Steve Farrell, Gordon Farquhar, Howard McMinn and I were high school friends in Darwen, Lancashire. We were all into music, so it was only a matter of time before we learned to play instruments and formed a band, rehearsing in the school music room.
We recruited local drummer Declan Donnegan and took the name Cloudburst shortly before our first gigs in 1982 — a series of talent shows. We were (surprisingly) well-received, quickly discovering what it was like to be screamed at by teenage girls. There wasn’t much going on in Darwen in those days!
Meanwhile, I had been experimenting with guitars, electronics and tape recorders, and Gordon had been writing lyrics and tunes. In a series of sessions, we composed and recorded original songs, under the working title The Cloudburst Tapes.
Declan was replaced by the enigmatic Pete Meleady on drums, with sound man Craig Jepson standing in when Pete went AWOL. We gained a local reputation from our concerts, light show (courtesy of John Parker) and merchandise. We gradually introduced our original material into the set—to a mixture of puzzled and stunned stares (and the occasional enthusiast).
After more gigs around Darwen in summer and autumn, Cloudburst stopped looking for a reliable drummer, and condensed to a multi-instrumentalist three-piece and drum machine, with Steve, Gordon and me sharing guitar, bass and keyboard. We ended the year with a series of ambitious and slightly bizarre Christmas gigs.
Our original Cloudburst material was re-recorded over the Christmas break as the cassette-album Storm in a Teacup, which saw a limited release in early 1983. We completed another compilation of unreleased demos, The Distortion Factor, later that year.
Although we never gigged again as Cloudburst, Steve, Gordon, Craig and I regrouped in summer 1983 as Albino Dinnerjacket before leaving Darwen for university.
Personnel
- Gordon Farquhar – voice, guitar & bass
- Steve Farrell – guitar & bass
- Keith Nuttall – guitars, keyboard & voice
- Craig Jepson – mixing & sound
- John Parker – lighting & effects
- Howard McMinn – bass (to Sep ’82)
- Declan Donnegan – drums (to Mar ’82)
- Pete Meleady – drums (Mar to Sep ’82)
