Collapsed System

From Harlow, Essex, England came the all-round entertainers Collapsed Lung, whose February 1992 formation produced an unconventional format rooted in hip-hop yet punctuated by rowdy electric guitar and mid-song comedy banter. Their debut show led directly to an invitation for an all-day festival in Harlow, where guitarist Steve Harcourt—ex-member of the heavy metal band Gethsemane and a toy shop assistant by day—encountered the bespectacled Nihal Arhanayake, a rapper of Sri Lankan descent who abandoned a legal career to join. Arhanayake was promptly asked to lay vocals over the existing trio’s backing tracks, with Anthony Chapman serving as his co-rapper and Johnny Dawe completing the lineup on bass. The members’ earlier affiliations included Pregnant Neck, Bombers and the indie band Death By Milkfloat. Released as Collapsed Lung’s debut single, “Thundersley Invacar” paid tribute to the celebrated UK invalid car and drew comparisons to Cornershop, while the follow-up “Chainsaw Wedgie” recounted the playground ordeal of underwear yanked upward from behind. Arhanayake departed in 1994, later appearing on Fun-Da-Mental’s debut album and becoming a member of the Maddie Funksters. His replacement arrived in the form of rapper Jim Burke alongside drummer Chris, and Chapman further strengthened his profile through DJ sets across multiple London venues. Eager to reaffirm the group’s hip-hop identity, he declared “at the end of the day it’s just hip-hop” during promotion of the 1995 album Jackpot Goalie. The double-sided single “London Tonight”/“Eat My Goal” achieved sizeable UK success in 1996.