Magic Moments At Twilight Time

(c’86-’91) Mick “Magic” Lancaster (guitar / keyboards); Shona “Moments” Atkinson (vocals / spoken word); and Nik Morgan (guitar)

Lancaster started Magic Moments At Twilight Time (MMATT), which could be describe as more of a project than a band, in late ’86 early ’87; forming the name by combining the US and UK No.1’s on his birthday: The Platters’ “Twilight Time” and Perry Como’s “Magic Moments”. The “State of The Art” demo introduced us to the acts ‘psychotronic’ rock and was ready in March ’87 and available from The Rock Box, Camberley; which supported, cut free, many a local band this way.

Poster promoting MMATT “State of the Art” cassette. Picture courtesy of Mick Magic

On 21 March ’87, Chris Carter played it over the PA before The Charles came on at Frimley Community Centre. It was the first time any MMATT music had ever been played in public. Shortly after MMATT secured a support slot with The Charles, on the basis of “State of The Art” opening track “Story X”, on 8 May – this gig didn’t happen however as The Charles’ manager John Pryor had not booked the venue. At the time MMATT were pretty much just husband and wife duo Lancaster and Atkinson, who did some spoken word. They roped in Nik Morgan (guitar) who was renting a room from them and found Anna Haigh (vocals), who left almost immediately to be replaced by Atkinson. Before the scheduled gig MMATT and The Charles’ vocalist Chris Carter collaborated on a 23 minute track that filled the A-side of “Mick & Chris on Acid” released in May ’87; the B’side carrying two MMATT tracks and three from The Charles. The Charles and MMATT collaboration would become known as The Grain, which was also the name of the fanzine they produced. By mid-May MMATT were a 4 piece: Magic, Moments, Jay “Time” Symons (bass) and Kate “Twilight” London (synth).

27 June ’87 gig poster. Picture courtesy of Mick Magic

On 27 June ’87 MMATT eventually gigged with The Charles at Frimley Community Centre; a video of which may exist. In July, MMATT entered the studio for Earworm Records for a session, engineered and mixed by Fergus Anderson, that laid down “State of The Art” and “Zen Sequent”, to be published on a sampler cassette – which ultimately didn’t amount to much. On 26 July ’87 the band appeared at The White Hart, Frimley.

On 20 September ’87, the collaborative with the addition of Slack Bladder, Momento Mori, The Visionairies, Greed and Magic Moments, having divested ‘At Twilight Time’ to focus on experimental sound, put on the free The Grain Festival at Highland Farm, Frimley Green. Next was an Xmas Bash with Slack Bladder at Frimley Community Centre on 12 December before a trip to The Crypt, Deptford on 18 March ’88, were the band were supposed to support The Charles, but after that bands demise were on before The Pink Fairies.

In between the Frimley and Crypt gigs MMATT released “The Time Machine” in February ’88. By April ’88, Symons had quit the band, Lancaster and Atkinson’s marriage was falling apart and London decided to call it a day too. Lancaster, under the new Mick Tron monica, then established the Music & Elsewhere label, releasing the 90-minute Grain Aid cassette [MMATT 19] on 2 July. On 2 December ’88, Magic Moments, again dropping Twilight Time were at The Crypt supporting Here & Now. Somewhere in ’88, amongst all this, the group appeared at the Technical College, Farnborough.

Issue No1 of The MMATTrix, the Magic Moments at Twilight Time newsletter, from the Summer of ’91. Picture courtesy of Mick Magic

Issue No1 of The MMATTrix, the Magic Moments at Twilight Time newsletter, was published in the Summer of ’91. Also released in ’91 was the live recording of the band’s 5th birthday gig, as broadcast on pirate radio station Overflow Radio, hosted by Garry Lee, as MMATT’s ‘White Hawk Atomic, Recorded Live on Alpha Nebuli IV’ CD. The MMATT for this show were; Lancaster (guitar, vocals, programming), Pete Program (synth FX) and Lulu (lead vocals).

MMaTT’s ‘White Hawk Atomic ,Recorded Live on Alpha Nebuli IV’ CD. Picture courtesy of Mick Magic

Three tracks from February ’88’s “The Time Machine”, namely: “Womble Pudding”, “Marriage Of The Potato Masher” and “Teamushysomepour” were included on Stan Batcow’s Pumf Records “Designer Brain Damage” MMATT compilation in ’92. The band’s track “Spirit” was then included on Son of Farnborough Groove Vol.2 that same year, and the following year “Blitzkrieg!” appeared on Return of Farnborough Groove Vol.3.

London sadly lost her life in a Sunningdale road accident on 23 September ’99. In April 2020 the 14 minute 29 second long “Magic Moments At Twilight Time (2020 Remix)” was released.

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