Helen Love are an

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

band from

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

whose music is a combination of punk rock,

bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States i ...

and

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

. The band was formed in 1992 by Helen Love (vocals, guitar) with Sheena (guitar, keyboards), Roxy (bass, drum machine), and Mark (keyboards).Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 785 Current members are Helen, Sheena and

Ricardo Autobahn John Matthews (born 8 March 1978) better known by his stage name Ricardo Autobahn is an English producer, songwriter and musician. He is also known in collaborations with Daz Sampson as in Rikki & Daz and the projects like Barndance Boys, Cub ...

. Helen Love released only singles and EPs until 2000, when their debut studio album ''Love and Glitter, Hot Days and Music'' was released. They have since released three more studio albums, ''It's My Club and I'll Play What I Want To'' (2007, Elefant) and ''Day-Glo Dreams'' (2013, Elefant), and ''Smash Hits'' (2016, Alcopop! Records). Damaged Goods released three compilations of tracks from the band's early singles and EPs, entitled ''Radio Hits'' (1994), ''Radio Hits 2'' (1997) and ''Radio Hits 3'' (2002). The band have released recordings on many labels, including

Damaged Goods Damaged goods or Damaged Goods may refer to: * Goods that have been damaged, where goods are items that satisfy human wants and provide utility * A person considered to be less than perfect psychologically, as a result of a traumatic experience ...

, Che Trading,

Sympathy for the Record Industry Sympathy for the Record Industry (also known as Sympathy Records or Sympathy 4 the R.I.) is a mainly independent garage rock and punk label formed in 1988 by Long Gone John. The first Sympathy release was the Lazy Cowgirls' ''Radio Cowgirl'' LP ...

, Wurlizter Jukebox, Invicta Hi-Fi and

Elefant Records Elefant Records is an independent record label based in Madrid, Spain. History Elefant Records was founded in 1989 by Luis Calvo as an offshoot of a fanzine he produced called "La Línea del Arco". In 2014, the label's 25th anniversary was celeb ...

. They are currently signed to Alcopop! records.

History

The band was formed in 1992 by Helen Love (vocals, guitar) with Sheena (guitar, keyboards), Roxy (bass, drum machine), and Mark (keyboards). Current members are Helen, Sheena and

. The main thematic elements in their oeuvre are

Joey Ramone Jeffrey Ross Hyman (May 19, 1951 – April 15, 2001), known professionally as Joey Ramone, was an American musician, best known as the lead singer and a founding member of the punk rock band Ramones. His image, voice, and his tenure with the R ...

, summer days and bubblegum music. Love claims only to listen to the music of 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 ...

. Helen Love released the album, ''It's My Club and I'll Play What I Want To'', in the first week of November 2007 on

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and February 2008 in the UK. Their lead singer also provided vocal tracks from "We Love You" for covers of their song, "Better Set Your Phasers to Stun", by American

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

band

Hyperbubble Hyperbubble is an international visual and performing arts electropop/synth-pop duo from San Antonio, Texas, formed by Jeff DeCuir and Jess Barnett DeCuir. The music of this American group is variously described as "early Eurythmics meets Josie and ...

on their 2009 eponymous EP. The latter song later appeared on that band's '' Live in London'' album. In 2013 they released the album ''Day-Glo Dreams''. They supported this with their first gig since 2001 at the

Indietracks Indietracks was an annual indie pop music festival at the Midland Railway in Butterley, Derbyshire, UK. The main site was located at Swanwick Junction. Bands played in variety of locations, including a restored church, in a train shed, and on ...

festival, and then in November played at

100 Club The 100 Club is a music venue located at 100 Oxford Street, London, England, where it has been hosting live music since 24 October 1942. It was originally called the Feldman Swing Club, but changed its name when the father of the current owner ...

for

25th anniversary.

Influence and notable fans

While none of their singles have reached the

UK Top 40 The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, Helen Love have developed a devoted cult following in indie circles, particularly at indie discos, with songs including "Long Live The UK Music Scene", "Shifty Disco Girl", "Does Your Heart Go Boom?", "We Love You", "Girl About Town", "Punk Boy" and "

Debbie Debbie (or Debby or Deb) is a feminine given name, commonly but not always short for Deborah (or Debra and related variants). Notable people * Debbie Allen, American actress, choreographer and film director * Debbie Armstrong, American athlete * ...

Loves

Joey Joey may refer to: People *Joey (name) Animals * Joey (marsupial), an infant marsupial * Joey, a Blue-fronted Amazon parrot who was one of the Blue Peter pets Film and television * ''Joey'' (1977 film), an American film directed by Horace ...

". They recorded a session for

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

in October 1997, and had three songs in his

Festive Fifty The Festive Fifty was originally an annual list of the year's 50 (though the exact figure varied above and below this number) best songs compiled at the end of the year and voted for by listeners to John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. It was usually do ...

. Their songs have also been covered by

Ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

The Queers The Queers are an American punk rock band, formed in 1981 by the Portsmouth, New Hampshire native Joseph “Joe” P. King (a.k.a. Joe Queer) along with Scott Gildersleeve (a.k.a. Tulu), and John “Jack” Hayes (a.k.a. Wimpy Rutherford). With t ...

, Katz and

Tullycraft Tullycraft is an American indie pop band from Seattle, Washington, that formed in 1995. They have been associated with the genre of twee pop; in fact, they are considered to be one of the true pioneers of the American twee pop movement. They are ...

. The band contributed a specially written song for the DVD release of ''

Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure ''Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure'' is a stand-up comedy performance by Dave Gorman which toured between 2003 and 2005. The show follows Gorman's life between his 31st and 32nd birthday: unable to write a novel, Gorman is distracted into trav ...

''. Gorman, a fan of the band, had previously played Helen Love songs to his audiences before he went on stage. Another big fan is

Phill Jupitus Phillip Christopher Jupitus (, ''né'' Swan; born 25 June 1962) is an English stand-up and improv comedian, actor, performance poet, cartoonist and podcaster. Jupitus was a team captain on all but one BBC Two-broadcast episode of music quiz ''N ...

, for whom the band composed the theme song for his Breakfast Show on

BBC 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...

Joey Ramoney

Helen Love's second single was titled "(Sheena's In Love With) Joey Ramoney", a tribute to the band's favourite singer. A play on the Ramones' song "

Sheena Is a Punk Rocker "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" is a song by American punk rock band Ramones, released in 1977 through Sire Records. Written by front man and lead vocalist Joey Ramone it appears on the band's third studio album '' Rocket to Russia'' (1977). The song ...

", the single was brought to Joey's attention by the UK branch of the Ramones fan club. Joey subsequently invited the band to New York to play a gig. Joey introduced the band's ''Evening Session'' on

Radio 1 Radio 1 or Radio One most commonly refers to: *BBC Radio 1, a music radio station from the BBC ** BBC Radio 1Xtra, a digital radio station broadcasting black music *CBC Radio One, a talk radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporatio ...

, and duetted with Helen on the album version of "Punk Boy". Helen provided backing vocals on the

album ''

Don't Worry About Me ''Don't Worry About Me'' is the debut album released by Joey Ramone as a solo artist. It was released posthumously on February 19, 2002, by Sanctuary Records, less than a year after his death. The album was produced by Daniel Rey, who also did m ...

'', singing on the track " Mr. Punchy".

Discography

Albums

Singles

EPs

References

External links

*
Helen Love biography from BBC Wales
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helen Love Welsh rock music groups Sympathy for the Record Industry artists Musical groups established in 1992 British pop punk groups British indie pop groups Underground punk scene in the United Kingdom Welsh indie rock groups British electronic music groups Welsh pop music groups British dance music groups Happy hardcore musicians Dance-rock musical groups 1992 establishments in Wales Alcopop! Records artists