Gene Loves Jezebel -

Gene Loves Jezebel were a Welsh goth-rock band that released five albums between 1983 and 1990 on Beggars Banquet, three of which appeared stateside on Geffen. The band featured twin brothers Jay and Michael Aston, who later combusted and litigated over the nameplate, resulting in a split franchise by the 21st century.

Members: Jay Aston (vocals), Michael Aston (bass, guitar, 1980-89, 1995-present), Ian Hudson (guitar, bass, 1980-85), Stephen Davis (bass, 1980-?), Snowy White (drums, 1980-?), Julianne Regan (bass, 1982), James Chater (drums, 1982), Jean-Marc Lederman (keyboards, 1982), Dick Hawkins [John Murphy] (drums, 1982-85), Steve Radwell [Stephen Marshall] (bass, 1982-84), Albie DeLuca (guitar, 1983), Peter Rizzo (bass, 1984-present), Marcus Gilvear (drums, 1985-86), James Stevenson (guitar, 1985-present), Chris Bell (drums, 1986-92)

Background

Gene Loves Jezebel formed in 1980 as Slavaryan when twin brothers Jay and Michael Aston (born 1961) teamed with guitarist Ian Hudson. They renamed their act Gene Loves Jezebel as a reference to American rockabilly icon Gene Vincent and his 1956 song “Jezebel.” In 1981, they moved to London and welcomed bassist Julianne Regan and drummer James Chater.

Promise

Gene Loves Jezebel released their debut album, Promise, in October 1983 on Situation Two, a division of Beggars Banquet.

Promise sets Ian Hudson’s wiry guitar against dry bass motion and brisk drumming, with Jay and Michael Aston pushing the vocals through doubled lines, chants, and sudden cries. The band keeps the arrangements lean and tense, with little excess around the rhythm track or guitar figures.

“Upstairs” opens with a moody bass-led entry, then breaks into a harder guitar surge, while “Screaming for Emmalene” builds through rolling verses toward a full-throat cry that snaps the early sequence open. “Pop Tarantula” and “Psychological Problems” keep a brisk, overdriven pace, with the latter driving all the way to its closing chant and dropout. “Bread From Heaven” strips the arrangement down to guitar ambience and keening voices, which gives its accusatory lines extra force.

“Influenza” shifts into a quieter, uncanny space, built from semi-acoustic strums, tom-heavy drum patterns, glockenspiel strikes, and wordless choral lines that keep the unease in motion. Near the end, “Shower Me With Brittle Punches” lifts the pace again with a lighter, more direct shape, and “Bruises” adds chiming guitar and a cleaner single-like contour without breaking the album’s tense surface.

A1. “Upstairs” (3:18) — J. Aston, M. Aston, Ian C. Hudson
A2. “Bruises” (3:38) — J. Aston, M. Aston
A3. “Pop Tarantula” (3:10) — J. Aston, M. Aston
A4. “Screaming for Emmalene” (2:58) — J. Aston, M. Aston
A5. “Scheming” (6:26) — J. Aston, M. Aston

B1. “Bread from Heaven” (4:12) — J. Aston, M. Aston, Hudson
B2. “Influenza” (3:42) — J. Aston, Hudson
B3. “Shower Me with Brittle Punches” (2:50) — J. Aston, M. Aston, Hudson
B4. “Wraps and Arms” (4:00) — J. Aston, M. Aston
B5. “Psychological Problems” (3:45) — J. Aston, M. Aston, Hudson

Gene Loves Jezebel recorded Promise between July 11 and 26, 1983, at Parkgate Studios with producer John Brand and engineers Aldo and John Brand.

“Screaming for Emmalene” first appeared as an advance single in May, backed with “So Young Heave Hard Heave Ho,” a standalone Aston brothers cut. The single reached No. 18 on the UK Indie chart.

“Bruises” dropped in July as a second advance single with “Punch Drunk,” another Aston/Aston exclusive. The single reached No. 7 UK Indie.

In April 1984, “Influenza (Relapse)” became the album’s third single, backed with “Waking in the Park,” a rarity by Hudson and the Astons. The single reached No. 11 UK Indie.

Promise reached No. 8 on the UK Indie Chart.

Immigrant

Gene Loves Jezebel released their second album, Immigrant, in June 1985 on Situation Two.

Immigrant gives Peter Rizzo’s bass and Marcus Gilvear’s drumming a firmer role in the band’s sound and pushes the songs into more direct shapes. Hudson still drives much of the guitar movement, while Jay Aston stays high in the mix with a more sharply framed vocal lead.

“Always a Flame” starts with buried drums, echoed guitar, and subdued cries, then opens into a broader rush with a strong bass line and a chorus shaped by bright, almost mandolin-like guitar texture. “Stephen” slows the pace into a heavier trudge with chant-like weight, while “The Immigrant” answers with a harder drum assault and a fuller rhythmic push.

“Worth Waiting For” snaps forward on a brisk, excited pulse, with a spoken break cutting across the song’s forward drive, and “Cow” turns stranger and larger at once, especially when the chorus widens into thick guitar emphasis. The closing stretch grows more oblique: “The Rhino Plasty” twists through an odd, compact frame with a brief noisy solo, “Deep South Wale” stacks guitar layers so they hover above the rhythm like sustained keyboard lines, and “Coal Porter” lowers the temperature with soft percussion, electric guitar, piano, and backing voices set behind a more subdued vocal lead.

A1. “Always a Flame” (4:29) — I. Hudson, J. Aston, M. Aston, P. Rizzo
A2. “Shame” (3:47) — I. Hudson, J. Aston, M. Aston
A3. “Stephen” (4:43) — I. Hudson, J. Aston, M. Aston, R. Hawkins, S. Marshall
A4. “Bruises” (3:39) — J. Aston, M. Aston
A5. “The Immigrant” (3:51) — J. Aston, M. Aston

B1. “Cow” (4:49) — I. Hudson, J. Aston, M. Aston
B2. “Worth Waiting For” (3:37) — I. Hudson, J. Aston, M. Aston
B3. “The Rhino Plasty” (5:06) — I. Hudson, J. Aston, M. Aston
B4. “Deep South Wale” (4:01) — I. Hudson, J. Aston
B5. “Coal Porter” (4:31) — J. Aston

Gene Loves Jezebel recorded Immigrant at Chapel Lane Studios in February 1985 with producer John Leckie and engineer Anand Nagara. Guerilla Studios handled the mix, and Britannia Row remixed “Cow.”

Situation Two issued “Shame (Whole Heart Howl)” (b/w “Gorgeous”) in 1984, and the single reached No. 14 on the UK Indie chart. Situation Two then issued “Cow” (b/w “One Someone”) in May 1985, which reached No. 9 UK Indie. Situation Two followed with “Desire” (b/w “Flame”) in October 1985, and that single reached No. 4 UK Indie.

On the eve of their first US tour, Ian Hudson cleared out for James Stevenson, a journeyman guitarist whose prior associations include Chelsea, Kim Wilde, and Fischer-Z frontman John Watts.

Discover

Gene Loves Jezebel released their third album, Discover, in June 1986 on Beggars Banquet.

James Stevenson’s arrival shifts the guitar to the front and gives the band a cleaner, more forceful lead voice. Peter Rizzo’s bass stays active underneath, Marcus Gilvear keeps the beat tight, and the brighter production clears more room around the vocals and lead lines.

Discover pushes the band toward a broader, brighter guitar sound built on hard-edged riffs, searing lead lines, and a cleaner studio frame. “Desire” sets the tone with pounding mechanical beats, a forceful chorus, and a dense wall of guitar that drives straight through the track. “Heartache” and “Sweetest Thing” keep that direct, high-pressure shape, while “Over the Rooftops” carries similar lift with a smoother surface.

The darker side holds its ground on “A White Horse,” where the guitar leans into a sustained drone, and on “Maid of Sker,” which lowers the light and lets the mood sit heavier in the arrangement. “Beyond Doubt” pulls the album into its most weightless stretch, with delicate guitar lines, a yearning lead vocal, and high backing parts that give the song a suspended, spectral pull.

A1. “Heartache” (4:21)
A2. “Over the Rooftops” (3:13)
A3. “Kick” (3:09)
A4. “A White Horse” (3:06)
A5. “Wait and See” (3:26)

B1. “Desire” (3:18)
B2. “Beyond Doubt” (4:22)
B3. “Sweetest Thing” (3:08)
B4. “Maid of Sker” (4:25)
B5. “Brand New Moon” (3:43)

Gene Loves Jezebel recorded Discover with producer Gary Lyons and mixer Mark Dearnley. “Desire” came from a separate session with Michael Aston and Alvin Clarke. Simon Fowler handled the photography, and Slim Star with Thin Things designed the sleeve.

Beggars Banquet issued “Sweetest Thing” (b/w “Psycho II”) in March 1986, and the single reached No. 75 in the UK. Beggars Banquet followed with “Heartache” (b/w “Heartache Part II”) in May 1986, which reached No. 71 UK. Beggars Banquet then issued “Desire (Come and Get It)” (b/w “Message”) in October 1986, and that single reached No. 95 UK.

The album reached No. 32 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 155 on the Billboard 200.

The House of Dolls

Gene Loves Jezebel released their fourth album, The House of Dolls, in October 1987 on Beggars Banquet and Geffen.

House of Dolls centers the band on James Stevenson’s polished guitar lines and a tighter rhythmic frame from Peter Rizzo and Chris Bell. The production opens the songs wider around the vocals and gives the album a broader, more controlled surface than the earlier records.

“The Motion of Love” and “Suspicion” carry the album’s most immediate charge, with the latter adding a tense, yearning pull to its steady pulse. “Gorgeous” opens wider, with a sweeping arrangement and a fuller, more luminous guitar spread, while “Twenty Killer Hurts” pushes forward on a firmer, driving pace. Stevenson’s guitar stays central across the album, filling songs with clear, high-reaching lines and broad chordal sweep, while the rhythm section holds a precise, metronomic backbone. Two tracks cut into a darker register: “Message” and “Up There” lower the light and bring back a broodier weight within the album’s cleaner frame.

A1. “Gorgeous” (3:43)
A2. “The Motion of Love” (3:49)
A3. “Set Me Free” (3:29)
A4. “Suspicion” (3:48)
A5. “Every Door” (4:34)

B1. “20 Killer Hurts” (3:31)
B2. “Treasure” (3:57)
B3. “Message” (3:49)
B4. “Drowning Crazy” (3:18)
B5. “Up There” (4:41)

Gene Loves Jezebel recorded The House of Dolls at The Manor, Sarm West, and A&M Studios. Peter Walsh produced most of the album, Jimmy Iovine produced “The Motion of Love” and “Suspicion,” and Scott Litt mixed the record.

Beggars Banquet issued “The Motion of Love” in 1987, and the single reached No. 56 in the UK. Beggars Banquet followed with “Gorgeous” (b/w “Someone on the 6th Floor (At the Jezebel Palace)”) in November 1987, which reached No. 68 UK. “The Motion of Love” later became the band’s first Billboard Hot 100 entry in the US.

Kiss of Life

Gene Loves Jezebel released their fifth album, Kiss of Life, in 1990 on Beggars Banquet and Geffen. This was the first Gene Loves Jezebel album without Michael Aston.

The album builds around Jay Aston’s single vocal lead and James Stevenson’s guitar, with Chris Bell and Peter Rizzo holding a firm rhythmic base. Extra keyboard layers thicken the harmony, and the writing gives several tracks more room to build over time.

Kiss of Life leans on hard guitar attack and firm drum weight. “Jealous” opens with a pounding beat, a sharp central riff, and a vocal line pushed high and hard across the arrangement. “It’ll End in Tears” and “Two Shadows” keep the pressure up through direct, compact song forms, while “Tangled Up in You” draws much of its force from acoustic guitar strum and a brisk forward pull.

The slower side, embodied by the title track and “I Die for You,” finds Jay Aston in a calmer register over more spacious backing, with the latter colored by a guitar line set to resemble harpsichord texture. “Why Can’t I” stretches furthest, starting from a steady drum throb and building into a larger electric surge, with the guitar broadening into feedback-heavy lines as the vocal intensity rises.

A1. “Jealous” (3:29)
A2. “It’ll End in Tears” (4:11)
A3. “Kiss of Life” (6:01)
A4. “Why Can’t I?” (6:56)

B1. “Syzygy” (0:35)
B2. “Walk Away” (3:35)
B3. “Tangled Up in You” (4:37)
B4. “Two Shadows” (4:15)
B5. “Evening Star” (5:14)
B6. “I Die for You” (4:51)

Gene Loves Jezebel recorded Kiss of Life in San Francisco and London with producers Paul Fox and Tim Palmer, engineer Jason Corsaro, and additional engineering by Mark O’Donoughue. Stewart Hawkes mastered the album at Tape One. Kevin Reagan handled the art direction and design, and Jeffrey Newbury shot the photography.

Beggars Banquet issued “Jealous” (b/w “Last Year”) in 1990. The single reached No. 68 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the US Modern Rock chart.

Discography: