Nine Black Alps
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Nine Black Alps are an English
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band, formed in 2003 in
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
. The band consists of vocalist-guitarist Sam Forrest, guitarist David Jones, drummer James Galley and bassist Karl Astbury. Taking their name from "The Couriers" poem by
Sylvia Plath Sylvia Plath (; October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. She is credited with advancing the genre of confessional poetry and is best known for two of her published collections, ''The ...
, the band came to prominence with the release of their debut album, '' Everything Is'' in 2005. Following the release of the band's second album, '' Love/Hate'' (2007), the band parted ways with
Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...
, and self-released their third studio album, '' Locked Out from the Inside'' in 2009. In 2011, bassist Martin Cohen departed the band to pursue a solo career under the name Milk Maid. Cohen was subsequently replaced by Karl Astbury, with the band releasing their fourth album, ''
Sirens Siren or sirens may refer to: Common meanings * Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies * Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology Places * Siren (town), Wisconsin * Siren, Wisco ...
'' in October 2012. In April 2014, Nine Black Alps released their fifth studio album ''
Candy for the Clowns Candy For The Clowns is the fifth studio album from British rock band Nine Black Alps Nine Black Alps are an English alternative rock band, formed in 2003 in Manchester. The band consists of vocalist-guitarist Sam Forrest, guitarist David ...
'' on Hatch Records.


Career

From their inception in late 2003, the band's energetic live performances earned them a hardcore fanbase after playing for only a few months on the Manchester music scene. In 2004 the band signed to Island records and spent the year touring the UK and recording their first studio album with producer
Rob Schnapf Rob Schnapf is an American record producer and musician. He was the co-producer (along with Tom Rothrock) of Elliott Smith's albums ''Either/Or'', '' XO'' (on which he also played guitar on the song " Baby Britain"), ''Figure 8'' and ''From a ...
in Los Angeles. In 2005, having completed the album recording, Nine Black Alps toured the UK extensively, promoting the release of their debut album, '' Everything Is'' on 13 June 2005. The band supported the
Kaiser Chiefs Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 2000 as Parva, releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their current name that same year. Since their formation the band h ...
for part of their UK tour in April 2005, and later
Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...
in August. The band also performed at 2005's
Glastonbury festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...
,
T in the Park T in the Park festival was a major Scottish music festival that was held annually from 1994 to 2016. It was named after its main sponsor, Tennents. The event was held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire, until 1996. It then moved to the disused ...
, V Festival, and the
Reading and Leeds Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Fes ...
. Also in 2005 Nine Black Alps performed in Japan at the winter SonicMania Festival in February, and later that year returned to play the Club Quattro Venues in Tokyo and Osaka. The band also spent time touring northern Europe, including France, the Netherlands and Germany and also supported the
Kaiser Chiefs Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 2000 as Parva, releasing one studio album, ''22'', in 2003, before renaming and establishing themselves in their current name that same year. Since their formation the band h ...
in
Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
. The band also ventured to the US, playing at the
South by Southwest Festival South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...
in
Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, and making a short tour of the north east. During February 2006 Nine Black Alps set off for a final 'Everything Is' UK tour with their Manchester friends
The Longcut The Longcut are an English rock band, formed in 2002 in Manchester. Career The Longcut formed in Manchester in 2002, while attending the University of Manchester. Originally a four-piece, their vocalist left soon after the band started and the ...
as support. This was Nine Black Alps' largest and most successful UK tour to date, and included sold-out headline shows at Manchester Academy and an NME Shockwaves Awards Show at Hammersmith Palais. Their first
U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
single was "Cosmopolitan"; their album '' Everything Is'' was released in the US on 28 February 2006, and to support the album release Nine Black Alps toured the US extensively during 2006, including several performances at the
South by Southwest Festival South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...
in
Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
and a performance at the
Coachella Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. I ...
on 28 April that year. On 18 October 2006, NME.com reported that they were working on the follow-up to ''Everything Is'', recording with
Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...
and Jet producer
Dave Sardy David Stuart Sardy (born 1967), more commonly known as D. Sardy, is an American composer, musician, songwriter, and multiple Grammy winning record producer. He came to prominence as the leader of 1990s noise rock band Barkmarket before turning mo ...
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' ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
: "According to a posting on Nineblackalps.com the band and Dave Sardy will 'furrow their brows, vent their spleens and bleed their hearts into the production of a glorious technicolour audiophonic dreamscape'". Nine Black Alps played on the NME Stage at
Reading and Leeds Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Fes ...
and Belladrum
Tartan Heart Festival The Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival is a music and arts festival, held on the Belladrum Estate in Kiltarlity near Inverness, in Scotland. It is normally held at the start of August. Founded in 2004, the festival has rapidly grown in popularit ...
,
Invernesshire Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populati ...
, in August 2007. The band's first release of 2007 came in the form of "Pocket Full of Stars", a song written by the band and Hayley Hutchinson for inclusion in the movie soundtrack to '' Surf's Up''. The first single taken from the new album was "Burn Faster" released on 23 July and the second single, "Bitter End", was released on 15 October. The band's second album, '' Love/Hate'', was released on 29 October 2007. In November 2007 Nine Black Alps supported
Biffy Clyro Biffy Clyro are a Scottish rock band that formed in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, composed of Simon Neil (guitar, lead vocals), James Johnston (bass, vocals), and Ben Johnston (drums, vocals). Currently signed to 14th Floor Records, they have r ...
on the Scottish leg of their uk tour and
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (sometimes abbreviated to BRMC) is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. The group originally consisted of Peter Hayes (vocals, guitar, harmonica), Robert Levon Been (vocals, bass, guitar), and Ni ...
. On the back of this, Nine Black Alps brought the 'Love/Hate' era and their partnership with Island Records to a close with a successful UK headline tour in January and February 2008. Having spent much of 2008 writing new material, Nine Black Alps finished recording their third full-length album in February 2009 with producer
Dave Eringa David James Eringa (born 30 July 1971 in Brentwood, Essex, Brentwood, Essex) is an English people, English record producer, sound and mix engineer. Biography He has a career long association with the Manic Street Preachers, he was on tea makin ...
in North Wales' Bryn Derwen Studio. In April 2009, Nine Black Alps released a free download song on NME.com and their own website. The track, called 'Buy Nothing', was the first release from their forthcoming third album, ''Locked Out from the Inside''. The band's third studio album, '' Locked Out from the Inside'' was released on 5 October 2009, and was promoted by a UK-wide tour. In 2010, it was revealed that the band had started demoing new material for their fourth album as a 3 piece in early May in the
West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
village of
Linthwaite Linthwaite (known as ''Linfit'' in the local community) is a village in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated west of Huddersfield, on the A62 in the Colne Valley. The village to ...
. Bass player Martin Cohen left the band in early 2011 to pursue his solo project Milk Maid, with whom he is signed to
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 ...
based label Fat Cat Records; he has since been replaced by Karl Astbury, formerly of The Witches. Also in 2011, David Jones became the touring second guitarist in
The Cribs The Cribs are a British indie rock band originally from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, that formed in 2001. The band consists of twins Gary and Ryan Jarman and their younger brother Ross Jarman. They were subsequently joined by ex-The Smiths guit ...
following the departure of
Johnny Marr Johnny Marr (born John Martin Maher, 31 October 1963) is an English musician, songwriter and singer. He first achieved fame as the guitarist and co-songwriter of the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987. He has since performed with numerous ...
. As said on their official website, " find ourselves back in the studio, a year older, wiser and rustier - recording a bunch of new songs that may or may not find their way onto some form of album." In June 2012, it was announced that Nine Black Alps had signed with Brew Records to release their fourth studio album, ''
Sirens Siren or sirens may refer to: Common meanings * Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies * Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology Places * Siren (town), Wisconsin * Siren, Wisco ...
''. After Brew announced that they were going to close in 2013, Nine Black Alps were announced as the first signing to new label Hatch Records, with a new single "Novokaine" released on 2 December 2013. The band's fifth album ''
Candy for the Clowns Candy For The Clowns is the fifth studio album from British rock band Nine Black Alps Nine Black Alps are an English alternative rock band, formed in 2003 in Manchester. The band consists of vocalist-guitarist Sam Forrest, guitarist David ...
'' was released in May 2014.


Members

Current members * Sam Forrest - vocals, guitar, piano (2003–present) *David Jones - guitar, bass, keys (2003–present) *James Galley - drums, vocals (2003–present) *Karl Astbury - bass (2012–present) Former members *Martin Cohen - bass, guitar (2003–2011)


Discography


Albums


EPs


Singles


Soundtracks and compilations

*" Surf's Up: Music From The Motion Picture" (Pocket Full of Stars) *"Class aA: Beyond Entertainment" (Over the Ocean) *
SSX on tour ''SSX on Tour'' is a snowboarding and skiing game, the fourth title in the '' SSX'' series of video games for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox and PlayStation Portable. It was released in North America on October 11, 2005 and in the PAL region o ...
Soundtrack (Shot Down) * Burnout:Revenge Soundtrack (Shot Down) *
FlatOut 2 ''FlatOut 2'' is an action racing video game developed by Bugbear Entertainment and published by Empire Interactive in Europe and Vivendi Universal Games in North America. It is the sequel to the 2004 game ''FlatOut''. This game is themed mor ...
box VersionSoundtrack (Cosmopolitan) *Midnight Club 3 Dub Edition Remix Soundtrack (Not Everyone) *FIFA06 (Cosmopolitan)


References


External links


Official websiteRock Sound review of 'Locked Out From The Inside'Interview: January 2010
{{Authority control Musical groups from Manchester English indie rock groups