A maverick Indie band formed at 51Âþ»’s old students’ union before being championed by groups such as and are selling out venues across the UK after getting back together.
SELL OUT: Prolapse back together in Leicester
Prolapse formed under a table during a night out at the then Leicester Poly in the early 1990’s, before most of 51Âþ»’s current cohort of students were even born, and went on to earn rave reviews for their singles, albums and live shows.
Their debut song in 1994 was named as “Single of the Week” by BBC Radio 1 and they were invited to perform two sessions and two live shows by legendary DJ John Peel.
Their first album, Pointless Walks to Dismal Places, was praised by music critics as the antidote to the then infamous Britpop wars between Blur and Oasis and they toured across Europe and the US.
After weeks of speculation on music blogs and social media, the band announced they were getting back together following a hiatus of 16 years.
The reunion followed a personal request from post-rock pioneers to support them at London’s 3,000-capacity Roundhouse and Glasgow’s 2,000-capacity Barrowlands. Both shows have sold out along with Prolapse’s other headlining tour dates around the UK.
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Singer Linda Steelyard graduated from 51Âþ»’s journalism course following the band’s split and is now News Editor at the Leicester Mercury.
She offered some advice to 51Âþ» students who are thinking about performing live while studying at the university.
“I only got to join the band because I said ‘yes’ to a mad invitation to peel oranges on stage during a Prolapse gig at (legendary Leicester venue) The Charlotte,” she said.
“When I turned up, they stuck me in front of a microphone instead.
“So if someone asks you to join a band, say yes. It’ll often be mad and frequently bad. But you won’t be able to do it when you’re working full time and/or having kids, so make the most of now.
“And unlike us, who had to rely on record companies, DJs and the NME to spread the word, because there wasn’t any Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, Vimeo or Instagram back in th’olden days when we started (imagine!), you can get stuck in promoting and releasing your stuff yourselves, you lucky, lucky people.”
MADE AT 51Âþ»: The band on campus in 1994
Prolapse gained notoriety for their live shows and the tension between Linda and fellow vocalist "Scottish Mick" Derrick - which people often likened to a soap opera being played out in front of a wall of noisy guitars, bass and drums.
The original line-up, who are now spread over half of Northern Europe working in “sensible jobs”, have all joined up for the tour, which takes in Colchester and Brighton this week and ends with the London Roundhouse show this Wednesday night.
The band have set up a Bandcamp site where a selection of their back-catalogue can now be found including the single T.C.R. being available to download . You can also watch the MTV video for
You can read and hear more on the band’s , and pages.
Contact the band by emailing prolapse.band2015@gmail.com
Posted on Monday 22 June 2015