Biography
After a publicized split from House of Love frontman Guy Chadwick, guitarist Terry Bickers departed the group in 1990 and assembled Levitation with bassist Laurence O'Keefe, keyboardist Robert White, guitarist Christian Hayes, and drummer Dave Francollini. Strong early concerts quickly won favor among British critics, while Bickers' wide-ranging interviews—covering prog-rock revivals, flying saucers, reincarnation, bacchanalian revelry, and Egyptology—further elevated the band's profile in the press.
Expectations surrounded the band's first recordings, and the 1991 Coppelia EP delivered, offering a luminous, expansive sound anchored by the narcotic epic "Smile" alongside gentler psychedelic passages in "Rosemary Jones" and distorted pop in "Paid in Kind." The subsequent The After Ever EP maintained the same level of quality, and both releases later appeared together with concert recordings plus two new tracks, "Squirrel" and "It's Time," on the album-length Coterie.
Levitation delivered the acclaimed Need for Not full-length in 1992 before securing a deal with major label Chrysalis. Following the 1993 Even When Your Eyes Are Open EP, the band embarked on a British tour, yet during a performance at London's Tufnell Park Dome, Bickers suddenly declared "Oh, dear. We've completely lost it, haven't we?" before walking offstage; he never rejoined the group and declined further public comment on his departure. He later recorded under the name Cradle. The remaining members recruited vocalist Steven Ludwin and released the King of Mice EP; their 1994 album Meanwhile Gardens, a mixed set of re-recordings and fresh material, surfaced only in Australia and marked the band's last release.
Expectations surrounded the band's first recordings, and the 1991 Coppelia EP delivered, offering a luminous, expansive sound anchored by the narcotic epic "Smile" alongside gentler psychedelic passages in "Rosemary Jones" and distorted pop in "Paid in Kind." The subsequent The After Ever EP maintained the same level of quality, and both releases later appeared together with concert recordings plus two new tracks, "Squirrel" and "It's Time," on the album-length Coterie.
Levitation delivered the acclaimed Need for Not full-length in 1992 before securing a deal with major label Chrysalis. Following the 1993 Even When Your Eyes Are Open EP, the band embarked on a British tour, yet during a performance at London's Tufnell Park Dome, Bickers suddenly declared "Oh, dear. We've completely lost it, haven't we?" before walking offstage; he never rejoined the group and declined further public comment on his departure. He later recorded under the name Cradle. The remaining members recruited vocalist Steven Ludwin and released the King of Mice EP; their 1994 album Meanwhile Gardens, a mixed set of re-recordings and fresh material, surfaced only in Australia and marked the band's last release.
Albums
