SCSI was formed at the beginning of 1999 when the remaining members of Brown (Tim Hills, Dom Smith and Tim Mason) met guitarist Adam Goodfellow, who had recently moved into the Cirencester area and was looking to rock out as much as possible. We then met drummer Jeremy Norburn and SCSI was born. We practiced at Kemble Air Base in a small house we rented, the noise began and we were soon playing out locally, starting off in a typically styled local - the Riverside pub in Lechlade. In the early days we were playing a wide range of songs from the romping war song Headline Story to the more subtle, yet still funky, Butt Bald. As the band developed its distinctive style a new drummer was found in the form of Andy Hughes from Cirencester-based punk band The English Disease. With him came added flair and a new direction for the band – the standard had been set.
However, after front man Dom got married and moved to the depths of Somerset , a hunt for a new front man began. A hunt that would take a few years before the new, perfectly honed SCSI could finally be unveiled. After continuing on with several different singers, including brief spell with female vocalist Laura Boveniser, Matt Poole (the original vocalist and guitarist for aforementioned band Brown) was brought into the band. For the first time SCSI were beginning to sound really tight as a band and were getting closer to the distinctive style you can hear today.
Then, out of the blue, Tim Mason went AWOL. Missing from practice for weeks at a time, and with no means of contacting him, eventually Si Messenger (one of the founder members of Dilated) stepped into the breach and in at the deep end, switching his guitar for a bass and providing a solid rhythm section for the band, where he has remained ever since.
Tim’s brother Pete Hills also had a brief spell with the band - adding in scratching, keyboard and sound effects, but it was not to be as he left to pursue other projects. Pete is now songwriter, playing acoustic guitar and vocalist in White Mansion. He is also a talented drum n bass DJ, playing under the name Hijinx.
By this point the SCSI set list had developed to include songs like Right In The Now and You Are Not Alone. SCSI was starting to write tracks we felt we could be proud of and we definitely managed to get the crowd going when playing live. Playing intimate gigs at venues like The Tin Can Club and the Two Pigs, we were starting to feel the set coming together. This, along with massive support from the crowds, spurred us on to put more time and effort into the project. When Matt left Andy took over his role as lead vocalist, whilst continuing to play drums. Despite his brilliant voice however, he was reluctant to leave his kit and front the band, bringing in Huw Parry as a replacement vocalist.
It was now 2002, soon after this SCSI went into the recording studio for the first time, resulting in a six track mini album (self titled). This was recorded at In Heaven studios in Swindon and produced by Paul Fenech of punk band The Meteors. Pleased with the results of the recording SCSI began gigging around Gloucestershire and Wiltshire, playing at The Vic in Swindon and The Corn Hall in Cirencester along with many others, as well as headlining the Riffs Bar Festival.
By this point tensions had started to grow between Adam and Huw, and with the lack of input by Huw into the music, Huw quit, leaving SCSI back with the dilemma of having no front man. This time Andy stepped up and took on his new role as SCSI front man, replaced on the drums by Rich Watson. The album was re-recorded with the new line-up, but this too was not to last. Rich eventually proved not to be quite the drummer we were looking for, and Andy also left for pastures new – more specifically South East Asia and then Spain!
Whilst on the hunt for a new drummer Tim met a young man by the name of Matt Denham, this was back in December 2004. Using his distinctive hard-hitting style Matt helped redefine the SCSI sound. This incarnation was completed with the introduction of Matt Murdoc as our new vocalist. A talented singer with a classic grunge edge to his voice, he has proved himself to be an immensely valuable addition to the band, both as a singer and a songwriter.
With the new line-up settling in to rehersals and gigging the next obvious step was to record some new material. Instead of going to a new studio SCSI decided to setup at Moor Wood with the help of local producer ALex Wilding the sessions began. The six track mini album Hit Lines E.P. was released for public consumption in 2006.
Soon after the release of Hit Lines, Matt Denham left the band to go to university in Oxford, leaving SCSI with the age old dilema of finding a drummer - again! A new Matt was found in the form of Matt Green a highly energetic drummer previously with a band called Aeriel Car Thief. He played for us for a short time and ended his SCSI stint at our gig at The Two Pigs in Jan 07 - A good gig!
This drummers departure was to spell the end of SCSI as a full band, for a while. Tim, Adam and Murdoc decided to gig with an acoustic set. Playing for the likes of a packed out 2007 "Seventh Sun Festival" tent and Gold Cup week in Cheltenham's Q Bar. At that point Adam was looking to have a baby, which as you might imagine, puts the dampeners on your rock and roll for a moment. During this time Murdoc had met Davie Penman (Late staff Sgt of B Squadron S.A.S) and had started to get an involved in the security field and a more serious interest in the martial arts. In July 07, Murdoc took a trip to South East Asia to get a taste of the wider world and during this time Adam's partner Nicole gave birth to their first child Marley.
In April 2008 Si Messenger hooked up with old friend Dr. Dave Saunders from his previous band Dilated to form a new band The Shining Lies which also included Tim Mason on drums. Tim had been the original drummer in Dilated and also bass player for SCSI. After a month of playing with the band Tim did his famous disappearing act which left the guys without a drummer. Tim Hills took up the challenge in May 2008 and attempted to start playing the drums again after a ten year gap without playing them. After a rusty start the band began to gel and started gigging beginning with Dave's Birthday gig in July at the Nelson in Cirencester. The SCSI acoustic trio also opened up the night which was also attended by a very young Marley Goodfellow. The Shining Lies really took off with their catchy pop punk tunes and gigged regularly around London for the rest of 2008. Unfortunately due to illness the band had to take a break for 6 months but have re-ignited their passion for the music and started the onslaught again joining SCSI and Zoidberg to perform at The Corn Hall in Cirencester for the Halloween fundraiser. The band continue to gig and continue recording new material at Moor Wood Studios.
In early October 2009 SCSI reformed with their old drummer Andy Hughes at the behest of our old friend Will Fenton For a gig at Cirencester Corn hall with "Zoidberg" and "The Shining Lies". As luck would have it, just a month earlier Murdoc received a phone call from Martin Van Dyke (of Panic Switch) asking if SCSI was still looking for a drummer. After the Corn Hall gig andAndy departing again Martin joined the band full-time. Adding in his hard hitting Grohl/Metal drumming giving SCSI a really big sound. Once again we are rockin!!
Several hundred pints, gigs and songs later and out of the blue during October 2011 Tim received an unexpected text message from Matt Murdoc informing
SCSI
of his "retirement" from music. Obviously disappointed with the news and gigs booked to play Tim phoned Murdoc in a bid to persuade him out of the decision. To no avail unfortunately, no going back. With these situations one door closes and another opens. Tim's good friend Dazz, stepped in with only a week until the next gig. He learned all the material and SCSI played the promised gigs.
As always, to be continued....
