Electrelane

Last updated

Electrelane
Electrelane.jpg
Electrelane performing at the Pavilion Theatre in Brighton in December 2007
Background information
Origin Brighton, East Sussex, England
Genres Post-rock, alternative rock, electronic, experimental
Years active1998–2007, 2011–2012
Labels Too Pure, Beggars Banquet
Members
Past members
  • Tracy Houdek
  • Debbie Ball
  • Rupert Noble
  • Rachel Dalley
Website www.electrelane.com

Electrelane were an English indie rock band, formed in Brighton in 1998 by Verity Susman and Emma Gaze. The band comprised Susman, Gaze, Mia Clarke, and Ros Murray. Their music drew from a wide range of influences including Neu!, Stereolab, Sonic Youth, and the Velvet Underground. Although the band had strong feminist and political views in their personal lives, they generally preferred to not communicate that directly to their fans or through their music; [1] one exception is their inclusion of the protest song "The Partisan," - a Leonard Cohen cover - which they began playing while on tour in the United States during the months preceding the 2004 Presidential election. The band, when playing live, had a reputation for a focused show that minimised audience interaction and rarely included more than one encore. [2] [3] [4]

Contents

History

Early years (1998–2000)

The band recorded their first single, "Film Music," and released it in January 2000 on the Skint Records offshoot label Indenial. They released another single ("Le Song") with Fierce Panda before creating their own label, Let's Rock!, with distribution by 3MV. The first two singles they released were "Gabriel" and "Blue Straggler" and in fall of 2000 they began work on their debut album. During this period, they had a number of personnel changes. The original bassist was Tracy Houdek, who left the band due to a pregnancy. She was briefly replaced by Rupert Noble until Rachel Dalley signed on. Original guitarist Debbie Ball was replaced by Mia Clarke.

Rock It to the Moon (2000–2003)

Their debut album, Rock It to the Moon , was released in April 2001 through Mr. Lady Records. [5] Although Electrelane started off as a traditional band with vocals, this album was mostly instrumental. Verity Susman explained, "Way way back, when we first started, we always had a lot of singing. But it never worked that well. When we did instrumental it was always more interesting. More completely we felt like we were doing something good, while the songs with the singing ended up quite bog-standard, boring, not very interesting." [6] NME rated the album an 8 out of 10, saying Rock It to the Moon was "just the way a debut album should be... utterly focused [and] stripped of all extraneous flab." [7]

The Power Out (2003–2004)

Electrelane brought in Steve Albini to record their second album, The Power Out , while production was still handled by the band. [8] The result was an album that added more vocals and structure to the songs, giving them almost pop-like vibes. It was released on Too Pure in February 2004. The album was widely recognised and praised as critics appreciated the added complexity and vocals on their new work.

Electrelane had not only added vocals to the work, but had transcended conventional expectations by employing a number of techniques. Of the nine songs with vocals, three of them were done in different languages. The album opener "Gone Under Sea" is sung completely in French. The third song, "The Valleys," featuring the vocals of the ensemble Chicago a cappella, had in part sections from Siegfried Sassoon's "A Letter Home." On "Oh Sombra!" the Spanish lyrics are a sonnet by 16th century Catalan poet Juan Boscán Almogáver. On "This Deed" the lyrics are a single line, in German, from Friedrich Nietzsche's Die fröhliche Wissenschaft followed by the exclamation "Hände hoch!" (or "Hands up!"). These touches, as one review put it, "managed to be unique without being a radical departure." [9]

Midway through 2004, Rachel Dalley left the group and was replaced by Ros Murray, an old friend of the group. [10]

Axes (2004–2006)

For their follow up, the mostly instrumental Axes , Electrelane once again returned to Steve Albini's studio in Chicago. In the first recording session for Axes, the band played through the entire album in one take. [11] This reflected the band's desire to have listeners of the album experience the band's live show. Emma Gaze explained the album was recorded "the way we rehearse and practise: we all stand in a circle and it is very relaxed. Our previous recording experiences have been with the bass in one room, the drums in a different room, the two guitarists in a different room and then the vocals are done afterwards. Obviously it works like that because that is how most bands do it. But we just wanted it to sound more live; there is a different kind of energy that comes from playing in the same room." [12] Verity Susman said that "We see the record as a continuous piece of music, not a collection of songs. It also reflects the way we improvise, moving from one idea to the next without a clear break. It's also how we play live." [11] The album was released on 9 May 2005 to mixed, but generally positive, reviews.

As with The Power Out, Electrelane supported Axes with a global tour. By now they had toured in the UK, the United States, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Ireland, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Japan and Australia. They both headlined their own tours and supported tours for the Ex and Le Tigre among others; they had also appeared at festivals such as South by Southwest and the ATP Festival.

No Shouts, No Calls and indefinite hiatus (2006–2007)

No Shouts, No Calls is Electrelane's fourth studio album, and their first which was entirely digitally recorded and mixed. [13] The group began writing material in Berlin's Planet Roc studios in the summer of 2006, at the height of the World Cup. During that period, the band became fans of the sport, going so far as to rearrange their recording schedules around the event and including a sample of a match between Hertha BSC Berlin and FC Moskva in the song "Five" on their new album.

In August, Electrelane released Singles, B-Sides & Live , a rarities collection that included a number of live performances as well as original versions of tracks from their debut album. In September and October, they were in Benton Harbor recording and mixing their album. In November, the band announced on their official website that they had finished recording and had titled their album No Shouts, No Calls. The album was released in on 23 April 2007 in Japan, 3 May 2007 in the US and 30 April 2007 elsewhere. The first single, titled "To the East," was released on 12 March 2007. The album received generally positive reviews, with Heather Phares of AllMusic calling some songs "among the band's finest work"; [14] detractors included Leonie Cooper of the Guardian , who mentioned the band had a "penchant for turning every tune [into] a proggy wig-out." [15] James Reed of the Boston Globe picked the album as one of the best of 2007. [16] In May and June 2007 the band toured the United States with Tender Forever and opened for Arcade Fire on several of their shows. For the rest of the summer, they played the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan as well as various festivals in Europe, including La Route du Rock, Summercase, Montreux Jazz Festival and Festival Paredes de Coura.

In early November 2007, Electrelane posted a message on their website, explaining that they would be on an indefinite hiatus. Their "last" show "for the foreseeable future" was on 1 December 2007 in Brighton, England. On 14 December, the band organised a benefit for the Anti-Trafficking Alliance at the Barfly in London. They did not perform, choosing to DJ instead. [17]

Brief reformation (2011–2012)

In February 2011, Electrelane announced they would play several festivals, including Field Day in London. During the spring, the band announced they would play The Big Chill festival held on the grounds of Eastnor Castle. [18] They toured Australia in early 2012 as well. [19] At the time, they announced no plans for new material or further tours.

New music announcement (2021)

The band announced in November 2021 that they are working together on their first new music since No Shouts, No Calls in 2007 and that "playing together again feels really, really good." [20]

Lineup

Current members
Past members

Discography

Studio albums
Singles and EPs
Compilations

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eagles (band)</span> American rock band (formed 1971)

The Eagles are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1971. With five number-one singles and six number-one albums, six Grammy Awards and five American Music Awards, the Eagles were one of the most successful musical acts of the 1970s in North America and are one of the world's best-selling bands, having sold more than 200 million records worldwide, including 100 million sold in the US alone. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 and were ranked number 75 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Founding members Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, and Randy Meisner were recruited by Linda Ronstadt as band members, some touring with her, and all playing on her third solo album, before venturing out on their own on David Geffen's new Asylum Records label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queens of the Stone Age</span> American rock band

Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band formed in 1996 in Seattle, Washington. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout multiple lineup changes. Since 2013, the lineup has consisted of Homme alongside Troy Van Leeuwen, Michael Shuman, Dean Fertita, and Jon Theodore. The band also has a large pool of contributors and collaborators. Queens of the Stone Age are known for their blues, Krautrock and electronica-influenced style of riff-oriented and rhythmic hard rock music, coupled with Homme's distinct falsetto vocals and unorthodox guitar scales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim "Ripper" Owens</span> American heavy metal singer

Timothy S. "Ripper" Owens is an American heavy metal singer who currently performs with KK's Priest, Spirits of Fire, the Three Tremors and A New Revenge. He first gained attention as the lead singer of Judas Priest and then Iced Earth. He took the nickname "Ripper" from the Judas Priest song "The Ripper" during his time in the tribute band British Steel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Waifs</span> Australian band

The Waifs are an Australian folk rock band formed in 1992 by sisters Vikki Thorn and Donna Simpson as well as Josh Cunningham. Their tour and recording band includes Ben Franz (bass), David Ross Macdonald (drums) and Tony Bourke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rose Tattoo</span> Australian rock band

Rose Tattoo are an Australian rock and roll band, now led by Angry Anderson, which formed in Sydney in 1976. Their sound is hard rock mixed with blues rock influences, with songs including "Bad Boy for Love", "Rock 'n' Roll Outlaw", "Nice Boys", "We Can't Be Beaten" and "Scarred for Life". Their first four albums were produced by Harry Vanda and George Young who also worked with AC/DC. They disbanded in 1987, subsequently reforming briefly in 1993 to support Guns N' Roses on an Australian tour. They reassembled again from 1998 and have since released two more studio albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keane (band)</span> English alternative rock band

Keane are an English alternative rock band from Battle, East Sussex, formed in 1995. They met while at Tonbridge School together. The band comprises Tom Chaplin, Tim Rice-Oxley, Richard Hughes and Jesse Quin. Their original line-up included founder and guitarist Dominic Scott, who left in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gym Class Heroes</span> American rap rock band

Gym Class Heroes is an American rap rock band from Geneva, New York. The group formed in 1997 when Travie McCoy met drummer Matt McGinley during their high school gym class. The band's music displays a wide variety of influences, including hip hop, rock, funk, and reggae. After the addition of guitarist Disashi Lumumba-Kasongo and bassist Eric Roberts in 2003, the group was signed to Fueled by Ramen and Decaydance Records, on which they released their debut album, The Papercut Chronicles. The group gained a strong fanbase while promoting the album, appearing at festivals such as The Bamboozle and Vans Warped Tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourniquet (band)</span> American heavy metal band

Tourniquet was an American Christian metal band that formed in Los Angeles in 1990. It was founded by Ted Kirkpatrick, Guy Ritter, and Gary Lenaire. Tourniquet primarily played a mixture of thrash and progressive metal and was influenced by additional, non-rock forms of music such as classical and world music. The band earned six GMA Dove Award nominations and won multiple recognitions from the readers of HM Magazine, including "Favorite Band of the 1990s" and "Favorite Album of the 1990s" for Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance (1992). They released ten studio albums, two live albums, four compilation albums, one EP, and several video releases. The last Tourniquet lineup consisted of Ted Kirkpatrick (drums) and Aaron Guerra. The band disbanded after Kirkpatrick's death in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karnivool</span> Australian rock band

Karnivool is an Australian progressive metal band formed in Perth, Western Australia in 1998. The group currently consists of Ian Kenny on vocals, Drew Goddard and Mark Hosking on guitar, Jon Stockman on bass, and Steve Judd on drums. Karnivool emerged from a band Kenny and Goddard formed during high school. They have released three studio albums to date, the most recent of which (Asymmetry) was released in 2013.

Redgum were an Australian folk and political music group formed in Adelaide in 1975 by singer-songwriter John Schumann, Michael Atkinson on guitars/vocals, Verity Truman on flute/vocals; they were later joined by Hugh McDonald on fiddle and Chris Timms on violin. All four had been students at Flinders University and together developed a strong political voice. They are best known for their protest song exploring the impact of war in the 1980s "I Was Only 19", which peaked at No. 1 on the National singles charts. The song is in the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) list of Top 30 of All Time Best Australian Songs created in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Automatic</span> Welsh rock band

The Automatic were a Welsh rock band. The band's last-known lineup was composed of Robin Hawkins on vocals, bass and synthesisers, James Frost on guitar, synthesisers, backing vocals and occasional bass, Iwan Griffiths on drums and Paul Mullen on vocals, guitar and synthesiser. Mullen joined after the departure of Alex Pennie, who provided synthesiser, percussion and vocals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tea Leaf Green</span> American band

Tea Leaf Green is an American four-piece jam band from the San Francisco Bay Area, composed of Josh Clark, Trevor Garrod, Scott Rager (drums), and Eric DiBerardino (bass).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pearl Jam</span> American rock band

Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, as well as Matt Cameron (drums), who joined in 1998. Keyboardist Boom Gaspar has also been a touring/session member with the band since 2002. Jack Irons, Dave Krusen, Matt Chamberlain and Dave Abbruzzese are all former drummers for the band. Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, and is considered one of the most influential bands from that decade, dubbed "the most popular American rock and roll band of the '90s".

<i>The Power Out</i> 2004 studio album by Electrelane

The Power Out is the second album by English rock group Electrelane. It was released on compact disc and vinyl in 2004 by Too Pure. It was recorded in Chicago, Illinois in early 2003 by Steve Albini. The album's lead single, "On Parade" was a hit on college radio. The album did not receive mainstream commercial success, despite receiving mostly positive critical reviews.

<i>Axes</i> (album) 2005 studio album by Electrelane

Axes is the third album by English rock group Electrelane.

<i>No Shouts, No Calls</i> 2007 studio album by Electrelane

No Shouts, No Calls is the fourth album by English rock group Electrelane. It was released on CD and LP in 2007 by Too Pure.

<i>Rock It to the Moon</i> 2001 studio album by Electrelane

Rock It to the Moon is the debut album by English rock group Electrelane. It was released on compact disc in the UK in 2001 by Let's Rock!, and issued by Mr. Lady Records in the US in 2002. Too Pure, the record label Electrelane signed with for their follow up album, The Power Out (2004), reissued Rock It to the Moon in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paper Bird</span> American indie folk band

Paper Bird was an American six-piece indie folk band based in Denver. The band was composed of Carleigh Aikins (vocals), brother and sister Mark (drums) and Sarah Anderson, Paul DeHaven (guitar), and Caleb Summeril.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Idiot World Tour</span> 2004–05 concert tour by Green Day

The American Idiot World Tour was a concert tour by American rock band Green Day in support of the group's seventh studio album, American Idiot, which was released in September 2004. The tour began in Los Angeles at the Grand Olympic Auditorium on July 29, and the last show was in Australia at the Telstra Dome. During the tour, the band played at the 2004 Reading Festival in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Verity Susman</span> English musician, composer

Verity Susman is an English songwriter, composer, singer and multi-instrumentalist. She is best known as a founding member and the frontwoman of the English indie rock band Electrelane.

References

  1. ↑ Capper, Beth. "Never Mind The Bollocks..." Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  2. ↑ Sanneh, Kelefah (3 April 2004). "Singing in Four Languages, Revealing in None". The New York Times . Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  3. ↑ Dodero, Camille (4 December 2007). "Hugs and Kisses No. 22: Farewell to Electrelane". The Village Voice . Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  4. ↑ Draper, Jimmy (10 May 2007). "Top Live Show: Electrelane". Time Out New York. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  5. ↑ "Electrelane Archives". Nme.com. 16 February 2011. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  6. ↑ Farouky, Jumana (2003). "Electrelane". Under the Radar. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  7. ↑ Pattison, Louis (18 April 2001). "Electrelane: Rock it to the Moon". NME. Archived from the original on 11 January 2008. Retrieved 7 February 2008.
  8. ↑ Thomas, Sean (23 June 2005). "Electrelane". tohellwith. Archived from the original on 10 December 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  9. ↑ Phares, Heather (2004). "The Power Out". Allmusic . Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  10. ↑ J., Matthews (28 September 2005). "Electrelane interview on Left of the Dial". Progressive Broadcast Service. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  11. 1 2 "Electrelane – Biography". Too Pure. 2005. Archived from the original on 11 July 2007. Retrieved 7 February 2008.
  12. ↑ "Electrelane". Broken Spring Review. Archived from the original on 3 March 2007. Retrieved 6 April 2006.
  13. ↑ Pollock, Jesse (8 March 2007). "Electrelane Interview". FecalFace.com. Retrieved 8 February 2008.
  14. ↑ Phares, Heather (2004). "No Shouts No Calls". AllMusic . Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  15. ↑ Cooper, Leonie (27 April 2007). "Electrelane, No Shouts No Calls". The Guardian . Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  16. ↑ Reed, James (16 December 2007). "The Best CDs of 2007". The Boston Globe . Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  17. ↑ Thompson, Paul (13 December 2007). "Electrelane Organize Anti-Trafficking Benefit". Pitchfork Media. Archived from the original on 15 February 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
  18. ↑ "The Big Chill 2011 – Electrelane". 20 April 2011. Archived from the original on 17 May 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  19. ↑ "Interview: Electrelane". Oyster. 21 March 2012. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  20. ↑ Pearis, Bill (13 November 2021). "Electrelane are back, working on first new music in 15 years". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
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.