Elton Dean, Hugh Hopper and John Etheridge launched the group in October 2004. It was a coalition of long-standing members from various eras of Soft Machine that came together as a unit for the first time. Elton Dean died in 2006, and Hugh Hopper, who had suffered a long battle with cancer, took his place. In 2008, Roy Babbington was appointed to take over. From discogs