Anton Fier

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Anton Fier
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Birth name John Anton Fier III
Birth date June 20, 1956
Birth place Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Death date September 14, 2022
Death place Basel, Switzerland
Origin Cleveland, Ohio
Genres Experimental rock; jazz; alternative rock
Instruments Drums
Years active 1970s–2010s
Associated acts The Golden Palominos; The Feelies; The Lounge Lizards; Pere Ubu; Swans
Labels
Website


Anton Fier (June 20, 1956 – September 14, 2022) was an American drummer, producer, composer and bandleader from Cleveland, Ohio. He was best known as the driving force behind the experimental rock collective The Golden Palominos and for his work with The Feelies, The Lounge Lizards, Pere Ubu and Swans.<ref> Anton Fier, Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Anton Fier Biography, Songs, & Albums, AllMusic. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

History

Early life and Cleveland scene

Fier was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and grew up in the city’s east side suburbs. He began playing drums as a teenager and became involved in the local blues and proto-punk scenes. In the early 1970s he passed through the Mr. Stress Blues Band, a key Cleveland bar band that served as an early training ground for future members of Pere Ubu and other underground groups.<ref> Mr. Stress Blues Band, Cascade Blues Association. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

By the mid-1970s Fier was drumming in several Cleveland art-punk and underground outfits, including Friction with guitarist Peter Laughner, the Styrenes and the no-wave band X_______X.<ref> Composer Anton Fier Dead At 66, Stereo Embers. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Styrenes—A Brief History, Buckeye Beat. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> X X (band), Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref> He also played with Cleveland proto-punk innovators Electric Eels, helping connect that scene to the later New York no-wave movement.<ref> Electric Eels biography, Shazam. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

New York, The Feelies and the downtown scene

In the late 1970s Fier moved to New York City, where he worked at SoHo Music Gallery and immersed himself in the emerging downtown avant-rock community.<ref> Anton Fier, Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref> Answering a classified ad, he joined New Jersey–based band The Feelies in 1978 and played drums on their influential 1980 debut Crazy Rhythms.<ref> Crazy Rhythms, Bandcamp. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

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After leaving the Feelies, Fier became the drummer for The Lounge Lizards, appearing on the group’s 1981 self-titled debut album.<ref> The Lounge Lizards (album), Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref> He briefly returned to the Cleveland circle when he joined Pere Ubu in 1981, playing drums, piano and percussion on their 1982 album Song of the Bailing Man.<ref> Song of the Bailing Man, Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

Around the same time Fier played with John Zorn’s improvising band Locus Solus and began a long-running association with bassist and producer Bill Laswell. He contributed to projects by Laswell and by artists such as Laurie Anderson (Mister Heartbreak), Herbie Hancock (Sound-System, recorded with Hancock’s “Rockit” band), Yoko Ono, Gil Scott-Heron, Mick Jagger, Los Lobos and others.<ref> Anton Fier Biography, Songs, & Albums, AllMusic. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Sound-System, HerbieHancock.com. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

The Golden Palominos and later collaborations

In 1981 Fier founded The Golden Palominos, initially a studio band featuring Arto Lindsay, John Zorn, Bill Laswell and Fred Frith, which evolved into a loose collective centred on Fier’s drumming, composition and production. Across the 1980s and 1990s the group’s albums featured guests including Michael Stipe, John Lydon, Richard Thompson and many others, and became a defining part of the New York “downtown” sound.<ref> Anton Fier: a toast to the restless drummer, The Wire. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Anton Fier (The Feelies), Le Poisson Rouge. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

Beyond the Golden Palominos, Fier remained an in-demand drummer and collaborator. He was a member of Swans during the period of their 1991 album White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, contributing drums and drum programming,<ref> White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref> and recorded with European avant-jazz outfits such as Gestalt Et Jive and the Peter Brötzmann Tentet.<ref> Gestalt et Jive, Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> The März Combo Live in Wuppertal, FMP Records/Bandcamp. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

Fier was closely associated with Bill Laswell’s ambient and dub-oriented projects, appearing as performer or producer on Divination releases such as Akasha and Distill, and on recordings by Autonomous Zone / Tokyo Rotation and Friends Of Earth.<ref> Akasha, Silent Watcher. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> The Map Is Not The Territory, Bill Laswell Bandcamp. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Friends Of Earth Discography, Discogs. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

As a producer, Fier worked on albums by Drivin' N' Cryin' (Whisper Tames the Lion), Joe Henry, Lori Carson, The Grapes of Wrath, Julia Brown, Todd Clouser and others, and produced guitarist Jim Campilongo’s 2010 album Orange.<ref> Anton Fier, German Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Jim Campilongo – Orange, Discogs. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

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Final years and death

By the late 2000s Fier’s live appearances had become less frequent. In 2019, singer Syd Straw noted publicly that he was no longer playing drums, suggesting he had effectively retired from performance.<ref> Anton Fier, Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

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Fier died on September 14, 2022, aged 66, at the Pegasos Clinic in Basel, Switzerland, through voluntary assisted dying. Reports following his death stated that long-term injuries, financial difficulties and a sense that he had completed his life’s work contributed to his decision.<ref> Anton Fier, Drummer Who Left Stamp on a Downtown Scene, Dies at 66, The New York Times. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Renowned NYC musician dies by assisted suicide in Switzerland after having ‘completed life’, The Independent. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Anton Fier, Drummer for the Feelies and Lounge Lizards, Dies at 66, Pitchfork. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

Projects

Fier’s bands and major collaborative projects include:

(Projects listed here are based on documented performance or recording credits.)<ref> Anton Fier Discography, Discogs. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref><ref> Anton Fier – Relationships, MusicBrainz. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

Solo discography

Albums

  • Dreamspeed (Avant, 1993)<ref>

Dreamspeed, Discogs. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

  • Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud (Island, 1995)<ref>

Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud, AllMusic. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

  • Dreamspeed/Blindlight 1992–1994 (Tzadik, 2003)<ref>

Dreamspeed / Blindlight (1992–94), Tzadik. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

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Selected notable recordings

Crazy Rhythms, Bandcamp. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

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The Lounge Lizards (album), Wikipedia. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

  • with Pere Ubu – Song of the Bailing Man (Rough Trade, 1982)<ref>

Pere Ubu – Song Of The Bailing Man, UbuProjex. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

  • with Swans – White Light from the Mouth of Infinity (Young God, 1991)<ref>

White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, Discogs. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

Sound-System, HerbieHancock.com. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

The März Combo Live in Wuppertal, FMP Records/Bandcamp. Retrieved {{{access-date}}}.

</ref>

References

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Categories

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