In their rise from cult punk revivalists to stadium conquering rockers, this Welsh band has enjoyed a love/hate relationship with the music press, opening with a bizarre encounter in 1991. The catalyst was guitarist Richey Edwards, who cut the words "4 Real" into his forearm to the amazement of New Musical Express critic Steve Lamacq, when he dared to call into question the band's authenticity. The band was formed in Blackwood, Gwent, Wales, by James Dean Bradfield (b. 21 February 1969, Pontypool, Monmouthshire, Wales; vocals/guitar), Richey Edwards (b. Richard James Edwards, 22 December 1966, Gwent, Wales; rhythm guitar), Nicky Wire (b. Nicholas Allen Jones, 20 January 1969, Tredegar, Wales; bass) and Sean Moore (b. 30 July 1970, Pontypool, Wales; drums). Their calculated insults at a wide variety of targets, particularly their peers, had already won the band infamy following the release of their 1990 debut on the Damaged Goods label, the New Art Riot EP. A previous single, "Suicide Alley", featuring original rhythm guitarist Flicker (b. Miles Woodward), had been a limited pressing distributed at gigs and to journalists only. The Public Enemy-sampling "Motown Junk" and "You Love Us" were issued on the fashionable Heavenly Records label, before the band signed a major-label recording contract with Sony in May 1991.
The Manic Street Preachers' personal manifesto was explicit: rock bands should cut down the previous generation, release one explosive album, then disappear. Although the music press pointed out the obvious contradictions and naïveté of this credo, the band polarized opinion to a degree that far outweighed their early musical proficiency. The singles, "Stay Beautiful" and "Love's Sweet Exile" (backed by the superior "Repeat" - "Repeat after me, fuck Queen and Country") were inconclusive, but the reissued version of "You Love Us", with its taut, vicious refrain, revealed a band beginning to approach in power what they had always had in vision. Their 1992 debut album, too, was an injection of bile that proved perversely refreshing in a year of industry contraction and self-congratulation. Unfortunately, it never quite achieved its intention to outsell Guns N'Roses' Appetite For Destruction, nor did the band split immediately afterwards as stated. The polished, less caustic approach of Gold Against The Soul saw the band hitting a brick wall in expectation and execution, though as always, there were moments of sublime lyricism (notably the singles "Roses In The Hospital" and "Life Becoming A Landslide'). 1994"s The Holy Bible returned the band to the bleak world view of yesteryear, notably on the haunting "4st 7lb", written by an anorexic Richey Edwards before a nervous breakdown that saw him temporarily admitted to a mental facility. Other subject matter was drawn from prostitution, the holocaust and the penal system.
Never easy listening at the best of times (despite the ability to write genuinely affecting songs such as "Motorcycle Emptiness'), the band had produced enough inspired moments to justify their protracted early claims. However, all that seemed somehow irrelevant following Edwards" disappearance on 1 February 1995, with several parties expressing concern as to his well-being. He was due to join the Manic Street Preachers on a US tour but vanished from his London hotel shortly before he was expected at the airport. His car was later found abandoned near the Severn Bridge. Numerous false sightings of the singer have been reported in the years since and his family has refused to have him declared officially dead.
Early in 1996, the Manic Street Preachers announced they had completed their first album in Edwards' absence. The result was Everything Must Go; although highly commercial it was an outstanding record. Played with power and sung with passion, the songs ripped out of the speakers with a confidence and self-assured manner that was remarkable given the band's recent tragic upheaval. They culminated their finest year by winning three BRIT Awards, for Best Live Act, Best Single (the UK number 2 hit "A Design For Life") and Best Album.
In September 1998, the Manic Street Preachers achieved their first UK number 1 single with "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next", inspired by the Spanish civil war. The attendant This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours went straight in at the top of the UK album charts, although it was not released until the following year in the US. Underlying their popularity, the band played a sold-out concert in Cardiff on New Year's Eve. A month later they topped the UK charts with the limited edition Masses Against The Classes EP, an abrasive response to critics who had accused the band of selling out. In February 2001, the Manic Street Preachers became the first major western rock band to play a concert in Cuba. The country's leader Fidel Castro reportedly showed great enthusiasm for "Baby Elian", a new track dealing with the controversial legal dispute surrounding the six-year-old Cuban boy Elian Gonzalez. Shortly afterwards, the band released two new singles on the same day, "So Why So Sad" and "Found That Soul". The remaining tracks on Know Your Enemy adopted a hard line political stance that harked back to the band's early period.
Following the release of greatest hits and rarities compilations, the trio reconvened in 2004 for their seventh studio album. Lifeblood was a critical and commercial failure, with even loyal fans of the band bemoaning the softer lyrical and musical approach adopted on the album. After completing their Past-Present-Future tour in April 2005, the trio announced they would be taking an extended hiatus. A new track, "Leviathan", was donated to the charity album Help-a Day In The Life later in the year. The following year, both James Dean Bradfield and Nicky Wire released solo albums.
