Graham Hopkins (born 20 December 1975) is an Irish drummer. He was the drummer in

The Swell Season The Swell Season is a folk rock duo formed by Irish musician Glen Hansard and Czech singer and pianist Markéta Irglová. "The Swell Season" name is derived from Hansard's favourite novel by Josef Škvorecký from 1975 bearing the same title. ...

The Frames The Frames are an Irish rock band based in Dublin. Founded in 1990 by Glen Hansard, the band has been influential in the Dublin rock music scene. The group has released six studio albums. In addition to Hansard, the band's current line-up incl ...

and rock band

Therapy? Therapy? are a Northern Irish rock band from Larne, formed in 1989 by guitarist-vocalist Andy Cairns and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing. Therapy? recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar. To complete the lineup, the band r ...

Biography

Early years

Hopkins was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and was brought up in

Clane Clane (; ) is a town in County Kildare, Ireland, from Dublin. Its population of 7,280 makes it the eighth largest town in Kildare and the 66th largest in Ireland. It is on the River Liffey. Clane gives its name to the associated townland, ci ...

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

in a musical family (his father, Des being a jazz drummer). He was surrounded by music from an early age and began playing the drums at approximately four or five years old. In 1993, he left school to join

My Little Funhouse My Little Funhouse were a rock band from County Kilkenny, Ireland in the early 1990s. After winning the Carling Hot Press band competition, they got signed to Island Publishing and went on, in late 1991, to sign what was Geffen Records' larges ...

, a band from

County Kilkenny County Kilkenny ( gle, Contae Chill Chainnigh) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the South-East Region. It is named after the city of Kilkenny. Kilkenny County Council is the local authority for the cou ...

. The band had already released their debut album ''Standunder'' on

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...

, when Graham joined. The band toured for about a year in support of the album, mainly in the United States. Tours included support to

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

and

The Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

amongst others. The band then lived in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and recorded a second album for Geffen before imploding.

Notable appearances

Therapy?

Hopkins moved on, joining the popular

Northern Irish Northern Irish people is a demonym for all people born in Northern Ireland or people who are entitled to reside in Northern Ireland without any restriction on their period of residence. Most Northern Irish people either identify as Northern ...

band

in 1996, recording three studio albums –

Semi-Detached A semi-detached house (often abbreviated to semi) is a single family duplex dwelling house that shares one common wall with the next house. The name distinguishes this style of house from detached houses, with no shared walls, and terraced house ...

Suicide Pact – You First ''Suicide Pact – You First'' is the fifth full-length album by the band Therapy?, and the first to be released by their third record company Ark21, following the demise of the band's previous label. It was released on 18 October 1999 an ...

, Shameless – and also recorded new songs with the band for So Much for the Ten Year Plan: A Retrospective 1990-2000. His first public appearance with Therapy? was at the IRMA Awards, Dublin on 29 March 1996. Hopkins played his first full gig with Therapy? at a fan-club members only show at The Attic, Dublin on 10 April 1996. His last show was at the Ambassador Theatre, Dublin on 8 December 2001.

Gemma Hayes

After leaving Therapy? in December 2001 Hopkins was asked to tour with Irish singer/songwriter

Gemma Hayes Gemma Hayes (born 11 August 1977) is an Irish musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments, including the piano and the harmonica. She is also a m ...

. He toured with Hayes for over a year – supporting her

Mercury Music Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the B ...

nominated A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs. * ...

album ''

Night on My Side ''Night on My Side'' is the debut album by Irish singer-songwriter Gemma Hayes, first released by Source Records on 24 May 2002 in the Republic of Ireland, 27 May 2002 in the United Kingdom, and 10 July 2002 in Japan. The album's release in Nor ...

''.

Halite

Hopkins then went on to record two albums with his own band Halite. Halite began as a solo project for Graham, who debuted with the critically acclaimed first album "Head On" with

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

in 2003. Head On was an off-kilter melodic pop/rock album. He played most instruments on the record but needed musicians to help out for playing live. He asked his friends Binzer Brennan, Keith Farrell and Derren Dempsey if they would tour with him. Halite then grew into a fully formed band. They soon went on to record and independently release their second album "Courses" in 2004. Halite played numerous shows over the following two years, including opening the

Slane Concert The Slane Festival (often referred to as Slane) is a recurring concert held most years since 1981 on the grounds of Slane Castle near Slane, County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The castle is owned by Henry Conyngham, 8th Marquess Conyngh ...

in 2003 for

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea (musician), Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates element ...

and

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

. In early 2005, due to commitments with others projects from each member, the band was put on hold.

Boss Volenti

Hopkins was a member of Dublin band Boss Volenti for three years. He drummed on their self-titled debut album released in 2006 but left the band immediately after their appearance at Electric Picnic 2008.

The Cake Sale

Hopkins appeared as part of the band on the 2006

Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...

charity album, ''

The Cake Sale The Cake Sale are a collective of mostly Republic of Ireland, Irish musical artists including Swedish singer/songwriter Nina Persson of The Cardigans and Australian musician Nick Seymour of Crowded House. The collective was formed by Brian Cros ...

''.

Snow Patrol

Hopkins spent the early part of 2007 stepping in as drummer for

Snow Patrol Snow Patrol are a Northern Irish–Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in 1994 in Dundee, Scotland. They consist of Gary Lightbody (vocals, guitar), Nathan Connolly (guitar, backing vocals), Paul Wilson (musician), Paul Wilson (bass guitar, ...

on their

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an, Australian, New Zealand and American tours.

Dolores O'Riordan

He drummed on

Dolores O'Riordan Dolores Mary Eileen O'Riordan ( ; 6 September 1971 – 15 January 2018) was an Irish musician, singer and songwriter. She was best known as the lead vocalist and lyricist for the alternative rock band the Cranberries. One of the most recogniza ...

's debut solo album, '' Are You Listening?'' in 2007 before embarking on a worldwide tour with her.

Once and The Swell season

Hopkins also played on the soundtrack to the Irish

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology), ...

winning Winning may refer to: * Victory Film * ''Winning'' (film), a 1969 movie starring Paul Newman * '' Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman'', a 2015 documentary by Adam Carolla and Nate Adams Music * ''Winning'', an album by Ten Foot Pole, 2022 ...

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...

Once Once means a one-time occurrence. Once may refer to: Music * ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten'' * ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper * ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...

'' which was written and directed by John Carney. He drummed on a few of the songs with

Glen Hansard Glen Hansard (born 21 April 1970) is an Irish singer-songwriter, musician and actor. Since 1990, he has been the frontman of the Irish rock band The Frames, with whom he has released six studio albums, four of which have charted in the top ten ...

and

Markéta Irglová Markéta Irglová () (born 28 February 1988) is a Czech-Icelandic singer-songwriter, musician and actress, who starred in the film '' Once'', which earned her a number of major awards, including the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Fal ...

. Hopkins toured with

, which features

and members of

released their second album, Strict Joy, in September 2009.

Others

Hopkins has played drums on numerous albums, both Irish and internationally, including with

David Kitt David Kitt (born 1975 in Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish musician. He has released eight studio albums to date: ''Small Moments'', ''The Big Romance'', ''Square 1'', ''The Black and Red Notebook'', '' Not Fade Away'', ''The Nightsaver'', ''Yous'', ...

Mundy Edmond Enright (born 19 May 1975), known professionally as Mundy, is an Irish singer-songwriter and founder of the independent record label Camcor Records. Biography He released his debut album ''Jelly Legs'' in 1996 on the Epic Records label ...

The Reindeer Section The Reindeer Section are a Scottish indie rock supergroup formed in 2001 by Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol, which released albums and gigged in 2001 and 2002. Lightbody describes the band's sound as "pretty much all very slow, quiet, folky-ty ...

Josh Ritter Josh Ritter (born October 21, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and author who performs and records with the Royal City Band. Ritter is known for his distinctive Americana style and narrative lyrics. In 2006, he was named one of ...

Jape Jape is a synonym for a practical joke. Jape or JAPE may also refer to: * Jape (band), an Irish electronic/rock band * JAPE (linguistics), a transformation language widely used in natural language processing * JAPE, an automated pun generator * J ...

The Pale The Pale (Irish: ''An Pháil'') or the English Pale (' or ') was the part of Ireland directly under the control of the English government in the Late Middle Ages. It had been reduced by the late 15th century to an area along the east coast st ...

and Pugwash amongst many others. Hopkins plays

Zildjian :''Zildjian leads here. For people with the surname, see Zildjian (disambiguation)'' The Avedis Zildjian Company, simply known as Zildjian (), is a musical instrument manufacturer specializing in cymbals and other percussion instruments. Founded ...

cymbal A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs soun ...

s, Aquarian

drumhead A drumhead or drum skin is a membrane stretched over one or both of the open ends of a drum. The drumhead is struck with sticks, mallets, or hands, so that it vibrates and the sound resonates through the drum. Additionally outside of percus ...

s, uses

Vic Firth Everett Joseph "Vic" Firth (June 2, 1930 – July 26, 2015) was an American musician and the founder of Vic Firth Company (formerly Vic Firth, Inc.), a company that makes percussion mallet, percussion sticks and mallets. Biography Vic Firt ...

stick Stick or the stick may refer to: Thin elongated objects * Twig * The weapon used in stick fighting * Walking stick, a device to facilitate balancing while walking * Shepherd's crook * Swagger stick * Digging stick * Swizzle stick, used to stir d ...

s and

Drum Workshop Drum Workshop, Inc. (also known as DW Drums or DW) is an American drum kit and hardware manufacturing company based in Oxnard, California. Current products by DW include drum sets, snare drums, and hardware. History Drum Workshop was founded ...

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...

drum hardware Drum hardware refers to the parts of a drum or drum kit that are used to tension, position, and otherwise support the instruments themselves. Occasionally, the hardware is used percussively as well, the most common example being a rim shot. John ...

and

pedal A pedal (from the Latin '' pes'' ''pedis'', "foot") is a lever designed to be operated by foot and may refer to: Computers and other equipment * Footmouse, a foot-operated computer mouse * In medical transcription, a pedal is used to control p ...

Short selected discography

–

(1998) *Therapy? – Suicide Pact-You First (1999) *Therapy? – So Much For the Ten Year Plan (2000) *Therapy? – Shameless (2001) *Therapy? – Music Through a Cheap Transistor (2007) *

– Dance the Devil (1999) *The Frames – Burn the Maps (2004) *The Frames – The Cost (2006) *

– Square 1 (2003) *David Kitt – Not Fade Away (2006) * Pugwash – Jollity (2005) *Pugwash – Giddy (2009) *

– Are You Listening? (2007) *

– The Monkeys in the Zoo Have More Fun Than Me (2005) *Miriam Ingram – Trampoline (2006) * Boss Volenti – Boss Volenti (2006) *Ann Scott – We're Smiling (2006) *

– The Cake Sale (2006) *

– Once soundtrack (2007) *

– Strict Joy (2009) *Oliver Cole – We Albatri (2010) *Q (Colm Quearney) – Root to the Fruit (2010)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hopkins, Graham 1975 births Living people Irish rock drummers Musicians from County Dublin Therapy? members 21st-century drummers The Frames members The Swell Season members