Spacemen 3 - Legacy

Legacy

"Spacemen 3 were one of the most revolutionary UK guitar bands" (Ian Edmond, Record Collector). They produced "some of the most visceral and psychedelic music of all time...and set a sonic template that influenced a generation, inspiring countless bands" (Julian Woolsey, Rock Edition). Writing in Spring 1991, just after the band had split, Vox's Stephen Dalton referred to Spacemen 3 as "one of the most influential underground bands of the last decade".

Spacemen 3's style and sound has influenced many artists, on both sides of the Atlantic, including some bands belonging to the Shoegaze scene. E.g. My Bloody Valentine, Chapterhouse, Slowdive. Ride, Six By Seven, Mogwai, Bardo Pond, The Flowers of Hell, Yume Bitsu, 7% Solution, Lockgroove, Luna, Windy & Carl, Five Way Mirror, The Third Eye Foundation, American Analog Set, Black Mountain, Flying Saucer Attack, Asteroid No. 4, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Colorsound, The Warlocks, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Icarus Line, The Morning After Girls, Scarling, and Wooden Shjips.

"Hordes of bands would rank Playing with Fire as the equal (or better) of psychedelia's '60s/'70s forebears" (Ned Raggett, AllMusic). It represented "a blueprint for the next generation of ambient drone, space rock acts" (Laura Hightower).

In 1998, a tribute album to Spacemen 3 was released by the Rocket Girl label. A Tribute To Spacemen 3 included covers by bands such as Mogwai, Low, Bowery Electric and Bardo Pond. The album liner notes stated: "There are so many current bands who draw their influences from Spacemen 3 that now seems an appropriate time to show tribute to this underrated band."

In 2004, US journalist Erik Morse's biography of the band’s life and work, Spacemen 3 & The Birth of Spiritualized, was published.