Biography
Drawing from library music, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, and vintage children's television soundtracks, Plone distinguished themselves among late-'90s electronic acts upon their arrival, and this uniqueness persisted when they reemerged years afterward. Their lighthearted melodies and eerie yet playful atmospheres set them apart from the typically somber roster on Warp, while their childlike quality differentiated them within Birmingham, England's retro-futuristic milieu. After a few EPs and the 1999 cult favorite For Beginner Piano, Plone vanished nearly as quickly as they had appeared. Their aura and reputation nevertheless expanded during the hiatus, shaping the visual and sonic identity of Ghost Box throughout the 2000s and afterward. It therefore made sense that Ghost Box issued the group's 2020 album Puzzlewood, confirming that Plone's music retained its odd, gently humorous character.
Plone originated in late 1994, when Mark Cancellara and Michael Johnston started exploring antique drum machines and analogue synths. Mike "Billy" Bainbridge, then sharing a house with Johnston, soon acquired a keyboard and entered the lineup. Taking their name from an imaginary cartoonish sound, Plone supported kindred acts such as Pram and Broadcast at shows in London and their hometown of Birmingham beginning in 1996. Those performances prompted the Wurlitzer Jukebox label, already home to Pram and Broadcast, to invite the trio to cut a single. The outcome was their 1997 debut EP Press a Key/Electric Beauty Parlour, which drew praise from John Peel.
Plone joined Warp in 1998 and supplied the track "Plaything" to that June's WAP 100: We Are Reasonable People compilation. Their second EP, Plock, followed in September and was named Melody Maker's Single of the Year for 1998. Preparing their first album, the group continued to amass vintage equipment while citing influences that ranged from John Barry to the Beach Boys. Released in September 1999, For Beginner Piano broadened the trio's palette and received broad critical acclaim.
Plone recorded demos for a planned second album, yet the project was abandoned after the 2001 death of Warp co-founder Rob Mitchell, who had brought the band to the label. The members eventually pursued separate paths. Bainbridge toured with Broadcast in support of Ha Ha Sound, then formed Seeland with former Broadcast member Tim Felton (also of Hintermass), a kindred project that issued several singles and EPs plus two albums: Tomorrow Today in 2009 and How to Live in 2010. Johnston launched the solo project Mike in Mono in 2002; he later collaborated with ZX Spectrum Orchestra, whose releases include 2008's Basic Programming, and with the Modified Toy Orchestra, responsible for Toygopop in 2008 and Plastic Planet in 2011. Although the unreleased album demos eventually circulated online, Plone remained silent until 2020, when the duo of Bainbridge and Johnston delivered their official second album, Puzzlewood. Issued that April on Ghost Box, home to Hintermass and numerous similarly oriented artists, the record displayed a brighter, more diverse palette than earlier Plone material and drew on nearly two decades of recordings.
Plone originated in late 1994, when Mark Cancellara and Michael Johnston started exploring antique drum machines and analogue synths. Mike "Billy" Bainbridge, then sharing a house with Johnston, soon acquired a keyboard and entered the lineup. Taking their name from an imaginary cartoonish sound, Plone supported kindred acts such as Pram and Broadcast at shows in London and their hometown of Birmingham beginning in 1996. Those performances prompted the Wurlitzer Jukebox label, already home to Pram and Broadcast, to invite the trio to cut a single. The outcome was their 1997 debut EP Press a Key/Electric Beauty Parlour, which drew praise from John Peel.
Plone joined Warp in 1998 and supplied the track "Plaything" to that June's WAP 100: We Are Reasonable People compilation. Their second EP, Plock, followed in September and was named Melody Maker's Single of the Year for 1998. Preparing their first album, the group continued to amass vintage equipment while citing influences that ranged from John Barry to the Beach Boys. Released in September 1999, For Beginner Piano broadened the trio's palette and received broad critical acclaim.
Plone recorded demos for a planned second album, yet the project was abandoned after the 2001 death of Warp co-founder Rob Mitchell, who had brought the band to the label. The members eventually pursued separate paths. Bainbridge toured with Broadcast in support of Ha Ha Sound, then formed Seeland with former Broadcast member Tim Felton (also of Hintermass), a kindred project that issued several singles and EPs plus two albums: Tomorrow Today in 2009 and How to Live in 2010. Johnston launched the solo project Mike in Mono in 2002; he later collaborated with ZX Spectrum Orchestra, whose releases include 2008's Basic Programming, and with the Modified Toy Orchestra, responsible for Toygopop in 2008 and Plastic Planet in 2011. Although the unreleased album demos eventually circulated online, Plone remained silent until 2020, when the duo of Bainbridge and Johnston delivered their official second album, Puzzlewood. Issued that April on Ghost Box, home to Hintermass and numerous similarly oriented artists, the record displayed a brighter, more diverse palette than earlier Plone material and drew on nearly two decades of recordings.
Albums
