Fittingly, this article was written by someone named JASON  for ALLMUSICGUIDE. Sing with us...

                    Formed from the ashes of the trance-rockers Spacemen 3, singer/guitarist Jason Pierce's
                    group Spiritualized did not break away from his prior band's trademark hypnotic minimalism;
                    instead, they perfected it. Drawing on the continued influence of the Velvet Underground,
                    LaMonte Young and Steve Reich, Spiritualized staked out a common ground between
                    minimalism and lush symphonics -- while powered by simple, repetitious motifs, their songs
                    simultaneously blossomed into rich, shimmering sonic panoramas inspired by the majestic
                    studio wizardry of Phil Spector and Brian Wilson. Such seeming contradictions were
                    essential to the group's alchemy: while the infamous Spacemen 3 tag of "taking drugs to
                    make music to take drugs to" remained a cornerstone of their craft, at the same time
                    Spiritualized's very name acknowledged the existence of other forces, further reflected in
                    their heavy debt to gospel and soul music as well as an affinity for mantras and devotional
                    hymns.

                    Although Spiritualized fully emerged after the acrimonious break-up of Spacemen 3, in truth
                    the band's roots extended back to the band's final LP, 1990's Recurring. A Spacemen 3
                    album in name only, Recurring was split evenly between independently-recorded work from
                    Pierce and estranged partner Pete "Sonic Boom" Kember; as a result, while Kember's side
                    presaged his eventual work with Spectrum, Pierce's half, recorded with most of the
                    musicians whom would later comprise Spiritualized (including guitarist Mark Refoy, bassist
                    Willie B. Carruthers and drummer Jon Mattock), predated the orchestral drones that
                    became the band's hallmark. The first true Spiritualized single, a dramatic reading of the
                    Troggs' "Anyway That You Want Me," was the final nail in the coffin -- reportedly, Kember
                    was so incensed by the Spacemen 3 logo which appeared on the disc's jacket that he
                    disbanded the group for good.

                    In 1991, Spiritualized returned with a string of EPs -- Feel So Sad, Run/I Want You and
                    Smile/Sway -- before their long-awaited debut Lazer Guided Melodies finally appeared the
                    following year. The masterful, blissed-out result of Pierce's obsessive studio fine-tuning
                    and endless remixing, the album was promoted by the band's slot on the high-profile
                    "Rollercoaster" tour, where they appeared with the Jesus and Mary Chain and Curve. An
                    excellent limited-edition live document, Fucked Up Inside, followed in 1993, trailed by
                    another EP, Electric Mainline later in the year.

                    In 1995, Spiritualized -- now a trio consisting of Pierce, keyboardist/guitarist Kate Radley
                    and bassist Sean Cook -- issued Pure Phase, a heady, dense production which boasted
                    separate mixes from each stereo channel. With 1997's Ladies and Gentlemen We Are
                   Floating in Space, Pierce deliberately jettisoned many of the band's usual points of
                    departure, including drones, tremolos and phase tones; recorded with new drummer Damon
                    Reece, it featured a cameo appearance from legendary New Orleans pianist Dr. John on
                    one track, while Memphis studio legend Jim Dickinson appeared on another. Other guests
                    included the Belanescu Quartet (also featured on Pure Phase), the Greater London Gospel
                    Community Choir and Spring Heel Jack. The two-disc Live at the Royal Albert Hall followed
                    in late 1998. ~ Jason Ankeny, All-Music Guide

Of courseTHAT JUST SCRATCHES THE SURFACE, and it doesn't even do the band justice. Much has been made of Jason's abortive relationship(s) with keyboardist/multiinstrumentalist Kate Radley. Now I'd hardly like this to become a breeding ground for rumors. Nonetheless they are founded. The last time Kate was seen anywhere near the band was last year during the filming of the stunning COME TOGETHER video. All of us like Kate so we wouldn't say anything bad about her...she also remains the only ousted member of Spiritualized to have quit herself. She apparently became quite ill during the end of 1996, and this explains her departure. However she does not appear on either the widely misinterpreted and brilliant ABBEY ROAD EP nor the ROYAL ALBERT HALL live discs. There is still much to be learned from this. However Kate is apparently married to Richard Ashcroft of the Verve now.
 

SECONDLY, even more has been written lately about Jason going off on one and firing Damon Reece, Michael Mooney, and Sean Cook, because all but Reece have been with Spiritualized since  Pure Phase. In fact, this site is currently still talking about it in news. (and i guarantee that will be updated soon!) Fact is no one has bothered to ask Jason about it, and he's the only one that knows ANYTHING on the subject. So I guess it's up to him to reveal what he intends to reveal about these dismissals. As the new album is being recorded, these details will become apparent.
 

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