Their music is a mix of rock, folk, jazz and 20th Century Classical music. Music.com remarked that "...Thinking Plague stand out as a shining example of avant-garde music blended with just enough rock for it to be called progressive rock..." Music.com apparently has a system for measuring such things.
While never directly related to Rock in Opposition (RIO), Thinking Plague was strongly influenced by this late-1970s movement, particularly Henry Cow and Art Bears. In spite of Johnson's dislike of the term, the band has often been categorized as a "RIO" band.
Mike Johnson and Bob Drake first met in 1978 and played in several cover bands. They began experimenting with basement recordings in 1980 and by 1982 they had enough song material to attempt a few live performances. For these shows they enlisted the services of classically trained vocalist Sharon Bradford, luthier Harry Fleishman on keyboards, and Rick Arsenault on drums. This ensemble became the first incarnation of Thinking Plague. They played at a few venues around Denver in 1983 but their complicated music was not well received and Johnson and Drake decided to make an album of their material instead.
With Bradford, Fleishman and Mark Fuller on drums the band worked on and off for almost a year recording their songs at a crude 8-track recording facility in the basement of an old slaughterhouse called the Packing House Studios. Having limited funds they did all the tracking and mixing themselves, and released the album, ...A Thinking Plague in 1984 on their own Endemic label. Only 500 LPs were pressed with each cover hand painted by Drake with spray-paint and a stencil. In spite of the small scale, low-tech quality of the release, a number of distributors, including Recommended Records and Wayside Music (Cuneiform Records) agreed to sell the album and it was well received by some critics.
In 1985 Johnson and Drake began to record material for a new Thinking Plague album. The Packing House Studios had closed but they had access to a few "low budget" recording facilities in Denver. Having disbanded the "Packing House" group after their first album, Johnson and Drake recruited a new band: singer-song writer Susanne Lewis, drummer Mark Fuller and keyboardist Eric Moon. Disregarding, or ignorant of the proper "industry" way of doing things, Thinking Plague recorded their second album, Moonsongs. The title track was a fifteen-and-a-half minute "tribal-pagan-environmental-anti-materialistic avant-rock ritual" composed by Johnson. Initially Moonsongs was released in 1986 on cassette by Endemic, but the following year the band signed with Dead Man’s Curve Records in London and Moonsongs was released on LP. As with their first album, Moonsongs was praised in "progressive" circles and Thinking Plague enhanced their stature as an "avant-rock" band.
Riding on the success of their two albums, Thinking Plague performed a series of live shows in 1987 in Denver, opening for Sonic Youth at one of them. Pianist/clarinetist Lawrence Haugseth joined the band for the live performances, but left in early 1988. Haugseth's brief stay did, however, establish the need for a woodwind/reed section in the band. Fuller and Moon had also left the band in late 1987, which prompted the acquisition of three new musicians: classical pianist, Shane Hotle, bassist Maria Moran, and Mark Harris on clarinet, saxophones and flutes. Drake switched from bass guitar to drums.
Recording for a new album began in early 1988 in various studios, including a large rehearsal room in an old yogurt factory (referred to as 'the Yog Factory'). Johnson and Lewis had collaborated on a collection of songs for the album, which featured several "new" instruments, including sampler, tabla, various African and Balinese percussion instruments, and a fiddle (courtesy Bob Drake). Ex-Henry Cow guitarist Fred Frith guested on one track, "Organism (version II)", the original version (also with Frith) having been released on Recommended Records' RēR Records Quarterly Vol.2 No.4. Drake did all the production work and the album, In This Life was finished in mid-1988. At the time ex-Henry Cow drummer and Recommended Records founder, Chris Cutler was on tour with Pere Ubu in Denver and Johnson gave Cutler a cassette tape of the new album. Cutler offered to release it on the Recommended label, and in September 1989, In This Life became the first US-made CD on the British label.
In This Life was widely distributed and began "gaining kudos from aficionados of avant-rock from all around the world." But Thinking Plague's euphoria was short lived when Lewis moved to New York City. Attempts to replace her with a local singer were unsuccessful and working "long distance" with her proved impractical at the time. Disillusioned, Drake relocated to Los Angeles to work as an engineer and producer, and Moran left the band, leaving Thinking Plague at the point of disintegrating.
In Los Angeles, Drake met drummer Dave Kerman of an avant-rock band, the 5uu's and began working with Kerman's band. Kerman's interest in Thinking Plague led to him joining the Denver band. Drake and Lewis also agreed to "rejoin" (despite the distances) and with the other remaining members, Johnson, Harris and Hotle, Thinking Plague "reformed" in 1990. For the next few years the band worked intermittently at some long-distance rehearsals, performed in a few concerts and made some new recordings, after which all work was put on hold. During this period of dormancy Johnson toured across Europe in 1995 with Drake, Kerman and the 5uu's, but upon returning to the United States the three agreed that reviving Thinking Plague again was not a practical option.
Johnson joined another local avant-rock band, Hamster Theatre in 1996, and suggested to its leader, accordionist and bassist Dave Willey that he join a new incarnation of Thinking Plague. Willey agreed and recommended Deborah Perry as a singer. At much the same time, Kerman moved to Denver and rejoined the band. With existing members Harris and Hotle the new Thinking Plague began recording new material that Johnson had written. In early 1998 the finished tracks were sent to Drake (now living in France) for mixing and production, and the result was Thinking Plague's fourth album, In Extremis, released in 1998 by Cuneiform Records.
In Extremis was rated the top album in 1998 by Gnosis, and its success resulted in new concert appearances for the band. A new member, Matt Mitchell on keyboards was recruited to replace Hotle who had left after the making of In Extremis, and Thinking Plague performed at the 1999 ProgDay Festival, followed by a tour of the eastern and mid-western United States. In June 2000 the band played at NEARfest, a recording of which was mixed three years later by Drake and released as Upon Both Your Houses in 2004 by NEARfest Records. In July 2000 the band toured France and Italy.
After the concerts in Europe, Kerman left the band and was replaced by ex-Sleepytime Gorilla Museum drummer David Shamrock. Work began on a new album, A History of Madness, which was released in September 2003 by Cuneiform Records. It was recorded over a period of two years, with half the band members flying into Denver from across the United States to add their contributions. A History of Madness was the first Thinking Plague album that Bob Drake did not produce; Johnson and Mark McCoin, of the Brave New Audio studio where the album was recorded, did all the mixing.
Lycanthrope
Thinking Plague Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
the other wolf
in night mirror prison
snarling red and stones
Small death blooms
burst in
cold lost worlds
reveals a child
of terror
Sink the moon
and light
the lover's flesh
for jewels and fire
the pool of madness
No longer one among you
The forest
has hidden
my soul
The lyrics of "Lycanthrope" by Thinking Plague are complex and full of metaphorical imagery. The song is about the dual nature of humanity, the animalistic and irrational side that is present within every person, as well as the struggle to contain and control this primal force. The first line of the lyrics, "One eye fear, the other wolf," refers to the split between the fearful, human psyche and the wild, predatory nature that lurks within. The "night mirror prison" is a metaphor for the human mind, which can be a prison for the darker, more primitive impulses that lurk within.
The lines "Small death blooms burst in cold lost worlds new skin reveals a child of terror" describe the transformation that occurs when the primal nature is unleashed. The singer describes feeling like a new being, one that is both terrifying and exhilarating. The lyrics "Sink the moon and light the lover's flesh for jewels and fire, the pool of madness" suggest that the passion and desire associated with the wolf's nature can lead to madness and mayhem. The final line of the lyrics, "The forest has hidden my soul," captures the sense of isolation and alienation that can accompany the realization that one's inner nature is not fully aligned with societal norms.
Line by Line Meaning
One eye fear
Fear dominates one eye of the werewolf, who is afraid of losing oneself to the transformation.
the other wolf
The other eye of the werewolf reflects the hunger and the wild nature of the beast.
in night mirror prison
The werewolf is trapped in the reflection of a night mirror where one is imprisoned in the duality of human and beast.
snarling red and stones
The werewolf's voice is a ferocious snarl that sounds like the clashing of rocks in its throat.
Small death blooms
A transformation of death takes place within the werewolf, as it becomes a different creature entirely.
burst in
The transformation occurs suddenly and explosively, as if a dam has broken in the werewolf's body.
cold lost worlds
The places where the werewolf goes in search of prey are cold and still, worlds that are disconnected from the warmth of humanity.
new skin
The werewolf's transformation causes a total rebirth, as if it has shed old skin or bones.
reveals a child of terror
A new beast is born every time the werewolf transforms, full of rage and terror that have no rational source.
Sink the moon
The werewolf wants to destroy the moon in order to prevent its transformation, as the moon is a sign of the different changes that await it.
and light the lover's flesh
The werewolf is attracted to the warmth and life that it can take from human flesh, which serves as a stand-in for its own.
for jewels and fire
The werewolf values the destruction of human life as if it were a precious treasure set afire.
the pool of madness
The werewolf's life is like a pool of madness that threatens to consume it if it remains in this state for too long.
No longer one among you
The werewolf sees itself as an outsider, permanently separated from the rest of humanity by its state of being.
The forest
The wilderness, especially the forest, is the werewolf's true home that it has reclaimed through its transformation.
has hidden
The forest serves as a sanctuary for the werewolf that protects it from the larger world outside.
my soul
The werewolf feels that it has lost its human soul as it stays in this state of constant transformation.
Contributed by Mackenzie K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Stephen Drake
Thinking Plague is one of my favorites. I really like how you can relisten to it over and over, and hear new stuff each time. It's almost like they're going back and rearranging the music on the cd while you're sleeping or something. Brilliant stuff!
John Appleseed
Yes, exactly!!!
jackredelfs
Nice way to put it. People often ask me why I like "difficult" music and, well, what you describe here is a big part of it. This album is so complex it'll never grow stale. It's always fresh.
Jonathan Wolf
Hell Yeah!!
John Wells
It's a modern classic.....hard to believe it's almost 20yrs old!, and still sounds so fresh and new!
Endzeitstille
John Wells you mean 30 yo
35april
One of my favorite albums ever, this song is immense.. and it's just the start of the whole thing. Organism and Love are pretty fucking brilliant as well!
Cristaux Feur
This song truly is a masterpiece
Classified Chappy
Very interesting song! First time listening to this and it is beautiful. Loved it!
Andrew Rohn
I adore these people. A totally fresh approach to prog, to my ears. Avant-classical melodies but with completely non-operatic singing (so much better!). Technical craziness and then gorgeous pop melodies -- perfect.