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The Beauty Shop is an Americana band based out of Champaign, Illinois . Formed in 1999 , they have released an EP and two full length Album s. Their latest album ''Crisis Helpline'' was released in the UK on September 27 , 2004 . HISTORY The Beauty Shop was formed in 1999 by Singer-songwriter John Hoeffleur and Drummer Casey Smith . John had previously played with local band The Blackouts (now known as The Living Blue ), and on his own playing "protest and political" songs in local coffee shops. After playing a series of shows locally and quickly building a fan base, the two recorded the ''Grief EP''. Recorded in Smith's home, the ''Grief EP'' quickly sold hundreds of copies at the swiftly-growing shows. The EP caught the eye of Urbana , IL based record label, Parasol Records , who signed the band on to produce an album. Simultaneously, the band put out hand-written ads for a Bassist . Responding to the ad was Ariane Peralta , Ariane filled out the band's motley crew of personalities. As Hoeffleur put it, "I'm a weirdo for sure, and it's weird that a regular guy like Casey is in a band with me, because he's real nice and I'm mean, and he's Vegan and my diet is beef, exclusively. It's an odd match... ...And then you look at Ariane, who's from Indiana , is a girl, is Filipino , {Link without Title} is 4'11." The band released their first album ''Yr. Money or Yr. Life'' in October, 2000 . The album garnered many positive critical reviews for its edgy lyrics that match well to its acoustic melody. However, what drew many people to the band was its live performances, the band's humble attitude and friendly demeanor attracted many people. The band's popularity slowly snowballed within the Americana community along with a steadily-increasing following within the Champaign-Urbana music scene. It gained a large boost locally with the help of The Violent Femmes . The Violent Femmes ' "Viva Wisconsin!" tour came through Champaign-Urbana and their opening act OK GO couldn't make it. The Beauty Shop was selected at the last minute to open for the nationally known band, opening them up to a good number of people at the show who previosuly lacked a chance to see them. A major change for the band happened after their show in Chicago on August 2 , 2001 ; after playing the show, Drummer Casey Smith split ways with the band, leaving the band without a Drummer . The band decided to take a hiatus, with John occasionally playing solo shows, until they could find someone to play the drums. After holding several auditions the band picked up Drummer Joe Martin and was able to resume playing in late Spring 2002 . By this time, their debut album had managed to find the ear of UK -based Shoeshine Records . Shoeshine picked up the rights to distribute the album in the UK , and released the album in March, 2002 . Shoeshine also released a limited-edition 7" Single of "Death March", the single from ''Yr. Money or Yr. Life''. The band toured across the UK in July, 2002 to promote the album's release. They returned to Champaign-Urbana and continued their normal routine of playing shows around town. John had spent the past few years writing new music, which began to dominate the set lists more and more, as John growingly disliked his freshman effort. Before the band would release a second album, however, they took a second hiatus. The band and Joe Martin parted ways, John went to England to play a few solo shows, and Ariane concentrated on school. On July 22, 2004 , they came back to play their first U.S. gig in nearly two years. They brought along with them temporary new Drummer Brett Sanderson , who had worked with John on The Blackouts several years prior. They also had exciting news, they had recorded a second album. The only caveat was that the album was going to be released in the UK , and that it wasn't yet scheduled for release in the U.S. . The band found that the fans were excited by their resurgence, and they found that their popularity had grown conisderably during their two year hiatus. The band released their first new single in the UK , "Monster", which enjoyed considerable airplay on BBC 6 . They released their new album ''Crisis Helpline'' in the UK on September 27 , 2004 along with a 7" and CD single for "Monster". The band's second single, "Rumplestiltzken Lives", was released to UK Radio Station s in Spring 2005 , but didn't receive quite as much airplay as "Monster". In the Summer of 2005 , the Beauty Shop was acquired by Snapper Records . They gave the band plenty of front page space on their website and started to aggressively release singles for the band. At the same time, they announced they were going to release a new album in the U.K. called ''Yard Sale'', an album put together from all their previous work. A release date has yet to be announced. Around the same time, the band announced that they had found a permanent Drummer to fill in for temp-drummer Sanderson. Ben Ucherek made his debut during the filming of the Music Video for "A Desperate Cry for Help". The band continues to tour in the UK and Champaign-Urbana . DISCOGRAPHY Major Releases ''Grief EP'' - Fall 1999 ''Yr. Money or Yr. Life''(U.S.) - October, 2000 ''Yr. Money or Yr. Life''(U.K.) - March, 2002 ''Crisis Helpline'' (U.K.) - September 27 , 2004 ''Yard Sale'' (U.K.) - March 27 , 2006 Singles / Misc. ''Parasol's Sweet Sixteen, Vol. 2'' - Various Artists - Song: "Death March" ''Parasol's Sweet Sixteen, Vol. 3'' - Various Artists - Song: "Personal Jesus" ''Death March'' - 7" Vinyl (U.K.) - March, 2002 ''Monster'' - 7" Vinyl & CD (U.K.) - September 27 , 2004 ''Stuck in the Chimney'' - Various Artists - Song: "Christmas @ Friedrich's" (As John Hoeffleur ) ''Paper Hearts for Josie'' - CD (U.K.) - August 29 , 2005 ''A Desperate Cry for Help'' - CD (U.K.) - October 31 , 2005 BAND MEMBERS John Hoeffleur - Vocals, Guitar Ariane Peralta - Bass Ben Ucherek - Drums ( 2005 - Present) Former Members: Brett Sanderson - Drums ( 2004 - 2005 ) Casey Smith - Drums ( 1999 - 2001 ) Joe Martin - Drums ( 2002 ) Steve Lamos - Drums (''Crisis Helpline'') GENERAL INFO Often plays at The Great Cover-up , an annual Champaign-Urbana based charity show. Some of their previous covers include The Misfits and Leonard Cohen . Will often include cover songs as B-Sides. Their single release ''Monster'' includes a cover of The Misfits ' "Hybrid Moments", ''Paper Hearts for Josie'' included The Pixies ' "Gouge Away", ''A Desperate Cry Help'' contained Judas Priest 's "Breaking the Law", and ''Death March'' featured a cover of Depeche Mode 's "Personal Jesus". Their song "I Got Issues" was listed in Maxim magazine as the #4 Song to download if you're missing Johnny Cash EXTERNAL LINKS |
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