timebusking, before returning to the studio for theJapan-only releasesBrainwashing and Heartists Blue Life Stripes (1997) andDon't Just Sit There...Fly (2000) before splitting up.[1]
Guitarist Jesse D Vernon had formed Morning Star in 1997, often featuring Jim Barr andJohn Parish, releasing four albums between 1997 and 2010.[1] O'Neill formed a new band, Solar Mumuns, and released the albumBreaking Waters in 2002.[1]
Drummer Toby Pascoe died on 1 June 2001.[1]
The Moonflowers reformed for a gig at theCube Microplex on 11 November 2011.[2]
Two of the band’s record sleeves, the EPs We Dig Your Earth and Get Higher, were featured in the exhibitionFlower: Exploring the World in Bloom. Phaidon. 2025.ISBN 9781838660857. at theSaatchi Gallery in London in 2025.
| International | |
|---|---|
| Artists | |
