The group was formed in 1986 by Charlie Collins, who had been involved with Clock DVA and The Box. He brought together musicians from Sheffield's experimental/free-improvisation scene. Infanti, Saw & Jasnoch came from Bass Tone Trap & Hornweb, Todd and Hope from The Box.
They were very much part of the 1980s Sheffield experimental scene, but unlike the electronic/post-industrial groups surrounding them, they deliberately used an eccentric mixture of acoustic instruments, jazz, blues, folk, klezmer and avant-garde ideas. Their music has subsequently been described as avant-garde blues, experimental folk and jazz-punk.
Their first release was When Will the Blues Leave?, recorded live onto four-track in Sheffield in September/October 1987 and released on cassette by Frank Records later that year. It was more recently re-released by Frank Records.
Hope and Todd later reunited in a post Comsat Angels lineup Soup.
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