Love Amongst Ruin are an English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

supergroup Supergroup or super group may refer to: * Supergroup (music), a music group formed by artists who are already notable or respected in their fields * Supergroup (physics), a generalization of groups, used in the study of supersymmetry * Supergroup ...

, led by

Steve Hewitt Steven James Hewitt (born 22 March 1971) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He is the frontman of his own band, Love Amongst Ruin. Hewitt is best known for his tenure as the drummer for Placebo between September 1996 ...

after his tenure as the drummer for

Placebo A placebo ( ) is a substance or treatment which is designed to have no therapeutic value. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like Saline (medicine), saline), sham surgery, and other procedures. In general ...

. The band released their self-titled debut album in September 2010 and second album ''

Lose Your Way ''Lose Your Way'' is the second studio album by the British rock band Love Amongst Ruin. It was released by Ancient B Records on 29 June 2015 and has been described as "an album from an artist over the hump, head high to the future and all engines ...

'' was released in June 2015.

Band history

Beginnings and formation (2007–2009)

Upon leaving

after the conclusion of their '' Meds'' tour in September 2007,

had a vision "to create a new band, a new album and a new sound". He immediately enlisted

Lamb Lamb or The Lamb may refer to: * A young sheep * Lamb and mutton, the meat of sheep Arts and media Film, television, and theatre * ''The Lamb'' (1915 film), a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in his screen debut * ''The Lamb'' (1918 ...

bassist

Jon Thorne Jon Thorne (born 12 February 1967) is an English double bassist, producer and composer. Career Thorne is self-taught and started playing at the age of 23. He has studied and played jazz for a number of years following and considers Danny Thomps ...

and his brother Nick Hewitt to begin writing and demoing new music at his home studio. In March 2008,

Julian Cope Julian David Cope (born 21 October 1957) is an English musician and author. He was the singer and songwriter in Liverpool post-punk band the Teardrop Explodes and has followed a solo career since 1983 in addition to working on musical side proj ...

collaborator

Donald Ross Skinner Donald Skinner is a guitarist, songwriter and producer primarily known for his work with Julian Cope. Skinner is commonly known by the name Donald Ross Skinner with the addition of the middle name of ''Ross'' attributed to him by Cope after Gle ...

was brought in to oversee and co-produce the recording sessions. Between April and August 2008, the collective moved to Moles Studio in Bath for three recording sessions with producer

Paul Corkett Paul Corkett is a British record producer, engineer and arranger. Biography Paul got his start as an engineer in the mid-1980s, engineering singles and albums for bands as varied as ABC, the Chameleons, Twelfth Night and the Heart Throbs. He l ...

, which yielded ten songs, with Hewitt predominantly performing drums and lead vocals. Mixing began in September and continued for six months before the album was mastered by

Brian Gardner Brian Knapp Gardner, also known as Brian "Big Bass" Gardner, is an American mastering engineer. He has worked on a number of recordings since the mid-1960s, including classic rock, funk, disco, alternative rock, R&B, hip hop, pop punk and dance- ...

Bernie Grundman Mastering Bernie Grundman is an American audio engineer. He is most known for his mastering work and his studio, Bernie Grundman Mastering, which he opened in 1984 in Hollywood. The studio, which includes engineers Chris Bellman, Patricia Sullivan, and Mi ...

in April 2009. Hewitt spent the second half of 2009 securing management, publishing and record deals, in addition to finding permanent members for the band. Former

Cure A cure is a substance or procedure that ends a medical condition, such as a medication, a surgical operation, a change in lifestyle or even a philosophical mindset that helps end a person's sufferings; or the state of being healed, or cured. The ...

and

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...

tour manager Daryl Bamonte became the band's manager. In November, Hewitt revealed that the band and debut album would be named 'Love Amongst Ruin', with the band name being "a very apt description of the place I found myself in after I was ejected from Placebo. My life, the way it had been, seemed to be in ruins but I got a lot of love from fans and friends and family".

''Love Amongst Ruin'' (2009–2011)

The band lineup was revealed in December 2009 and announced alongside Steve Hewitt (vocals/guitar) were Donald Ross Skinner (guitar), Steve Hove (guitar), Laurie Ross (keyboards & cello) and

Keith York Keith York is an English session drummer who has toured throughout the world and worked with a range of bands, including The Lightning Seeds, Pitchshifter, bivouac, Ladytron, and Esoteric, Bentley Rhythm Ace, Broadcast and Love Amongst Ruin. He w ...

(drums). The band made their live debut at the

Eurosonic Festival Eurosonic Noorderslag is an annual four-day music showcase festival and conference held in January in Groningen, Netherlands. The first three days of the festival (Eurosonic) feature artists from all over Europe, the last day of the festival (N ...

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

on 14 January 2010, with guest bassist Jonathan Noyce. Bassist Magnus Lundén was added as a permanent member in time for the band's UK live debut at the Barfly in London on 11 May. The band followed up with a larger gig at the Scala in June. Magnus Lundén was replaced by Teresa Morini in July. The band appeared on the

Red Bull Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks of Austria, Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With 38% market share, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2019. Since its launch in 1987, more than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwid ...

Stage at

Sonisphere Festival The Sonisphere Festival was a touring rock music festival which took place across Europe between the months of June and August. The festival was owned by John Jackson and Kilimanjaro Live. It was jointly promoted by K2 and Kilimanjaro Live. It ...

on 11 August, the day after Hewitt's previous band, Placebo, had played on the main stage. Love Amongst Ruin's debut single "

So Sad (Fade) "So Sad (Fade)" is the debut single by British rock band Love Amongst Ruin. The single was released on 30 August 2010 on Ancient B Records. Reception The single received generally positive reviews. ''AAA Music'' described the song as "an angry ...

" was released on 30 August on Ancient B Records, followed by their self-titled debut album on 13 September. The band embarked on the Heaven & Hell Tour from September through November and released their second single "

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

" on 25 October. 2010 was wrapped up with a gig at Birmingham Academy supporting Feeder. Keith York left the band at the end of the year, expressing a desire to spend more time with his family. He was replaced by Ramon Sherrington. Laurie Ross was also removed from the live lineup, but continued to record with the band in the studio. The band began 2011 with a quartet of gigs supporting Feeder, before supporting their third single, "Alone", with a short tour of France in March.

Gizz Butt Graham Anthony "Gizz" Butt (born 3 August 1966 in Manchester, England) is a British musician, lead vocalist and lead guitarist for Janus Stark best known for being the live guitarist for the band The Prodigy in the late 1990s. His own band Jan ...

filled in for Steve Hove on the Recycling Party tour in May, while Jon Thorne stepped in for Teresa Morini at the

Fête de la Musique The Fête de la Musique, also known in English as Music Day, Make Music Day or World Music Day, is an annual music celebration that takes place on 21 June. On Music Day, citizens and residents are urged to play music outside in their neighborho ...

in Valence,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in June. The band spent two days at

Fisher Lane Farm Fisher Lane Farm is the main recording studio of the English progressive rock band Genesis. The studio is located in Chiddingfold, Surrey, England. Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks and Phil Collins have also recorded there as solo artists, or wit ...

in early August with producer Paul Corkett to record acoustic versions of nine tracks released on their self-titled debut album. Laurie Ross returned to play cello at the sessions. An acoustic version of "

Bring Me Down (You Don't) "Bring Me Down (You Don't)" is a song by British rock band Love Amongst Ruin, written by singer and guitarist Steve Hewitt. The song has frequently been performed live by the band. Background The music for "Bring Me Down (You Don't)" is taken ...

" was given away by the band as a free download in advance of the release of the acoustic album on 5 December.

''Lose Your Way'' (2011–2016)

In January 2011, Hewitt revealed he had begun writing the band's second album and that the band would commence recording after completing the supporting tour for their self-titled debut album. In June, Hewitt stated that "We're about nine tracks in. We're hoping to start recording in September. I've demoed most of the drums but we'll see when September comes who's going to play what. I've got to get my oar in and have a go, it'd be silly not to". The writing process for the album was completed in March 2012 and was recorded by Hewitt and Donald Ross Skinner, with Dan Austin producing. In May 2012 it was announced that Teresa Morini had left the band to join the

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...

touring show

Amaluna ''Amaluna'' was a touring show by Cirque du Soleil. It was created and directed by Diane Paulus and is loosely inspired by '' The Tempest'' by William Shakespeare. It opened in Montréal, Quebec, Canada, on April 19, 2012. The cast is 70% female ...

. Her replacement was former-Cure guitarist

Perry Bamonte Perry Archangelo Bamonte (born 3 September 1960) is an English musician best known as a member of the rock band The Cure from 1990 to 2005, and again since 2022. Biography Born in London, England, Bamonte became a guitar tech for The Cure in ...

. On 5 July, the band made available a free download of their

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

of "

Rise Rise or RISE may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * '' Rise: The Vieneo Province'', an internet-based virtual world * Rise FM, a fictional radio station in the video game ''Grand Theft Auto 3'' * Rise Kujikawa, a vide ...

" by

Public Image Ltd Public Image Ltd (abbreviated and stylized as PiL) are an English post-punk band (and incorporated limited company) formed by singer John Lydon (previously known as the singer of Sex Pistols), guitarist Keith Levene, bassist Jah Wobble, and dr ...

via their

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

page. In early September, founding guitarist Steve Hove left the band, causing a 10 September comeback show at the London Barfly to be cancelled. Dave Weston was announced as Hove's replacement in mid-November and the band commenced rehearsals. Despite announcements in January 2013 and February 2014 that news would be forthcoming, the band remained inactive while Hewitt worked with

Six by Seven Six by Seven (also written as SIX.BY SEVEN or six.by seven or six.byseven) are an English indie rock band, formed in 1992 in Nottingham. The classic lineup of the band featured singer/guitarist Chris Olley, guitarist Sam Hempton, drummer Chri ...

, Polaroid Kiss and produced records for Lys and Spiral 69. On 13 March 2015, the band posted a short video clip on

Vimeo Vimeo, Inc. () is an American video hosting, sharing, and services platform provider headquartered in New York City. Vimeo focuses on the delivery of high-definition video across a range of devices. Vimeo's business model is through software as ...

, featuring new song "Lose Your Way". On 9 April, ''

Q Magazine ''Q'' was a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1986 by broadcast journalists Mark Ellen and David Hepworth, who were presenters of the BBC television music series ''The Old Grey Whistle Test''. '' ...

'' made "Swan Killer" their Track of the Day and the band announced the album title as ''

'', with a release date of 29 June 2015. The album was preceded by the "Lose Your Way" EP on 11 May, with the title track peaking at number one on the Deutsche Alternative Singles Chart. The album was followed by the "Modern War Song" and "So Close" EPs on 24 July and 6 November. The album's supporting tour began on 24 November at the London Barfly and featured Gizz Butt (guitar) and Ravi Kesavaram (drums) as touring musicians alongside permanent members Hewitt, Skinner and Bamonte. By April 2021, the album had gone

silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

. On 24 March 2016, the band revealed they were recording new material. Five months later, it was announced that ''Lose Your Way (Acoustic)'' (an album of acoustic versions of songs initially released on ''Lose Your Way'') would be released on 2 September 2016. On 19 August 2016, a new song, "Amy's Prayer", featuring guest vocals from Amber Kingi, was made available for free via the band's

web store Online shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser or a mobile app. Consumers find a product of interest by visiting the website of the ...

. An EP, "Way To Your Heart", was released on 9 December 2016.

Return (2022–)

On 5 November 2021, it was announced that Love Amongst Ruin would support Paul Draper on his UK tour in February and March 2022. Reduced in length due to a family bereavement suffered by Paui Draper, the tour was performed acoustically by Steve Hewitt and Gizz Butt. Further acoustic gigs took place in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

and

Machynlleth Machynlleth () is a market town, community and electoral ward in Powys, Wales and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a popul ...

in April 2022.

Musical style and influences

Love Amongst Ruin describe themselves as "a multi-faceted rock band that promises the crunch of a stone age queen, the crossover appeal of a parkful of linkins and the melodicism of the hardiest fighter of foos". They also cite having New Order, Depeche Mode,

Kasabian Kasabian ( ) are an English rock band formed in Leicester in 1997 by lead vocalist Tom Meighan, guitarist and occasional vocalist Sergio Pizzorno, guitarist Chris Karloff, and bassist Chris Edwards. Drummer Ian Matthews joined in 2004. Karlof ...

, Can, The Cure and

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

elements to their sound.

Band members

; Current members *

– vocals, lead and rhythm guitar, keyboards, piano, programming (2009–present), bass (live: 2009–2010, studio: 2009–present), drums, percussion (live: 2014–present, studio: 2009–present) *

– lead and rhythm guitar, keyboards, piano, programming (2009–present), bass (live: 2009–2010, studio: 2009–present) *

– bass (2012–present) ; Former members *Steve Hove – rhythm and lead guitar (2009–2012, session member: 2012–2015) *

– drums, percussion (2009–2011) *Laurie Ross – keyboards, piano, programming, cello (2009–2011, session member: 2011–2015) *Magnus Lundén – bass (2010) *Teresa Morini – bass (2010–2012) *Ramon Sherrington – drums, percussion (2011–2014, touring member: 2014–2015) ; Touring musicians * Jonathan Noyce – bass (2010) *

– rhythm and lead guitar (2011, 2015–present) *

– bass (2011) *Dave Weston – rhythm and lead guitar (2012) * Ravi Kesavaram – drums, percussion (2015–present) ; Session musicians *Nick Hewitt – rhythm and lead guitar (2009–2010) *Beth Porter – cello (2012–2015) ;Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

Love Amongst Ruin Love Amongst Ruin are an English rock supergroup, led by Steve Hewitt after his tenure as the drummer for Placebo. The band released their self-titled debut album in September 2010 and second album ''Lose Your Way'' was released in June 2015 ...

'' (13 September 2010) * ''

'' (29 June 2015)

Singles

*2010: "

" (30 August 2010) *2010: "

" (25 October 2010) *2011: "Alone" (28 February 2011)

EPs

*2010: '' Home (Remixes)'' (25 October 2010) *2015: ''Lose Your Way'' (11 May 2015) *2015: ''Modern War Song'' (24 July 2015) *2015: ''So Close'' (6 November 2015) *2016: ''Way to Your Heart'' (9 December 2016)

Other albums

*2011: '' Acoustic'' (5 December 2011) *2016: ''Lose Your Way (Acoustic)'' (2 September 2016)

Free downloads

*2011: "

" (acoustic version, 8 November 2011) *2012: "

" (

cover, 5 July 2012) *2016: "Amy's Prayer" (19 August 2016)

Music videos

References

External links

* * {{Authority control English rock music groups Musical groups from London Musical groups established in 2009 English alternative rock groups British supergroups Rock music supergroups