That Petrol Emotion were formed in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1984 by two ex-members of disbanded The Undertones, lead guitarist John O'Neill and guitarist Raymond Gorman. Joined by John's brother Damian on bass guitar, they moved to London. With another Derry-born musician on board - drummer Ciaran McLaughlin - American singer Steve Mack completed the initial line-up and they released their debut single 'Keen' in 1985. They immediately moved away from the music of The Undertones with an edgier sound and politically fired lyrics. Their debut album 'Manic Pop Thrill' in 1986 was released on Demon Records to positive reviews and reached number one in the UK Indie Albums Chart.
In 1987, That Petrol Emotion released their second album 'Babble', this time with major label Polydor. Their first single from the album, 'Big Decision', became their best-selling single, narrowly missing out on a UK Top 40 chart position by reaching number 42. Just before the release of their third album 'End of the Millennium Psychosis Blues' (1988) on Virgin Records, John O'Neill announced that he would be leaving the band following the album's release. Electric dance tracks such as 'Tension' and 'Groove Check' were mixed with the heavy rock of 'Under the Sky', Celtic ballads like 'Cellophane' and some indie tracks to produce an album that critics deemed disjointed.
When John O'Neill left the band, his brother Damian moved from bass guitar to guitar and John Marchini joined as the new bassist. The band's songwriters were now McLaughlin and Damian O'Neill and their next album 'Chemicrazy' was released on Virgin Records in 1990. The album never quite took off and the band parted ways with Virgin records, starting their own label Koogat. In 1991, Marchini left and the band were joined by another new bassist, Brendan Kelly. They released their final album 'Fireproof' in 1993 and it became their second album to reach number one in the UK Indie Albums Chart. They disbanded in 1994 and although they reformed in 2008, their performances since then have been sporadic and most band members have moved on to other bands and projects, including the reforming of The Undertones with most of the original members.
