Her's

Her's (also written as thatbandofhers) was an indie rock band from Liverpool, England composed of English guitarist and singer Stephen Fitzpatrick and Norwegian bassist and backing vocalist Audun Laading. They released a compilation album, '' Songs of Her's'' (2017), followed by a full-length studio album, '' Invitation to Her's'' (2018).

The duo and their tour manager were killed in a road traffic collision in Arizona while touring the United States in 2019. Heist or Hit Records said of the band's legacy: "their energy, vibrancy, and talent came to define our label".

Members

The band's line-up consisted of Stephen Fitzpatrick, from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England, who sang lead vocals and played guitar, and Audun Laading, from Flekkerøy, Kristiansand, Norway, who played bass guitar and sang backing vocals. Fitzpatrick was also a drummer, but the band used a drum machine with both members contributing to its programming.

History

Fitzpatrick and Laading met at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, (from which they both graduated in 2016 after three-year music degrees, being presented with their certificates by Paul McCartney at a graduation ceremony). Whilst still students they formed Her's in 2015, after having previously played together in the rhythm section of another Liverpool band named 'The Sundogs'. The duo initially formed Her's in jest, travelling around Liverpool filming comedic music videos and posting them on YouTube.

They released their debut single, "Dorothy", on 7 April 2016. They performed on the 2016 Green Man Festival Rising Stage. A nine-track compilation titled ''Songs of Her's'' was released on 12 May 2017. The compilation received four stars from '' The Skinny''. Writing for ''NME'' in April 2017, Thomas Smith said:

The band later released their debut full-length album, '' Invitation to Her's'', on Heist or Hit Records on 24 August 2018. Her's were featured on '' Paste''s list titled "The 15 New Liverpool Bands You Need to Know in 2018". An acoustic performance by the band at the 2019 South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, US was also featured on ''BBC Music Introducing''. The album includes the single "Harvey" which according to Genius, is a reference to the 1950 film '' Harvey''.

Equipment

The duo were very loyal to their choice of guitar and bass. Laading used a Rickenbacker 4001 for his main bass while Fitzpatrick used a Fender Blacktop Series Jaguar HH for his main guitar. There were times where they didn't use their main instruments live. During live performances, both of them use a drum machine (specifically the Novation Launchpad USB MIDI Controller for Ableton Live) hooked to a MacBook Pro.

Deaths

On 27 March 2019, around 1 a.m., Fitzpatrick and Laading (aged 24 and 25 respectively), along with their tour manager, Trevor Engelbrektson (aged 37) from Minneapolis, were killed in a head-on traffic collision and subsequent vehicle fire near Milepost 68 on Interstate 10, west of Tonopah, Arizona. They were travelling from Phoenix, Arizona, where they had played at the Rebel Lounge on 26 March, to perform a show on the following evening in Santa Ana, California, some away, as part of a 19-date second tour of North America. The Arizona Department of Public Safety confirmed that Engelbrektson had been driving the band's Ford tour van at the time of the crash. The driver of a Nissan pick-up truck, Francisco Rebollar, aged 64, from Murrieta, California, was also killed in the collision; a subsequent police investigation of the scene located a bottle of alcohol in the wreckage. At the time of the crash, the Arizona Department of Public Safety was already responding to reports of the Nissan pick-up truck travelling at speed in the wrong direction going eastbound in the westbound highway lanes.

A requiem mass for Fitzpatrick was held at St. Mary's (Roman Catholic) Church, Barrow-in-Furness, on 23 April 2019.

Legacy

Musician and friend of the two, Strawberry Guy, has attributed his stage name to Her's (in which he got his name from a drunk question by Laading.)

The duo's favourite actor, Pierce Brosnan, paid tribute to the band with a Instagram post after they toured with a cardboard cut-out of him (Fitzpatrick went as far to call Brosnan: "Our band spirit animal. Our third member")

On the five year anniversary of the duo's deaths, their families and friends opened th
Friends of Her's
memorial. The fund has aimed to help combat homelessness in Liverpool, United Kingdom, where the two met.

In June 30 2024, The Rebel Lounge hosted a memorial tribute concert for the two, featuring multiple local musicians. Proceeds were donated to Friends of Her's.

On November 8 2024, Heist or Hit Records released a "Songs of Her's" boxset where all proceeds went towards the memorial fund.

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Singles

Music videos

Notes

References

External links

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2015 establishments in England
2019 deaths
2019 disestablishments in England
British dream pop musical groups
English alternative rock groups
English indie rock groups
British male musical duos
Musical groups disestablished in 2019
Musical groups established in 2015
Alternative rock groups from Liverpool
Road incident deaths in Arizona
English rock music duos