Fields of the Nephilim

Fields of the Nephilim
Fields of the Nephilim in 2008
Background information
Origin	Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom
Genres	Gothic rock
Years active	1984-1991, 1997-present
Labels	Situation Two Beggars Banquet Jungle Records SPV EMI
Associated acts	Rubicon Nefilim Last Rites The Eden House XII
Members	Carl McCoy Tony Pettitt Gav King Lee Newell
Past members	(Album collaborators) John 'Capachino' Carter Paul Wright 'Nod' Alexander Wright Peter Yates Gary Wisker

Fields of the Nephilim are an English gothic rock band formed in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England in 1984. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Carl McCoy, saxophonist Gary Wisker, Tony Pettitt on bass, guitarist Paul Wright and drummer Alexander "Nod" Wright. After the release of the debut EP Burning the Fields, Wisker left the band and was replaced by Peter Yates as second guitarist to what is widely known as the 'classic' line-up. The current incarnation of the band has released one authorized recording of new material and one double live album since 1990, but the group perform frequently, with Carl McCoy and Tony Pettit remaining from the original lineup.

The band's name refers to a Biblical race of giants or angel-human hybrids, known as the Nephilim. Although they have not received substantial mainstream success, the band's seminal sound has proved highly influential, especially in the genre of gothic rock.

Fields of the Nephilim's initial sound incorporated elements of hard rock, gothic rock, heavy metal and psychedelic rock, and comprised a bass and guitar driven sound underpinned by McCoy's growled vocals. Lyrically, the band incorporated magical themes, referencing the Cthulhu Mythos, the Sumerian religion, Chaos magic and the works of Aleister Crowley.

The band had a "dust and death" image, associated with characters from Sergio Leone's Spaghetti Westerns and often wore cowboy dusters with a weather-beaten look during photoshoots. This weather-beaten look was attained by dusting themselves down with, by their own admission, Mother's Pride flour. This also proved problematic for the band as in May 1988, Nottinghamshire Police detained the band whilst a suspect substance was tested for drugs. This was later determined to be nothing but flour from the stage set.