1995-99 S-V - FALKIRKMUSICSCENE2017

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BIOG'S 90'S +
SATIVA:  Played live in 1997 & featuring ex-members of Brighawk, Fat Davey & The Denny Brass & Nepenthe.

SATORI:  Psychedelic act who played live in 1997.

SAVALAS:  Act who began playing live in 1998.

SCANDAL:  Bonnybridge band formed in 1994 who continued playing live into 1995.

SCARAMANGA:  Bo'ness based act formed in 1992 by Dougie Crichton (bass), Alan Sneddon (drums) & Mark Sneddon (vocals/guitar, ex-Knifedge). They continued to play live into 1993, and were included in the Falkirk Herald top ten at the end of that year. In 1994 they made an appearance at "The Event In The Tent" in Grangemouth, then continued playing until 1997. Scaramanga reappeared on the live scene in 2001, then Crichton went on to play for The Bottleneck Blues Band, whilst Mark Sneddon formed The Kool Kats.

The SCHIFRINS:  Local band formed in 1995 who were represented by X-Press. After a quiet 1996, the band played live again in 1997.

SCHILTRUM:  Acoustic duo formed in 1995 by Gibby McNaught as Claymore, changing their name in 1996 to Schiltrum. The duo were still playing in 2006.

SCRATCH:  Act from 1996 featuring local drummer Alan Brown (ex-Rockin' Blue Houndogs)..

The SCREAMING DEMONS:  Heavy Rockabilly act formed in 1997 by ex-Alabama Trio members Ian Murray (vocals/guitar), Alan Huntley (drums) & Paul "Tali" Patale (double bass). They enjoyed local success as well as gigging regularly throughout Scotland and the UK. In 2000 they featured in a Battle of The Bands in Stirling. They have also released a 14 track CD entitled "Don't Disc The Voodoo Man". Huntley left in 2001 due to musical differences, and Tali & Murray returned to their original roots, playing as a duo, Tali & Johnny.
RELEASES:
"Don't Disc The Voodoo man" (CD album).

The SCREAMING DUKES:  Act who started playing live in 1996.

SHAKER:  Band formed in 1994 who were originally called Full Tilt, the band continued to play live into 1995 with a line up of Barrie Cram (vocals), Mervyn Hutton (drums), Callum McPherson (bass, ex-Talon) & Barry Moore (guitar). Final dates were played in 1996, after which the band changed their name to She Blue.

SHAKY JANE:  Act formed in 1997, who played locally until 1999, when they changed their name to Escobar.

SHATTERHAND:  Shatterhand were formed in early 1998, by Brian Hastings (drums), Ramsay Hunter (bass, ex-Filigree Son), Dave McIntosh (guitar, ex-Filigree Son) & Stuart McIntosh (vocals, ex-Godsend) in an effort to get all the surplus energy and anger out of their collective system. They set about writing a bunch of songs to see what would happen, but after four rehearsals the chance came to play a couple of shows with Vanilla Pod. More shows followed throughout Scotland with the likes of Diesel Boy & The UK Subs, which were followed by the "Act Your Rage" demo in 1999. Further dates and a second single led to a bit of a reputation for "extreme" live shows and fired-up outpourings, so to capatalise on this the band recorded their debut album "Wreckage". Hunter left at this point and was replaced by Monty, just in time for a tour with Turtlehead & Beauty School Dropout. This was quickly followed by another single and a second album "Planting Seeds". Another English tour followed with The Siknotes.

The band returned to England in 2002 to promote their next mini-album "Bone Palace Ballet" after which Monty left and was replaced by Alloa bass player Mike Crawford. An Irish tour with The Dangerfields followed, along with extensive Scottish dates.  Dave McIntosh also spent some time playing with Turtlehead and Barefoot, which may explain the delay before the fourth album "Random Acts Of Defiance", which was released in February 2005 and has been the best received and quickest selling yet. The rest of the year was spent putting together their own digital studio.A welcome return was made by the band in 2008, with some scattered dates, followed by a summer date in 2009 at the Grangemouth Homecoming Festival. At this time, drummer Hastings was also playing with Debrasco. The band continued to gig into 2010, with a compilation album, "Complacency Is Not An Option" released in November, promoted by a short UK tour.
RELEASES:
"Act Your Rage" (cassette single, 1999)
"A Mess Of Emotions" (CD single, Mythical Records, 1999)
"Wreckage" (CD album, Mythical Records, 2000)
"Make A Difference" (CD single, Mythical Records, 2001)
"Planting Seeds" (CD album, Mythical Records, 2001)
"Bone Palace Ballet" (CD mini album, Mythical Records, 2002)
"Random Acts Of Defiance" (CD album, Mythical Records, 2005)
"Complacency Is Not An Option" (CD album, 2010)
WEBSITE:
http://www.shatterhand.co.uk
http://www.myspace.com/shatterhand

SHE BLUE:  Band formed in 1996, who were originally called Full Tilt and then Shaker, with a line up of Barrie Cram (vocals), Mervyn Hutton (drums), Callum McPherson (bass) & Barry Moore (guitar). The band signed to Prevention Records towards the end of the year, but nothing was ever released. Hutton later joined The Titanic Washoose Band.

SHINE:  Shine were formed by Colin Taylor (drums), Ross Fairweather (guitar) & Kenny Cassells (vocals / guitar) at the start of 1997 from the remains of a band called Open Minded, along with Ali Merrick (bass). After several months rehearsal, they began playing live locally, and recorded a demo entitled "Guitars, Cars & Movie Stars" at Pound Studios. The weakness of the vocals encouraged them to recruit Chris Marshall as a frontman, however by the end of the year Merrick & Taylor had quit the band, with Merrick turning up in FEed and Taylor later going solo. They were replaced at the start of 1998 by Liam Docherty (bass) & Craig Scott (drums), and the new line-up began a monthly residency at Finn MacCools in Falkirk. In Autumn 1998 Docherty was replaced by Craig Rankin (bass), and a new demo, "On", was recorded in March 1999 by Cameron Nisbet. This led to an acoustic session on Central FM, after which Fairweather quit the band, later forming Mr Nice. In October Shine split, with Cassells, Rankin & Scott forming One Luv.
By the end of the year the three had reverted to the name Shine, with a new bass player Dave Watson, and recorded their next single, "Northern Pop Song". Almost immediately Cassells left the band, unhappy with their workrate, and formed LOCOsea. Soon afterwards they split before the single was could be released, with Scott joining Communicator.
Sometimes the band were called Shyne.
RELEASES:
"Guitars, Cars & Movie Stars" (cassette single, 1997)
"On" (cassette single, 1999)
WEBSITE:
http://www.angelfire.com/sc/shine
SHOCKIN' STEVE:  Believe it or not, a one man Shakin' Stevens tribute act, with Steve Quinn being the one man in question. He played dates in 1998, and even appeared on "The Vanessa Show" and Barrymore's "My Kind Of People" in 1999.

The SIGNALS:  Falkirk based band formed in 1983 by ex-Piledriver members Donald Campbell (bass), Douglas Grant (drums) & Bill Hay (guitar), with the addition of vocalist Neil Sutherland (vocals). They became popular around the region through constant gigging, and were joined in 1985 by Sutherland's sister, Rona, on saxophone. The band released their debut home recorded cassette album, "Familiar Scenes", later this year. This was followed by a second effort, "Days To Come", in 1987. Not long after this, Rona left. Gigs were sporadic, due to one of the members being a "virtual recluse", and by 1997 they were a six piece with backing vocals (according to the Falkirk Herald, but not the band!), who continued to play live until 1998. The band's final date was in December 1999. The band got back together for a charity date in 2007, and continued playing into 2009, including a date at the Grangemouth Homecoming Festival. These dates were continued into 2011 (including an annual return to the Grangemouth Festival).
RELEASES:
"Familiar Scenes" (Cassette album, 1985)
"Days To Come" (Cassette album, 1987)
WEBSITE:
http://www.myspace.com/thesignals83

SILVER:  Band featuring Tony McMahon (bass/vocals, ex-Muttley) & Stuart Marr (guitar, ex-Muttley). Both went on to form Alaska.
The SIMON & LEE EXPERIENCE:  Grangemouth based Simon & Lee were members of Sumthang when they started performing as a duo in 1997 & 1998.

SISTER:  Falkirk act fromed in 1994 by ex-members of Stacatto Hat Kevin Deans (bass), Paul Johnson (drums) & Gary Verth (vocals guitar). Replacing drummer Johnson with moonlighting Foam frontman Kevin Byrne in 1996, they attracted some record company interest and supported the likes of Mansun and Terra Diablo at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut in Glasgow. When Byrne left to devote time to solo work he recommended Scott Little (ex-Laughing Stock) to take his place. The band continued to play live until 1997.

SKAM:  Apptly named Scottish boy band formed 1995 by a vote in the Daily Record, featuring Grangemouth singer Chris Judge. The band split towards the end of 1996, with the talented Judge going solo.

SKEEZER:  Act who started playing live in 1996.

SKIBE:  One man techno act (Laurence Paisley) who had a track featured on a "Future Music" compilation album in 1998.

Paul SMITH:  Erstwhile frontman with local rockers Weird, Smith has also released solo albums, the first of which was in 1998, and was called 'God's in The Kitchen'. It was by his own admission a rough 12 track album, recorded on an old tascam four track, and was just Smith and an acoustic guitar. Generaly, no-one has really heard it. In 1999 he recorded "Monkey's On A Stage", another 12 track album in the same vein as the first, also recorded on the old tascam four track. A third, more focused album called "A Twist And A Turn" was released in 2000, once again recorded on four track. In 2002 Smith recorded "The Armour is Broken", his most focused album to date, and the first recorded on a digital eight track. 2004 saw Smith attempt at a follow up, however the recording sessions were sporadic and it was decided to scrap the record. The recorded songs were used to make "The Mallaig EP". Once the writers block had subsided and the ideas came back, Smith recorded "Fortune Favours the Brave" in 2005. This album saw some keyboards and piano added for the first time. There is a plan to take the best songs off the first three albums to create a compilation.  2005 also saw Smith producing tracks for Kevin Byrne.  Another solo album, entitled "Creeping Ash" was released in 2009. 
RELEASES:
"God's In The Kitchen" (CD album, 1998)
"Monkey's On A Stage" (CD album, 1999)
"A Twist And A Turn" (CD album, 2000)
"The Armour is Broken" (CD album, 2002)
"The Malliag EP" (CD EP, 2004)
"Fortune Favours The Brave" (CD album, 2005)
"Creeping Ash" (CD album, Home Made Records, 2009).

The SMOKEHOUSE BLUES BAND:  Local blues band formed in 1989 by Mark Lyon (guitar), Ian Moffat (drums, ex-White Dwarf), Alan Silcock (bass) and ex-Athens member, Bruce Tait (vocals). The band were joined by ex-Blackout frontman Sandy Black on harmonica in May 1989 and ex-All This & Heaven Too saxophonist Robert Henderson in July. Towards the end of the year Black started playing in another act as well, The Palmers. The band began gigging extensively during 1990, completing a German tour in the summer. A couple of months later Alan Corbett joined on saxophone, and the band continued gigging into 1991. Corbett left at the end of that year (later forming The High Society Jazz Band), and was replaced in early 1992 by Keith Robinson (trumpet) & Borderline member Jamie Anderson (saxophone). When Anderson left the band in 1993 to go to music college in London, Steve Williams (trombone) and Davie Hair (saxophone) came in to fill the breech. Keith Robinson left shortly after this, and Sandy Black provided a second saxophone on their debut CD, "Live To Work" in 1995.  The band contiued to gig right up until 1997, with new drummer Tam Boyle (ex-Fourth Dimension), though not as much as in the early 1990's. In 1997 Boyle left to move to Edinburgh (later forming Absent Tam), and the band advertised for a new drummer. Davie Hair left the band to form Nothin' But The Blues, and they continued as a six piece up until the band's demise in 1998, after which Black, Tait & Williams moved on to The Juke Joint Boogie Blues Band, later to be joined by Moffat, and Lyon joined The Bottleneck Blues Band.
RELEASES:
"Live To Work" (CD album, 1995).

SORROW:  Band who played live in 1996.

SPIDERBABY:  Formed 1997 by Waash guitarist Mark Ramsay and Alan Barker (vocals). The band continued to play live into 1998, describing themselves as a cross between Ash & U2. The band played their biggest date supporting The Lighthouse Family at the SECC, Glasgow, in May of that year, before evolving into NU2 in 1999. Les Vegas & Dak Wizzard of Lieutenant Stardust made appearances for the band playing bass.

STARSAIL:  Britpop type act formed in 1996 as Performance by local musicians and ex-members of Hipster, James Archibald (drums), Stuart Gray (vocals), Doug Hendry (guitar) & Steven Morton (guitar), along with Glaswegian bass player Rob McKinlay. Changing their name to Starsail early in 1997, the band were mostly located in Glasgow. They supported Geneva at the Martell in 1999, and then played live until 2000 when Gray, Hendry & McKinley formed Viva Stereo. During their time the band recorded three demo tapes.
WEBSITES:
http://www.starsail.freeserve.co.uk/
http://www.myspace.com/starsailuk

STEVIE & The THUNDERMEN:  Act who started playing live in 1996 as The Orphans, but soon changed their name to Stevie & The Thundermen.

STONE OCEAN:  Falkirk act formed in 1999, first as The Room, then as Abigail's Truth, by Jake Gillespie (bass) & Scott Gillespie (vocals/guitar), recruiting Crawford Sibbald (guitar). In 2000 they changed their name to The Full Picture.

STONEWALL:  Band who played live in 1997.

STRAWBERRY:  Pop/rock band, formed by a name change from Frank's Wild Years early in 1996. The line-up at that time was Lindsay Greig (keyboards), Alex Irvine (guitar/vocals), Chris McCarron (vocals/guitar), Richard McCarron (drums/vocals) & Paul (bass). Strawberry released their self-financed debut single, "Centre Of It All" in 1996, and reached the final of the Martell Battle Of The Bands, after which Irvine left (later joining The International Pop Assassins). Re-emerging in early 1997 with Irvine and Greig replaced by Gordon (guitar, ex-Slowdown) & Carol Brown (keyboards, ex-Adams Fall), the band began playing live again, supporting Kevin McDermott at the Martell, and Chas & Dave in Callandar Park. The band recorded at Fish's Studio and released a second single, "Flavour Of The Month" later that year, picking up interest from Roadrunner Records. In 1998 Brown was replaced by Nigel Frayling-Kelly (keyboards / vocals, ex-Big Blue Funky Whale), giving the band more of a pop edge, and soon afterwards they evolved into The Moondogs.
RELEASES:
"Centre Of It All" (CD single, 1996)
"Flavour Of The Month" (CD single, 1997).

The SUBLIMES:  Falkirk based act formed in October 1995 from by a name change from The Diesel Kings by Eddie McKenzie (vocals/guitar), Maria Elena Mateo (keyboards vocals), Grant Paterson (bass) & David Rourke (drums). The Sublimes only ever played a handful of dates (in Spring 1996), despite several months worth of full time reheasals. They released one single, "Slumber" on Glasgow based Automatic Records, picking up rave reviews in The Scotsman, Melody Maker & The List, before splitting in July 1996 as a result of apathy and poverty. McKenzie then formed The International Pop Assassins, recruiting Paterson to play bass.
RELEASES:
"Slumber B-Movie" (cassette single, Automatic Records, 1996)
WEBSITE:
http://www.falkirkmusicscene.co.uk/seminal/

SUBROCK:  Band who played live in 1996.

SUBVERSE:  Former bass player with The Influx and The Diesel Kings, McColl moved to New York in 1993, where he began DJ-ing at Warehouse parties. This led to the release of several dance influenced albums on his own Fluid and One Drop labels. In 1998 he re-mixed The International Pop Assassins debut single, "My Plan To Be A Genius". Recently he has formed The Tartan Specials.
RELEASES:
"One" (Cassette album, Fluid Records, 1996)
"Journey Through The Acid Mantle" (cassette album, Fluid Records, 1996)
"Spy vs Spy" (CD/cassette album, One Drop Records, 1997)
WEBSITE:
http://www.falkirkmusicscene.co.uk/seminal

SUBVISION:  Kincardine based rock/metal act from 1993 featuring Dave, who used to be called Sludder. The band continued to play live into 1995. In 1997, after a period of silence, Subvision advertised for a drummer.

SUMTHANG:  Grangemouth based rock band formed in 1996 by ex-members of Mimizine (Simon & Lee) and Ross McIntyre (bass, ex-Whumff). Simon & Lee started perfoming seperatly in 1997.

The SUNFLOWER RECORDING PROJECT:  Krautrock influenced band formed in 1996 by Craig Brown.

TEAR:  Act who played live in 1997.

THOSE MEDDLING KIDS:  Band got together for one gig only in 1998, a "Back The Bairns" Benefit. Their experienced line-up included Craig Anderson (vocals, ex-Uncle Jack), Johnny Mackie (guitar / vocals, also with Bladdered), Kenny MacIness (drums, ex-Uncle Jack) & Dougie Mackie (bass, also with Bladdered). Anderson then formed The Lightning Brothers, whilst MacInnes joined Monofreak. The band played a one off at the Martell in December 2006 at Dougie Mackie's 40th Birthday.

THROB:  Act formed in 1997 by Cameron Nisbet (guitar, ex-Cahn & Cahn), Dave McEwan (guitar / vocals, ex-Mirror Mirror), Ian Wallace (drums, ex-Rockin' Blue Hound Dogs) & Stevie (bass / vocals), who continued to play live into 1998. McEwan & Stevie then joined The Lobsters, whilst Nisbet later turned up in Angels Heap, and Wallace in Box Of Bananas.

TIBOR:  Four piece act formed in 1997 by Martin Crossley (vocals guitar). The band continued to play live until 1999, when they released their debut single, "Don't Talk, Jude". Crossley later helped out ChiliRyder.
RELEASES:
"Don't Talk, Jude" (CD EP, Homegrown Records, 1999).

The TITANIC WASHOOSE BAND:  Skiffle act formed in 1998 by Davy Inglis (guitar/vocals, ex-Wee Eck's Bogie), Mervyn Hutton (washboard, ex-She Blue), Stuart Simpson (banjo/mandolin, ex-Wee Eck's Bogie), Davy Tait (guitar) and Scott Callan (bass). The band have played at T In The Park a couple of times, and continue as a four piece (without Tait, who left in 2001 for the Isle Of Lewis). The band released their second album, "Titanic - Unplugged" in 2001. 2004 saw the band playing as part of the "Way To Blue" festival, a gig that they repeated the following year.
RELEASES:
"Titanic- Unplugged" (album, 2001).

TOY:  Toy (before they were known as that) were originally formed in 1992 when Iain McMurtrie (vocals / guitar) and Grant Copeland (drums/vocals) started jamming together. Originally they were a three piece band playing covers, with Steven Roper on bass, although he never really learned the instrument. After jamming for a while McMurtie & Copeland recruited Jason Connolly (guitar), whilst Roper left the band. Sometime in 1994 a new bass player, Martin Miller was recruited, followed by Gavin Marshall (vocals). This line-up played one date in 1995 at the local Community Centre in Bonnybridge, afterwhich McMurtie decided to quit the band, citing the usual musical differences. He went on to form Defect. Toy continued under the management of Jason's father Jim Connolly (promoter at the Engine Room), and started playing live regularly in 1998. The summer of that year saw them contribute a track to a heavy metal compilation album, and then sign to Org Records. In 1999 the band picked up interest from Sony Records, and had their music used on the Channel 5 sports programme "Rad". In 2001 they supported The Cooper Temple Clause at the Engine Room, Falkirk, and then went quiet for a couple of years, with only occasional dates. By 2005 they had slimmed down to a three piece of Connolly, Marshall & Reni (bass), utilising drum machines and synths, with a more New Wave edge to them. After a few months they decided to recruit a drummer, and were joined by John. In 2008 John & Connolly formed Enemy Of Rome.
WEBSITE:
http://www.toyrock.com

TRIFLE BIZARRE:  Larbert based act formed in 1998, who played live until 2001.

TURTLEHEAD:  Turtlehead first came to life in 1994, formed by ex-Indian Angel members Paul Bourne (bass) & Robert Francis (drums), along with a guitarist called Alec. The same year, after the line up was finalized with Gary Cunningham (guitar) replacing Alec (and Graham Rae joining briefly), they recorded their first demo tape "High Flats", which managed to get the band a session on a Scottish radio station. By this time Brian Cooper had joined as vocalist, and the session coupled with an interview for punk magazine "Maximum rock'n'roll" in December 1995 led to a lot of requests for their tape. Shortly after this Bad Taste Records in Sweden got in touch with the band, and a track was lifted from the demo tape a put on a Bad Taste compilation CD, "Quality Punk Rock". This was followed by a single on the label in June 1996, and an album "Back Slapping Praise From Back Stabbing Men" in the autumn. The band then went on to play their first European show; the first Bad Taste Festival in Lund, Sweden. In May 1997 the band got a call from Bad Taste asking if they could play on the "Flying High Across the Sky" tour, replacing D.F.L, who had pulled out. The twelve date tour of Germany was with such bands as Millencolin, S.N.F.U, Voodoo Glow Skulls, 3 Colours Red and Thumb. This was to be the start of a busy period for Turtlehead as they played at the World B.M.X Championships in Holland as well as other festivals in Europe during the summer months.

In October 1997 Turtlehead embarked on their first major European tour with label mates Pridebowl, taking in eight countries. A few days after the tour ended the band recorded their second album, which was released in April 1998. With their tongues firmly in their cheeks, the album was entitled "I Preferred Their Earlier Stuff". This album picked up from where the first one left off and was heavily promoted with extensive touring, both in UK and mainland Europe. Songs from the album were played on both T.V. and radio, with tracks being used on skate and BMX shows on satellite network T.V. In October 1999 the band set off for Europe again as part of the Bad Taste Festival Tour, alongside label mates Trigger Happy and Misconduct. With thirty shows across ten countries, this was their biggest and heaviest schedule to date, and led to guitarist, Gary Cunningham, deciding to call it a day, joining Barefoot afterwards. Dave McIntosh of the band Shatterhand joined, and the new line-up embarked on a tour of Canada, which ended with an appearance at the Revel'n'ment Festival in front of over 5000 people. Bass player Paul Bourne was then replaced by ex-Intake member Richard Bruce.  The band then undertook their biggest tour to date, five weeks across Europe, with Digger from the U.S.A. In June 2003 the third album ‘Bleeding Hearts and Burnouts’ was released to rave reviews, however the band decided to call it a day in March 2004. Bruce & Francis later formed I Stand Alone, whilst McIntosh continues to play with Shatterhand.
RELEASES:
"Go" (CD single, Bad Taste Records, 1996)
"Back Slapping Praise From Back Stabbing Men" (CD album, Bad Taste Records, 1996)
"Bellend Host" (7 inch split single, Speedowax Records, 1997)
"I Preferred Their Earlier Stuff" (CD album, Bad Taste Records, 1998)
"Godsend" (7 inch split single, 1998)
"Bleeding Hearts & Burnouts" (CD album, 2003)
WEBSITE:
http://www.turtlehead.tk

TWISTER:  Local indie-pop act formed in 1995 by ex-Big Blue Funky Whale members Robbie Lesuik (vocals / guitar), Paul Tonner (bass) & Steve Wallace (drums), along with Robbie's brother on guitar. The act were reputedly signed to local label Noise Annoys, but did not release anything. Upon splitting Robbie joined The Bluejays, but was later re-united with Tonner & Wallace in Pistolstar. Inbetween, Wallace played in Alaska.

TWIST OF FATE:  Act who started playing live in 1996.

2 EXTREME:  

UNCLE JACK:  Act formed in 1994 by Craig Anderson (vocals, ex-Alaskans), Kenny MacInnes (drums, ex-Alaskans) & Stuart Nelson (guitar, ex-Captain Trips), who continued to play live into 1997. In 1998 Anderson & MacInnes played one gig with Those Meddling Kids, before Anderson formed a new act, The Lightning Brothers, whilst MacInnes joined Monofreak. Nelson later joined Little Green Apples.

UNDECIDED:  Act who began playing live in 1998.

UNTIL TOMORROW:  Stenhousemuir based rock act formed in 1997 who released their debut single, "This Life Reeks" at the end of that year. The band then continued to play live into 1998.
RELEASES:
"This Life Reeks" (CD single, 1997).

VANGEL:  Folk duo formed in 1994 by Ian Walker (vocals/guitar/banjo) & Bo'ness born vocalist Jimmy Scott, who soon after appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The two released their debut mail order album, "Brand New" in 1998.
RELEASES:
"Brand New" (CD album, 1998).

VOICES:  Act who played live in 1997. In 1999 they re-emerged, playing at date at the Cavern, Liverpool, and then continued into 2000.

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