A.R. Kane

A.R. Kane

A.R. Kane are a British duo from London, active from 1986 to 1994. The core members are Alex Ayuli and Rudy Tambala, both from east London. Russell Smith also plays a role in the group’s history on bass, and the band works with various drummers over time.

Style and position

The group sits across alternative dance, ambient dub, dream pop, experimental rock, noise pop and shoegaze. They are usually described as a British dreampop duo, and they prefer the term dream pop. Their music places them in the indie scene, but they do not fit neatly within it.

Early releases and wider recognition

Before their best-known albums, A.R. Kane issue two singles on different labels. They also appear on M/A/R/R/S’s number one hit “Pump Up the Volume”.

Albums

Their first two albums, 69 and i, both release in 1988 and 1989 respectively and receive wide critical acclaim. 69 is the more consciously indie of the two, while i is a more dramatic change, with a slicker and smoother sound and a wide range of styles spread across twenty-six tracks, including ten short noise interludes. “A Love From Outer Space” becomes the group’s best-known song and appears on i.

The follow-up album New Clear Child appears in 1994 and is less well received, with criticism focused on its lack of coherent direction and on ideas that are seen as reworkings of material the band has already developed more succinctly on the earlier records.

After the band

After A.R. Kane, Rudy Tambala makes ambient- and dub-influenced music under the name Sufi. Alex Ayuli works as a museum curator in the United States. Russell Smith continues to DJ rare soul 45s in the UK and Europe and works as a restorer and decorator in south-west France.