Spiritualized

When Spacemen 3 dissolved, vocalist and guitarist Jason Pierce, who performs under the name J. Spaceman, launched Spiritualized by channeling his melodic and introspective compositions away from the repetitive austerity of his prior group. The ensemble progressed from the drug-infused, Velvet Underground-recalling textures of its initial recordings toward gospel and blues elements, alongside wistful orchestral pop flourishes inspired by Brian Wilson and Phil Spector’s teenage symphonies to God. A heightened achievement arrived via the expansive soundscapes and melancholic grace of the 1997 landmark Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space, which yielded global chart traction with the 2001 release Let It Come Down. Due to a meticulous approach encompassing composition, tracking, and mixing, Spiritualized records emerged gradually across the 2010s and 2020s, marked by prolonged intervals separating 2012’s Sweet Heart, Sweet Light, 2018’s And Nothing Hurt, and 2022’s Everything Was Beautiful.

Although Spiritualized took definitive shape only after the bitter dissolution of Spacemen 3, its origins traced to that ensemble’s concluding album, 1990’s Recurring. Nominally a Spacemen 3 effort, Recurring divided evenly between solo work by Pierce and his estranged collaborator Pete “Sonic Boom” Kember. Consequently, while Kember’s portions foreshadowed his later Spectrum projects, Pierce’s contributions, captured alongside musicians who would populate Spiritualized—including guitarist Mark Refoy, bassist Willie B. Carruthers, and drummer Jon Mattock—anticipated the orchestral drones that would define the new band’s signature. The inaugural genuine Spiritualized single, an impassioned rendition of the Troggs’ “Anyway That You Want Me,” served as the decisive rupture; reportedly incensed by the Spacemen 3 logo on the sleeve, Kember dissolved the group permanently.

Spiritualized resurfaced in 1991 through successive EPs—Feel So Sad, Run/I Want You, and Smile/Sway—before the anticipated debut Lazer Guided Melodies surfaced the next year. The commanding, euphoric outcome of Pierce’s relentless studio refinement and repeated remixing, the set gained exposure through the band’s participation in the prominent Rollercoaster tour alongside the Jesus and Mary Chain and Curve. A limited live artifact, Fucked Up Inside, appeared in 1993, succeeded later that year by the EP Electric Mainline.

By 1995, now configured as a trio with Pierce, keyboardist/guitarist Kate Radley, and bassist Sean Cook, Spiritualized delivered Pure Phase, an intricate, saturated production offering independent stereo-channel mixes. The platinum-certified Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space of 1997 saw Pierce consciously abandon prior hallmarks such as drones, tremolos, and phase effects; captured with incoming drummer Damon Reece, it included a guest spot from New Orleans piano icon Dr. John on one selection and Memphis studio veteran Jim Dickinson on another. Additional contributors encompassed the Balanescu Quartet (previously heard on Pure Phase), the London Community Gospel Choir, and Spring Heel Jack. The two-disc Royal Albert Hall October 10, 1997 live album arrived in late 1998.

The subsequent year Pierce dismantled the existing roster, dismissing Cook, Reece, and Mike Mooney, who subsequently formed Lupine Howl; Radley departed following her marriage to Verve frontman and solo artist Richard Ashcroft. Only saxophonist Ray Dickaty and occasional keyboardist Thighpaulsandra (aka Tim Lewis) continued. Pierce initiated writing and recording for the next album at George Martin’s Air Studios, enlisting percussionist Tom Edwards, bassist Martin Shallards, Echoboy drummer Kev Bales, and guitarist Dogan (formerly of Julian Cope’s band). That widely praised fourth album, Let It Come Down—with an even more opulent, elaborate sound than its predecessor—emerged in mid-2001. It became their strongest chart performer to date, reaching number three in the U.K. while registering the band’s initial showings on the French and U.S. charts.

The follow-up, 2003’s Amazing Grace (Dedicated/Arista), adopted a more stripped-down stance. Though it debuted at number 25 on the U.K. charts, it registered no impact elsewhere. Their sixth album, Songs in A and E (Universal/Sanctuary), surfaced in spring 2008 and restored Spiritualized to prominent chart positions. In 2010 the group toured performing Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space in full, composing fresh material influenced by that record as well as the Beach Boys and Peter Brötzmann during the trek. Pierce and associates tracked the songs across studios in Los Angeles, Wales, and Reykjavik over two years; the resulting Sweet Heart, Sweet Light (Double Six/Fat Possum) appeared in April 2012.

Following a six-year absence—the longest interval in the band’s history—Pierce aimed to create what he anticipated would be Spiritualized’s final statement. Lacking funds for a major facility, he assembled the work on a laptop, performing most parts himself (the rich strings being sampled) except for horns, upright bass, and timpani, a method he initially found vexing. The finished And Nothing Hurt arrived in September 2018, accompanied by a full-band tour and the acknowledgment that the release would not conclude the group’s output. The album charted solidly across Europe and reached the Top 20 of the Top Modern Rock/Alternative Albums chart in the U.S. Everything Was Beautiful appeared four years afterward, remaining as contemplative and expansive as ever, its lead single “Always Together with You” once more evoking both Spector and the Velvet Underground.