Once upon a time in Los Angeles there was a band called Red Zone. It was a retro science fiction band featuring Astrid Plane on vocals. Charles Ottavio was at the helm as producer of their album "Living on Lust". Larry Ross of CBS Records became interested in signing the band but it was not meant to be. In 1983 Red Zone disbanded.
When Astrid and Charles decided to put together a new band, Astrid came up with the name Animotion. They recruited Red Zone band members Frenchy O'Brien (drums) and Paul Antonelli (keyboards). Charles switched from producer/manager to bass player for the newly formed band. Larry Ross quit CBS records to become their full time manager. Larry brought in male crooner Bill Wadhams to sing lead opposite Astrid. Animotion did a showcase for Russ Regan of Polygram Records and signed with Polygram in March 1984.
During the recording of the first album Bill brought in guitarist Don Kirkpatrick and keyboard player Greg Smith. The album was released in late 1984 and Animotion began getting their first airplay from KROQ in Los Angeles. KISS FM in L.A. soon followed and Animotion was on their way to their first top 10 hit!
In 1985 Animotion hit the road for their first tour of the west coast. This was the time when the band really got to know each other. Later, they toured with Howard Jones playing to sold out arenas and stadiums across the US and Canada while "Obsession" was climbing the charts.
During the birth of MTV, Animotion did their first video with Ken Walz (Cyndi Lauper/"Girls Just Wanna Have Fun"). They enjoyed heavy MTV airplay and the video went all the way to number 1 in Cashbox magazine's video chart. The band also shot videos of their other singles, "Let Him Go," "I Want You" and "I Engineer."
From 1985-1986 Animotion made several TV appearances on American Bandstand, Solid Gold and Soul Train, and the 1986 American Music Awards. In high gear during the rest of this decade, the band criss-crossed the Atlantic for appearances and recordings in London, Germany and Switzerland.
Jim Blair joined the band as their new drummer and they returned home to Los Angeles to open for Depeche Mode. In the middle of recording their third album for Polygram, the band suddenly disbanded.
14 years later, thanks to mega efforts from Bill Wadhams, Animotion had their first reunion on February 8, 2001 in Portland, Oregon, playing to a sold-out crowd. It felt like magic to be onstage together again and Animotion the sequel was launched.
ANIMOTION
