Hootie & the Blowfish is an American rock band formed in Columbia, South Carolina in 1986. The band's lineup for most of its existence has been the quartet of Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, and Jim Sonefeld. The band went on hiatus in 2008 until they announced plans for a full reunion tour in 2019 and released their first new studio album in fourteen years, Imperfect Circle.
Talk Talk were an English band formed in 1981, led by Mark Hollis, Lee Harris (drums), and Paul Webb (bass). Initially a synth-pop group, Talk Talk's first two albums, The Party's Over (1982) and It's My Life (1984), reached top 40 in the UK and produced the international hit singles "Talk Talk", "Today", "It's My Life", and "Such a Shame". They achieved widespread critical success in Europe and the UK with the album The Colour of Spring (1986) and its singles "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World". 1988's Spirit of Eden moved the group towards a more experimental sound informed by jazz and free improvisation, pioneering what became known as post-rock; it was critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful.
Alexander O'Neal is an American R&B singer, songwriter and arranger from Natchez, Mississippi.
Gerald Rydel Simpson, better known as A Guy Called Gerald, is a British record producer and musician. He was an early member of the electronic group 808 State, contributing to their debut LP Newbuild (1988) and hit single "Pacific State" (1989). He also achieved solo success with his 1988 hit single "Voodoo Ray", which became a touchstone of Manchester's acid house scene and reached No. 12 in the UK charts. He embraced breakbeat production in the 1990s, with his 1995 album Black Secret Technology becoming a "much-touted candidate for 'best jungle album ever.'" He also ran the London-based independent record label Juice Box Records from 1991 to 1998.
Elbow are an English rock band formed in Bury, Greater Manchester in 1997. The band consists of Guy Garvey, Craig Potter, Mark Potter and Pete Turner. They have played together since 1990, adopting the name Elbow in 1997. Drummer Alex Reeves replaced Richard Jupp in 2016.
Man from Delmonte were an independent band from Manchester, England, formed in the mid-1980s.
Ian Zachary Broudie is an English musician and singer-songwriter from Liverpool. After emerging from the post-punk scene in Liverpool in the late 1970s as a member of Big in Japan, Broudie went on to produce albums for artists including Echo & the Bunnymen, the Fall, the Coral, the Zutons and the Subways.
I Am Kloot were an English rock band, formed in Manchester in 1999. The band was composed of vocalist/guitarist John Bramwell, bassist Peter Jobson and drummer Andy Hargreaves.
Alfie were an English indie rock band, formed in 1998 in Manchester. The band were composed of singer Lee Gorton, guitarist-vocalist Ian Smith, drummer Sean Kelly, bassist Sam Morris and cellist-guitarist Matt McGeever.
Stephen Jones is an English musician and novelist.
Natural History is the debut album by English rock band I Am Kloot, released to much eagerness from the British music press in 2001. The album was produced by Guy Garvey, lead singer for the Manchester-based band Elbow.
"Maybe I Should" is the first single I Am Kloot released after parting ways with their former record label Echo. The songs were recorded during the autumn of 2005. The single was released on 21 November 2005 by Skinny Dog label, co-founded by I Am Kloot's bass player, Peter Jobson, and Elbow's lead vocalist, Guy Garvey. The music was produced by Guy Garvey and Craig Potter.
Liam Frost is a musician from Manchester, England. He recorded and played with his backing group 'The Slowdown Family' on his debut album Show Me How The Spectres Dance but now performs solo under the name Liam Frost.
Guy Edward John Garvey is an English musician, singer, songwriter and BBC Radio 6 Music presenter. He is the lead singer and lyricist of the rock band Elbow.
John Harold Arnold Bramwell is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the frontman for the former three-piece alternative rock band I Am Kloot.
Gods and Monsters is the third album by English rock band I Am Kloot which was released on 11 April 2005. It reached #74 in the UK. As well as being released on vinyl and CD, the CD version of the album also appeared in a gate-fold sleeve edition with a second disc: a DVD titled Live At The Ritz + Videos which contained filmed live tracks from a gig, music videos, and a band interview.
Skinny Dog Records is an independent record label based in Manchester, England, set up in 1999 by John Bramwell and Peter Jobson of I Am Kloot, Mark Potter of Elbow, Scott Alexander of Indigo Jones and media lawyer David Sefton. Potter and Alexander resigned from the company in 2003 and 2004 respectively.
Falcon is the second studio album by English rock band the Courteeners. It was released through A&M Records on 22 February 2010. While touring the United States in 2009 as part of promotion for their debut studio album St. Jude (2008), the band wrote new material on their tour bus. In August 2009, the band recorded its follow-up with Ed Buller at ICP studios in Brussels, Belgium. Falcon has an arena and indie rock sound, influenced in part by the work of Elbow, and is slower-paced than their previous album.
Let It All In is the sixth and final studio album by English rock band I Am Kloot. Like the previous one, this record was produced by Guy Garvey and Craig Potter of the band Elbow. It was released on 21 January 2013. On 27 January, the album debuted at #10 in the UK Albums Chart and at #1 in the Official Record Store Chart.
"From Your Favourite Sky" was I Am Kloot's first single of 2004, released in March of that year. It was promoted by a video using filmed footage taken from their UK and European tour at the end of the previous year. X-Ray Magazine said of the song, that the 'Manchester trio' restore 'faith in songwriting', with 'Johnny Bramwell's fabulous voice ... the key to a lot of this magic,' his 'tongue-twisting around the easy-going "From Your Favourite Sky" ... is captivating and soothing'. Natasha Perry at Contact Music wrote: "There’s a definite classical and flamenco tinge to it, bizarre given there’s not a classical instrument in there. The lyrics are great... I guarantee you that I Am Kloot will find a way into your heart'.
