Black Lips | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Atlanta, Georgia, United States |
Genres | Garage rock, punk rock, psychedelic rock |
Years active | 1999 [1] –present |
Labels | Bomp!, In the Red, Vice, Fire |
Members | Cole Alexander Jared Swilley Oakley Munson [2] Zumi Rosow [2] Jeff Clarke |
Past members | Ben Eberbaugh Ian Saint Pé Joe Bradley Jack Hines Richie Hayes |
Website | www |
Black Lips is an American garage rock band from Atlanta, Georgia formed in 1999.
The band formed in Dunwoody, Georgia, after guitarist Cole Alexander and bassist Jared Swilley left the Renegades, and guitarist Ben Eberbaugh left the Reruns. [1] Alexander and Swilley were known for their crude antics both during shows and at school. They were kicked out of school during their senior year after the Columbine Massacre in 1999 because they were regarded as a "subculture danger." [3] Drummer Joe Bradley, who had been studying in college after graduating high school early, joined a few months later. [4] They released their first 7-inch in 2002 with tracks from their first ever studio LP ~ completed in 2000 with producer/guitarist Eric Gagnon of The El Caminos. The 7-inch featured Ain't Coming Back, B 52 Bomberboy, Can't Get Me Down and Stone Cold all of which were tracked, mixed and mastered by Gagnon, and was released on their own record label, Die Slaughterhaus. Just days before a tour was to begin in December 2002, guitarist Ben Eberbaugh was driving a car when he was struck by a drunk driver and killed. The band carried on, believing that Eberbaugh would want them to continue. [5]
The band's debut full-length album, Black Lips! , was released on Bomp! Records in 2003. Within this tribute album commemorating Ben Eberbaugh's life as a quality musician, they released three more songs from their set with Gagnon (2000): Stone Cold (with gagnon on bass), Can't Get Me Down and Everybody Loves A Cocksucker were already mixed and mastered by Eric. They were wise enough to have Stone Cold remastered with the channels flipped from the original two track mix ~ a clever way to avoid legal trouble from a keen producer. Back in 2000, Jared put himself in rehab during the studio session with Eric, so Cole asked Gagnon to play bass both in the studio and during a live show at The Earl (Atlanta, GA) ~ Eric agreed so long as he didn't have to record anymore firecrackers in his studio ("Ain't Coming Back"). Eberbaugh's bluesy guitar takes control of their early work ~ Eric was a perfect match for these youngsters ~ with a knack for the blues, Eric features Ben's guitar. After his untimely death in 2002, Ben's legacy was filled by Jack Hines, a friend of the band members, and they recorded their second studio album, We Did Not Know the Forest Spirit Made the Flowers Grow , with him. Hines quit the band in 2004 so he could settle down with his wife. Ian St. Pé, who at the time was enrolled at the University of Memphis as a music major, got a call from the band asking if he wanted to immediately join them on tour. Pé, who spent his early twenties buying alcohol for his then-underage future bandmates, dropped out of school and accepted the band's offer. [6] In 2005, they released two more 7 inch vinyls through Slovenly Recordings. Eric Gagnon produced both "Stuck In My Mind" and "Does She Want" - which were tracked, mixed and mastered by Gagnon back in 2000. They slowly built a fanbase that appreciated their rough pastiche of blues, rock, doo-wop, country, and punk. They gained national attention in 2006 with features in Spin and Rolling Stone . The band got exposure in The New York Times [7] during the 2007 South by Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas, in which they played a dozen shows over a three-day period.
Their debut for Vice Records, Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo , was released in February 2007. It is supposed to have been recorded at a bar in Tijuana, Mexico, but fans, musicians, and journalists have expressed doubts about that claim and speculated that some or most of it was recorded in a studio with John Reis. Responding to such allegations, Swilley has stated that Reis recorded the show live with a soundboard, microphones, and a computer placed strategically near the stage. [8] St. Pe said that the band had to use the best twelve out of twenty live cuts from the Tijuana show, which he described as "absolutely nuts." [9] In September 2007 their second studio album for Vice entitled Good Bad Not Evil was released. The Black Lips made their American national television debut in October 2007 on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and played "O Katrina". In May 2008 Black Lips made their UK TV debut performing 'Bad Kids' on BBC3's The Wall . The Black Lips were to star in the film Let It Be, in which they portrayed musicians in a fictitious 1980s era DIY band called The Renegades. [10] The movie was set for production in the summer of 2008; however, in a September 2008 interview, the band admitted they became disenchanted with the project after viewing the trailer and seeing the way they felt they were going to be portrayed in the movie. [11]
In October 2008 a portion of the band's song "Veni Vidi Vici" was played during the season premiere episode of the television show Dirty Sexy Money , shown on the American network ABC. [12] The same song was going to be used in a commercial by British supermarket chain Tesco, but, according to the band, the company decided not to go through with the deal because of concerns with the lyrical content of the song. [13] The group toured India in January 2009. Following some antics at their show in Chennai, the band became worried about being arrested and imprisoned for "homosexual acts" so they fled the city and eventually the country. The band summed up what happened in an interview at the musical festival: "they kissed, and some weiners were pulled out..." Vice Records documented the trip. [14] After the band left India, they traveled to Berlin, Germany and recorded a 12-song LP of gospel-influenced songs with King Khan & BBQ. The album was released on September 22, 2009, under the name The Almighty Defenders. [15] [16]
The Black Lips released their fifth studio album, 200 Million Thousand , on February 24, 2009, on Vice Records,with the help of Zach, Meredith, and Austin. The songs were recorded at New Street Studio, a former art gallery in Decatur GA, near Atlanta. The band embarked on a world tour in 2009 to support this album. Over the course of eleven months, they played 122 shows total between Europe and the United States. [17] The band have a featured role in the documentary We Fun: Atlanta, GA Inside Out. The title was coined by Jared Swilley on the band's blog. [18] The film made its debut at the Atlanta Film Festival in April 2009. A song called "Arboles De La Barranca" was performed by Black Lips for the film Rudo y Cursi . Volume six of Brendan Canty's Burn To Shine series includes a performance by the Black Lips. There is no release date set for.
The band began working on their sixth studio record, Arabia Mountain , in November 2009. [19] They finished recording the album with producer Mark Ronson in New York City in November 2010. [20] The first single off Arabia Mountain was "Modern Art".
In October 2019, the band announced they had signed to Fire Records. [21] The band released their ninth studio album 'Sing In A World That's Falling Apart' on the 24th January 2020 with Fire Records, in partnership with Vice. [22] On the review aggregate site Metacritic, the album has a score of 76 out of 100, indicating "Generally favorable reviews", [23] with PopMatters describing the record as a "near perfect offering". [24]
The Black Lips are noted for provocative theatrics – including vomiting (Cole's medical condition), urination, nudity, electric R.C. car races, fireworks, a chicken, flaming guitars and other un-predictable antics. These have been inspired by the "punk-before-punk" Viennese Actionism movement in Austria and the infamous actionist hardcore punk musician GG Allin according to Alexander. [25] Most of these antics, which are the center of attention in media coverage of the band, occurred in the band's early days, a time when the band had not yet learned how to play their instruments. [26] The frequency of the group's outrageous stage antics has declined slightly, as they claim to have matured "a little bit". [27] Despite frequent media attention surrounding their antics, Swilley says "it doesn't seem all that crazy to me. It’s not like we have ever done a human sacrifice on stage or anything like that.” [28]
They played at Heaven in London on September 16, 2008, which ended with a classic stage invasion, and has become their most popular live YouTube video. [29] The group has expressed interest in playing venues and countries that typically don't see many rock bands perform. They've said they'd like to play Africa, South America, China, and Indonesia, but have not done so yet. [15] [16] In 2010 the band toured Australia, New Zealand and Japan. In conjunction with SPINearth.tv, the group documented the behind the scenes footage of their infamous antics. [30] In 2012 the band performed a long discussed Middle East tour which included dates in Iraq and several other countries in the region.
On February 7, 2016, The Black Lips performed live on Adult Swim's Fish Center Live during Super Bowl 50.
Ian St. Pe has a project called Saint Pé. [31] St. Pe also plays guitar in another band called Diamond Rugs, which features members of Deer Tick, Dead Confederate, Los Lobos, and Six Finger Satellite. [32] Diamond Rugs will be releasing their debut album on Partisan Records in 2012. [33] Jared Swilley provides guitar and vocals for The Gaye Blades, who have released two 7-inches on Rob's House Records and an LP on Norton Records. [34] In late Summer 2008 band member Bobby Ubangi was diagnosed with small cell lung and brain cancer. He died in Summer 2009 and is referred to in the Black Lips songs "Dirty Hands" and "I'll Be With You." Under the name Old King Cole Younger, Cole Alexander released a split single on Rob's House Records with Bradford Cox of Deerhunter performing under the name of Atlas Sound. Cole Alexander and Bradford Cox also have a project called Ghetto Cross. [35] Joe Bradley produced a rap group called Incoqnekro. They recorded an album titled Incoqnekronomicon, which was released online in 2009. [36]
Three Black Lips, Cole Alexander (vocals), Jared Swilley (bass) and Joe Bradley (keyboards), perform as ghost-rock band The Spooks. The Spooks formed in 2002 to play Halloween shows. The band members wear white sheets on stage, and performances have included blood, animal parts and a chainsaw. They began recording songs for an album in 2004, and their first LP, Death From Beyond The Grave, was released by Die Slaughterhaus in late 2008.
Cole Alexander and Curtis Harding (Cee Lo Green's former back-up singer/writer) have been working on a project titled Night Sun [37]
Current members
Former members
Timeline
Jars of Clay is a Christian rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. The members met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois.
Jar of Flies is the third studio EP by American rock band Alice in Chains. It was released on January 25, 1994, by Columbia Records. The band's second acoustic EP, after 1992's Sap, it was the first EP in music history to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, with the first week sales exceeding 141,000 copies in the United States. The self-produced record was written and recorded over the course of just one week at the London Bridge Studio in Seattle. The tracks "No Excuses", "I Stay Away" and "Don't Follow" were released as singles to promote the EP. Jar of Flies was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 1995: Best Recording Package and Best Hard Rock Performance for "I Stay Away".
Boredoms is a rock band from Osaka, Japan formed in 1986. The band's sound is often referred to as noise rock, or sometimes Japanoise, though their more recent records have moved toward repetitive psychedelic rock, ambient soundscapes, and tribal drumming.
Hed PE is an American nu metal band from Huntington Beach, California. Formed in 1994, the band is known for its eclectic genre-crossing style, predominately in the fusion of gangsta rap and punk rock it has termed "G-punk", but also for its reggae-fused music.
Tilly and the Wall was an indie pop group from Omaha, Nebraska. Their name originated from a children's book called Tillie and the Wall, written by Leo Lionni. They are particularly noted for having a tap dancer, Jamie Pressnall, provide percussion, instead of a drummer.
"Breathe" (sometimes called "Breathe (In the Air)") is a song by English rock band Pink Floyd. It appears on their 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon.
Hinder is an American rock band from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, formed in 2001 by lead singer Austin John Winkler, guitarist Joe "Blower" Garvey, and drummer Cody Hanson with bassist Mike Rodden and guitarist Mark King joining in 2003, solidifying the line-up. The band released four studio albums with Winkler; Extreme Behavior (2005), Take It to the Limit (2008), All American Nightmare (2010) and Welcome to the Freakshow (2012). Cody Hanson, along with former lead singer Austin Winkler, wrote the majority of the band's music on their first four albums. After Winkler left the band in 2013, they looked for a new lead vocalist, and added Marshal Dutton. They have since released When the Smoke Clears (2015) and The Reign (2017) with their new vocalist. Their seventh studio album is currently in the works. The band was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2007.
Xasthur is the project of American musician Scott "Malefic" Conner. Conner formed Xasthur in 1995 and released eight studio albums of black metal by 2010, when he announced the end of the project. However, he began using the name once again in 2015 to instead perform acoustic neofolk music. The first album with this new style was entitled Subject to Change, released in 2016.
Hed PE is the debut album by the American rock band Hed PE. It was released on August 12, 1997, by Jive Records, and has sold over 100,000 copies.
MGMT is an American rock band formed in 2002 in Middletown, Connecticut. It was founded by singers and multi-instrumentalists Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser. Alongside VanWyngarden and Goldwasser, MGMT's live lineup currently consists of drummer Will Berman, bassist Simon O’Connor, and guitarist and keyboardist James Richardson.
Kill Hannah was an American rock band formed in 1993 in Chicago, Illinois. The band released six studio albums, seven EPs, and two compilation albums as well as three DVDs.
Karkwa is an indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, formed in 1998.
Turn It Up Faggot is the debut album from indie rock group Deerhunter. The album's title refers to a taunt that was shouted at the band during early live shows although the album is also referred to as self-titled. The album's notes dedicate the album to Justin Bosworth, the band's original bassist, who died in 2004.
Vampire Weekend is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson, and bassist Chris Baio. Batmanglij departed the group in early 2016.
Good Bad Not Evil is the fourth studio album by garage rock band Black Lips. The album was recorded in December 2006 and released on September 11, 2007. The title is a reference to The Shangri-Las song, "Give Him a Great Big Kiss".. Their song "Veni Vidi Vici" samples the song "I'm Going Home" by The Swamp Rats.
Innerpartysystem is an American electronic rock band. The group consists of Patrick Nissley, Jared Piccone and Kris Barman. The band is well known for their live performance lighting largely by Andrew Nissley and videos directed by Stephen Penta.
Tame Impala is the psychedelic music project of Australian multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker. In the recording studio, Parker writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. As a touring act, Tame Impala consists of Parker, Dominic Simper, Jay Watson, Cam Avery, and Julien Barbagallo. The group has a close affiliation with fellow Australian psychedelic rock band Pond, sharing members and collaborators, including Nick Allbrook, formerly a live member of Tame Impala. Originally signed to Modular Recordings, Tame Impala is now signed to Interscope Records in the United States and Fiction Records in the UK.
The Coathangers are an American all-female punk rock/garage band band from Atlanta, Georgia featuring singer/guitarist Julia Kugel-Montoya, bassist Meredith Franco and singer/drummer Stephanie Luke.
The Orwells are an American rock band from Elmhurst, a suburb west of Chicago, Illinois, United States. The members include Mario Cuomo (vocals), Dominic Corso (guitar), Grant Brinner (bass), and Henry Brinner (drums). Their debut album Remember When was released in August 2012. The band is known for their song "Who Needs You", which was performed on the Late Show with David Letterman and was featured in an Apple commercial for the iPad Air 2.
Underneath the Rainbow is the seventh studio album by American garage rock band Black Lips, released on March 17, 2014.
{{cite web}}
: |author=
has generic name (help)