The Humans were a British-American

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 ...

band featuring singer

Toyah Willcox Toyah Ann Willcox (born 18 May 1958) is an English musician, actress, and TV presenter. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Willcox has had eight top 40 singles, released over 20 albums, written two books, appeared in over 40 stage plays an ...

, drummer

Bill Rieflin William Frederick Rieflin (September 30, 1960 – March 24, 2020) was an American musician. Rieflin came to prominence in the 1990s mainly for his work as a drummer with groups (particularly in the industrial rock and industrial metal scene ...

, and musician Chris Wong. They have released three studio albums and have performed live in the UK, Estonia and the USA before disbanding in 2020, following Rieflin's passing.

History

The Humans were formed in 2007 when musician

Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is a British musician, songwriter, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session ...

, who is married to Toyah Willcox, was invited to play at a birthday party for the

President of Estonia The president of the Republic of Estonia ( et, Eesti Vabariigi President) is the head of state of the Republic of Estonia. The current president is Alar Karis, elected by Parliament on 31 August 2021, replacing Kersti Kaljulaid. Estonia is ...

. Too busy at that time, Fripp declined the invitation. Willcox then contacted the Estonian Embassy, who had issued the invitation, and offered to put an act together for the tour. On acceptance by the Embassy, Willcox contacted friend and former

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternati ...

musician, Bill Rieflin, and suggested a collaboration to "do something that is just completely off the wall

ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

just one bass and a voice". Rieflin and Willcox hired musician and musical director Chris Wong, who had previously worked with Willcox on her solo music tours and concerts, thus completing the three-piece outfit. The Humans performed at the

Jazzkaar Jazzkaar ( et, Jazzkaar) is an Estonian music festival which focuses on jazz music. This festival is the biggest jazz festival in Baltic states. First festival took place in 1990. In general, the festival lasts 10 days and during this period abo ...

festival in Estonia in October 2007. The band released their debut album '' We Are the Humans'' on 1 May 2009. The release was celebrated with a concert at a music festival in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...

, where the band was joined by Fripp on guitar. The album was promoted by the single and music video with a cover of "

These Boots Are Made for Walkin' "These Boots Are Made for Walkin' is a hit song written by Lee Hazlewood and recorded by American singer Nancy Sinatra. It charted on January 22, 1966, and reached No.1 in the United States ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and in the UK Singles Chart. Su ...

". In February 2010, the band embarked on a short UK tour. The Humans released their second album '' Sugar Rush'' on 27 September 2011. Robert Fripp appeared on guitar on every track of the album. Igor Abuladze joined The Humans on their US and UK tour in 2011 in support of the album. In 2013, the band released a live album, ''Live at Scala London'', recorded three years before at London's Scala. The third album entitled ''

Strange Tales ''Strange Tales'' is a Marvel Comics comics anthology, anthology series. The title was revived in different forms on multiple occasions. Doctor Strange and Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (feature), Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. made their d ...

'' was released worldwide on 1 March 2014, initially only in digital format. "Get in Your Car" was chosen as the lead single. A UK tour, Telling Strange Tales, took place in April 2015, and the album was then made available on CD. Bill Rieflin died on 24 March 2020 from cancer at the age of 59. In July, the band released a box set compilation called ''

Noise in Your Head ''Noise in Your Head'' is a four-CD and one-DVD compilation box set by The Humans, fronted by the British singer Toyah Willcox, credited to Toyah & The Humans. It was released in July 2020 by Edsel Records, and consists of the band's three studi ...

'' containing all three previous albums, a live album, and a DVD with a live concert. The box set was credited to Toyah & The Humans and dedicated to Rieflin.

Discography

Studio albums

* '' We Are the Humans'' (2009) * '' Sugar Rush'' (2011) * ''

'' (2014)

Live albums

* ''Live at Scala London'' (2013) * ''Live at Trading Boundaries'' (2021)

Compilations

* ''

'' (2020)

Singles

* "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" (2009) * "Get in Your Car" (2014) * "21st Century Schizoid Man" (2020)

Music videos

* "We Are the Humans" (2007) * "Quicksilver" (2009) * "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" (2009) * "Sea of Size" (2010)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Humans (UK Band), The Experimental musical groups Rock music groups Musical groups established in 2007 Musical groups disestablished in 2020 Musical trios