Band of Horses | |
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![]() Band of Horses at the 2006 SXSW festival. From left to right Hampton, Bridwell, Barrett (hidden), Brooke, Arnone. | |
Background information | |
Origin | Seattle, Washington (now based in Charleston, South Carolina) |
Genres | |
Years active | 2004–present |
Labels | |
Spinoffs | Grand Archives |
Spinoff of | Carissa's Wierd |
Members | Ben Bridwell Ryan Monroe Creighton Barrett Matt Gentling Brett Nash |
Past members | See Band members |
Website | bandofhorses.com |
Band of Horses is an American rock band formed in 2004 in Seattle, Washington. Led by singer-songwriter Ben Bridwell, who has been the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes, the band's current line-up also includes longtime members Creighton Barrett (drums) and Ryan Monroe (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals), alongside Matt Gentling (bass, backing vocals) and Brett Nash (guitar, backing vocals).
For ten years, the band's most stable line-up featured guitarist Tyler Ramsey and bassist Bill Reynolds, who recorded and performed with the band between 2007 and 2017, before acrimoniously departing.
To date, the band has released six studio albums: Everything All the Time (2006), Cease to Begin (2007), Infinite Arms (2010), Mirage Rock (2012), Why Are You OK (2016) and Things Are Great (2022), with Infinite Arms being nominated for a Grammy Award in 2011.
Ben Bridwell (vocals, guitar) formed Band of Horses, who were originally briefly known as Horses in 2004 after the break-up of his previous band, Carissa's Wierd, along with bassist Chris Early and drummer Tim Meinig. They were soon joined by former Carissa's Wierd bandleader Mat Brooke (guitar, vocals). [4] The band initially received attention from Sub Pop after opening for Iron & Wine during Seattle area shows. In 2005, the band released the Tour EP , which was sold at shows and on Sub Pop's website.
Their first full-length album, Everything All the Time , was recorded in 2005 with producer Phil Ek and released by Sub Pop on March 21, 2006. It features the band's original four-piece lineup, although both Tim Meinig and Sera Cahoone receive drumming credits. [5] The album included new versions of five of the six songs from the Tour EP along with five brand new songs. It was a minor hit in Scandinavia, entering the lower reaches of the Sweden and Norway album charts. [6] Ben Bridwell explained the sound of the album, "I thought before recording that I really wanted an ELO-sounding record, with strings and keyboards and synths, but then, as we got closer to it, we wanted to take a more raw approach." [7]
Bridwell found that there was a personality clash between himself and Meinig and Early and the two left soon after the recording of the album. Ben explained his side of the story, "All of a sudden I was...with two guys I didn't really even know...they were nice guys, there just wasn't a personality match." [8] For the subsequent tour, Joe Arnone (guitar and keyboards), Rob Hampton (bass and guitar) and Creighton Barrett (drums) were brought in to play with Bridwell and Brooke.
Everything All the Time's first single was "The Funeral", which has been used in numerous television series, films, video games, and advertisements. On July 13, 2006, the band performed the song on the Late Show with David Letterman without Brooke, who had left the band. [9] Subsequently, he formed Grand Archives, who have since signed to Sub Pop and released two albums. Brooke explained how he joined Band of Horses, "So they ended up getting a show opening up for Iron and Wine in Seattle and Ben asked if I would just come up and do a couple songs, just 'cause we're friends. So...I did that. It was fun and then a couple of Iron and Wine tours came up...and then next thing I knew, we were in the studio making a record for Sub Pop." On why he left, he said, "I'd never really given the commitment to be a formal member. It was just a spur of the moment...and Everything All the Time took off really fast...I still didn't feel quite committed. It was still 100 percent Ben's project and I kinda wanted to see what else I could do." [10]
Before recording their second album, Bridwell decided to relocate the band from Seattle to his native South Carolina. [11] He said, "We were touring so much that nowhere was really home, so I figured...if I'm gonna come home after these long stretches of traveling, it would nice to be around my family." [12]
Band of Horses toured Europe and North America in 2007, prior to the release of their second album. Joe Arnone was no longer part of the band, which now toured as a six-piece band following the addition of Matt Gentling (Archers of Loaf – bass), Robin Peringer (Modest Mouse, Carissa's Wierd – guitar) and Ryan Monroe (keyboards) to the line up. The album, Cease to Begin , was recorded in Asheville, North Carolina and produced by Phil Ek. It was released by Sub Pop Records on October 9, 2007. The album features the core trio of Ben Bridwell, Creighton Barrett and Rob Hampton, with keyboards played by Ryan Monroe. [13] Cease to Begin gave Band of Horses their first hit in the U.S. by reaching number 35 on the Billboard 200 and was also a hit in Norway, Denmark, France and Sweden. [14] It was voted ninth best album of 2007 by Paste magazine [15] and 47th best by Rolling Stone . [16] The single "No One's Gonna Love You" gave Band of Horses their first European hit single, reaching number 22 in Denmark. [17]
Following the release of Cease to Begin, Monroe became a permanent member of the band, along with new recruits Tyler Ramsey (guitar and vocals) and Bill Reynolds (bass). This once again made Band of Horses a six-piece band. In addition to his role in the band, Ramsey often performed solo as the opening act before the band play live.[ citation needed ]
In 2008, Band of Horses played at the Glastonbury Festival, T in the Park, the Bridge School Benefit concert, and the Roskilde Festival.
In May 2009, producer Phil Ek stated that he was recording the third Band of Horses album in North Carolina. [18] Ben Bridwell mentioned that the new album was titled Night Rainbows several times while introducing new songs during the band's summer 2009 tour, [19] but in a March 2, 2010 interview, the band revealed that the album was to be called Infinite Arms . [20] Prior to the recording of the album, Rob Hampton left the band. He was later replaced by Swedish guitarist Ludwig Böss, although Böss does not appear on the album and on March 19, 2010, it was revealed that he too had left. [21] The album was recorded by the five-piece lineup of Bridwell, Ramsey, Reynolds, Barrett, and Monroe.
Infinite Arms was released worldwide between May 14 and 19, 2010 on the Columbia, Brown, and Fat Possum labels. Aside from the North Carolina sessions at Echo Mountain Studios, parts of the album were recorded in Los Angeles at Perfect Sound Studios. The album was self-produced by the band, with additional production from Phil Ek. On April 14, the band performed a full set for the WDR TV show "Rockpalast". On April 20, the band appeared on the BBC television series Later... with Jools Holland , promoting Infinite Arms by playing new songs "Compliments", "Factory", and "NW Apt". Following this appearance, the band's two earlier albums entered the UK Albums Chart for the first time. [22] Infinite Arms entered the UK chart at number 21, giving Band of Horses their first top 100 UK chart hit and debuted at number 7 on the Billboard 200, [23] far exceeding the performance of Cease to Begin. An outtake from the album, "Life on Earth" has been used on the soundtrack of the Twilight Saga film Eclipse , which was released on June 7, 2010. [24]
Band of Horses toured Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and Japan in 2010. They opened for Pearl Jam on their tour of the Midwest and East Coast and for Snow Patrol at their concerts in Bangor and Glasgow in June. They played the SXSW, Sasquatch, Splendour in the Grass, Summer Sonic, Pukkelpop, Highfields, Malmo, Rock en Seine, Reading, Leeds, ACL and Farm Aid festivals in 2010.
On October 7, 2010, Band of Horses released a cover of Cee Lo Green's "Georgia" via their official website. Ben Bridwell said, "This began as a very random idea I had on my dad's patio after we watched our beloved Georgia Bulldogs football team get robbed of a win at the hands of the referees and LSU last year. This song is so nostalgic to me as my parents grew up in Atlanta and have so many family members in the great state of Georgia. It's always been a second home of sorts. We've played some great shows there as well, including our run of annual New Year's Eve shows in Atlanta from 2007–2009." [25] The cover version Bridwell referred to is Cee Lo's version of "No One's Gonna Love You". The two tracks were released together as a 7-inch vinyl split single. [25]
Band of Horses released a video for their song "Dilly" on November 16, 2010. Previous videos for songs from Infinite Arms had been collections of still photographs by the band's longtime collaborator Christoper Wilson, merged to make movies. "Dilly" was shot in the Mojave Desert by director Phil Andelman and was exclusively premiered on the movie website IMDb. The video features the exploits of a trouble-making motorcycle gang, and includes surreal sequences of the gang dancing in formation, as well as them killing people by shooting them with nothing more than a pointed finger. The collaboration with IMDb represents the first occasion that the website has premiered a music video. [26] "Dilly" was released as a single on February 14, 2011, and includes the band's cover version of Cee-Lo Green's "Georgia". [27] The single was a minor hit on the Belgian (Flanders) singles chart. [28] Infinite Arms was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Alternative Album category [29] and featured in several end of year "Best Albums of 2010" lists, including Q Magazine (#21), [30] NPR Listeners (#15), [31] Filter Magazine (#10) [32] and Paste Magazine (#14). [33] The song "Laredo" was placed at number 28 in Rolling Stone Magazine's top 50 songs of 2010. [34]
In 2011, Band of Horses returned to Europe for a tour in January and February, which included a show with Foo Fighters at Wembley Arena on February 25. They undertook a brief US tour in early April before returning to Europe for several festivals in June. The band were scheduled to support Kings Of Leon on their US tour from July to September 2011 [35] and their eight Australian concerts in November 2011, [36] but Kings of Leon cancelled their US tour after just 3 shows. [37] In 2012 the band toured for the first time in South America.
In April 2012, Ben Bridwell said that Band Of Horses' fourth studio album was scheduled for release in late 2012 and would be produced by Glyn Johns. [38] In June the band shared a video preview, via Facebook and YouTube, of a new song, "Dumpster World", and announced a September release for the album. [39] On July 10 the album's title was confirmed as Mirage Rock and the track listing and artwork were revealed. A debut single from the fourth album, "Knock Knock", was released on July 9, 2012 [40] and the album was released on September 18. [41] "Knock Knock" and the subsequent single from Mirage Rock, "Slow Cruel Hands of Time", were both minor hits in Belgium.[ citation needed ]
In late August 2012, a music video for "Knock Knock" was released on the internet. Directed by Jared Eberhardt, the video simulates old fashioned nature documentaries and features members of the band being captured, like animals, to be studied. Bridwell revealed that the footage was taken in the Salt Lake City area, "It seems fitting that we'd finally get to shoot a video around Salt Lake City, as we've got a song that pays tribute to the area called 'The Great Salt Lake' from our first album. Better late than never." [42]
On February 24, 2014, Band of Horses released a ten track live album, Acoustic at the Ryman, featuring stripped-down versions of some of their best known songs. The album was recorded over two nights in April 2013 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. The band played a 13-date run of acoustic performances across the U.S., which commenced on February 11 at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and concluded on March 5 at The Ryman itself. [43]
On July 17, 2015, Ben Bridwell and Sam Beam of Iron and Wine released a covers album titled Sing into My Mouth . The fifth Band of Horses studio album, Why Are You OK is produced by Jason Lytle of the band Grandaddy and was released on June 10, 2016, through Rick Rubin's American Recordings and Interscope Records. [44]
On May 1, 2017, Tyler Ramsey announced his departure from Band of Horses on his personal Instagram account. [45] A day later, Bill Reynolds made a similar announcement via his Facebook page. [46] When touring resumed on May 18 in Tallahassee, Band of Horses was joined by Richard Fitzpatrick on guitar and saw the return of bassist Matt Gentling, who had previously toured with the band prior to the recording of Cease to Begin. [47] Fitzpatrick was subsequently replaced by guitarist Ian MacDougall. In 2022, Bridwell disputed Ramsey's and Reynolds's claims that they quit Band of Horses, saying that they had instead both been fired from the group. [48]
On October 12, 2021, Band of Horses issued the single "Crutch" and announced the release of Things Are Great , their first album with Matt Gentling and Ian MacDougall, and sixth overall. Calling it "a return to their earlier work and the kind of raw ethos that lies at the heart of Band of Horses", Things Are Great was released on March 4, 2022. [49] Prior to the album's release, MacDougall exited the band [50] and in late January 2022 was replaced by Brett Nash as lead guitarist. [51]
Current members
Former members
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"The Great Salt Lake" is the second single taken from Band of Horses' debut album Everything All the Time, which was released on March 21, 2006.
Everything All the Time is the debut album of indie rock band Band of Horses and was released on March 21, 2006, on Sub Pop Records. It features new versions of five of the six songs from the band's Tour EP, some with different titles. The album is the only one to feature original band members Mat Brooke, Chris Early and Tim Meinig.
"Compliments" is the first single from Band of Horses' third album Infinite Arms, which was released on April 1, 2010. It failed to chart, but was a radio hit, particularly in Seattle, WA where the band formed.
Benjamin Bridwell is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and musician. He is best known as the lead singer and only continuous member of the American rock band Band of Horses, as well as a former member of the band Carissa's Wierd.
"The Funeral" is a song by the American rock band Band of Horses, taken from their debut studio album, Everything All the Time (2006). The alternative rock song was written by the band members. The song was released as the debut single from the band and lead single from the album. A live version of the song appeared earlier on the band's self-titled EP, under the original name "Billion Day Funeral".
Cease to Begin is the second album by Band of Horses, released on October 9, 2007. This album solidified the band's sound and was a critical and commercial success, peaking at number 35 on the US Billboard 200 chart. The singles "Is There a Ghost" and "No One's Gonna Love You" appear on the album.
Tyler Ramsey is an American singer-songwriter from Asheville, North Carolina, who is best known as the former lead guitarist for the band Band of Horses.
"No One's Gonna Love You" is a song by American rock group Band of Horses. It was released in February 2008 as the second single from their second album Cease to Begin. In February 2011, three years after the single's original release, the song charted in Denmark. This was due to the band's performance of the song on the Danish talkshow Det Nye Talkshow - med Anders Lund Madsen. The song reached number 22 in the Danish Charts. The song has been used in several TV programmes, such as Chuck, One Tree Hill and Numb3rs, as well as appearing in the film Zombieland
Infinite Arms is the third album by indie rock band Band of Horses, released on May 18, 2010, on Brown Records, Fat Possum Records and Columbia. Most of the album was recorded in Asheville, North Carolina with some overdubbing done in Los Angeles. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Alternative Album category.
Mathew Etter Brooke is an American musician, best known as the lead singer of American rock band Grand Archives and a former member of the bands Band of Horses and Carissa's Wierd.
"Is There a Ghost" is the first single taken from Band of Horses' second album Cease to Begin, which was released on August 28, 2007. It reached #34 on the US Alternative Songs chart and #30 in Denmark, making it the band's most successful song until "Casual Party" reached #27 on the Alternative Songs chart in 2016.
"Laredo" is the second single taken from Band of Horses' third album Infinite Arms, which was released on April 13, 2010. The song peaked #34 on the US Alternative Songs chart and #41 on the US Rock Songs chart, making it the band's third most successful single after "Casual Party" and "Is There a Ghost".
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"Dilly" is the fourth single taken from Band of Horses' third album Infinite Arms. The song peaked #93 on the Belgian Singles chart.
"Factory" is the third single taken from Band of Horses' third album Infinite Arms. The song was released for free download at the band's official site in April 2010, shortly after "Compliments" and "Laredo", to help promote the upcoming release of Infinite Arms. Despite not charting, the song was generally well received and was noted for its unique use of candy referencing, with Pitchfork calling the song, "the album's string-drenched opener. Marvel as Ben Bridwell does his best to give majesty to the phrase 'snack machine.'" It's a fan-favorite, and although it's sometimes dropped during the band's sets when they're the opening act, it's almost always present during shows where they're the headliner. It was performed by the band during their appearance on Later... with Jools Holland.
Mirage Rock is the fourth studio album by Band of Horses and was released on September 18, 2012 on Columbia Records. Produced by Glyn Johns, the album was preceded by the single, "Knock Knock".
The discography of American rock band Band of Horses consists of six studio albums, one live album, two extended plays (EPs), and 14 singles. Formed in 2004 in Seattle by Ben Bridwell, their self-released Tour EP (2005) was made available at shows and at Sub Pop's website. The band's debut full-length album, Everything All the Time, followed in 2006 and reached the charts in Norway and Sweden. Their second album, Cease to Begin was released in 2007 and charted at number 35 on the US Billboard 200. "Is There a Ghost", the first single from the album, peaked at number 34 on the US Alternative Songs chart and number 30 in Denmark.
Things Are Great is the sixth studio album by indie rock band Band of Horses, released on March 4, 2022, on BMG. The album was initially produced by Grandaddy's Jason Lytle, who produced the band's previous studio album, Why Are You OK (2016), and Dave Fridmann, but was later reworked by frontman Ben Bridwell and producer Wolfgang Zimmerman.