Miles Hunt

Last updated

Miles Hunt
MilesHunt2015.jpg
Miles Hunt pictured in 2015
Background information
Born (1966-07-29) 29 July 1966 (age 57)
Birmingham, Warwickshire, England
Occupation(s) Singer, songwriter, guitarist
Years active1985–present
Labels Polydor Records, Fake Chapter Records
Website Official website

Miles Stephen Hunt (born 29 July 1966) is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. He fronts the alternative rock band The Wonder Stuff.

Contents

Early life

His father was a union official for the TGWU. In the 1970s, his father was based at Derby, and they lived in Etwall, Derbyshire, for four years, with Hunt attending the Etwall Junior School and his brother attending the John Port School. [1]

Career

Hunt's first band (in which he played drums) was called From Eden, and featured future members of another successful Stourbridge group, Pop Will Eat Itself. After leaving this band he formed The Wonder Stuff and was their lead singer and principal songwriter until their split in 1994. He briefly presented 120 Minutes on MTV Europe until mid '95, when he formed a new band Vent 414 who failed to match the success of his former band. He toured as a solo performer for a time until he reformed The Wonder Stuff in 2000. The band continue to tour. He also co-wrote and sang the theme tune to the CBeebies television programme Underground Ernie . [2]

Over the last few years he has written a series of printed and online articles for Nottingham-based culture magazine LeftLion [ which? ]. He also performed at the festival Bearded Theory on 15 May 2011 with Erica Nockalls.

Personal life

A former girlfriend is Helga Phillips who is now the partner of Jonn Penney, the lead singer of Ned's Atomic Dustbin, and who designed the distinctive covers of Ned's albums. [3]

Hunt married radio DJ Mary Anne Hobbs in April 1990, in the London borough of Tower Hamlets. She was working for the NME at the time. They were married for five years. [4] He is currently single. [4] [5] [ failed verification ] His uncle, Bill Hunt, played keyboards and horns in an early incarnation of Electric Light Orchestra and later in Wizzard. [6] [7]

Discography

Albums

Vent 414

  • Vent 414 (1996)
  • The Post Album Demos (2009)

Solo

  • Miles Across America (1998)
  • By The Time I Got To Jersey [also known as "Common Threads Live"] (1998)
  • Hairy On The Inside (1999)
  • MP3 Of The Month Club (2000)
  • The Miles Hunt Club (2002)
  • Interloper Live 2006 (2006)
  • The Custodian (2018)
  • The Custodian 2 (2021)
  • Things Can Change (2022)

With Erica Nockalls

  • Not An Exit (2007)
  • Catching More Than We Miss (2009)
  • Shared [Various Artists - includes 3 tracks by Miles and Erica] (2009)
  • Shared 2 [Various Artists - includes 2 tracks by Miles and Erica] (2011)
  • Live 2010/11 (2011)
  • We Came Here To Work (2017)

Singles and EPs

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Wonder Stuff</span> British alternative rock band

The Wonder Stuff are a British alternative rock band. Originally based in Stourbridge in the West Midlands, England, the band's first lineup released four albums and nearly 20 singles and EPs, enjoying considerable chart and live success in the UK. The band have continued to tour and record since 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ned's Atomic Dustbin</span> English rock band

Ned's Atomic Dustbin is an English rock band formed in Stourbridge, West Midlands, in November 1987. The band took their name from an episode of radio comedy programme The Goon Show. The band is unusual for using two bass-players in their line-up: Alex Griffin plays melody lines high up on one bass, and Matt Cheslin plays the regular bass lines on the other. This gives the band a tense and highly driven sub-hardcore sound featuring distorted effects-laden guitar and energetic drums.

Grebo was a short-lived subgenre of alternative rock that incorporated influences from punk rock, electronic dance music, hip hop and psychedelia. The scene occupied the period in the late 1980s and early 1990s in the United Kingdom before the popularisation of Britpop and grunge. The genre and its attributes were largely absorbed into industrial rock, which would emerge after the sub-genre's demise in the late 1980s, which then led to the development of industrial metal in the 1990s.

<i>God Fodder</i> 1991 studio album by Neds Atomic Dustbin

God Fodder is the debut studio album by English rock band Ned's Atomic Dustbin, released on 1 April 1991 by Columbia Records. After creating their own imprint following the success of several prior independent singles, the band recorded the album from December 1990 to January 1991 in London. Musically, God Fodder takes large influence from grebo, shoegaze, noise pop, and dance music, characterized by noisy guitars, complex drum beats, and its usage of two bass players, with Matt Cheslin playing regular bass lines and Alex Griffin playing harmonic bass lines. Lyrically, the album features communal efforts written by all the band.

The Sandkings were an indie pop music band from Wolverhampton, England who had minor success in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Martin Richard Gilks was an English musician. He was a founder member and original drummer for the Wonder Stuff, based in Stourbridge.

Dan Donnelly is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and a member of the Levellers since 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morgan Nicholls</span> British musician

Morgan Daniel Nicholls is an English musician, member of English pop band Senseless Things and best known for performing with Muse, Gorillaz, The Streets and Lily Allen. He has released one solo album under the mononym Morgan.

Simon Efemey is an English record producer and sound engineer, most noted for his work with metal and hard rock groups, including Napalm Death, Paradise Lost, Obituary, Amorphis, Deceased and The Wildhearts. He has also provided live sound mixing with bands including The Wonder Stuff, Jesus Jones, Diamond Head, Orson, Obituary and Napalm Death.

Darren Mark Brown, known as Wiz, was an English musician who was the lead-singer and guitarist of indie punk band Mega City Four in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and later bands Serpico and Ipanema from 2002 to 2006.

<i>Brainbloodvolume</i> 1995 studio album by Neds Atomic Dustbin

Brainbloodvolume is the third and final album from English rock band Ned's Atomic Dustbin with their original line-up. It was released in the United States on 21 March 1995 but did not appear in the United Kingdom until July of that year.

Vent 414 were a short-lived British independent rock band active for a few years in the 1990s.

<i>Suspended by Stars</i> 2006 studio album by the Wonder Stuff

Suspended by Stars is the sixth studio album by English rock band the Wonder Stuff, released on 20 February 2006, on the IRL record label. After touring in support of Escape from Rubbish Island (2004), their fifth studio album, frontman Miles Hunt moved to Shropshire and began writing new songs. Bookending a tour of the United States in April and May 2005, the band recorded songs at Doghaus in New York City and Vada in Stratford-upon-Avon. Hunt missed hearing the sound of a violin, and Erica Nockalls was drafted to add the instrument to several of the album's songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eat (band)</span> British alternative rock band

Eat are a British alternative rock band. They were active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and then reformed in 2014. They have released two albums on The Cure's label Fiction. The band achieved reasonable success in the UK, but did not attract much attention abroad.

Peter Howard is an English rock drummer. He was a member of the Clash from 1983 until 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JB's Dudley</span> Nightclub and music venue in Dudley, West Midlands, England

JB's Dudley, usually known simply as JB's, was a nightclub and live music venue located on Castle Hill near the centre of Dudley, West Midlands. Originally opened on a different site in 1969, it claimed to be the longest-running live music venue in the United Kingdom, and hosted early performances by acts such as Dire Straits and U2.

Gig Records is an independent US record label founded in 1998 that operates out of Point Pleasant, New Jersey. Composed mostly of rock bands, Gig Records' roster also includes electronic artists, singer/songwriters, punk bands, and a movie soundtrack. The label's most notable acts are: Miles Hunt of The Wonderstuff, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, Blind Society, and The Vibrators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erica Nockalls</span> Musical artist

Erica Nockalls is an English violinist, vocalist, songwriter, and visual artist. She is best known as the violinist in The Wonder Stuff, one-half of acoustic duo Miles Hunt & Erica Nockalls, and as a live fiddle player for The Proclaimers. Nockalls is also the lead vocalist, violinist, and guitarist in her self-titled art-rock band.

<i>30 Goes Around the Sun</i> 2016 studio album by the Wonder Stuff

30 Goes Around the Sun is the eighth studio album to be recorded by English rock band the Wonder Stuff. It was released on 18 March 2016 through the label IRL. Following a line-up change in 2014, frontman Miles Hunt began writing for the band's next album in early 2015. After a two-month writing hiatus, they began jamming new songs with their sound engineer Simon Efemey at a rehearsal space in Stourbridge, West Midlands. Recording sessions were held at Mockingbird Studio in Stourbridge with Efemey as producer. 30 Goes Around the Sun is an alternative rock album; some of its songs recall the material on the band's earlier releases. Hunt had initially struggled to writer lyrics following writing a book based on his diaries.

<i>Escape from Rubbish Island</i> 2004 album by the Wonder Stuff

Escape from Rubbish Island is the fifth studio album by English rock band the Wonder Stuff, released on 27 September 2004, through the IRL record label. The band had broken up in 1994; they reformed in 2000 and had been playing shows sporadically over the next few years. Frontman Miles Hunt began making drum loops in his home studio, and his flatmate, former Radical Dance Faction member Mark McCarthy, added bass over them. An argument between Hunt and bandmate Martin Gilks resulted in the latter leaving, followed by violinist Martin Bell soon after. Hunt continued working on the tracks, recording at Vada Studios in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2004 with Matt Terry producing. The album saw a return to the band's rock sound of their early albums.

References

  1. "Life of Wonder is Miles better" Archived 2010-01-19 at the Wayback Machine , This is Derbyshire, June 27, 2008
  2. Roach, Martin (2006). The Eight Legged Atomic Dustbin Will Eat Itself. Independent Music Press. p. 107. ISBN   0-9549704-0-3.
  3. Ned's Atomic Dustbin
  4. 1 2 Hughes, Tim (6 June 2013). "The Wonder Stuff: Dizzy rascals". Oxford Mail . Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  5. Wilson, Jared (30 April 2006). "Miles Hunt Interview". LeftLion . Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  6. Young, Graham (25 June 2015). "The Twang and The Wonder Stuff to play one-off gig together". Birmingham Mail . Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  7. Ken Stavensoe Nielsen. "THE BILL HUNT HISTORY". 10538overture.dk. Retrieved 13 December 2023.