Formation, Zimmerkampf, and founding of Nettwerk (1981–1984) In 1981, two high school friends in Vancouver, Tom Ferris and Cal Stephenson, had sought to create music together which leaned into an electronic style. Stephenson handled keyboards and occasional vocals while Ferris played keyboards and guitar, although both individuals focused on production work as well. After the joining of drummer Steve Lowther (who also played horns), guitarist Mark Jowett was recruited via an advertisement in
The Georgia Straight. After laying out some basic demos, the quartet then found vocalist Madeleine Morris through
The Georgia Straight. The band named themselves Moev, which was later explained as a variation on the color
mauve, with mauve as a "pretty purplish pink" and Moev as "the color of insanity". Both Moev and
Images in Vogue performed their first live shows together in 1981 at a Vancouver
new wave fashion show, dubbed Elektra: The Fashion Dance. Moev temporarily left Vancouver for San Francisco in order to record their full-length debut album. The album,
Zimmerkampf, was released in 1982 through Go!, with "Rotting Geraniums" as the lead single; however, the label went through a series of financial struggles, and as a result Moev departed from the label and returned to Vancouver. Upon their return, Morris left the band and joined Family Plot. In 1984, frustrated with how their music was being released, Moev's remaining members (Jowett, Ferris, and Stephenson) co-founded the label
Nettwerk Records alongside McBride. McBride handled the management aspects and Jowett mainly worked as an executive for talent-related matters. In addition, Ferris and Stephenson created and operated Limited Vision Studio for the label. Throughout 1986 and 1987, multiple bands recorded at Moev's studio, which included
Skinny Puppy,
Numb, and
Single Gun Theory. By 1987, however, three members of Moev had parted ways with the band: Jowett decided to focus on Nettwerk on a full-time basis, Stephenson left the music industry in order to return to school, and Arrichiello departed from the band due to health issues which prevented her from playing live shows. Ferris and Cook regrouped under the Moev name, and through a mixture of magazine advertisements and mutual acquaintances, Anthony Valcic joined as drummer/keyboardist and Dean Russell joined as vocalist. Moev spent two years recording their third album,
Yeah, Whatever. It was once again released by Nettwerk, but by the end of the year, Moev had signed to the major label
Atlantic Records for international distribution. By the end of 1988, Ron Thaler had replaced Valcic on drums.
Head Down and first disbandment (1989–1991) After touring concluded in 1989, Ferris, Cook, and Russell reconvened in the studio. Moev's fourth album,
Head Down, was released in August 1990, once again through Nettwerk and Atlantic.
Head Down featured drumming contributions from Thaler prior to his departure from the band. Another contributor was
Sarah McLachlan, who provided backing vocals to a number of songs; at that point, McLachlan had only released one solo album, but was being promoted by Nettwerk as an international breakout artist. The album found minor success in the US as it peaked at No. 36 on CMJ's Radio Top 150 chart. Due to disagreements with the label's handling of Moev and other internal conflicts, Moev distanced themselves from Nettwerk in 1990. In addition, Ferris closed Limited Vision Studio, with
Head Down and
Front Line Assembly's
Gashed Senses & Crossfire as the last major albums recorded there. In 1991, Nettwerk released the compilation
Obituary Column Ha without Ferris' consent. It compiled together various b-sides and alternate mixes from Moev's career. The band then became officially inactive in 1991.
Russell's death and various projects (1991–1999) After Moev's disbanding, Russell formed the two-man project Bacteria with guitarist E.H. Stewart. They independently released the album
Identification in 1992; however, Russell's health declined, and he left the band soon after. Russell died in 1994 due to complications from AIDS. Ferris co-founded the band
Econoline Crush alongside Chris Meyers and Trevor Hurst in early 1992. After appearing on 1993's
The Purge Demo, Ferris departed from the band due to both musical differences and a disinterest towards national touring. Ferris mainly focused on work with other artists, such as Blackland (essentially a solo project by former Front Line Assembly member Michael Balch) and
Waiting for God. In 1994, Ferris and Stephenson filed a lawsuit against Nettwerk, which revolved around the two's roles as original partners in the label. The lawsuit was eventually settled in 1998.
Reformation, Suffer, and hiatus (1999–2007) In 1999, Ferris reformed Moev alongside his wife Julie Ferris as vocalist. For the live band, Cook (formerly of Moev) joined as bassist and Brian Berry (formerly of
10 Ft. Henry) joined as drummer. Tom Ferris also briefly worked with Leon Gaer in the ambient project Declassified, releasing a self-titled album in 2007.
Second reformation, Ventilation, and One Minute World (2007–present) In 2007, Tom Ferris and Julie Ferris reactivated Moev.
Ventilation was self-released by the band, with a physical edition arriving nearly a year after its digital release. In 2011, Moev's former vocalist Arrichiello died at the age of 51 after various health complications. Moev's seventh major studio release,
One Minute World, was released in 2013. ==Members==