Coil is a group that has worked in several electronic music styles including: industrial, noise, ambient and experimental musics and which intentionally tries to stay away from any particular genre of music. The band was formed by John Balance (sometimes credited as Jhon Balance) and Peter Christopherson out of the demise of Psychic TV, an earlier industrial band.

Coil can only be described as a very eccentric group, sometimes producing only as many as 99 copies of an album, allowing only those who are truly dedicated to the band to seek them out, due to the high prices (caused by high demand). Some critics have accused Coil and its record company of price gouging. As of 2003, Coil has been re-releasing many rare works, mostly remixed, into general circulation.

Coil also has an interesting habit of separating their works into many side-projects, publishing music under different names when it is created using different styles. Some of their side-names are ELpH, Zos Kia, The Eskaton, Black Light District, Time Machines, and one of their newer members, Thighpaulsandra, produces music on his own as well. They contributed music to two of Derek Jarman's films, Blue and The Angelic Conversation.

Discography

  • Coil Releases
    • How to Destroy Angels (12") (1984)
    • Scatology (LP/CS/CD) (1984)
    • Panic / Tainted Love (12"/CDEP) (1985) (limited 1000 copies)
    • The Anal Staircase (12") (1986) (limited 1000 copies)
    • Horse Rotorvator (LP/CS/CD) (1986)

    • Gold is the Metal (LP/CD) (1987)
    • The Wheel / The Wheal (7") (1987) (limited 500 copies)
    • The Unreleased Themes For Hellraiser (10"/CS/CDEP) (1987)
    • The Wheal / Keelhauler (7") (1990) (limited ??? copies)
    • Wrong Eye / Scope (7") (1990) (limited 3000 copies)
    • Unnatural History (CD) (1990)
    • Windowpane (12"/CDEP) (1990)
    • Love's Secret Domain (LP/CS/CD) (1991)
    • The Snow (EP/CS/CD) (1991)
    • Stolen and Contaminated Songs (CD) (1992)
    • How to Destroy Angels (Remixes And Re-Recordings) (CD) (1992)
    • Airborne Bells / Is Suicide a Solution (7") (1993) (limited 1400 copies)
    • Themes from Blue (7") (1993) (limited 1023 copies)
    • The Angelic Conversation (CD) (1994)
    • Unnatural History II (CD) (1995)
    • Windowpane / The Snow (CD) (1996)
    • Unnatural History III (CD) (1997)
    • The Seasons Releases
      • Spring Equinox: Moon's Milk or Under an Unquiet Skull (7"/CDEP) (1998) (limited printing only during the season of Spring 1998)
      • Summer Solstice: Bee Stings (7"/CDEP) (1998) (limited printing only during the season of Summer 1998)
      • Autumn Equinox: Amethyst Deceivers (7"/CDEP) (1998) (limited printing only during the season of Autumn 1998)
      • Winter Solstice: North (7"/CDEP) (1998) (limited printing only during the season of Winder 1998/1999)
    • Astral Disaster (LP) (1999) (limited 99 copies)
    • Musick to Play in the Dark Volume I (CD/LP) (1999)
    • Astral Disaster (remixed and extended) (CD) (2000)
    • Queens of the Circulating Library (CD) (2000)
    • Musick to Play in the Dark Volume II (CD/2xLP) (2000)
    • Coil Presents Time Machines CD (2000) (limited, rereleased as Live One)
    • Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil (CD) (2000)
    • A Guide for Beginners: A Silver Voice (CD) (2001)
    • A Guide for Finishers: A Golden Hair (CD) (2001)
    • Live in New York City (VHS/CD-R) (2001)
    • Moons Milk (In Four Phases) (2xCD) (2001) (reprinting of the seasons releases)
    • Moons Milk (In Four Phases) Bonus Disc (CD-R) (2002) (limited 333 copies)
    • The Remote Viewer (CD-R) (2002) (limited 500 copies)
    • The Golden Hare With A Voice Of Silver (2xCD) (2002) (The two "guide" releases combined)
    • Live in Moscow 2001 (VHS) (2001) (limited 35 copies)
    • Spoiler Talks DVD Series: Coil (DVD) (2003) (limited 1 copy)
    • Live Four (CD) (2003)
    • Live Three (CD) (2003)
    • Live Two (CD) (2003)
    • Live One (2xCD) (2003)
    • ANS (CD) (2003) (limited edition, part of Live boxed set)
    • Megalithomania! (CD-R) (2003) (limited edition, part of Live boxed set)
    • The Restitution of Decayed Intelligence (10") (2003) (limited 600 copies)
  • Side Project Releases
    • Coil/Zos Kia: Transparent (CS/CD/LP) (1984)
    • Coil vs The Eskaton: Nasa Arab (12") (1994)
    • Coil vs ELpH: Protection (CDEP) (1994)
    • ELpH: pHILM #1 (10") (1994)
    • ELpH vs. Coil: Worship the Glitch (CD/2x10") (1995)
    • Black Light District: A Thousand Lights in a Darkened Room (CD/2xLP) (1996)
    • Time Machines: Time Machines (CD/2xLP) (1998)
    • ELpH: elph.zwölf (CDEP) (1999) (limited 1000 copies)
    • Thighpaulsandra: Some Head (CDEP) (2000) (limited 1000 copies)
    • Thighpaulsandra: I, Thighpaulsandra (2xCD/2xLP) (2001)
    • Thighpaulsandra: Michel Publicity Window (CDEP/7") (2001)
    • Black Sun Productions: Plastic Spider Thing (CD) (2002) (this is not Coil, but a band remixing and reworking Coil on their own, and released on Coil's label)

External Links