TURIN BRAKES
BAND / WRITERS
The
band was started by longtime friends Knights and Paridjanian. The two met at
a young age and spent much of their childhood together. Although they split
after Knights went to film school and Paridjian attempted to form a band in
Toronto, Canada, they soon reunited and collaborated on what would later become
their first EP, The Door, which was eventually released through Anvil Records
in 1999 as a limited vinyl release. This led to the band attracting the attention
of larger record labels. Source Records would eventually release two more EPs,
The State of Things EP and Fight or Flight, prompting NME to proclaim "Turin
Brakes inhabit a space which is entirely their own, fully-formed and brutally
emotive... give them the devotion they deserve."
Source reissued the song The Door before releasing their first album,
The Optimist LP, in 2001. The album, which was released in the United States
by Astralwerks, was greeted with critical praise, spawned the hit singles Underdog
(Save Me) and Emergency 72, and received a nomination for the
Mercury Music Prize. A planned tour of the United States following this success,
opening for the Stereophonics and Matthew Jay, was eventually scuttled by the
September 11 terrorist attacks.
Their second album, Ether Song, was a departure from the acoustic sound that
had brought them success with their first album. Recorded in Los Angeles, California,
it was popular enough to reach number four in the United Kingdom album charts
upon its release in 2003. The album produced several hit singles, including
Long Distance and Pain Killer, their first (and so far, only)
Top five single in the UK, peaking at #five. The album also created some tension
between the band and their label, as the album was re-released four times during
its lifespan, and received various bonus discs between regions and versions.
The band was on record as being unhappy with the way the record company was
treating them and the fans regarding the release.
Following the success and stress of Ether Song, the band took a short break,
but not before releasing the non-album single 5 Mile (These Are the Days)
(which resulted in another re-release of "Ether Song") and releasing
a DJ mix album for Azuli Records' Late Night Tales series. The mix album (2004)
was a collection of some of their favorite songs, and also contained the Rolling
Stones song Moonlight Mile as a cover. The band have done some DJ sets
in the London area over the years.
Their third album, Jackinabox, was released to critical acclaim much like their
prior efforts when it was released in early June 2005. Preceded by the single
Fishing For A Dream, which didn't do as well as the band hoped (charting
at 35). Despite the lack of airplay or a hit single JackInABox still sold quite
well, entering the UK top 10 album charts in its first week. The album was supported
by the group's first full-band tour of the United States, as well as the single
Over and Over, which was serviced to U.S. radio.
Following the success of Jackinabox and its subsequent tour, a download-only
album, Live at the Palladium, recorded in London was released in November of
2005. Released one day after the concert took place in London, it was available
on the band's website. Later it also got a release on iTunes and did well in
the download charts. In the October / November 2005 tour, the band also sold
the Red Moon EP. This acoustic EP featured a new (acoustic) version of Red
Moon, two new songs and the Red Hot Chili Peppers-cover Breaking The
Girl (recorded at KCRW).
The band spent the first half of 2006 writing new songs, occasionally performing
both new and old work at small gigs across the UK. The band did an intimate
tour in November 2006 to try out new material. In January 2007 the band entered
a small studio in London to record their 4th album with producer Ethan Johns.
After three weeks the band took a break (on January 29th Gale's wife gave birth
to a daughter), but the sessions were resumed several weeks later at Olympic
Studios, Barnes. On the last day of March 2007 the band announced that they
had finished the recording sessions, and had recorded 17 songs.
The new album, Dark on Fire, was released in the UK in September 2007, preceded
by a download-only single Stalker. On January 14th, another download-only
single was released: Something In My Eye. The b-side was a cover of
Cat Stevens' Here Comes My Baby.
* The Optimist LP (2001) Source/Astralwerks CD/LP
* Ether Song (2003) Source/Astralwerks CD/LP
* JackInABox (2005) Source/Astralwerks CD/LP
* Live at the Palladium (2005) Source/Astralwerks (Digital download)
* Dark on Fire (2007) Source/Astralwerks CD
Courtesy of Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turin_Brakes#Albums