The Mark of Cain

The Mark of Cain
Origin	Adelaide, SA
Genres	Noise rock, punk, hardcore
Years active	1984 - present
Labels	Fuse, rooArt, Dominator, BMG
Associated acts	Tomahawk, Battles, Lifepilot, Helmet
Website	http://www.tmoc.com.au
Members	John Scott, Kim Scott, Eli Green
Past members	John Stanier, Campbell Robinson, Aaron Hewitt, John Rickert, Charles Lockey, Neil Guiver, Roger Crisp, David Graham, Gavin Anderson, Rod Archer

Band members

• Current line-up
  • Eli Green (drums)
  • John Scott (vocals, guitar)
  • Kim Scott (bass)

• Former members
  • John Stanier (drums) 1999 - 2012
  • Campbell Robinson (drums) 1988 - 1991, 1995 - 1998
  • Aaron Hewitt (drums) 1991 - 1995
  • John Rickert (drums) 1986, 1986 - 1988
  • Charles Lockey (drums) 1988
  • Neil Guiver (drums) 1988
  • Roger Crisp (drums) 1984 - 1986, 1986
  • David Graham (drums) 1984
  • Gavin Anderson (drums) 1984
  • Rod Archer (vocals) 1984 - 1985

Band information

The Mark of Cain is not a heavy metal band but the density of their sound and intensity of their live performances has endeared them to fans of hard-edged music of all kinds. While TMOC has been compared to the likes to Rollins Band and Helmet, the band predates both of them by almost half a decade and their early sound drew more from a combination of early Joy Division and US hardcore. Formed as a four-piece in Adelaide in 1984, The Mark of Cain soon became the three-piece formation so well known today. Throughout their long history, the Scott brothers have been the stable members. After Campbell Robinson replaced Neil Guiver in 1988, The Mark of Cain released two albums in fairly quick succession, along with the 'Incoming' EP that was produced by Steve Albini and they appeared nationally at the Big Day Out in early 1995. Albini's association with the group led to an interest from Henry Rollins, who produced their 1995 breakthrough album Ill at Ease. A national tour followed its release including an appearance at the Livid Festival but shortly afterward Aaron Hewitt quit and Robinson returned.

Rock and Roll was a bold experiment that featured remixes of several tracks by Paul Mac, Justin Broadrick, B(if)tek and Franz Treichler and produced by Nick Launay and Tim Rogers. The band appeared at Livid again in 1996 and Robinson was replaced by Stuart Baguley in late 1998.

Ex-Helmet drummer John Stanier was rumoured to be joining the band in mid-99; he was hired to play on the This is This album that was produced by Gang of Four's Andy Gill and afterward was declared The Mark of Cain's official drummer. Following this the band went on an extended hiatus that lasted until 2008 when they started writing for another album. Mooted for 2011, Songs of the Third and Fifth was eventually released in December 2012 and featured a spoken word guest appearance by Rollins. Due to Stanier's commitment to Tomahawk and Battles, Lifepilot's Eli Green acted at TMOC's drummer for their tour the following year. For their 30th anniversary, TMOC toured nationally, now with Green at the kit full time. In 2022, The Mark of Cain was inducted into the SA Music Hall of Fame and the band toured to celebrate the achievement.

Discography

Albums:

1989	Battlesick	Dominator
1991	The Unclaimed Prize	Dominator
1995	Ill at Ease	rooArt
1996	Rock and Roll	rooArt
2001	This is This	BMG
2012	Songs of the Third and Fifth	Feel

Singles:

1988	The Lords of Summer	Phantom
1994	Tell Me	Insipid
1995	First Time	rooArt
1996	LMA	rooArt
1997	Degenerate Boy	rooArt
1997	Interloper (Who Made Who Remix)	rooArt
2001	[R] Retaliate	BMG
2001	Familiar Territory	BMG
2001	Lock Down	BMG
2012	Barkhammer	Feel
2014	Grey 11	Feel

EPs:

1993	Incoming	Dominator
1994	The Killer is Within	Dominator