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David Coulter Biography

david-coulter
  • Born:
  • Years Active: 1980s-2000s
  • Member of: The Pogues
  • Genre: Rock & Alternative

Thanks to his father's influence, David Coulter started quite early on the path to becoming the proficient multi-instrumentalist that he is today. He learned how to play his first instruments, a harmonica and a jew's-harp, before he learned how take his first toddling footsteps. The harmonium and violin followed when Coulter was eight years old. Three years later, his aunt contributed to his musical education when she brought home a couple of mementos from her travels in the Pacific. Soon, Coulter was learning how to play a didgeridoo, otherwise known as a yidaki, and a Polynesian bamboo bell tree called an anklung. Through the ensuing years, he also became accomplished on an assortment of other musical instruments, including the accordion, violin, guitar, ukulele, mandolin, bass, theremin, and musical saw, among others. His career in music includes half-a-dozen years with the British punk-inspired band the Pogues. Coulter's credits also include a stint with industrial rock band Test Department. He has appeared on the recordings of numerous artists, among them Peter Hammill, Pete Townshend, Roger Eno, Talvin Singh, the Kronos Quartet, Joe Strummer, Marc Ribot, Nitin Sawney, Band of Holy Joy, Boy George, Steve Nieve, Arthur H., and the Communards. Beginning in the late '80s, Coulter has collaborated with French vocalist Eve Couturier on recordings for Song Active Production. The pair's output includes the release Un Bruit Qui Court. He also teamed on projects with Jean-Jacques Palix. His debut as a solo artist, Intervention, was released in 2000 by Young God Records. Coulter also devotes time to his work at Oxford's Museum of Modern Art, where he is a sound artist. ~ Linda Seida, Rovi

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