Primary (band)

Last updated

Primary
Origin Sydney, Australia
Genres Electronic rock
Years active1995–2003
Labels Warner
Past members
  • John Bousfield
  • Jamie Fonti
  • Sean Fonti
  • Connie Mitchell
  • Paul Wheeler
  • Justin Leef
  • Jason Howard

Primary were an Australian electronic rock band which formed in 1995 the Fonti brothers: Jamie on keyboards and Sean on bass guitar (both ex-Caligula), and Connie Mitchell on lead vocals. According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, the group were "Dominated by South African-born [Mitchell]'s hyperactive and full-frontal vocals, with thunderous electronic rock underpinning the music, Primary sounded like a techno Skunk Anansie. Jamie Fonti coined the phrase 'Hybrid Electronica Rock' in order to describe the band's sound." The group released two albums, This Is the Sound (June 1999) and Watching the World (28 May 2001). They disbanded late in 2003.

Contents

History

Primary was formed as a techno rock group in 1995 in Sydney by the Fonti brothers, Jamie on keyboards and Sean on bass guitar (both ex-Caligula), [1] and Connie Mitchell on lead vocals. [2] The Fontis had played in My Heart Bleeds for You, [1] a mid-1980s punk, hardcore band, then in Caligula from 1989 to 1994. Sean was also in Massappeal [1] (1988–90), and Def FX (1995–97). The Fonti brothers had met Mitchell in a recording studio in 1994, while they recorded demo tracks for Caligula. [3] When that project finished Jamie and Mitchell started writing tracks together while Sean was a member of Def FX. [3] Their first musical project was a contribution to the soundtrack of the 1997 Australian film Blackrock. [4] [5] [6]

Primary's first recording, a five-track extended play, Vicious Precious, [7] produced by Paul McKercher and Ollie J, was released in March 1998, [2] and featured Paul Wheeler (ex-Icehouse) on drums. [8] and John Bousfield on guitar. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1998, "Vicious Precious" was nominated for ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist – Single.

Nick Launay produced the band's first full-length album, This Is the Sound, which appeared in June that year on WEA/Warner. [2] Airplay for the lead-in singles had been confined to the Triple J network, [9] and the album peaked in the ARIA Albums Chart top 40. [10] Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, felt it was "an accomplished album that boasted state-of-the-art production values, and a batch of reverberating tracks." [2] He described how the group were "Dominated by South African-born [Mitchell]'s hyperactive and full-frontal vocals, with thunderous electronic rock underpinning the music, Primary sounded like a techno Skunk Anansie. Jamie Fonti coined the phrase 'Hybrid Electronica Rock' in order to describe the band's sound." [2]

Jason Howard replaced Bousfield on lead guitar and made his performance debut in April 1999. [2] They became known for their energetic live shows, with Mitchell's on-stage presence and costumes a talking point. Their second album, Watching the World, was released on 28 May 2001. [11] Australian music journalist, Ed Nimmervoll, declared it to be his Album of the Week: "they kept the focus on the songs. In the end Primary offer music with many layers of interest. [Mitchell]'s lyrics are a strong counterpoint to the depth of the band's music." [12]

The band announced on their website on 24 April 2002 that they were recording demos for a proposed third album. [13] The band eventually recorded enough material for another album, in a more straightforward rock sound, but the band broke up before it could be released. [14] They played a final gig in November 2003 at the Annandale Hotel. [15] Mitchell joined Sneaky Sound System in 2004 ahead of their self-titled album. [16]

Discography

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected chart positions
TitleAlbum detailsPeak chart positions
AUS
Top 100
[10] 		AUS
Australasian
 AUS
Alternative
This Is the Sound
  • Released: June 1999
  • Label: Warner (3984269762)
  • Format: CD
33——
Watching the World
  • Released: 28 May 2001
  • Label: Warner (8573878462)
  • Format: CD
—14 [17] 17 [17]

Extended plays

List of EP, with selected chart positions
TitleAlbum detailsPeak chart positions
AUS
[10]
Vicious Precious
  • Released: March 1998
  • Label: Warner (3984227292)
  • Format: CD
84

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions
TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
AUS Top 100
[10] 		AUS
Alternative
"Brasil"1997——Vicious Precious
"Vicious Precious"/"Brasil"1998——
"Young"/"This Is the Sound"199989—This Is the Sound
"Supposed to Be Here"72—
"In Your Hands"2000——Watching the World
"Not for Me"2001—17 [18]

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.

YearNominee / workAwardResultRef.
1998 "Vicious Precious" ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist - Single Nominated [19]
1999 Nick Launay for "Supposed to Be Here", "24000", "This Is the Sound" and "Come to Take You Home" ARIA Award for Producer of the Year Nominated [20]
ARIA Award for Engineer of the Year Won

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Kuepper</span> Australian musician

Edmund "Ed" Kuepper is a German-born Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded the punk band The Saints in 1973, the experimental post-punk group Laughing Clowns and the grunge-like The Aints!. He has also recorded over a dozen albums as a solo artist using a variety of backing bands. His highest charting solo album, Honey Steel's Gold, appeared in November 1991 and reached No. 28 on the ARIA Albums Chart. His other top 50 albums are Black Ticket Day, Serene Machine and Character Assassination. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1993 he won Best Independent Release for Black Ticket Day and won the same category in 1994 for Serene Machine.

Grinspoon are an Australian rock band from Lismore, New South Wales, formed in 1995 and fronted by Phil Jamieson on vocals and guitar with Pat Davern on guitar, Joe Hansen on bass guitar and Kristian Hopes on drums. Also in 1995, Grinspoon won the Triple J-sponsored Unearthed competition for Lismore, with their post-grunge song "Sickfest". The name "Grinspoon" was taken from Dr. Lester Grinspoon, an associate professor emeritus of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, who supported marijuana for medical use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Mark of Cain (band)</span> Australian indie rock band

The Mark of Cain are an alternative metal band from Adelaide, South Australia. Their style has been likened to that of Helmet and Rollins Band, yet this band pre-dates both groups and was influenced by the early work of Joy Division, Big Black and United States hardcore groups. The Mark of Cain were formed in mid-1984 by brothers, John (guitar) and Kim Scott, with Rod Archer on vocals and Gavin Atkinson playing drums. Before long, Archer had left the group and John Scott took on the lead vocal role and the group has remained a trio ever since. The Scotts have been the core of the band which has featured 15 different drummers. Since January 2001, former Helmet member John Stanier has been their drummer; he is also concurrently with Tomahawk and Battles. Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described the group's sound as "Gloomy, monotonous vocals and bleak slabs of metallic guitar did battle over a lurching rhythm section to arrive at a harsh sound." Rod Archer died on 26 February 2016. 2019 marks the 30th Anniversary of the release of the Battlesick album. A major national tour is planned to celebrate the occasion. Eli Green again tours with the band fulfilling the drumming duties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Died Pretty</span> Australian alternative rock band

Died Pretty, sometimes The Died Pretty, are an Australian alternative rock band founded by mainstays Ron Peno and Brett Myers in Sydney in 1983. The band was briefly called Final Solution. Their music started from a base of early electric Bob Dylan with psychedelic influences, including The Velvet Underground and Television. They were managed by John Needham, who is the owner of Citadel Records, their main label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Am I</span> Australian punk rock band

You Am I are an Australian power pop band, fronted by its lead singer-songwriter and guitarist, Tim Rogers. They formed in December 1989 and are the first Australian band to have released three successive albums that have each debuted at the number-one position on the ARIA Albums Chart: Hi Fi Way, Hourly, Daily and #4 Record. Nine of their tracks appeared on the related ARIA Singles Chart top 50 with "What I Don't Know 'bout You", their highest charting, at No. 28. You Am I have received ten ARIA Music Awards from thirty-one nominations. The band have supported international artists such as the Who, the Rolling Stones, Sonic Youth and Oasis.

Def FX was an Australian band created by Sean Lowry (keyboards) in 1990 and included Fiona Horne on lead vocals, Blake Gardiner on guitar and Martyn Basha on bass - the band had no drummer. They released four albums, Light Speed Collision, Baptism, Ritual Eternal, Majick before disbanding in April 1997. For United States releases and touring they used Definition FX as their band name to avoid confusion with similarly named groups.

<i>Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills</i> 2004 studio album by Grinspoon

Thrills, Kills + Sunday Pills is the fourth studio album by Australian alternative rock band, Grinspoon. It was released on 20 September 2004 by record label, Universal Music, with Howard Benson producing. On the ARIA Albums Chart it peaked at No. 4; ARIA certified the album as platinum for shipment of 70,000 units.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Barker</span> Australian musician

Nicholas Paul Barker is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist who formed a rock, power pop band, Nick Barker & the Reptiles, in March 1988. Their cover version of Cockney Rebel's "Make Me Smile " reached the top 30 on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Singles Chart in November 1989. They provided two top 40 albums on the related ARIA Albums Chart, Goin' to Pieces (1989) and After the Show (1991). He formed another group, Barker, in 1993, and their single, "Time Bomb", was listed at No. 20 on Triple J Hottest 100 for 1994. Barker then went solo from 1995.

<i>Twitch</i> (EP) 1996 EP by Jebediah

Twitch is an EP, and the first official release, by Australian alternative rock band Jebediah. It was released on 5 August 1996 by record label Murmur.

<i>No. 4 Record</i> 1998 studio album by You Am I

#4 Record or You Am I's #4 Album is the fourth studio album by Australian rock band, You Am I, which was released in April 1998. It reached No. 1 on the ARIA albums chart. It was the group's third consecutive album to debut at No. 1, a then-record by an Australian band. Its third single "Heavy Heart", is one of their well known songs and has been covered by different artists, Paul Kelly, Ben Lee, Lisa Mitchell, TZU, Courtney Barnett, and the Supersuckers.

Caligula are a band from Sydney, Australia, who produced electro rock music in the early 1990s. They're best known for their 1994 album, Rubenesque, which peaked at number 13 on the ARIA charts and became a household name with their hit version of Smokey Robinson’s Tears Of A Clown . They spent a big chunk of the 90’s touring with acts like Depeche Mode, Pop Will Eat Itself, Neds Atomic Dustbin, Ride, Headless Chickens and many more . The band reformed in 2017 and started recording and releasing new material in 2021. 3 new singles have been released to critical acclaim and the band has fast become a popular touring act again, sharing festival stages with the cream of the crop of success 90’s Aussie bands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feet Touch the Ground</span> 1999 single by Jebediah

"Feet Touch the Ground" is a song by Australian alternative rock band Jebediah. It was released on 22 November 1999 as the second single from the band's second studio album, Of Someday Shambles and peaked at number 73 on the ARIA Singles Chart and polled at number 28 on Triple J's Hottest 100 for 1999. The track was co-written by all four band members Chris Daymond, Brett Mitchell, Kevin Mitchell and Vanessa Thornton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connie Mitchell</span> Australian singer

Connie Thembi Mitchell, also known as Miss Connie, is a South African-born Australian singer. In 1995 she was a founding member of Primary. Briefly, in 2004, she was vocalist for Machine Gun Fellatio under the pseudonym Feyonce. Since mid-2005 Mitchell is the lead vocalist with Sneaky Sound System, appearing on their singles: "I Love It", "Pictures" (December), "UFO", "Goodbye" (October), "Kansas City", "When We Were Young" (November), "16" and "We Love".

The Black Sorrows are an Australian blues rock band formed in 1983 by mainstay vocalist Joe Camilleri, who also plays saxophone and guitar. Camilleri has used various line-ups to record 17 albums, with five reaching the top 20 on the ARIA Albums Charts: Hold on to Me, Harley and Rose, Better Times, The Chosen Ones - Greatest Hits and Lucky Charm. Their top 40 singles are "Chained to the Wheel", "Harley + Rose" and "Snake Skin Shoes".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mick Cocks</span> Musical artist

Michael Thomas Cocks, known professionally as Mick Cocks, was an Australian musician, most noted for his guitar and songwriting work with Rose Tattoo. His original sound and style heavily influenced Guns N' Roses, who recorded a cover of the Rose Tattoo song "Nice Boys". He was also a member of Heaven, The Headhunters, Illustrated Men, Doomfoxx, Pete Wells' Heart Attack, and the Ted Mulry Gang. On 16 August 2006, Rose Tattoo were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame.

John Howard Chester is an Australian singer-songwriter, who started his career in October 1959 with group The Jaywoods singing rock music and in 1969 changed to country music. He toured nationally with the Beatles, Roy Orbison, the Everly Brothers, Kenny Rogers, Johnny Cash, Tammy Wynette and Charley Pride. During his career he has led various groups including Johnny Chester and The Chessmen, Johnny Chester and Jigsaw, Johnny Chester and Hotspur. With Jigsaw he had five top 30 hit singles, "Gwen (Congratulations)" (1971), "Shame and Scandal", "Midnight Bus", "World's Greatest Mum" and "She's My Kind of Woman" (1974).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Farnham discography</span>

John Farnham, billed under stage name Johnny Farnham from 1964 until 1979, is a British-born Australian pop singer who has released 21 studio albums, 6 live albums, 3 soundtracks, 19 compilation albums, 13 video albums, 3 extended plays and 74 singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rose Tattoo discography</span>

The discography of Australian hard rock band Rose Tattoo includes seven studio albums, two live albums, seven compilation albums and nineteen singles.

Massappeal were an Australian hardcore punk band founded in early 1985 by mainstays, Brett Curotta (guitar), and Randy Reimann (vocals). Massapeal released four studio albums, Nobody Likes a Thinker (1986), Jazz (1989), The Mechanic (1992) and Nommo Anagonno (1994), before disbanding late in 1994.

The discography of Australian rock band Something for Kate, consists of seven studio albums, one live album, four compilation albums, three extended plays and 28 singles.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Caligula" (PDF). Semper Floreat . 1 November 1991. p. 46. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'Primary'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop . St Leonards, NSW: Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86508-072-1. Archived from the original on 9 August 2004. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Artists :: Primary". Australian Music Online. Archived from the original on 21 November 2005. Retrieved 5 April 2016– via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ Blackrock (1997) - Soundtracks - IMDb , retrieved 27 June 2023
  5. ↑ Metason. "Primary". ArtistInfo. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  6. ↑ "blackrock - Review - Photos - Ozmovies". www.ozmovies.com.au. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  7. ↑ Primary (2001), Vicious Precious, Warner, destra Media (Distributor), retrieved 5 April 2016– via National Library of Australia
  8. ↑ "Paul Wheeler". Yamaha Music Australia. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Eliezer, Christie (10 July 1999). "Global Music Pulse". Billboard . p. 55. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Australian (ARIA) chart peaks:
  11. ↑ "Watching the World by Primary". iTunes Store. 28 May 2001. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  12. ↑ Nimmervoll, Ed (25 May 2001). "Album of the Week: Primary – Watching the World". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music (Ed Nimmervoll). White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 26 January 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  13. ↑ "Primary: Watching the World out now!". Primary Official Website. Archived from the original on 11 February 2003. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  14. ↑ "Primary Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  15. ↑ Attlee, Mathew (2008). "Music News: November 2003". Aus Music Scrapbook. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
  16. ↑ Nimmervoll, Ed. "Sneaky Sound System". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music (Ed Nimmervoll). White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 26 January 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  17. 1 2 Watching the World: "The ARIA Report No. 590 – Week Commencing 18 June 2001" (PDF). Retrieved 10 July 2023– via Trove (original document published by ARIA). N.B. The HP column displays the highest peak reached.
  18. ↑ Not For Me: "The ARIA Report No. 587 – Week Commencing 28 May 2001" (PDF). Retrieved 10 July 2023– via Trove (original document published by ARIA). N.B. The HP column displays the highest peak reached.
  19. ↑ "1998 ARIA Awards Winners".
  20. ↑ "1999 ARIA Awards Winners".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.