Whale was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

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 ...

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

active from 1992 to 1999.

Career

Gordon Cyrus Gordon Cyrus is a Swedish musician, record producer, sound engineer, and designer. Cyrus was a member of the rock/pop group Whale along with Cia Berg and Henrik Schyffert, and discovered The Latin Kings. He was a member of the 90's Swedish hip ...

and

Henrik Schyffert Per Henrik Schyffert (born 23 February 1968) is a Swedish comedian, actor, musician and radio and television personality. Career Schyffert was a VJ for MTV Europe in the late 1980s. In 1992 he hosted the comedy TV show ''I Manegen Med Glenn K ...

met while working on a commercial and decided to collaborate on a music track. Schyffert recruited his then-girlfriend,

Cia Berg Cia Berg formed the Swedish alternative pop band Whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infr ...

, to perform vocals. The band enjoyed some success, particularly in the European market. Their first single, 1993's " Hobo Humpin' Slobo Babe", was positively received by critics and received heavy spins in the Euro dance club scene and saturation airplay on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

. It reached the Top 10 in Denmark and Norway, Top 30 in the Netherlands and Austria, Top 40 in Sweden, and No. 24 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart. It also reached No. 46 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in 1994, and when reissued in 1995, reached No. 15. The music video for "Hobo Humpin' Slobo Babe", directed by

Mark Pellington Mark Pellington (born March 17, 1962) is an American film director, writer, and producer. Life and career Pellington was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Bill Pellington, an All-Pro linebacker who played football with the Baltimore Colts ...

, won the first

MTV Europe Music Award for Best Video The MTV Europe Music Award for Best Video is an award category presented at the MTV Europe Music Awards. The award was first presented in 1994 under the name Best Director, awarded to Whale's " Hobo Humpin' Slobo Babe". This is the only MTV EMA awa ...

in 1994. Whale toured with Tricky, Blur and

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 ...

. In the late 1990s, the band's official website stated that their original name was Southern Whale Cult 1987, and that several albums had previously been released under that name. This was later admitted to have been a joke; the band had copied a presentation by

the Cult The Cult are an English rock band formed in 1983 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead singer Ian Astbury's ...

and simply changed the name of the band in the text. Whale disbanded after the 1999 single "Deliver the Juice", to little fanfare.

Post-breakup

Schyffert has enjoyed an extensive television and comedy career, while Cyrus has found success in international audiovisual marketing and design.

Discography

Studio albums

*'' We Care'' (1995,

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

Hut Records VC Recordings trading as Hut Records was a British record label brand which was started in 1990 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Virgin Records. Despite being wholly owned by a major label, it was classed as an Independent record label, independe ...

) *''

All Disco Dance Must End in Broken Bones ''All Disco Dance Must End in Broken Bones'' is the second and final studio album by Swedish band Whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial group ...

'' (1998, Virgin/Hut)

Singles and EPs

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whale (band) Swedish musical groups Virgin Records artists Musical groups disestablished in 1999 MTV Europe Music Award winners English-language singers from Sweden Female-fronted musical groups