Curse of Lono is an English

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band based in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and signed to Submarine Cat Records. They have released one EP and two studio albums. Their most recent album, ''As I Fell'', peaked at number 10 on the

Official Americana Albums Chart The Official Americana Albums Chart is a weekly music chart based on physical sales of albums in the United Kingdom. It is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) on behalf of the Americana Music Association UK. The launch of the chart came ...

and at number 15 on the Official Independent Album Breakers Chart in the

U.K. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

The band has also been the subject of two short films, ''Saturday Night: A Film Of Four Songs'' and ''Somewhere In Their Heads'', both of which have won awards and appeared at numerous film festivals.

History

After the dissolution of their band, Hey Negrita, Felix Bechtolsheimer (lead vocals and guitar) and Neil Findlay (drums) formed Curse of Lono in 2015. The band's name comes from the title of

Hunter S. Thompson Hunter Stockton Thompson (July 18, 1937 – February 20, 2005) was an American journalist and author who founded the gonzo journalism movement. He rose to prominence with the publication of '' Hell's Angels'' (1967), a book for which he s ...

's 1983 book, '' The Curse of Lono''. Bechtolsheimer and Findlay soon added Joe Hazell (lead guitar), Dani Ruiz Hernandez (keyboards), and Charis Anderson (bass - ex Poussez Posse) to round out the group. They released their debut eponymous EP in October 2016 through Submarine Cat Records. The collection was produced by Oli Bayston. In support of the EP, the band went on a European tour with Uncle Lucius. Interconnected music videos for the EP's four songs were compiled in a short film called, ''Saturday Night: A Film Of Four Songs'', which was released in conjunction with the EP. The film would go on to appear in numerous film festivals and win the Best Music Video awards for both the

Los Angeles Independent Film Festival The LA Film Festival was an annual film festival that was held in Los Angeles, California, and usually took place in June. It showcased independent, international, feature, documentary and short films, as well as web series, music videos, episod ...

and the

London Independent Film Festival The London Independent Film Festival is a British film festival that takes place annually in April. It was founded by Erich Schultz and specialises in low-budget independent films. It offers a screenplay competition and distribution fair. Hist ...

. In February 2017, the band premiered their lead single, "Pick Up The Pieces," off their debut studio album, ''Severed''. That album was released in April 2017. That year, the band played sold-out shows in various London venues including

The Islington The Islington is a live music venue located at 1 Tolpuddle Street, London, England, Prior to new ownership it was called the "North One". It has become a known venue for national and international touring acts. The venue booking schedule has ho ...

, Servant Jazz Quarters, and The Water Rats. The proceeds from the latter show were donated to the cancer fund of the late Barry Marshall-Everitt, a prominent London music figure. The band also played a number of UK music festivals in 2017, including the Isle of Wight Festival,

Standon Calling Standon Calling is an annual music festival held near the village of Standon, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, in the grounds of private residence Standon Lordship. It is a themed boutique festival which grew from a birthday barbecue into an annual ...

, Wychwood Festival, and others. Later in the year, Curse of Lono went on a European tour with Chuck Prophet and The Mission Express and a smaller UK tour with Low Cut Connie. In May 2018, the band was the subject of a documentary short called ''Somewhere In Their Heads'' directed by Gregg Houston. The film chronicled the making of their second studio album (''As I Fell'') which was recorded at both Flesh & Bone in

Hackney, London Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Queen E ...

and Rancho V in

Joshua Tree, California Joshua Tree is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 7,414 at the 2010 census. At approximately above sea level, Joshua Tree and its surrounding c ...

. The group released their first single off the album, "Valentine," that same month. The short film again made the rounds at various festivals, earning the Best Documentary Short Award at the Hollywood Sun Awards, the Feel the Reel International Film Festival in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, the LA Edge Film Festival, and numerous others. Early in the year, Curse of Lono toured with

Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, author, and actor. Earle began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Initially working in the country music g ...

and Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, and went on their first UK headlining tour. ''As I Fell'' was released in August 2018, and the band went on a mini-tour of

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

with David Ramirez followed by a second UK headline tour in November in support. The album peaked at number 10 on the Official Americana Albums Chart and at number 15 on the Official Independent Album Breakers Chart. In January 2019, the group was awarded the Bob Harris Emerging Artist Award at the UK Americana Awards at

Hackney Empire Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney. Originally designed by Frank Matcham it was built in 1901 as a music hall, and expanded in 2001. Described by ''The Guardian'' as ‘the most beautiful theatre in Lon ...

. The group also performed at

South by Southwest South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in m ...

in March 2019. For

Record Store Day Record Store Day is an annual event inaugurated in 2007 and held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". The day brings together fa ...

on 13 April 2019, the group released the live album ''4am and Counting'' which was produced by Liam Watson at

Toe Rag Studios Toe Rag Studios is an analogue recording studio located in Hackney, London, England. History The studio was founded in 1991 by Liam Watson and Josh Collins in the Shoreditch area of London. In 1997, the business relocated to Hackney due to ...

. The album features "mellow, rootsier" versions of tracks off the band's first two albums. In May 2019, Curse Of Lono embarked on a 12-date tour of the UK with

Samantha Fish Samantha Fish (born January 30, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Kansas City, Missouri. While often cited as a blues artist, Fish's albums and live shows feature multiple genres, including rock, country, funk, bluegr ...

Discography

Studio albums

. "People in cars" (2021)

EPs

Live albums

Singles

References

External links

* {{authority control English alternative rock groups Musical groups established in 2015 2015 establishments in the United Kingdom Musical groups from London