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An enduring figure on the outer edges of British music, Mark Stewart rose to prominence in the late 1970s as a founding member of punk/dub trailblazers The Pop Group. From that point on, he consistently pushed musical boundaries, creating powerful and confrontational work that fused radical politics with raw sonic innovation. After teaming up with producer Adrian Sherwood, Stewart launched a solo career with albums like Learning to Cope with Cowardice (1983), blending dub, funk, and industrial noise into a dense and explosive mix. His unorthodox vocal delivery and fearless experimentation became foundational influences on genres such as industrial, trip-hop, and digital hardcore.
Born in Bristol, England, Stewart attended Bristol Grammar School, where he crossed paths with future Clash member Nick Sheppard. Inspired by punk but unwilling to conform to its limitations, Stewart formed The Pop Group in 1978 with John Waddington, Gareth Sager, Simon Underwood, and Bruce Smith. Their music veered sharply from conventional paths, combining fractured funk rhythms, dissonant guitars, and politically charged lyrics. Though not a commercial success, the group's influence proved immense and lasting.
Following The Pop Group’s breakup in 1980, Stewart joined the New Age Steppers alongside Smith and Waddington, marking the beginning of his collaboration with Sherwood. Stewart’s debut solo album introduced the Maffia, a rotating cast of musicians that included future Tackhead members Skip McDonald, Doug Wimbish, and Keith LeBlanc. Together, they recorded several more albums, including As the Veneer of Democracy Starts to Fade, Mark Stewart, and Metatron. The group later reunited for Control Data in 1996.
During the 1990s and 2000s, Stewart focused heavily on collaborations and production, working with artists such as Tricky, Massive Attack, Trent Reznor, and ADULT. In 2005, he released Kiss the Future, a retrospective compilation, followed by the 2008 album Edit. A documentary about his work, On/Off:, appeared at international film festivals in 2009.
In 2010, Stewart reformed The Pop Group with Gareth Sager and Bruce Smith, leading to new material and live performances. He also released new solo work, including The Politics of Envy (2012), featuring Lee "Scratch" Perry, Richard Hell, Keith Levene, and members of Primal Scream and The Raincoats, as well as Exorcism of Envy, which included contributions from Factory Floor and Kenneth Anger.
The Pop Group returned with Citizen Zombie in 2015 and Honeymoon on Mars in 2016. Stewart continued collaborating into the late 2010s, writing lyrics for Little Axe’s London Blues and appearing on De Lux’s More Disco Songs About Love. His debut album was reissued in 2019 as Learning to Cope with Cowardice/The Lost Tapes, including previously unreleased material.
Mark Stewart passed away on April 21, 2023, at the age of 62.
~ Adapted from original text by Mark Deming, Rovi
