The Shapes were an
English punk rock group that formed in the town of
Leamington Spa in the latter half of the 1970s.
Different in many ways from their peers in the nascent punk subculture, they were known for eschewing the more political stances that were fashionable at the time, instead producing works of a cartoonish and absurdist nature. Often compared to the The Rezillos because of their Gerry Anderson-themed work, they released their first single, "I saw Batman in the Launderette" on their own Sofa records label. This led to national exposure, becoming a hit in the UK charts and leading to a John Peel session for Radio One on the BBC.
They released singles on their own label and on the Belfast independent label Good Vibrations (home to The Undertones) until their breakup in 1982. Having achieved cult status, their records continued to be hotly traded. This demand resulted in a belated release of a full length retrospective of all of the singles, B Sides, radio sessions and demos as the collection Songs for Sensible People on Overground Records in 1997. The independent label Hyped to Death have released Shapes tracks as part of their compilation series from 2002 onwards in the USA. The most recent release being in 2007 on their Messthetics series of releases. Overground Records re-released Songs for Sensible People in its original format in January 2008, and another compilation including previously unreleased tracks is due for release in Japan on 1977 Records before the end of 2009. In mid 2008, it was annouced that The Shapes would reform in their original lineup for a tour of the United Kingdom to mark the 30 year anniversary of their first single in December 2008.
The Bybus/Helicopter/Richards/Jee/Gee lineup is the one that is most closely associated with The Shapes, and appears on all of the band's previously released work up to the retrospective release.
