Artist · chart history · #202 in alternative artist polls
Shriekback
Band United Kingdom Formed 1981
Shriekback formed in 1981 in the United Kingdom. Shriekback has 46 chart appearances on 28 radio countdowns from 9 stations on RockLists, spanning 1984–2026. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Nemesis”, which appears on 21 lists with a best position of #11. The station that charted Shriekback most often is WOXY 97X (Cincinnati, OH), with 13 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1985.
Shriekback formed in Kentish Town in 1981 around a pedigree of post-punk refugees: Barry Andrews on keyboards, synthesizers and vocals, fresh out of XTC and the League of Gentlemen, and Dave Allen on bass, formerly of Gang of Four, with Carl Marsh, late of Out on Blue Six, soon joining on guitars and vocals. What they made was funk turned sideways and slightly sinister, new wave with a slinking rhythm section and vocals that seem to come from somewhere under the floorboards.
Care, in 1983, carried "Lined Up" and "Petulant", and "My Spine Is the Bassline" is just about the perfect title for what they did. Jam Science followed in 1984 with "Hand on My Heart", and Oil and Gold in 1985 is where they hit their stride: "Nemesis" is a hypnotic, thudding groove with a chanting chorus that sounds like a cult meeting in a disco, and "Fish Below the Ice" drifts somewhere darker.
Big Night Music in 1986 was more atmospheric, and Go Bang! in 1988 delivered "Intoxication", "Sharkwalk" and the title track as the band edged further into art rock.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Shriekback on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nemesis | 21 | #11 | – | 1985 | |
| 2 | Lined Up | 3 | #59 | – | – | |
| 3 | Everything That Rises | 2 | #372 | – | – | |
| 4 | Intoxication | 2 | #214 | – | – | |
| 5 | Gunnin' For The Buddha | 2 | #174 | – | – | |
| 6 | Hand on My Heart | 2 | #55 | – | 1984 | |
| 7 | My Spine is the Bassline | 2 | #405 | – | – | |
| 8 | Fish Below the Ice | 1 | #1081 | – | – | |
| 9 | Go Bang | 1 | #58 | – | 1988 | |
| 10 | Petulant | 1 | #1267 | – | – | |
| 11 | Sharkwalk | 1 | #71 | – | 1988 | |
| 12 | Gunning for the Buddah | 1 | #334 | – | – | |
| 13 | Hammerheads | 1 | #1604 | – | – | |
| 14 | The Underwater Boys | 1 | #86 | – | 1987 | |
| 15 | This Big Hush | 1 | #1803 | – | – | |
| 16 | Black Light Trap | 2 | #476 | – | – | |
| 17 | White Out | 1 | #1945 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Year-end chart timeline
Combined year-end countdown points per year. Taller bars mean more songs placing higher across more stations.
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about Shriekback.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.