Untitled Document

This page is a tribute to one of the most important and popular electronic cult bands of the 80's.

Portion Control, a South London trio of John Whybrew, Ian Sharp and Dean Piavani, started out as an electronic act in 1980, with the issue of a cassette, A Fair Portion. Linking up with In Phaze Records, they released a number of cassettes and records before signing with Illuminated Records in 1983. There followed a series of classic 12" singles: Raise the Pulse, Rough Justice and Go-Talk, tracks which should have become more than just underground dancefloor hits, indeed "The Great Divide" should, and could with better promotion and distribution, have graced the Singles Chart in 1985.
After dalliances with several other labels (Rhythmic, Dead Man's Curve etc), they signed to London Records in 1987. In mysterious circumstances, nothing was ever released from this alliance, and Portion Control disappeared, eventually metamorphosing (like several other influential "industrial" acts) into a "dark ambient-techno" act, Solar Enemy, and continuing to be active until around 1994.
Portion Control were never widely known during their existence, but were critically acclaimed by the music press which brought them to the attention of like-minded individuals. In this way they became a major influence on several of the electronic acts which were to outshine them in the 1980s and 1990s: Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly, Depeche Mode etc. "Hard Rythmic Electronics"