"Host" is a song by British

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

The Crocketts The Crocketts were a British-Irish indie rock band from Aberystwyth. Formed in 1996, the band featured Irish vocalist Davey MacManus, English guitarist Daniel Harris, English bassist Richard Carter and Welsh drummer Owen Hopkin. The Crocketts wer ...

. Credited to Davey MacManus and The Crocketts and produced by Charlie Francis, "Host" was featured on the band's 2000 second album '' The Great Brain Robbery'', and released as its first

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

on 3 April 2000.

Composition

Writer and vocalist Davey MacManus has provided the following explanation of the song's meaning:

Reception

In their review of ''The Great Brain Robbery'', magazine ''Welsh Bands Weekly'' described "Host" as an "addictive" song, claiming that it "sticks around inside your head for days ... and the pretty guitar sound is just so addictive". ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...

'' awarded the single four out of five Ks in their review, describing the song as "a slightly melancholy number ... a timely reminder that life can be amazing, even when it hurts".

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for "Host" was directed by

Ralph Brown Ralph William John Brown (born 18 June 1957) is an English actor and writer, known for playing Danny the drug dealer in ''Withnail and I'', the security guard Aaron (a.k.a. "85") in ''Alien 3'', DJ Bob Silver in ''The Boat That Rocked'' aka ' ...

and produced by Mark Williams, both of whom also perform in the video. The video was filmed in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

on the request of Williams, including a number of "rich and red" theatre interiors on the

West Pier The West Pier is a ruined pier in Brighton, England. It was designed by Eugenius Birch and opened in 1866. It was the first pier to be Grade I listed in England and Wales but has become increasingly derelict since its closure to the publi ...

. Williams describes the theme of the video as "a ghost story", and says that the inspiration came from listening to the lyrics of the song.

Track listing

Personnel

;The Crocketts *Davey MacManus ("Davey Crockett") –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

;

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

and mixing on "You Don't Know Nothing" and "Beast with Two Backs" *Dan Harris ("Dan Boone") – guitar; production and mixing on "You Don't Know Nothing" and "Beast with Two Backs" *Richard Carter ("Rich Wurzel") –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

; production and mixing on "You Don't Know Nothing" and "Beast with Two Backs" *Owen Hopkin ("Owen Cash") –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

; production and mixing on "You Don't Know Nothing" and "Beast with Two Backs" ;Additional personnel *Charlie Francis – production and mixing on "Host", "Host" (live), "Will You Still Care" (live) and "Strong Guy" (live) *Dave Murder – production and mixing on "You Don't Know Nothing" and "Beast with Two Backs"

References

{{authority control 2000 singles The Crocketts songs 2000 songs