Morton Valence are a London-based rock band based around the vocal pairing of songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Robert 'Hacker' Jessett (ex-member of
The Band of Holy Joy
The Band of Holy Joy are an English band formed in New Cross, London, and initially active between 1984 and 1993, releasing several albums. In 1992, they abbreviated their name to Holy Joy. They reformed in 2002, under their original name, releas ...
and
Alabama 3
Alabama 3 are a British/English musical group founded in Brixton, London in 1995. They are best known for their track "Woke Up This Morning", which was used for the opening credits of the TV series ''The Sopranos''. In the United States, the ...
) and Anne Gilpin. They term their music as Urban Country and were described by ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' as being "one of the most intriguing bands on these shores".
Founded in 2001 by Robert Jessett, Anne Gilpin and Chuck Whobrey, the band won the 2006
Fopp Fopp may refer to:
* "Fopp" (song), a 1975 song by the Ohio Players from ''Honey''
* ''Fopp'' (EP), a 1988 EP by Soundgarden, featuring the song of the same name
* '' Screaming Life/Fopp'', a 1990 compilation album by the American rock band Sound ...
Award for best new band and went on to sign a record contract with Cheap Date Records. After the release of the single "Sailors" - described by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
as being "the best single you've never heard of the past decade" - they split from Cheap Date to form their own label, Bastard Recordings, and are an early example of an independent band who entered into a
crowd funding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by cro ...
agreement with their fans. Their 2009 single ''Chandelier'' was a
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
Record of the Week.
They have recorded eight full-length studio albums, all of which have been highly acclaimed in the music press, including four star reviews in
Mojo Magazine
''Mojo'' is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer. Following the success of the magazine '' Q'', publishers Emap were looking for a title that would cater for the bur ...
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''. '' ...
Uncut Magazine
''Uncut'' is a monthly magazine based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections. A DVD magazine under the ''Uncut'' brand was published quarterly from 2005 to 2006 ...
Classic Rock Magazine
''Classic Rock'' is a British magazine and website dedicated to rock music, owned and published by Future. It was launched in October 1998 and is based in London. The magazine publishes 13 editions a year, mainly covering rock bands from the 60, ...
and an album of the year on the Chicago-based website
Consequence of Sound
''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...
.
In 2020 Jessett and Gilpin wrote and directed an autobiographical film documentary entitled ''This Is A Film About A Band'' that was premiered at the Doc'N Roll Film Festival in London.
Their eponymously titled eighth album was produced by legendary pedal steel guitar player
BJ Cole
Brian John Cole is an English pedal steel guitarist, who has long been active as a session and solo musician. Coming to prominence in the early 1970s with the band Cochise, Cole has played in many styles, ranging from mainstream pop and rock to ...
,
who also appears on the album and plays with the band intermittently.
Discography
Albums
*''Bob and Veronica's Big Move'' (2001) Whipwray
*''Bob and Veronica Ride Again'' (2009) Bastard Recordings
*''Me & Home James'' (2011) Bastard Recordings
*''Left'' (2014) Bastard Recordings
*''Another Country'' (2015) Bastard Recordings
*''Europa'' (2017) Bastard Recordings
*''Bob & Veronica's Great Escape'' (2019) Bastard Recordings
*''Black Angel Drifter'' (2020) Cow Pie Ltd/
Cargo Records (UK)
Cargo Records is a record label based in London, England, which distributes musical recordings in the United Kingdom and Europe. The company currently distributes records in a wide variety of genres, both as a label in its own right and as a d ...
*''Morton Valence'' (2022) Cow Pie Ltd/
Cargo Records (UK)
Cargo Records is a record label based in London, England, which distributes musical recordings in the United Kingdom and Europe. The company currently distributes records in a wide variety of genres, both as a label in its own right and as a d ...
Singles
*''The Girl on The Escalator'' - as Florida - (2002)
Monika Enterprise
Monika Enterprises is a Berlin, Germany-based independent record label.
In 2001, Wallpaper magazine described the label's musical style as " cupying a twilight zone between electronic pop, easy listening and bedsit angst" and " earheading a new g ...
*''Sailors'' (2007) Cheap Date Records
*''Chandelier'' (2009) Bastard Recordings
*''Falling Down the Stairs'' (2009) Bastard Recordings
*''Hang it on the Wall'' (2010) Bastard Recordings
*''Christmas in Valence'' (2011) Bastard Recordings
*''Skyline Change/Genders Blur'' (2019) Bastard Recordings
*''Black-Eyed Susan'' (2020) Cow Pie Ltd/
Cargo Records (UK)
Cargo Records is a record label based in London, England, which distributes musical recordings in the United Kingdom and Europe. The company currently distributes records in a wide variety of genres, both as a label in its own right and as a d ...
*''Summertime in London'' (2022) Cow Pie Ltd/
Cargo Records (UK)
Cargo Records is a record label based in London, England, which distributes musical recordings in the United Kingdom and Europe. The company currently distributes records in a wide variety of genres, both as a label in its own right and as a d ...
References
External links
Official websit
mortonvalence.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valence, Morton
English indie rock groups
Musical groups from London