Silent Running are a Northern Irish rock band, who emerged from the Belfast punk scene and were originally called The Setz, before changing musical direction in 1982.

The first single recorded, "All the King's Men"/"When the 12th of Never Comes", was a 300-copy promotional only release which led to a session for BBC Radio 1 following interest from Peter Powell.

[1] The band recorded tracks such as "Speed of Life" for the proposed first album, although Beavis was subsequently dismissed and replaced with Alex White.

The resulting album was Shades of Liberty which received a five star review in Melody Maker headlined "Silent Classic".

Prior to signing to EMI, Silent Running recruited George Beavis on keyboards and together the band recorded tracks such as "Speed of Life" for their proposed first album.

"[15] Young Hearts The second album on EMI was prefaced with the release of the double A-side single "No Faith Is Blind"/"Business as Usual".

White left in 1985 to work with Joan Armatrading, resulting in the band relying on session musicians such as Adrian Lee (Mike + The Mechanics), Clive Gates (New Musik) and Ian Curnow (Talk Talk; he was not really a stranger to the band, since he had already played keyboards on their 1983 debut single) to record the next two albums (Walk on Fire and Deep).

Despite massive airplay and appearances on television shows across the musical spectrum (including 'Cheggar's Plays Pop') the single resulted in the band being dropped by EMI.

With the release of Deep, the band toured extensively but disbanded shortly after, citing a lack of record company support.

Prior to Paul Rocks joining, the previous keyboardist Alex White had left the group back in 1985 to work with Joan Armatrading, resulting in the band relying on session musicians such as Adrian Lee (Mike + The Mechanics) and Clive Gates (New Music and Ian Curnow, Talk Talk.

Glorydaze Music wrote, "Earlier fans of the band would've turned away after their debut, as both Walk on Fire and Deep are quite some way removed from their original direction moulded in the style of Simple Minds and U2.

[38] In March 2019, Silent Running announced a return to the stage at Belfast venue 'Voodoo' promising songs from all three albums as well as "showcasing new material".

[40][41] A much anticipated second concert on 15 November 2019 sold out, with more fans flying to Belfast from Edinburgh, Inverness, Glasgow, Milton Keynes and Leeds.

[42] The band finally made it back onstage in Voodoo, Belfast on 29 April 2022 to a sell out crowd with Silent Running fans flying in from England, Scotland and Germany to hear them showcase the 4th album 'Follow the Light'.

[46][47] Follow The Light, the band's fourth studio album, was released by Door Records as digital download and limited edition CD through Bandcamp on 1 April 2022, as well as all streaming platforms.

Follow The Light was released by Door Records as digital download & limited edition CD through Bandcamp on 1 April 2022, as well all streaming platforms.

[54] Discussing the new album, Peter Gamble appeared on Robin Elliot's 'Tonight' program[55] and was interviewed by Johnny Hero[56] The single Darkest Hour was released on 30 March 2022 as a digital download through Bandcamp in aid of the British Red Cross Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal with all profits from the download going to the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

[57] A video for Darkest Hour is available on the bands YouTube channel[58] Powerplay Rock and Metal Magazine gave it 9/10 stating it was 'A Damned Good Album'.

[59] The Beat Magazine – 'All eleven tracks shine with the band's renewed life'[60] Maximum Volume Music gave it 8.5/10 stating Follow The Light is a cracker and it felt like Silent Running have never been away.

The band toured the UK during late 1985 and played live on BBC Radio 1 for the Radiothon appeal at the Birmingham Powerhouse.