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Keane

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Keane are an English piano rock and soft ballads band from Battle, East Sussex. Keane are well-known by not using guitars on their music, a standard for most modern rock artists Keane has a particular style of music (piano rock) that many have compared to Coldplay, who were friends with Keane in High School.
Their biggest influences include The Beatles, U2, Oasis, R.E.M., The Smiths, Radiohead, Queen, The Pet Shop Boys and Paul Simon.

Contents

Band members

Current Line-Up

Previous Members

History

Early years (1995-2003)

Pianist Tim Rice-Oxley and singer/keyboardist Tom Chaplin were childhood friends. Rice-Oxley's brother, also called Tom, was born in the same hospital on the same day as Tom Chaplin, in March 8th 1979. Their mothers were friends since then and Rice-Oxley became close friend of Chaplin.

Both attended Vinehall School in Robertsbridge, East Sussex (where Tom's father was the Headmaster for 25 years until 2002) and later Tonbridge School in Kent, where they met the third member of the band, Richard Hughes. The three of them used to play football soccer togheter. Rice-Oxley formed the band in 1995 with his friend Dominic Scott. Formerly "The Lotus Eaters", they changed their name in 1997 (after realizing the name it was already taken) to "Cherry Keane", after an older lady whom Rice-Oxley and Chaplin knew when they were young (reportedly their dinner-lady at school). Chaplin also joined this year to the band. Soon "Cherry" was removed from the name, becoming only "Keane". In an interview with The Irish Times on June 2 2006, Rice-Oxley explained that the band had originally been named Coldplay, but had offered this name to a friend at college, one Chris Martin, as Rice-Oxley found it too depressing.It was thus ironic that Keane, in 2004, were labelled Coldplay imitators by their critics.

Keane began as a covers band, playing songs by U2, Oasis, and The Beatles, but soon wanted to perform their own material.
The first Keane songs were composed by Rice-Oxley and Scott and were played in pubs around London, following their debut performance at the "Hope & Anchor" on July 13 1998, where they played "Paperback Writer" by The Beatles as well as many of their own songs.
In February 2000 they released their first single, "Call Me What You Like", of which 500 copies were produced at their home and sold at the pubs where they played, and another single, "Wolf At The Door", limited to 50 copies, followed a year later. This latter single is Keane's most wanted item by fans and it has been valued for over £1000. The last available single was auctioned for £620. Scott decided to leave the band in July 2001 due to the limited success that they were having. It was at this time that Rice-Oxley wrote the song "Everybody's Changing", about Scott's departure.

Keane were invited in 2002 by record producer James Sanger to his recording studio at Les Essarts, France, where they recorded a number of tracks, including "Bedshaped" and "This Is The Last Time". It was here also that Rice-Oxley composed the song "Sunshine".

In December 2002, Simon Williams of Fierce Panda Records was asked by a mutual friend to attend a Keane gig at the Betsey Trotwood in London and was so impressed that he offered to issue the band's next and first commercial single, "Everybody's Changing". Steve Lamacq heard the record and placed it as the single of the week on April 19 2003. The CD Single was released on May 12 2003.

Hopes and Fears (2003-2006)

Keane performing at a concert in the Netherlands, 2004.
Enlarge
Keane performing at a concert in the Netherlands, 2004.

In October 2003, the single "This Is The Last Time" was released in the UK and in the United States. This was the only Keane single ever sold in the United States with about 4000 copies released within the two countries.

After this single, Keane signed to Island and released the single "Somewhere Only We Know", which reached number three on the UK Singles Chart in February 2004, a place only reached again by "Is It Any Wonder?" in 2006. This single is considered the first one in the "Hopes and Fears era", featuring the "Cochin" typeface, used until late 2005 in almost every Keane release. In May 3rd, "Everybody's Changing" was released again but featuring a new cover and b-sides Following the first single's success, their debut album, Hopes and Fears, was released May 10 2004 in the UK, debuting at number one on the UK Albums Chart. The album went on to become the second-biggest selling album of the year in the UK, losing the top spot to Scissor Sisters on the final day of the year by only 502 copies. Their album came out on February. Currently the album has sold approximately five and a half million copies around the world and remains in the top 55.

The band won two awards at the 2005 Brit Awards — Best British album for Hopes and Fears and the British breakthrough act award, as voted for by listeners of BBC Radio 1. In May 2005, Rice-Oxley received the Ivor Novello award for songwriter of the year.

The band are currently patrons of War Child. In September 2005 they contributed a cover of Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" to Help: a Day in the Life. Keane also did a cover of the Walker Brothers' "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" for the War Child website. The single was only released as a 7" Vinyl and for digital download. However the track was leaked into the Internet in 2005.

The band gained some recognition in the United States in Autumn 2005 by opening some shows for U2; onstage they claimed Achtung Baby was one of their biggest influences. At this show, two new songs were played as well as their best-known material. They were also nominated for a Grammy in the Best New Artist category along with Sugarland, John Legend, Ciara, and Fall Out Boy at the 48th Annual Grammy awards in Los Angeles, on February 8 2006. They lost the award to John Legend, something unfairly for many even not Keane fans, because Legend had won a Grammy at the 47th Awards, making him not a "new artist".

Controversy

During 2004 and 2005, the band's sudden success encouraged some media to publish false or exaggerated notes from real facts about them, something that has even dissolved bands in the pasts or made artists fail.
The Darkness
In 2004, Chaplin said to a Scottish magazine he didn't find rock band The Darkness as something strong and real but more like a novelty and a joke. The magazine took this seriously and got rid of it. Shortly after Frankie Poullain, ex-bassist of The Darkness said for NME "What are those public schoolboys like? We used to call namby-pambys like that bedwetters but now they've taken it to a whole new league!" NME even published comics of Keane confronting The Darkness Rice-Oxley post a message on the Keane Official Forum about The Darkness as forgiveness for Tom's mistake but was soon published on the NME.

Later, Justin Hawkins (vocalist) said "They didn't insult us anyway. They just didn't like our music and that's fine"

The problem was over and they recorded together the Band Aid 20's "Do they Know It's Christmas?" single.

The Libertines
It was presumed that The Libertines said they came from rough backgrounds, thing that Rice-Oxley and Chaplin were supposedly against, saying they knew that The Libertines came from a middle-class family, the same as Keane, and they (Keane) didn't have to hide that. However, Rice-Oxley posted a message on Keane's official forum:
"I would like to point out that this is indeed a badly written tabloid story, featuring a variety of inaccurate, out-of-context, misattributed and fictitious quotes. I've never met any of the libertines and i would never call them 'middle-class liars'. please ignore this bullshit story and tell any Libertines fans you know to do the same! Merry Christmas all."

Alexis Petridis
Alexis Petridis, British reporter, wrote an article titled "We're gonna make you a star" about Keane in 2005, saying they were styled and manufacturated and that Alex Lake was an employee of Moving Brands, when he is a trusted friend of the band. The following is the header of the article: "Today, if you want to make it in rock, you won't get far without building your own brand. Just ask Keane, who hired a consultant before they'd even made a record. But are the UK's finest stylists really capable of successfully turning Alexis Petridis, journalist, into Alexis Petridis, cool and credible singer-songwriter?" Tim posted a letter on the messageboard in order to defend the band:
"(...)Our image, if we have one, has been shaped only by me, Tom and Richard and the songs we write."

Under the Iron Sea (2006-Present)

Keane began recording for their second album, "Under the Iron Sea", in April 2005, with producer Andy Green. Recording took place in Helioscentric Studios, Rye, East Sussex (where Hopes and Fears was recorded) and later in New York City. The band revealed the title of the album on March 14 2006 through a handwritten note from the band posted on their official site.

The first two singles off the album were "Atlantic", a download-only music video, and lead single "Is It Any Wonder?", released on 29 May 2006, which reached number three on the UK Singles Chart. The album was released June 7 in Japan, June 9 in Netherlands, Germany, Mexico and Switzerland, June 12 in the UK and worldwide and June 202006 in the USA and Canada. The album remained two weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart despite new albums arriving. As of July 17 is at top 8.

The next single off the album will be "Crystal Ball", due to be released on August 21.

Equipment list

This is a list of Keane's stage and studio equipment. Original data can be found here [link]
*Yamaha CP70B Electric piano
*Yamaha CP70M Electric piano
  • Synthesizers:
    • *Rhodes Suitcase Piano
    *Nord Lead 3
    *Yamaha CP60M
  • Bass
    • *Fender Bass
    *Fender Jazz
    *Yamaha CP35 Bass synthesizer
    *Yamaha DX-7 synthesizer
  • Organs:
    • *Hammond XK2
  • Drums:
    • *Yamaha Maple Custom "Absolute Nouveau"
  • Microphones:
    • *Sennheiser e602s/e604s/e935s/421
    *Shure Beta 57/91
  • Other equipment:
    • *Apple PowerBook G4 Titanium for bass tracks.
    *Apple PowerMac G5 for live projections

    Discography

    Studio albums

    Image:HopesandFearsKeanealbumcover.jpg|
    Hopes and Fears
    (May 10, 2004)
    Island
    #1 UK (8x Platinum), #3 NL, #45 US (Gold) Image:UTIScover.jpg|
    Under the Iron Sea
    (June 12, 2006)
    Island
    #1 UK, #4 US

    Live albums

    Image:Cd keane live recordings 2004.png|
    Live recordings 2004
    (May 3, 2005)
    Island

    Singles

    Year Song UK Singles Chart UK Download Chart US Hot 100 US Modern Rock NL

    		Album
    2000 "Call Me What You Like" align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    2001 "Wolf At The Door" align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    2003 "Everybody's Changing" 122 align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    Hopes And Fears
    "This Is The Last Time" align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    Hopes And Fears
    2004 "Somewhere Only We Know" 3 35 50 32 15 Hopes And Fears
    "Everybody's Changing" 4 13 align="center"
    align="center"
    18 Hopes And Fears
    "Bedshaped" 10 8 align="center"
    align="center"
    26 Hopes And Fears
    "This Is The Last Time" 18 15 align="center"
    align="center"
    3 Hopes And Fears
    2005 "Bend And Break [clip]" align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    27 Hopes And Fears
    2006 "Atlantic" align="center"
    36 align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    Under The Iron Sea
    "Is It Any Wonder?" 3 5 78 23 11 Under The Iron Sea
    "Crystal Ball" align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    align="center"
    Under The Iron Sea

    DVDs

    Year Title Label Type Number of discs Notes
    2004 "Hopes and Fears DVD" Island Videoclips DVD 2 (CD+DVD) Released November 23(US)
    2005 "Strangers" Island Documentary/video anthology 2 Released Nov. 14 (UK)
    15 (US)
    2006 "Under the Iron Sea DVD" Island Documentary/Demos/Videoclip and making of 2 (CD+DVD) Released June 7 (JP)
    June 9 (DE, NL, MX, SWI)
    June 12 (UK, worldwide)
    June 20 (US, CAN)

    Songs and MIDI samples

    Keane never released some early songs from 1990 to 2004 and from all early songs, 17 are known only by mentions of the band, on fansites and other media.
    Six early songs weren't released also but they are known for recordings made by the band and posted on their web page in 2000 that later were leaked into the Internet.
    Since 2000, Keane had released 9 singles and 6 had been hit singles all over the world. Most singles were released in CD and 7" Vinyl formats. Fourteen b-sides for this singles were released. Only "On A Day Like Today", "Allemande" and "The Iron Sea" had appeared both on a CD single and on an album. Six songs from "Hopes and Fears" were'nt released on other format, as well as ten from "Under the Iron Sea". The "Under the Iron Sea DVD" revealed ten songs not yet released but planning to be in future singles. Finally, Keane had made ten covers from other artists, no one released except "Dinner At Eight" (Rufus Wainwright) and "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" (The Walker Brothers)
    So Keane have: 22 unreleased songs

    • 16 unknown songs
    • 6 unreleased but known songs
    39 released songs
    • 9 singles
    • 13 b-sides
    • 7 songs on "Hopes and Fears"
    • 10 songs on "Under the Iron Sea"
    12 songs not yet released
    • 10 songs due to be released
    • 1 single due to be released
    • 1 b-side due to be released
    Resulting:
    • 72 own songs
    • 10 covers from other artists

    Awards

    Year Award Category Country
    2004 Q Magazine Best Album England
    2004 Premios Onda Best International Band Spain
    2004 Ivor Novello Composer of the year (Tim Rice-Oxley) England
    2005 Brit Awards Best Album United Kingdom
    2005 Brit Awards Best Breakthrough Act United Kingdom

    Notes

    Trivia

    • One early song composed by Rice-Oxley and Chaplin was called "The Silence of an Alien" composed around 1991.
    • "Snowed Under" and "A Bad Dream" are both inspired by poems; the latter was directly inspired by W.B. Yeats' "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death".
    • Somewhere Only We Knowis featured on the soundtrack to hit TV show Grey's Anatomy as well as the trailer for the movie, "The Lakehouse" starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.

    See also

    External links

    Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

    Official sites

    Fansites

    Europe America Asia

    Other

    References

    Keane
    Tim Rice-Oxley | Tom Chaplin | Richard Hughes
    Discography
    Albums and extended plays: Hopes and Fears | EP Live Recordings 2004 | Under the Iron Sea
    Singles: "Call Me What You Like" | "Wolf at the Door" | "Everybody's Changing (Part 1)" | "This Is The Last Time (Part 1)" | "Somewhere Only We Know" | "Everybody's Changing (Part 2)" | "Bedshaped" | "This Is the Last Time (Part 2)" | "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" | "Bend and Break" | "Atlantic" | "Is It Any Wonder?" | "Crystal Ball"
    DVDs: Hopes and Fears DVD | Strangers DVD | Under the Iron Sea DVD
    Other: List of songs by Keane
    Related articles
    Piano rock | Ballad | Dominic Scott | Coldplay | Battle, East Sussex | War Child (charity) | A Heart To Hold You | Help - a Day in the Life

     

    From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
    All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

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