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Hope of the States are a five-piece alternative indie band based in Chichester, UK.
They were formed in 2000 and feature, as the band put it, the 'cracked/troubled/joyous/hopeful vocals' of Sam Herlihy, who also plays guitar and piano along with Antony Theaker. Simon Jones is the stickman, and Paul Wilson provides the ever important basslines. Also in the band Mike Siddel, who plays violin, which features prominently on almost all of the bands tracks, and guitarist Jimmi Lawrence.
Just like most young bands, Hope of the States began by playing small pubs and clubs around the south of th ...read more
Hope of the States are a five-piece alternative indie band based in Chichester, UK.
They were formed in 2000 and feature, as the band put it, the 'cracked/troubled/joyous/hopeful vocals' of Sam Herlihy, who also plays guitar and piano along with Antony Theaker. Simon Jones is the stickman, and Paul Wilson provides the ever important basslines. Also in the band Mike Siddel, who plays violin, which features prominently on almost all of the bands tracks, and guitarist Jimmi Lawrence.
Just like most young bands, Hope of the States began by playing small pubs and clubs around the south of the country. Slowly people began to take notice of the band, mostly due to the energy portrayed in their live shows, which Sam describes as "psychopathic rock 'n' roll". Thier first single, Black Dollar Bills, was a big success, as it met with critical acclaim and sold out almost immediately (only 2000 copies were printed).
In June 2003 the band signed to Sony records, and that summer saw the band perform prominently at Glastonbury, and the Carling Reading and Leeds Festivals, as well as embarking on their first headline UK tour. In October the band released the single Enemies/Friends, which reached number 25 in the UK charts.
Next the band headed into the studio to begin recording their debut album, titled "The Lost Riots". Produced by Ken Thomas (who has previously worked with Islandic experimentalists Sigur Ros). For the next eight weeks the band moved to Ireland, recording at Grouse Lodge Studios. When thier time there was done they moved to Real World Studios in Wiltshire to finish the album.
The band were on the verge of finishing their debut album, when on 15th January 2004, Guitarist Jimmi Laurence was found dead in his home after committing suicide. His death came as a shock to the band, who all decided to take some time out to come to terms with what has happened. The band are adamant that they do not want him to go down in history as another one of rock 'n' roll's bad boys, as he wasn't. Instead they insist he was just like any other regular guy.
In June 2004 the band finally released "The Lost Riots", and continued where they left off - and started touring again, as a five-piece. Their album was well recieved, and although not the most popular album of the year, it was a masterpiece in its own way.
The band took some time out at the start of 2005 before they began writing new material. More touring was done in 2005, mostly low-key dates which focused on the new material. They then headed into the studio to record their second album.
At the start of April 2006 the band released the single Blood Meridian, and in Early June will come the release of thier second album, titled 'Left', it promises to become another another remarkable achievement by a band who have definately seen both the high and the low points of life. « hide |
Similar Bands: Elbow, The Decemberists, Okkervil River, Troubles, The Cooper Temple Clause Contributors: Britch2tiger, SadAndHolyGlow, Observer, samthebassman, MarktheMusicGuy, morrissey,
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