Startled Insects

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Startled Insects (later known as The Insects) are an English instrumental pop‑jazz group from Bristol. They formed around 1983 as a trio of producers and musicians: Tim Norfolk, Bob Locke, and Richard Grassby-Lewis. The members’ names didn’t appear on album sleeves, and much of their early work was self‑published. Their unique sound helped them sign with Island Records’ Antilles New Directions label.

History
- The group’s first releases, including a self‑published EP and a single, built underground buzz.
- Their first album for Island, Curse of the Pheromones (1987), became an underground hit. They also staged multimedia tours with filmmakers and created music for film and TV.
- In 1990 they scored a BBC documentary Lifepulse – a Natural Thriller, and in 1995 they scored The Private Life of Plants for the BBC.

- In 1996 Richard Grassby‑Lewis left the group. Tim Norfolk and Bob Locke continued as The Insects. They began writing for other Bristol artists, including Massive Attack, for whom they co‑wrote Karma Coma and Euro Child on the Protection album. They also contributed to soundtracks like Batman Forever and Madonna’s Something to Remember.

- The Insects went on to make many film and TV scores. They won an Emmy for Life at the Edge (a National Geographic project) and worked on numerous other documentaries and features. They also produced music for artists such as Alison Moyet, Goldfrapp, and Sean Cook, and formed side projects like The Flies and ± The Mother Beef. In recent years they scored TV series such as Wire in the Blood (ITV), The Living and the Dead (BBC), and Devs (2020).

Discography (highlights)
Startled Insects
- Startled Insects (12" EP, also known as Overzoom) – 1984
- Underworld / Black Spring (12" single) – 1985
- Curse of the Pheromones – 1987
- Lifepulse – 1991
- The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb (Soundtrack) – 1993
- The Mini-LPs (Startled Insects + “Underworld”/“Black Spring” + bonus tracks) – 1998

The Insects
- Love and Death on Long Island (Soundtrack, with Jon Hassell) – 1998
- Wild Indonesia (Soundtrack) – 1999
- Angry Kid (Soundtrack) – 2000
- Owning Mahowny (Soundtrack, with Jon Hassell) – 2003
- Flames of Passion (Soundtrack) – 2003
- Music from XX/XY (Soundtrack) – 2003
- Monsters We Met (Soundtrack, BBC) – 2004
- Seconds from Disaster (National Geographic) – 2006
- Wire in the Blood (Soundtrack) – 2008
- The Living and the Dead (Soundtrack, BBC) – 2016
- Becoming Cary Grant (Soundtrack) – 2016
- South Korea: Earth’s Hidden Wilderness (Soundtrack, BBC) – 2018
- Hanna (Soundtrack) – 2019
- Devs (Soundtrack) – 2020

Overview
Startled Insects are known for their atmospheric, instrumental sounds and for building a bridge between music, film, and television. They helped shape Bristol’s experimental music scene and left a lasting mark with both their own records and the many scores and collaborations they created for other artists.