There are two bands under the name of Come:
(1) An American indie rock band.
(2) A British experimental band founded by William Bennett, who would later go on to form the very influential band Whitehouse.
(1) Come was an American indie rock band from 1990-2001. Come was formed in Boston, Massachusetts by Thalia Zedek (vocal, guitar), Chris Brokaw (guitar, vocal), Arthur Johnson (drums), and Sean O'Brien (bass).
Come came into being after a mutual acquaintance invited Brokaw, O'Brien, and Johnson to play with him; after one show the three decided to split off into their own project, inviting Zedek to join them. Zedek's former band, the post-no wave New York band Live Skull, disbanded in 1990. Zedek played in the bands Uzi and Dangerous Birds before that. Brokaw was playing drums with Codeine, and he and Zedek had been talking about
playing together. Johnson was previously the drummer for the Athens, Georgia band Bar-B-Q Killers, while O'Brien had played with Kilkenny Cats and Fashion Battery, two other 1980s Athens bands.
After a year of jamming together, Come debuted with the 12-inch single Car on Sub Pop in 1991. The song, a seven-minute epic in the blues-noir style of The Birthday Party and These Immortal Souls, encapsulated what was to become the trademark style of Come: dark, intense and lengthy songs marked by Zedek's emotional and distressed vocals, abrupt rhythms, and the tension-filled guitar interplay between Zedek and Brokaw, both extraordinarily accomplished guitarists.
Come released its debut album Eleven:Eleven on Matador Records in 1992 to general acclaim in both the independent and established media. Brokaw left Codeine after the release, devoting himself full-time to Come.
The band released its second album, Don't Ask Don't Tell, in 1994. Though somewhat calmer than its predecessor, it was equally as grave. Among the highlights of the album, and of the whole of the band's impressive song catalogue, are the two dark ballads, Let's Get Lost and Arrive, each closing a side of the vinyl edition.
Johnson and O'Brien left the band after Don't Ask Don't Tell to pursue other careers. The following album, the short Near Life Experience, was recorded with a number of different musicians, including drummer Mac McNeilly of the Jesus Lizard and John McEntire of Tortoise.
Come's original lineup formed the backing band on Steve Wynn's 1996 album Melting in the Dark.
The last album from Come, the 66-minute tour de force Gently, Down the Stream, took it's cue from Near Life Experience, but with a more fluent integrated soundscape.
Zedek and Brokaw took a break after Gently, Down the Stream, and the band has regrouped only once since. Its founders have since each released multiple solo albums, and have performed together on many occasions. On November 11, 2007, Brokaw and Zedek reformed Come for a brief, two-song set to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Middle East Club in Cambridge, which had been the site of Come's final performance. In November 2008, Come reformed for a one-off performance in Castellón, Spain, as part of the 2008 Tanned Tin Festival.
(2) Come was also an English post-punk group from the late 70s led by William Bennett, who would shortly go on to start the prolific 'power electronics' act Whitehouse. Come also featured Peter McKay, Paul Reuter, Jim Thirwell and Daniel Miller (founder of Mute Records).
In 1979, unable to find anyone willing to release their first 7" (Come 1) and inspired by Throbbing Gristle's own label, Industrial Records, Bennett started Come Organisation as a vessel to release Come material. Following Come 1, Come released the Rampton LP in 1980. Though they had disbanded (or, rather, reformed and morphed into Whitehouse) by this point, they put out their second and last LP, I'm Jack, on Come Organisation in 1981. Like the band itself, the label would evolve into Susan Lawley (William Bennett and Whitehouse's present label) some time later.
All but one track ("The Prats") that were officially released by Come are available on on the various artist CDs Anthology 1 and Anthology 2, which are on Susan Lawly. Original copies of Come 1, Rampton, and I'm Jack (all of which were very limited) can go for hundreds of dollars.
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