Pale Waves | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Manchester, England |
Genres | |
Years active | 2014–present |
Labels | |
Members |
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Past members |
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Website | www |
Pale Waves are an English rock band from Manchester, formed in 2014. Lead singer and guitarist Heather Baron-Gracie met drummer Ciara Doran while attending university in Manchester and they formed a band. Guitarist Hugo Silvani and bassist Charlie Wood soon joined and completed the lineup. [1] The band's early work is often described as 80s-inspired indie rock or synth-pop; their second and third albums, however, owe more to the pop-punk genre.
After signing a record deal with Dirty Hit in 2017, Pale Waves released their debut single, "There's a Honey", followed by "Television Romance". In 2018, the band were ranked fifth in the BBC Sound of 2018 poll and won the NME Under the Radar Award at the NME Awards. Pale Waves' debut EP, All the Things I Never Said , was released in February 2018, followed by their albums, My Mind Makes Noises , (2018), Who Am I? (2021), and Unwanted (2022). The band's fourth album, Smitten , was released on 27 September 2024.
Pale Waves formed in 2014 when drummer Ciara Doran met Heather Baron-Gracie while attending BIMM Manchester. [2] [3] The two originally named their group "Creek", [4] but they soon changed it to "Pale Waves", basing the name on a painting Baron-Gracie's grandmother had created. [5] Doran and Baron-Gracie initially enlisted second guitarist Ben Bateman and bassist Ryan Marsden to complete the lineup. Later that year both members were asked to leave and departed from the band shortly thereafter, with current bassist Charlie Wood and second guitarist Hugo Silvani replacing them. [6] [7] The band recorded early demos with production team Sugar House that were released in 2015. These tracks caught the attention of XFM radio broadcaster John Kennedy, who referred them to the independent record label Dirty Hit. [8] Pale Waves was subsequently signed to the label in 2017. [7]
The band's first single under Dirty Hit, "There's a Honey", was released on 21 April 2017 to widespread acclaim. [9] On 1 June 2017, the band played a sold-out show at Madison Square Garden supporting The 1975 on their North American tour. [10] The band's second single, "Television Romance", was released on 16 August 2017, [11] with its music video directed by The 1975 lead singer Matty Healy. [12] Healy later appeared on the cover of NME with Baron-Gracie for the 20 October 2017 issue of the magazine. [13] Pale Waves embarked on their first North American headlining tour in November and December 2017, playing 21 shows over four weeks. [14]
The band headlined DIY magazine's Class of 2018 shortlist for its December/January issue. [15] On 7 November 2017, the band released the single "New Year's Eve", [14] [16] followed by "My Obsession" on 13 December 2017. [17]
Baron-Gracie announced on 4 January 2018 via Twitter that the band had started recording their debut album. [18] On 8 January, it was announced that the band had been placed fifth in the BBC Sound of 2018 poll. [19] Speaking to the BBC, Baron-Gracie talked about how the band's debut album is shaping up and its darker tone: "The songs we have out now are very influenced by romance. The album is me talking about a lot of my darker issues. I talk about a lot of things that go on in my mind rather than in my heart". [19] "The Tide", the first song written by the band, was released on 1 February 2018 as the third single from the band's then-upcoming debut extended play (EP), All the Things I Never Said . [20] [21]
Pale Waves won the NME Under the Radar Award at the NME Awards 2018, and performed "There's a Honey" at the ceremony at London's O2 Academy Brixton on 14 February 2018. [22] The band also received a nomination for Best Video for "Television Romance", [23] but lost out to The Big Moon. [24]
Pale Waves' debut EP, All the Things I Never Said, was released digitally on 20 February 2018, [25] [26] followed by a 12-inch vinyl release on 16 March 2018. [27] On 6 April 2018, it was announced that the band had signed to Interscope Records in a joint venture with Dirty Hit to release music in the United States. [28] The third single from the band's debut album, "Kiss", following "There's a Honey" and "Television Romance", was released on 15 May 2018. "Noises" was released as the fourth single on 28 June 2018.
In an interview with NME magazine in early September 2018 the band revealed they are working on a new EP following the debut album. Baron-Gracie discussed how the new EP will lean towards "pop punk and rock'n'roll" and will touch on themes such as politics, acceptance and sexuality. [29] The band's debut album, My Mind Makes Noises, was released on 14 September 2018 and reached number eight on the UK Albums Chart. [30]
Speaking to NME while at Radio 1's Big Weekend in May 2019, Baron-Gracie updated on the progress of the EP, saying the band "[had] so many songs" and that they would cut the amount to "five or six tracks" with the remainder that "will probably go on the album". [31] However, in September 2019 the band reported they will no longer be doing an EP, rather "diving deep into the second album". [32] On 17 October 2019 the band won the Q Best Breakthrough Act at the Q Awards 2019. [33]
In January 2020 Pale Waves released the song "SkinDeepSkyHighHeartWide" in collaboration with Lawrence Rothman for The Turning official motion picture soundtrack. [34] A few months later, in March 2020, the band were involved in a road accident on their way to support Halsey in Berlin. The group's tour bus rolled off the road, leaving them trapped in the bus. Minor injuries were sustained in the accident and the tour bus burnt out. Ciara Doran on Instagram described the incident, "We honestly thought we were going to die. The injuries will heal but this will stay with me and everyone involved for forever." [35]
The band's second album, Who Am I? , was announced on 10 November 2020 along with its lead single "Change", which was named as Annie Mac's Hottest Record in the World. [36] Baron-Gracie and Doran, both of whom are members of the LGBTQ+ community, aimed for the album to be "a voice for LGBTQ+ people". The album was partially recorded in Los Angeles with Rich Costey though COVID-19 restrictions forced the band to return to the U.K. and finish the remainder of the album remotely. Of making an album during the pandemic, Baron-Gracie confessed that "for me, music and art is for people not to feel so alone and isolated. I want to be that person my fans look up to and find comfort in." [37] Who Am I? was released on 12 February 2021 and reached number 3 on UK Albums Chart. [38]
The band's third studio album, Unwanted , was released on 12 August 2022. [39] It was supported by singles "Lies", "Reasons to Live", "Jealousy", "The Hard Way", and "Clean", all of which were released during the spring and summer months of 2022. Taking heavy inspiration from the likes of Paramore, [40] Courtney Love, and Liz Phair, [41] the album was a pivot into pop-punk, deviating further from their indie-pop and dream-pop roots.
The following month, in September 2022, Pale Waves went on to perform shows in North America, and were set to complete touring on October 7; however, on September 20, the remaining dates in the United States were canceled due to safety concerns over their tour bus. [42] In November, the band played various shows in the United Kingdom and Japan. [43] [44]
In June 2024, the band announced that its fourth studio album, Smitten , would be released on 27 September 2024. [45] [46] The album was preceded by the singles "Perfume", "Glasgow", "Gravity", and "Thinking About You". [47] [48] [49] [50]
Pale Waves have been described as indie pop, [51] [52] indie rock, [53] [54] synth-pop, [55] [56] goth-pop, [57] pop-punk, [53] [58] pop rock, [59] [60] dream pop, [54] and pop. [61] The band have cited artists such as The Blue Nile, Prince, The Cranberries, Cocteau Twins, The 1975, Alanis Morissette and Avril Lavigne as influences. [62] [63] [64] [65] [66] Baron-Gracie has stated, "I love a lot of '80s artists like Prince and Madonna. 'Purple Rain' is one of my favorite songs of all time. But I love The Cure. I love songs that give you melodies that you can sing at any time, but within those melodies, there are things that break your heart." [67] In an interview with The Irish Times , Baron-Gracie cited Dolores O'Riordan as her main vocal influence, saying: "I love The Cranberries. They were amazing. I definitely looked up to Dolores O’Riordan. She has one of my favourite voices of all time. She gave off that attitude – she was totally herself. I loved her fashion sense, she was such a cool person". [68]
For their second album, Who Am I?, Baron-Gracie cited country artists The Chicks and Kacey Musgraves as influences, particularly on "the melodic side of [the] record." [69] Their third album, Unwanted , was inspired by female rock artists Courtney Love and Liz Phair, and pop-punk band Paramore. [41]
Current members
| Former members
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Timeline
Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK [38] | UK Indie [38] | IRE [70] | JPN [71] | JPN Hot [72] | SCO [38] | US Heat [73] | US Sales [74] | |||
My Mind Makes Noises |
| 8 | 1 | 61 | 52 | 63 | 8 | 1 | 39 | |
Who Am I? |
| 3 | 1 | 86 | 142 | 88 | 2 | — | — |
|
Unwanted |
| 4 | 1 | — | 166 | [A] | 2 | — | — |
|
Smitten |
| 13 | 3 | — | — | [B] | 4 | — | — |
Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |
---|---|---|---|
UK Phys [38] | UK Vinyl [38] | ||
All the Things I Never Said |
| 1 | 1 |
Deezer Sessions |
| — | — |
Apple Music Home Session |
| — | — |
Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK Phys [38] | UK Vinyl [38] | UK Air. [87] | BEL (FL) [88] | BEL (WA) [89] | JPN [90] | JPN Over. [91] | SCO [92] | ||||||||
"Television Romance" / "There's a Honey" [C] | 2017 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 83 | My Mind Makes Noises | |||||
"New Year's Eve" [D] | 3 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | 33 | All the Things I Never Said | ||||||
"My Obsession" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
"The Tide" | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
"Heavenly" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
"Kiss" | — | — | — | — [E] | — [F] | — | — | — | My Mind Makes Noises | ||||||
"Noises" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
"Eighteen" | — | — | 46 | — | — | 55 | 2 | — | |||||||
"Black" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
"One More Time" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
"Change" | 2020 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Who Am I? | |||||
"She's My Religion" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Easy" | 2021 | — | — | 43 | — | — | — | — | × | ||||||
"You Don't Own Me" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Fall to Pieces" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Lies" | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | Unwanted | |||||
"Reasons to Live" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Jealousy" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"The Hard Way" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Clean" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Perfume" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 13 | × | Smitten | |||||
"Glasgow" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Gravity" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Thinking About You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"Kiss Me Again" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | × | |||||||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. "×" denotes periods where charts did not exist or were not archived. |
Song | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK Down [96] | UK Sales [97] | US Alt [98] | US Alt Digi. [99] | CZE [100] | |||
"SkinDeepSkyHighHeartWide" [34] (Lawrence Rothman featuring Pale Waves) | 2020 | — | — | — | — | — | The Turning: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack |
"SkinDeepSkyHighHeartWide" (Asmara Remix) [101] (Lawrence Rothman and Nguzunguzu featuring Pale Waves) | — | — | — | — | — | KRO Remixes Vol. 1 | |
"PMA" [102] (All Time Low featuring Pale Waves) | 2021 | 77 | 78 | — | 22 | — | — |
"Unlovable" [103] (Beach Weather featuring Pale Waves) | 2023 | — | — | 11 | — | 7 | |
"She's So Cool" [104] (Bruses featuring Pale Waves) | — | — | — | — | — |
Title | Year | For |
---|---|---|
"One More Time" (Re-recording) | 2018 | Spotify Singles |
"22" (Taylor Swift cover) | ||
"Last Christmas" (Wham! cover) | ||
"Faith" (George Michael cover) | 2021 | George Michael Covered |
Title | Year | Director |
---|---|---|
"There's a Honey" | 2017 | Silent Tapes [105] |
"Television Romance" | Samuel Burgess-Johnson and Matty Healy [106] | |
"New Year's Eve" | Stephen Agnew [67] [107] | |
"My Obsession" | ||
"The Tide" | 2018 | Andy Deluca [108] |
"Heavenly" | Adam Powell [109] | |
"Kiss" | Robert Hales [110] | |
"Noises" | Gareth Phillips [111] | |
"Eighteen" | Adam Powell [112] | |
"One More Time" | Sophia + Robert [113] | |
"Change" | 2020 | Johnny Goddard [114] |
"She's My Religion" | Jess Kohl [115] | |
"Easy" | 2021 | James Slater [116] |
"You Don't Own Me" | Heather Baron-Gracie and Kelsi Luck [117] | |
"Fall To Pieces" | Callum Lloyd-James [118] | |
"Lies" | 2022 | Vasilisa Forbes [119] [120] |
"Jealousy" | ||
"Reasons to Live" | Kelsi Luck [121] | |
"Clean" | Vasilisa Forbes [122] | |
"Unwanted" | Pale Waves [123] | |
"Perfume" | 2024 | Georgie Cowan-Turner [124] |
"Glasgow" | Heather Baron-Gracie [125] | |
"Gravity" | Georgie Cowan-Turner [126] | |
"Thinking About You" | Kelsi Luck [127] |
Year | Organisation | Award | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | Vevo | dscvr Artists to Watch 2018 | Pale Waves | Included | [128] |
DIY | Class of 2018 | First | [15] | ||
2018 | Alternative Press | 18 Artists to Watch in 2018 | Included | [129] | |
Clash | 18 for '18 | Included | [130] | ||
BBC | Sound of 2018 | Fifth | [19] | ||
MTV UK | MTV Brand New 2018 | Nominated | [131] | ||
NME | The NME 100 | Included | [132] | ||
NME Awards | Best Video | "Television Romance" | Nominated | [23] | |
NME Under the Radar | Pale Waves | Won | [22] | ||
2019 | Q Awards | Q Best Breakthrough Act | Won | [33] | |
2021 | Popjustice £20 Music Prize | Best British Pop Single | "She's My Religion" | Nominated | [133] |
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"Television Romance" is a song by the English indie pop band Pale Waves, released on 16 August 2017 to promote their debut album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018). The song, written by Heather Baron-Gracie and Ciara Doran and produced by Matty Healy and George Daniel of the 1975, was inspired by an incident in which Baron-Gracie had to bluntly rebuff a hopeful suitor who was oblivious to her disinterest. The band also released a video for the song; directed by Healy and Samuel Burgess-Johnson, it features the band performing the song in a Manchester flat.
All the Things I Never Said is the debut extended play (EP) by English indie pop band Pale Waves. It was released on 20 February 2018 by Dirty Hit. All the Things I Never Said includes reworked versions of the band's early demos, "The Tide" and "Heavenly", alongside the newer songs, "New Year's Eve" and "My Obsession".
"There's a Honey" is the debut single by English indie pop band Pale Waves. The track was released through Dirty Hit on 20 February 2017 as the lead single for their debut studio album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018). Written by Pale Waves members Heather Baron-Gracie and Ciara Doran, the track's production was handled by the 1975 band members, Matty Healy and George Daniel. Lyrically, the song discusses insecurities and doubt in a romantic relationship. A music video for "There's a Honey", directed by Silent Tapes, was released on 11 April 2017. The video is performance based and took visual inspiration from the American sculptor Daniel Wurtzel.
"Kiss" is a song by English indie pop band Pale Waves from their debut studio album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018). It was released as the album's third single on 15 May 2018 by Dirty Hit.
My Mind Makes Noises is the debut studio album by English indie pop band Pale Waves, released on 14 September 2018 by the independent record label Dirty Hit. With the exception of the album's singles "There's a Honey" and "Television Romance", the songs on My Mind Makes Noises were produced by Jonathan Gilmore, with Pale Waves' drummer, Ciara Doran, providing additional production. The 1975's George Daniel and Matty Healy produced "Television Romance" and There's a Honey".
"Eighteen" is a song by English indie pop band Pale Waves from their debut studio album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018). It was released as the album's fifth single on 24 July 2018 by Dirty Hit.
Gracie Madigan Abrams is an American singer-songwriter. She signed with Interscope Records to release two extended plays, Minor (2020) and This Is What It Feels Like (2021). After performing as an opening act on Olivia Rodrigo's Sour Tour, Abrams released her debut studio album, Good Riddance (2023), which moderately entered the Billboard 200. Throughout 2023, she performed as an opening act for Taylor Swift on her Eras Tour, and received a nomination for Best New Artist at the 66th Grammy Awards. In late 2023, Abrams was featured on a remix of the song "Everywhere, Everything" by Noah Kahan, marking her first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. Abrams' second album, The Secret of Us, was released on June 21, 2024, to favorable reviews and commercial success, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200.
Who Am I? is the second studio album by English indie pop band Pale Waves. It was released on 12 February 2021 by the independent record label Dirty Hit. The record was produced by Rich Costey and recorded in Los Angeles. While the band's previous album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018), took inspiration from 1980s synth pop, Who Am I? was inspired by female pop and rock musicians from the 1990s and early 2000s, including acts like Avril Lavigne, Liz Phair, Michelle Branch, Alanis Morissette, and Courtney Love.
"She's My Religion" is a song by indie pop band Pale Waves. It was released 15 December 2020 as the second single from the group's second studio album, Who Am I?
"Change" is a song by indie pop band Pale Waves. Released 10 November 2020, it served as the lead single from their second studio album, Who Am I?
"Easy" is a song by indie pop band Pale Waves. Released 13 January 2021, it served as the third single from their second studio album, Who Am I?
Heather Baron-Gracie is a British singer, songwriter, and musician, best known as the guitarist and vocalist for the indie rock band Pale Waves.
Unwanted is the third studio album by English rock band Pale Waves. It was released on 12 August 2022 by the independent record label Dirty Hit. The record was produced by Zakk Cervini and recorded in Los Angeles. Production for the record began roughly half a year after Pale Waves released their second album, Who Am I? (2021), with the quick turnaround due in large part to the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevented the band from touring. Indebted to the pop-punk genre, Unwanted was intended to be heavier and more aggressive than the band's previous work.
"Jealousy" is a pop-punk song by the English band Pale Waves, released on 27 June 2022 as the third single from the album Unwanted (2022). The song was written by Pale Waves's frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie and the singer-songwriter Whakaio Taahi. A music video for the song, directed by the visual artist Vasilisa Forbes was also released.
"Noises" is a song by English indie pop band Pale Waves from their debut studio album, My Mind Makes Noises (2018). It was released as the album's fourth single on 28 June 2018 by Dirty Hit.
Smitten is the fourth studio album by English rock band Pale Waves. It was released on 27 September 2024 by independent record label Dirty Hit. Co-produced by Simon Oscroft, Iain Berryman, and Hugo Silvani, Smitten recorded in both Los Angeles and London, with production beginning in late 2023. Unlike the band's previous albums Who Am I? (2021) and Unwanted (2022), Smitten marked a return to the band's earlier jangle-inspired synth-pop sound.
"Perfume" is a song by the English band Pale Waves, released on 12 June 2024 as the lead single from their album Smitten (2024). The song was written by Pale Waves's frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie and producer Simon Oscroft. A music video for the song, directed by Georgie Cowan-Turner was also released. The single later peaked at number 13 on Billboard Japan's "Hot Overseas" single chart.
I think at the time, I was still listening to a lot of Liz Phair. I feel like there's a lot of elements of Hole and Courtney Love on this record in the sense of anger and angst.
Pale Waves often cite inspirations such as The Cure (for whom they're opening in London this July), Prince and Madonna. There are also guilty pleasures. "I love Avril Lavigne!" Baron-Gracie geeks
Heavily influenced by The Cure, The Cranberries, Cocteau Twins, and Avril Lavigne, Pale Waves are the next goth pop band
Drawing inspiration from 80's punk bands like The Cure and stylistic aspirations from early punk rock princess Avril Lavigne, Pale Waves are creating their own musical identity
We [i.e., Pale Waves] shot this video whilst on tour with 5 Seconds of Summer in the states [ sic ].