Saint Lu

Last updated

Saint Lu
Amadeus Award 2010 entree Saint Lu 2.jpg
Background information
Birth nameLuise Gruber
Also known asLuise
Born (1982-06-27) 27 June 1982 (age 42)
Wels, Austria
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active2003–present
Website www.saintlu.com

Luise Gruber (born 27 June 1982 in Wels, Austria), better known by her stage name Saint Lu is an Austrian singer and songwriter. She currently lives and works in Berlin, Germany.

Contents

Recording career

Luise Gruber was a member of many short-living bands, including the school band "Joe Graham", the Big Band Neuhofen the show band "Connection" and the rock band "Djaleb". She has also mentioned in an interview that she has been a member of several metal and jazz bands.

In 1998, she was part of a rock band called Luise Gruber & Zentao, which was later renamed Centao. Soon after the recording of the first demos, Gruber left the band. Two demos were recorded—"Pop 33, 34," a split tape with the band "Sick Orange," and "Promo '000."

In 2003, she was a part of the casting show "Starmania", where she ended tenth. She has recorded some cover songs for the compilation albums of the show. Soon after Starmania, she started working as a singing teacher at the music school "CreatiV". [1]

In 2005, she has released her debut EP "One Step Closer" via "AGENTUR NETZWERK records" under the name Luise. [2] The EP includes three tracks, two of which were written by Gruber ("Why Are You Under My Skin?" and "Left to Heaven") and the third one (Amazing Grace) is a traditional gospel song produced by The Alphabet. The EP saw no success. It is currently out of print and cannot be found at the regular stores or as a digital download. "Why Are You Under My Skin" was planned to be released as the first single from the EP.

In 2009 Warner Bros. Records signed her under the pseudonym Saint Lu. Her debut album "Saint Lu" was released on 20 November 2009. It includes songs, written or co-written by Gruber, a mixture of 70s Blues and Rock music. Critically acclaimed, the album failed to get into the top 20 in Austria, charting on place 30. Two singles were released after the release of the album: Don't Miss Your Own Life and Here I stand . In 2010 she performed two songs for the Austrian comedy series "Wir Sind Kaiser", called "Kaiserhymne" and "Heroes". [3]

Gruber's second album, called "2", was recorded in 2012, and scheduled for release in early 2013. The album is noteworthy for its music direction change, from the blues and rock of its predecessor toward a more soul-oriented aesthetic. One of the songs from her second album, called "Falling For Your Love" written by Gruber with Jimmy Messer and Roxanne Seeman, was premiered on YouTube. Luise Gruber is taking part of the Eurovision Song Contest for 2013 with another song from her yet to be released second album, called Craving, which was released on 1 February 2013 as a digital download. A third song, "No One Loves You Like I Do", is available as a free download on her official website. Gruber confirmed on her official Facebook page, that her new album "2" and was released on 15 February 2013.

Influences

Gruber's biggest musical influences are Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix along with other 60s and 70s Blues/Rock artists.

Awards

In 2011 Saint Lu won a European Border Breakers Award at the European Border Breakers Award Ceremony at the Eurosonic Noorderslag Festival in the Netherlands for her international success. [4]

Discography

Albums

EPs

Singles

YearTitleChart PositionsAlbum
AT Singles GER Singles CH Singles
2005"Why Are You Under My Skin?" [10] One Step Closer
2009"Don't Miss Your Own Life"4280 [11] Saint Lu
2010"Here I Stand"34
"Rockstar Car"
2013"Craving"88 2

Other songs

Luise Gruber & Zentao (also known as Centao) [12] [13]

Starmania

Related Research Articles

VAST is an American alternative rock band based in Seattle, United States. The acronym VAST stands for Visual Audio Sensory Theater and is the main creation of singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jon Crosby. The band is signed to 2blossoms, an independent record company created by Crosby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emery (band)</span> American post-hardcore band

Emery is an American post-hardcore band formed in Rock Hill, South Carolina, in 2001 by Toby Morrell, Devin Shelton, Matt Carter, Josh Head, Joel Green, and Seth Studley. The band relocated to Seattle in order to reach a more music-centered scene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robyn Hitchcock</span> English singer-songwriter and guitarist

Robyn Rowan Hitchcock is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano, and bass guitar. After leading the Soft Boys in the late 1970s and releasing the influential Underwater Moonlight, Hitchcock launched a prolific solo career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pale Saints</span> English alternative rock band

Pale Saints were an English alternative rock and shoegazing band formed in 1987 in Leeds by singer-bassist Ian Masters, guitarist Graeme Naysmith and drummer Chris Cooper.

Poor Old Lu was a pioneering Christian alternative rock band based in the American Northwest. The band experimented with a variety of sounds and genres, particularly grunge, funk and psychedelic rock. The band consisted of Scott Hunter (vocals), Jesse Sprinkle (drums), Aaron Sprinkle (guitar), and Nick Barber (bass). Hunter was the lyricist who wrote on philosophical, metaphorical, and spiritually oriented topics. Common themes in the lyrics include introspective struggles with identity and spirituality, struggles with a superficial, secular, and modern society, and hope for life abundant. The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music calls the band "One of the most accomplished and creative Christian bands of the '90s".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michale Graves</span> American singer

Michael Emanuel, better known by his stage name Michale Graves, is an American singer. He is best known as the lead vocalist for the 1990s re-incarnation of the horror punk band Misfits from 1995 to 2000, leaving briefly in 1998. He has also released several albums as a solo artist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mumm-Ra (band)</span> English indie rock band

Mumm-Ra are an English indie rock band, formed in Bexhill on Sea in the early 2000s. The band's name is borrowed from the 1980s cartoon, ThunderCats, whose main villain is named Mumm-Ra the Ever-Living. The group consists of vocalist, keyboard player, and occasional guitarist James New, guitarists James Arguile and Oli Frost, bassist Niall Buckler, and drummer Gareth Jennings. Keyboard player Tommy Bowen joined in 2006 as a touring member, before being made a fully fledged member in their 2012 reunion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louise Post</span> American singer and guitarist

Louise Lightner Post is an American musician. She is best known for being a vocalist and guitarist of the alternative rock band Veruca Salt, which she co-founded with Nina Gordon in 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morgan Finlay</span> Musical artist

Morgan Finlay is a Canadian singer-songwriter from North Vancouver, British Columbia, and based for much of his career in Toronto, Ontario. Finlay has released eight recordings in Europe and Canada, including one duo album recorded with Christoph Schellhorn as MFCS. Finlay's first-ever single "zensong" reached No. 2 on the Australian Independent Radio Charts in 2004. His latest solo album New Harbour was written and recorded in New Harbour, Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland and Chemnitz, Germany and was released on December 1, 2015.

"Don't Let It Bring You Down" is the seventh track on Neil Young's 1970 studio album After the Gold Rush.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miss You in a Heartbeat</span> 1993 single by Def Leppard

"Miss You in a Heartbeat" is a song by English hard rock band Def Leppard, released in December 1993 by Mercury Records from their 1993 compilation album Retro Active. The single peaked at number 39 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was Def Leppard's last American top 40 single to date.

Starmania is an Austrian casting show/talent show for would-be pop stars. It is broadcast on the Austrian TV channel ORF 1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">There for Tomorrow</span> American rock band

There for Tomorrow was an American rock band that was originally formed in Orlando, Florida in February of 2003. The original group consisted of: Vocalist Maika Maile, drummer Chris Kamrada, guitarist James Flaherty, and bassist Jay Enriquez. Christian Climer joined the band in 2006 when the band was looking for a new member after James left in 2005. The band was influenced by bands such as Jimmy Eat World, Third Eye Blind, Blink-182, and the Hives.

The television show Instant Star has produced a series of soundtracks featuring songs from the show, mostly performed by Alexz Johnson, released between 2005 and 2009.

<i>Saint Lu</i> (album) 2009 studio album by Saint Lu

Saint Lu is the debut album by the Austrian singer-songwriter Luise Gruber, better known as Saint Lu. It features collaborations with the guitarist Peter Weihe. The album was critically acclaimed, but failed to chart higher than #30 in Austria.

Raven Quinn is an American musician, singer and songwriter. Her first self-titled album was released March 4, 2010. Quinn released the title track "Not In Vain" from her sophomore album on October 31, 2013, with the full second album Not In Vain seeing release on October 6, 2014. On December 8, 2015, Raven Quinn released The Acoustic EP, containing acoustic versions of songs from her first two albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Downtown Fiction</span> American pop punk band

The Downtown Fiction was an American rock band from Fairfax, Virginia. The band consisted of guitarist and lead vocalist Cameron Leahy, bassist and backing vocalist David Pavluk, guitarist and backing vocalist Wes Dimond, and drummer Kyle Rodgers.

<i>One Step Closer</i> (EP) 2004 EP by Luise Gruber

One Step Closer is the official debut release by the Austrian blues-rock singer Luise Gruber, better known as Saint Lu, released mononymously under the name Luise. It was released by the Austrian independent label "Agentur Netzwerk" in 2004. The EP contains three tracks, two of which were written by Gruber herself. The third one is a cover version of the traditional gospel song "Amazing Grace". Although the name of the EP is "One Step Closer", it does not contain a song, named "One Step Closer". Gruber mentioned in an interview, that she called the EP this way because that is "one step closer" in her career as a musician. The EP differs from the sounding of her studio albums Saint Lu and 2, showing a more pop-rock oriented sound. The EP saw no success. It is currently out of print and cannot be found at the regular stores or as a digital download.

<i>2</i> (Saint Lu album) 2013 studio album by Saint Lu

2 is the second full-length album by the Austrian singer-songwriter Luise Gruber, better known as Saint Lu. The album is noteworthy for its music direction change, from the blues and rock of its predecessor toward a more soul-oriented aesthetic with elements of funk, jazz and baroque pop. The album was released on 15 February 2013 via Warner Music. The album was intended to accompany Saint Lu's representation of Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö but the selection jury in Hannover selected Cascada instead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opāru (musician)</span> American musician and singer

Dianna Marie St. Hilaire, better known as Opāru, is an American actor, singer and composer from Los Angeles, California. She was born in Modesto, California and grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Her genre is Dark Electro Pop, Pop, and Ethereal.

References

  1. "Luise Gruber – Gesang". CreatiV Musikschulzentrum. Archived from the original on 26 November 2013.
  2. "Luise – One Step Closer". AGENTUR NETZWERK. Archived from the original on 14 April 2011.
  3. "Luise Gruber at imdb". IMDb.
  4. "Winners of the 2011 European Border Breakers Awards" Archived 22 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine , European Commission. Retrieved 20 February 2012
  5. 1 2 "musicline.de: Longplay-Chartverfolgung – Saint Lu". Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 5 October 2013.
  6. "Saint Lu – 2". Amazon.com.
  7. "Luise Gruber – One Step Closer EP". rateyourmusic.
  8. "Luise Gruber – One Step Closer EP". Musik-Sammler.
  9. "2 acoustic EP". Amazon.com.
  10. "Luise Gruber wants to release 'Why Are You Under My Skin' as the first single". news.at. Archived from the original on 19 February 2013.
  11. musicline.de: Single-Chartverfolgung – Saint Lu
  12. "Luise Gruber & Zentao demo". SRA.at.
  13. "Centao demo". SRA.at.