Silversun Pickups
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Silversun Pickups | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genre(s) | Indie Rock Dream Pop Post-Shoegaze Alternative Rock |
| Years active | 2005 - present |
| Label(s) | Dangerbird Records |
| Website | www.silversunpickups.com |
| Members | |
| Brian Aubert Nikki Monninger Joe Lester Christopher Guanlao |
|
| Former members | |
| Kennedy | |
Silversun Pickups (also simply known as SSPU) is an American indie rock band from Los Angeles, California, signed to Dangerbird Records, and headed by Brian Aubert. They released their debut Pikul EP in July of 2005, and their full length album Carnavas on July 26, 2006.
Contents |
[edit] History
The current band lineup consists of Brian Aubert (lead vocals/guitar), Nikki Monninger (bass/vocals), Christopher Guanlao (drums), and Joe Lester (keyboards). The band members are friends who had played together previously or in mutual friends' bands. They got their start in many of the most important L.A. clubs and began to draw a strong following upon the release of the Pikul EP.
The band originated in L.A.'s much-vaunted Silver Lake music scene, home of Elliott Smith, Rilo Kiley and others[1]. Their name comes from a liquor and convenience store near their house at Sunset and Silver Lake Blvds in Los Angeles. In interviews, however, the band often say their name is more of "a state of mind,"[1] supposedly from living so close to everything an L.A.-based indie rock band would need late at night. For Pikul, fellow Silverlaker Tanya Haden was enlisted to play cello.[2]
The band finished a three-week tour opening for Australian rockers Wolfmother on December 9, 2006, and later toured with OK Go and Snow Patrol on their U.S. spring tour, which ended on April 10, 2007. The Pickups played at the Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California on April 27, 2007. They played at Live 105's BFD festival on June 9th, 2007. They also played the KROQ Weenie Roast on May 19th, 2007 and KJEE Seaside Beach Ball in Ventura, CA on June 8th, 2007, and KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas on December 9, 2007 and finished the year off at the 99x Mistle Toe-Jam concert on December 16th with The Shins, Silverchair and Modest Mouse.
The band toured the UK and Ireland while Carnavas was released there on May 28, 2007. They opened for the Foo Fighters in Edinburgh, Scotland, and Dublin, Ireland.
During Autumn 2007, they were touring Europe as the Kaiser Chiefs' openers.
Joe Lester is a former member of Pine Marten. The band also is associated with the L.A. recording studio / cult-of-brotherhood "The Ship", along with The Movies, Sea Wolf, Pine Marten, Great Northern, and Earlimart. The ballad "Creation Lake", sung by Nikki on Pikul, is actually a cover of a song by The Movies.
[edit] Musical style and influences
The band's sound, often encompassing multiple overdubs of distorted guitars, is frequently compared to that of The Smashing Pumpkins[3][4][5][6], while the band members have said they are heavily influenced by artists such as My Bloody Valentine, the Velvet Underground, Elliott Smith, Sonic Youth, Modest Mouse, and Secret Machines as well as numerous other artists with lesser publicity.
Lazy Eye ranked #28 in the Triple J Hottest 100, the largest fan-voted music countdown in the world, for 2007.
[edit] Band members
.jpg/225px-Silversun_Pickups_(01).jpg)
- Brian Aubert - guitar/vocals
- Nikki Monninger - bass guitar/vocals
- Ian Rusnak - drums
- Joe Lester - keyboards
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- 2006: Carnavas (Dangerbird)
[edit] EP
- 2005: Pikul (EP) (Dangerbird)
- 2007: Remixes (EP) (Dangerbird)
[edit] Singles
- 2006: "Lazy Eye" (Dangerbird) (#5 US Modern Rock) (#2 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles) [2]
- 2007: "Future Foe Scenarios" (Dangerbird)
- 2007: "Well Thought Out Twinkles" (Dangerbird) (#9 US Modern Rock)
- 2007: "Little Lover's So Polite" - (Dangerbird)
[edit] External links
- Silversun Pickups official website
- Silversun Pickups at MySpace
- Silversun Pickups live photos
- Silversun Pickups Interview at REDEFINE Magazine, August 2006
- Interview with Nikki Monninger at Three Imaginary Girls
[edit] Notes
- ^ Video at YouTube
- ^ Pikul [EP]. Amazon.com.
- ^ Rolling Stone Review by Evan Serpick. "...things take off with 'Well Thought Out Twinkles,' a surge of guitar squalls and male-female vocals that sounds like what might have happened if the Smashing Pumpkins had driven their ice cream cart out West."
- ^ NPR Song of the Day. Review by John Richards. "Silversun Pickups brings to mind a sort of alternate-universe Smashing Pumpkins."
- ^ McGonigal, Mike. Carnavas Editorial Review. Amazon.com. “Their music updates the anthemic but gauzy heavy rock sound that Veruca Salt and the Smashing Pumpkins had down pat.”
- ^ Pitchfork Media review of Caravas by Rachel Khong. "Those nostalgic for Smashing Pumpkins tunes of yesteryear will find them nestled inside the minutes (and there are so many minutes) of 'Lazy Eye'."
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