Electric Six Biography

Electric Six is a six-piece Detroit-based rock band, that plays a mix of hard rock, funk and disco. They can be considered part of the Post-punk revival.

The band's first notorious formation was comprised of Dick Valentine (vocals), Rock and Roll Indian (guitar), Surge Joebot (guitar), Disco (bass, ex member of Detroit Cobras), and M (drums). Dick Valentine (real name Tyler Spencer) is and has always been the primary songwriter (both music and lyrics) of Electric Six, currently and under their former incarnation, when they were known as the Wildbunch.
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During the band's temporary split at the end of the 1990s, Tyler Spencer formed his own band called 'The Dirty Shame' and released one CD entitled 'Smog Cutter Love Story' which featured, among other tracks, a first version of Fire track 'Vengeance and Fashion'. The band reformed by 2001 to record and release the first release of 'Danger! High Voltage' and record the track 'Dealin' with death and stealin' in the name of the Lord' with Troy Gregory for his 'Sybil' album.

The Six's sound is immediately distinguishable by its frequent fusing of the macho aggression of heavy metal and punk with the laid-back funky rhythms and falsetto vocals of disco, and a distinctly comic touch. They, however, vehemently reject such genre classifications as disco-metal and disco-punk. They formed the band in 1996 and were initially known as The Wildbunch, eventually dropping that name due to pressure from the Bristol trip-hop collection of the same name. Throughout the latter half of the '90s, they played about once a month at the Magic Bag in Ferndale, Magic Stick, and the now-defunct Gold Dollar in Detroit, the epicenter of a scene that produced breakout acts like the White Stripes.

Electric Six's 2002 breakout single "Danger! High Voltage" was an infectious dance-rock number, and many have been led to believe that Jack White from The White Stripes helped sing back up vocals to this track. White has denied this, though many listeners still believe that he did contribute. The single reached number 2 on the UK singles chart, and they enjoy icon status in that nation.

Their second single, "Gay Bar", released in 2003, became a hit as well in the UK, reaching #5 in the charts and further aided the group's growth. This rapid expansion in popularity and relentless touring became too much for some members and after fulfilling their recording duties (namely their debut album) three members left in June, leaving Dick Valentine, Tait Nucleus, and M.

The Colonel (guitar, ex member of Brendan Benson and Mood Elevator), John R Dequindre (guitar) and Frank Lloyd Bonaventure(bass) subsequently joined the group, though they had all been credited on the album and most had been associated with the group for some time. At that time, they were touring in the UK, and they managed to seamlessly replace the members without interrupting the gigs. In time, Johnny Nashinal joined the group on guitar, Dequindre switched to bass, and Bonaventure switched to law school.

2003 was a successful year for Electric Six in spite of the departure of half of the band. They released the album Fire, which made it into numerous best-of-2003 lists, as well as reaching the top 10 in the UK album chart, and another single "Dance Commander," which gave E6 its 3rd Top 40 single in the UK. They also toured the world including such far flung places as Japan and Russia.

Electric Six became minor Internet celebrities in 2003, an unknown internet user created a music video comprising pieced-together clips of public appearances by George W. Bush and Tony Blair and featuring Electric Six's song "Gay Bar". The clips and music were juxtaposed in such a way as to make it appear, to humorous effect, that Bush and Blair were singing along to the song.

Songs by Electric Six are primarily concerned with topics like fires, nuclear wars, human sexual behavior and enforced dancing, generally employing a heavy degree of irony in the lyrics and cliche musical techniques.

They have recently caused a lot of fuss, especially with Queen fans following a cover of the Queen hit song Radio Ga Ga. The controversial promo video shows lead singer Dick Valentine as the ghost of Queen's flamboyant lead singer Freddie Mercury. Scenes where Valentine (as Mercury) dances on Mercury's grave were decried by both Queen fans and the song's writer, Roger Taylor, as being in poor taste.

A latest album, Señor Smoke, was released in the UK on February 14, 2005. The album will be released in North America on 7th February, 2006, with a third album (as yet untitled) to follow in the fall of 2006.

In November of 2004, drummer M. called it quits, leaving Dick Valentine as the sole original member of the former Wildbunch. Their new drummer, Percussion World has been affiliated with the band and its members for some time, and has been named as a permanent member of the band.

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ELECTRIC SIX BIOGRAPHY