The High Llamas | |
---|---|
![]() The High Llamas performing in 2008. From left: Murcott (obscured), Holdaway, Allum, O'Hagan, Fell (obscured) and Aves. | |
Background information | |
Origin | London, England |
Genres | |
Years active | c. 1991–present |
Labels | |
Spinoff of | Microdisney |
Members |
|
Past members |
|
Website | highllamas |
The High Llamas are an Anglo-Irish avant-pop band formed in London circa 1991. [5] They were founded by singer-songwriter Sean O'Hagan, formerly of Microdisney, with drummer Rob Allum and ex-Microdisney bassist Jon Fell. O'Hagan has led the group since its formation. Their music is often compared to the Beach Boys, a band he acknowledges as an influence, although more prominent influences were drawn from bossa nova and European film soundtracks.
O'Hagan formed the High Llamas after the breakup of his group Microdisney. The band initially played in a more conventional acoustic pop style, but after he joined Stereolab as a keyboardist, he was inspired to revamp the group's music closer to the electronic and orchestral sound he preferred. Their second album, Gideon Gaye (1994), anticipated the mid 1990s easy-listening revivalist movement, and its follow-up Hawaii (1996) nearly led to a collaboration with the Beach Boys.
In 1988, the Irish band Microdisney, led by Sean O'Hagan and Cathal Coughlan, broke up. To support himself, O'Hagan briefly worked as a rock music journalist, and in 1990, released a solo album titled High Llamas. The name came from a picture of a Victorian era hot-air balloon that he saw in a magazine. [6] Around 1991 [5] or 1992, the name was recycled for a new band formed by Sean O'Hagan, Marcus Holdaway, Jon Fell and Rob Allum. They could not afford to record a full album, and instead released an EP, titled Apricots. Under a French label, the EP was reissued with two additional tracks, which became the LP Santa Barbara. [6]
At this point, the band's style was conventional guitar pop, O'Hagan said, "I was quite happy with what we were doing, [but] there wasn't really anything remarkable about it, and it wasn't really the kind of music that I enjoyed listening to ... [which was] the Beach Boys ... the Left Banke, Van Dyke Parks ... a lot of soundtrack music like John Barry, and electronic experimental music like Kraftwerk and Neu!." [4] He also mentioned his frustration with the state of modern rock music, calling it "the most conformist, corporate thing out there." [4] For "years", he said, he "was bored shitless by guitar rock ... From looking at the Beach Boys, I saw the Martin Denny thing [and] the early Yellow Magic Orchestra thing. These people were investigating harmonies in really interesting, nearly orchestral ways, but they were using subversive sounds to do it." [7] The A.V. Club writer Noel Murray remarked that without the Beach Boys' 1968 album Friends , "the High Llamas probably wouldn't exist." [8]
After attending a Stereolab concert in the early 1990s, O'Hagan met the band's founders Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier. He became their keyboardist, initially as a temporary replacement, but O'Hagan was "allowed to make suggestions and the fun started." [9] His first record appearance was on the EP Space Age Bachelor Pad Music (1993), [10] and he remained a full-time member of the band until Mars Audiac Quintet (1994). [11] Influenced by his time with Gane, [9] O'Hagan decided to revamp his creative aspirations for the High Llamas. [4] In a 1997 article, O'Hagan spoke of the Beach Boys' 1966 album Pet Sounds as "the beginning of the great pop experiment, [before] rock and roll got hold of the whole thing and stopped it," and intended his new band to carry on in a similar tradition. [12] He continued to make guest appearances on later Stereolab releases. [11] Visser departed the group and was replaced by guitarist John Bennett. [5]
In 1994, the High Llamas released Gideon Gaye , an album that reached 94 on the UK Albums Chart for a one-week stay. [13] It was recorded with a £4000 budget [14] in the span of a few months, [6] and anticipated the mid 1990s easy-listening fad. [15] The album received press coverage from magazines such as Q , Mojo and NME , [16] but only received substantial sales and acclaim after being rereleased a year later. [14] It was first reissued on the band's Alpaca Parks imprint, then by Delmore Recordings in the United States, and once more by the major label Epic Records. [4] British music journalists praised Gideon Gaye, but AllMusic critic Richie Unterberger stated that the album was released "almost as an afterthought [in the US], with virtually no fanfare." [17] Also in 1994, the High Llamas accompanied Arthur Lee, co-founder of the 1960s band Love, as his backing band for a brief concert tour. [14]
Although the shorthand description of the High Llamas usually involves phrases like "shameless Brian Wilson imitators," that's never really been the case. Even on their most overtly Pet Sounds-influenced album, 1994's Gideon Gaye, other influences, such as Brazilian bossa nova and European film soundtracks, are obvious.
Gideon Gaye was well-received from within the record industry, and it became a commonly recommended album among British A&R label representatives. [16] The band were soon tagged as part of the nascent "ork-pop" movement, described in a 1996 Billboard piece as "a new breed of popsmiths going back to such inspirations as Brian Wilson, Burt Bacharach, and Phil Spector in the quest for building the perfect orchestrated pop masterpiece." [4] O'Hagan responded to the Beach Boys comparisons that the album had drawn: "[Wilson] has been the biggest influence in my career to date. I was always shy [about] how much I liked him, but this time I decided to be blatant about it." [16] He was also hesitant to be associated with the ork-pop movement, saying that the group's "music is a hybrid of stuff from the last 50, 20 or 30 years ... It's definitely about making music for tomorrow." [19]
O'Hagan recalled that "we had everybody knocking the door down saying, 'here take the money and make the [next] record.'" [20] The follow-up to Gideon Gaye, Hawaii (1996), was released on Alpaca Park, [21] and reached number 62 in the UK, again for a one-week stay. [13] He described the work as a fusion between the music of the "post mid-European Stockhausen era" and the "really screwed up West Coast American sort of music, of the Wrecking Crew variety". [22] It incorporated more electronic sounds than Gideon Gaye, [22] while its lyrics loosely address themes of "nomadism, nostalgia, film and musical theatre, and the effects of colonialism". [23] In the US, the album was issued with a 40-minute bonus CD containing material that was previously unreleased in that region. [24] Dominic Murcott then joined the group on vibraphone and marimba. [5]
The High Llamas' American and British fanbase continued to grow. [17] Cold and Bouncy (1998) pushed the band further into electronics. [6] According to O'Hagan, it was named for electronica's "paradoxical" combination of "chill" or digital sounds and "boisterous" rhythms. [25] It was accompanied by Lollo Rosso (1998), an album consisting of seven remixed Cold and Bouncy tracks created by Mouse on Mars, Cornelius, Schneider TM, Jim O'Rourke, Kid Loco, Stock, Hausen & Walkman, and the High Llamas. [26] Snowbug (1999) featured Stereolab vocalists Lætitia Sadier and Mary Hansen. [27] The album was met with poor sales, and was their last before departing V2 Records. [14] A two-disc compilation, Retrospective, Rarities & Instrumentals (2003), collected tracks from their main discography up to this point. Additionally, it included rarities that had been released as B-sides or bonus tracks on Japanese and American editions of their albums, while one song, "Vampo Brazil", was a previously unreleased outtake from the Cold and Bouncy sessions. [28]
The High Llamas started recording for the Duophonic and Drag City record labels with Buzzle Bee (2000), [29] which saw the band experimenting more with their sound, [30] while Beet, Maize & Corn (2003) eschewed electric guitars and synthesizers in favor of string and brass arrangements. [31] The latter marked the arrival of an additional member, Pete Aves, on guitars and banjo. [5] Unterberger referred to Beet, Maize & Corn as "a high achievement for the Llamas with both critics and fans." [17] In The Rough Guide to Rock (2003), music critic Nig Hodgkins commented that despite "adventurous breakthroughs by previously obscure American bands such as Mercury Rev and the Flaming Lips," the High Llamas failed to attract a comparative following and were seen as "a little too esoteric and experimental to threaten a mainstream that had once warmed to the strong melodies of Gideon Gaye." [14]
The band does not make a living, but my arrangements and collaborations just about do. ... So an unmarketable band does have consequences. Tours have to be underwritten and those days are gone I'm afraid. ... We never get to the U.S. now because it’s too expensive.
Can Cladders (2007) received generally favourable reviews. [32] Pitchfork reviewer Eric Harvey wrote that the album "emerge[d] as the most enjoyable High Llamas record in over a decade. ... with a bounce and sway nearly absent from its largely rhythmless predecessor." [33] Another four years went by until their next release, Talahomi Way (2011), described by O'Hagan as a "spring album". [34] He said that the band's slowed output was due to low finances, and that he could only sustain a career in music through arrangement commissions. He could not afford commercial studios and recorded in improvised spaces "as much as possible, which allowed the budget to go on strings and brass. But I also wanted to create more space on the records. I was tired of density." [20] In 2013, the group contributed a song, "Living on a Farm", to an episode of the children's television programme Yo! Gabba Gabba . [35] [36]
In 2014, the High Llamas premiered a theatrical play, Here Come the Rattling Trees , at the Tristan Bates Theatre in London's Covent Garden. Pitchfork critic Robert Ham summarized the plot as "extended anecdotes [used] to comment on the rapid changes happening in London, particularly in Peckham, a region in the southeastern part of the city where O'Hagan has lived for over 20 years." The play originally featured a cast of actors and actresses, but when a studio album adaptation was released in 2016, the record only featured instrumental performances. [37] O'Hagan explained that this was because the label felt that its promotion "would be difficult as the record would appear to be from a different medium." [20]
In 2019, Drag City released O'Hagan's second solo album, Radum Calls, Radum Calls. During an interview to promote the record, he commented that the High Llamas were not defunct and that he was attempting to secure the rights to the band's work from Universal Music Group, "who are extremely reluctant to do anything with our catalog, and I’ve really been wanting to get them remastered and pressed on vinyl, and maybe do an expanded series like Stereolab have done. If we can get that to happen, we’ll tour. ... Then we might use that as an opportunity to officially retire—it would be a great way to close that book, don’t you think?" [38]
In March 2024, a new album, Hey Panda , was released under the High Llamas banner. The album contains elements of R&B and hip-hop, and features vocal contributions from singer Rae Morris [39] and O'Hagan's daughter Livvy. [40]
Current
Former
The High Llamas discography | |
---|---|
Studio albums | 10 |
Compilation albums | 1 |
Remixes | 1 |
Studio albums
Title | Release |
---|---|
Santa Barbara |
|
Gideon Gaye |
|
Hawaii |
|
Cold and Bouncy |
|
Snowbug |
|
Buzzle Bee |
|
Beet, Maize & Corn |
|
Can Cladders |
|
Talahomi Way |
|
Here Come the Rattling Trees |
|
Hey Panda |
|
Compilation
Title | Release |
---|---|
Retrospective, Rarities and Instrumentals |
|
Remix EP
Title | Release |
---|---|
Lollo Rosso |
|
Stereolab are an Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's sound features influences from krautrock and 1960s French pop music, often incorporating a repetitive motorik beat with the use of vintage electronic keyboards and female vocals sung in English and French. Their lyrics have political and philosophical themes influenced by the Surrealist and Situationist art movements. While performing, they play in a more feedback-driven and guitar-oriented style. From the mid-1990s, the band began to draw from funk, jazz and Brazilian music.
Sean O'Hagan is an Irish singer and songwriter who leads the avant-pop band the High Llamas, which he founded in 1992. He is also known for being one half of the songwriting duo in Microdisney and for his work during the early 1990s with the English-French band Stereolab.
Microdisney were an Irish rock band formed in Cork in 1980. They were founded and led by songwriters Cathal Coughlan and Sean O'Hagan (guitar). Originally typeset as Micro Disney, the band had become Microdisney by the time they had relocated to London in 1983 and signed to Rough Trade Records. Between 1983 and 1986 the band recorded six Peel Sessions for BBC Radio and released their debut album for Rough Trade called Everybody Is Fantastic.
Dots and Loops is the fifth studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab. It was released on 22 September 1997 and was issued by Duophonic Records and Elektra Records. The band co-produced the album with John McEntire and Andi Toma, and recording took place at their respective studios in Chicago and Düsseldorf. It was their first album to be recorded straight to Digital Audio Tape and produced with Pro Tools. The album explores jazz and electronic sounds, and is influenced by bossa nova and 1960s pop music. Its lyrics address matters such as consumerism, the "spectacle", materialism, and human interaction.
Cathal Coughlan was an Irish singer and songwriter from Cork, best known as the frontman of the band Microdisney, formed with Sean O'Hagan in 1980. Their second album The Clock Comes Down the Stairs reached number one in the UK Indie Chart. They developed cult followings in the Irish and UK indie music scenes before breaking up in 1988.
Lætitia Sadier, sometimes known as Seaya Sadier, is a French musician best known as a founding member of the London-based avant-pop band Stereolab. She was born in the east of Paris and spent time in the US as a child. In 1996, while Stereolab was still active, she formed the side project Monade. In 2009 – the same year Stereolab became inactive – she ended the Monade project and began to perform solo work under her own name; her current band is known as the Lætitia Sadier Source Ensemble. She has frequently performed guest vocals and collaborations with other artists.
Mars Audiac Quintet is the third studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab. It was released on 2 August 1994 and was issued by Duophonic Records and Elektra Records.
Cobra and Phases Group Play Voltage in the Milky Night is the sixth studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab. It was released on 21 September 1999 and was issued by Duophonic Records and Elektra Records. The album was largely co-produced by Stereolab, John McEntire, and Jim O'Rourke.
Margerine Eclipse is the eighth studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab. It was released on 27 January 2004 in the United States by Elektra Records and on 2 February 2004 in the United Kingdom by Duophonic Records. The album is in large part a eulogy to former band member Mary Hansen, who died in 2002.
The Free Design was a Delevan, New York–based vocal group, whose music can be described as sunshine pop and baroque pop. Though they did not achieve much commercial recognition during their main recording career, their work later influenced bands including Stereolab, Cornelius, Pizzicato Five, Beck and The High Llamas.
Chamber pop is a music genre that combines rock music with the intricate use of strings, horns, piano, and vocal harmonies, and other components drawn from the orchestral and lounge pop of the 1960s, with an emphasis on melody and texture.
Fantasma is the third studio album by Japanese musician Cornelius, released on August 6, 1997, on his label Trattoria. Cornelius envisioned the album as "a one-on-one experience between the music and the listener. ... It starts with you entering into the journey and ends with you returning to reality." It peaked at number six on the Oricon Albums Chart and number 37 on the UK Independent Albums Chart. Three singles were issued from the album: "Star Fruits Surf Rider", "Free Fall", and "Chapter 8 – Seashore and Horizon –".
Buzzle Bee is a studio album by English musical project the High Llamas. It was released in 2000 on Duophonic.
Not Music is the tenth studio album by English-French rock band Stereolab, released on 16 November 2010 by Drag City and Duophonic Records. The album is a collection of unreleased material recorded at the same time as their previous album, Chemical Chords (2008).
Hawaii is the third studio album by the Anglo-Irish avant-pop band the High Llamas, released on 25 March 1996 on the band's Alpaca Park label. The arrangements of Hawaii incorporate more electronic sounds than its predecessor Gideon Gaye (1994), while its lyrics loosely address themes of nomadism, nostalgia, film and musical theatre, and the effects of colonialism. The record peaked at 62 on the UK Albums Chart for a one-week stay. In the United States, the album was issued with a 40-minute bonus CD containing material that was previously unreleased in that region.
Gideon Gaye is the second studio album by the Anglo-Irish avant-pop band the High Llamas, released in 1994 on the Brighton-based Target label. Notable for anticipating the mid 1990s easy-listening revivalism, the album's music was influenced by Brian Wilson, Steely Dan, Brazilian bossa nova and European film soundtracks, and was recorded with a £4000 budget. It was met with high praise by the British press. Q dubbed the LP "the best Beach Boys album since 1968's Friends". In the US, the album was indifferently promoted.
Cold and Bouncy is the fourth studio album by Anglo-Irish avant-pop band the High Llamas, released on 27 January 1998 by V2 Records. According to bandleader Sean O'Hagan, the title refers to electronica's "paradoxical" combination of "cold" or digital sounds and "bouncy" rhythms.
High January is the ninth album by Canadian music artist Marker Starling, released on 24 April 2020. It is composed entirely of original material, being produced for the first time by Sean O'Hagan, whose previous work with Stereolab, The High Llamas and Microdisney brought extensive experience to helping achieve a fully-realized Marker Starling sound. Laetitia Sadier, also of Stereolab, contributes vocals to two tracks, "Waiting for Grace" and "Starved for Glamour".
Snowbug is an album by the Anglo-Irish band the High Llamas, released in 1999. It was a commercial failure.
Hey Panda is the eleventh studio album by the Anglo-Irish avant-pop band the High Llamas, released on 29 March 2024 through Drag City. It is the band's first album in eight years, since the release of Here Come the Rattling Trees in 2016.
The High Llamas may have started in 1991.