Martin Bramah

Martin Beddington (born 18 September 1957 in Manchester), better known by his stage name Martin Bramah, is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known as a founding member of the Fall, Blue Orchids, Thirst, and Factory Star. In the mid-1970s, he was introduced by his friend Barbara Smith to her brother Mark E. Smith and his friend Una Baines. Smith, Baines, Bramah and Tony Friel shared interests in music, and formed their first band, the Fall. He remained in The Fall until April 1979, having co-written most of the band's repertoire until then, including their debut album "Live at the Witch Trials". He quit mid-tour due to tension between him and Smith. He formed the influential post-punk band Blue Orchids with Baines. They had early success but went on hiatus when the couple married and had a child; they eventually split but still remain friends. Blue Orchids re-emerged in 1985 to released the single "Sleepytown", followed by a number of sporadic, but well received, albums thereafter, including 2016's "The Battle of Twisted Heel". Bramah formed Thirst in 1987 with former Fall drummer Karl Burns, bassist Lee Pickering and guitarist Carrie Lawson. The band were more oriented towards garage rock than the influences of his earlier post-punk bands. Thirst only released one EP, Riding the Times. In 1989, Bramah rejoined The Fall to replace Brix and contributed guitar to Extricate. Bramah's second tenure in The Fall lasted just over a year, as he (together with keyboardist Marcia Schofield) was sacked at the end of the Australasian tour in July 1990. While Mark E. Smith later cited his desire to strip down the band's sound, the actual cause behind the sackings was Smith being unhappy about Bramah and Schofield having an affair. In 2008, he formed Factory Star, initially featuring Tim Lyons and Brian Benson (of The Sandells), subsequently featuring fellow ex-Fall members Steve Hanley on bass, Paul Hanley on drums and John Paul Moran of Rapid Pig, Gnod and the Monochrome Set on keyboards. The Hanley brothers departed during 2010 to be replaced by Chris Dutton (formerly of Sicknurse and Kill Pretty) and Tom Lewis. Their debut album Enter Castle Perilous was released on Occultation Records in 2011.

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