2.3

2.3 was an English post-punk trio from Sheffield that released the single “All Time Low” / “Where to Now?” on small-press Fast Product in 1978. The band initially called itself 2.3 Children, based on the average number of children beared per U.S. household. Both their songs were included with early sides by labelmates The Human League, Gang of Four, The Mekons, and Scars on the seminal comp Fast Product: The First Year Plan, issued stateside on PVC as Mutant Pop 78/79 ->.

Members: Paul Bower (vocals, guitar), Paul Shaft (vocals, bass), Haydn Boyes-Weston (drums)

Background

2.3 formed as 2.3 Children in May 1977 in Sheffield when guitarist-singer Paul Bower recruited drummer Haydn Boyes-Weston through a T-shirt marked “drummer wanted” and bassist-singer Paul Sharpe through an advertisement. Sharpe also used the name Paul Shaft. The trio took the name from the familiar statistic of 2.3 children per household.

Bower left High Storrs Grammar in 1973 and joined the Meatwhistle youth-arts workshop in Sheffield. He played guitar with Musical Vomit, a workshop group that also included Glenn Gregory and Ian Reddington. In January 1977, Bower and Adi Newton launched the Sheffield fanzine Gun Rubber, which covered local groups such as Cabaret Voltaire. 2.3 later shared a Sheffield workshop with The Future, the Martyn Ware–Ian Craig Marsh group that developed into The Human League.

Within weeks of formation, 2.3 made their live debut at the Sheffield Penthouse, supported by The Extras. The trio built a South Yorkshire schedule and joined The Stranglers and The Drones for an October bill at Sheffield Top Rank. After their November support slot with The Rezillos at Doncaster Outlook Centre, 2.3 got a record offer from Bob Last of the tentative Fast Product label.

Fast Product

In February 1978, 2.3 recorded the group-written songs “All Time Low” and “Where to Now?” at REL Studios in Edinburgh with engineer Douglas Bogie and co-producers Last and Tim Pearce. Fast Product issued the two sides in March 1978 as FAST 2, the label’s second release after the inaugural Mekons single “Never Been In a Riot.”

Bower used the Fast Product connection to carry a Human League demo to Last and arranged the fellow act’s debut show at Psalter Lane Art College. Fast Product issued “Being Boiled” (b/w “Circus of Death”) three months after the 2.3 single. Meanwhile, Boyes-Weston drummed on Cabaret Voltaire sessions for their 1979 debut Mix-Up.

In mid-1978, Sharpe cleared for a sequence of bassists (Terry Gamwells, Kevin Donoghue) before John Clayton completed the late-period trio with Bower and Boyes-Weston. On June 19, 2.3 played Union Bar Two in Sheffield, where Geoff Davis recorded their set in stereo on an Akai 4000DS reel-to-reel machine. NMX later issued two numbers, “London” and “Beats Are Back,” on Sheffield Now Society Greatest Hits-1 1978, a 1980 cassette on Now Society Recordings with cuts by Cabaret Voltaire, I’m So Hollow, and They Must Be Russians.

Fast Product placed 2.3 single sides on the 1979 compilation The First Year Plan. In North American, the two tracks appeared on the 1980 PVC release Mutant Pop 78/79. 2.3 disbanded in December 1979 with Clayton in the final lineup. Sharpe next formed de Tian, which developed into Bass Tone Trap with his double bass and vocals. Bower enrolled at Sheffield University for Spanish and managed Floy Joy.

Reunion

2.3 returned to record in 2017 when Bower and Sharpe revived the name. The duo cut “The 95,” “Excellent,” and “Chelsea Girls” at Tileyard Studios in London. Martyn Ware produced the sessions. Native Records issued the recordings as the 2.3 EP.

2.3 followed with New Clear Waves in 2018, the first full-length release under the name. Bower and Sharpe rebuilt songs from the original period and added newer material for the album. Paul Sharpe produced the sessions at Dog Biscuit Studios in East Sussex. New Clear Waves includes a new recording of “All Time Low” plus remastered versions of “All Time Low” and “Where to Now?” from the Fast Product single.

Bower later stepped away from 2.3. Sharpe moved to rhythm guitar and recruited bassist Aidan Lee and lead guitarist Ed Price. Drummer Ellie Thomas completed the quartet. 2.3 released the eleven-song Songs of the Lost in 2020 as the second full-length reunion record. The group followed in 2022 with the eleven-song Resistance Is Hope.

Discography:

• “All Time Low” / “Where to Now?” (1978)

Sources and notes:

• Made in Sheffield / Sheffield Vision — 2.3: strongest source for the May 1977 formation, Bower recruitment story, Penthouse debut, Doncaster/Last contact, Human League connection, Clayton, and December 1979 endpoint. (Sheffield Vision)
• Made in Sheffield — Gunrubber; Electronic Sound; Guardian: Bower and Newton on Gun Rubber, the Meatwhistle background, shared Sheffield network, and 2.3 rehearsal space with the Future. (Sheffield Vision)
• Paul Bower profile: High Storrs, Meatwhistle, Musical Vomit, university studies, Floy Joy management, and additional first-person career details. (Name and Occupation)
• Punky Gibbon / Fast Product discography: unusually detailed session data: REL Studios, February 6 session, February 9 remix, Tim Pearce/Bob Last/2.3 production, Douglas Bogie engineering, March 8 release, The First Year Plan, and Mutant Pop. (punkygibbon.co.uk)
• All the Punk Bands / Picture Sheffield: later bass succession and period live chronology; Picture Sheffield independently confirms the Bower–Boyes-Weston–Clayton lineup. (all the punk bands)
• Sheffield Now Society tape documentation: “London” and “Beats Are Back” come from the June 19, 1978 live recording; the surviving cassette has now received a digital transfer. (all the punk bands)