| Grinspoon |
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Grinspoon are an Australia n alternative/grunge rock band from Lismore , fronted by Phil Jamieson with Pat Davern on guitar, Joe Hansen on bass and Kristian Hopes on drums. Founded in 1995, they came to fame when they were Unearthed by national, commercial-free radio station Triple J thanks to their track "Sickfest". This won them the competition for the Lismore area. The band was heavily influenced by "grunge" music in their early career, including the band Helmet , and developed a strong following among mosh pit crowds. Their sound changed in their later career to a more mainstream rock sound with their 2002 album ''New Detention'' and at this point they lost many of their earlier fans and gained a lot of fans in the mainstream. Lyrically, the band are very cryptic and disjointed, most lines from their songs are not related to the next line and the songs rarely make sense as a whole. This has been attributed to the writer Phil Jamieson and his tendency to pen short lyrics of only a few lines each, and then tying many of these together into a song, creating a lack of consistent themes. The band name was taken from marijuana supporter Dr Lester Grinspoon . The band has at times promoted recreational drugs during concerts and in their song lyrics. Jamieson has also gained a reputation throughout the industry as a heavy drinker. The band has had limited success in the United States, most notably for the songs "Champion", due to Gran Turismo 3, "Post Enebriated Anxiety", which was on the international version of Guide To Better Living , "Chemical Heart", via the Internet, and "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck", which was included on an ECW compilation. HISTORY Early years As a result of winning the national Unearthed competition the band gained considerable airplay, and they used this to secure gigs for themselves. As a result the band generated a strong following among the Australian "alternative" and "mosh pit crowd." Their debut EP, known as the '' Green EP '', was released through the independent record company Oracle. It contained the tracks "Sickfest" and "More Than You Are" that became popular and were rerecorded for later releases. Grinspoon's second EP, '' Licker Bottle Cozy '', was recorded by the band and released by Grudge records in December 1996. It had a slightly heavier sound compared to their first EP, with the songs "Champion" and "Pig Pen," and there was little variety in the sound throughout the six track CD. 1997 saw their release of their first LP, '' Guide To Better Living '', the album that best represents the sound and variety of their early career. Heavier songs like "Pressure Tested 1984" open the album, whilst in the middle are more classic rock songs like "Repeat" and "Don't Go Away" and then towards the end the ballad "Bad Funk Stripe." The album also features five live songs illustrating the bands sense of humour and ability to play live including the addition of a hidden acoustic track called "Protest." Whilst in America touring in 1998, Grinspoon released the EP "Pushing Buttons," which featured the popular heavy song "Black Friday," and the lighter songs "Busy" and "Explain." After heavy touring Grinspoon recorded the '' Easy '' LP with little studio time in 1999. The album had less variety than their debut LP and received a disappointing reaction from fans and critics, despite having some very solid and likeable songs like "Ready 1" and "Rock Show." The album was once described by Pinky from Machine Gun Fellatio as the album that should've been famous but wasn't. Changing direction After a long break to reconsider their direction and sound the band released the much more commercial 2002 album '' New Detention '', which debuted and peaked at #2 on the Australian ARIAnet albums chart. The first single from the album, " Chemical Heart ", caused a stir when it was released among long term fans and the media because it was so different from their usual grunge sound, and signalled a change in style for the band. The band insisted the change was a natural one and was made in the interests of improving their sound. Having said that, the band still performs a significant amount of older tracks in their live shows. They also released an EP in 2003 titled '' Panic Attack '' (containing a cover of INXS 's song "Don't Change"), which debuted and peaked at #13 on the ARIAnet singles chart. In 2004, they released a new single, "Hard Act To Follow", which reached the top 30 in the singles chart. It was from the album '' Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills '', which debuted at #4 in the charts. A second single, "Better Off Alone", was later issued, also reaching the top 30. The third single was "Hold On Me". This time around, the band agreed that they were deliberately seeking a new audience, claiming they wrote a number of songs for the release and rejected the songs that sounded like their earlier work. Grinspoon have built a strong local following since their rise, and are regulars at Australian music festivals. In 2005, Grinspoon won their first ARIA award, winning the category for "Rock Album of the Year" with ''Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills''. They had previously been nominated 9 times. Most recently Grinspoon released a 2 Disc Best Of compilation entitled '' Best In Show ''. The first disc featured all their hits, although several of their older classic songs were included. The second disc is a bonus which includes a collection of covers recorded over the years. On 26 March 2006, Grinspoon performed "Hard Act To Follow" and "Better Off Alone" at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Closing Ceremony in Melbourne. Grinspoon and Delta Goodrem lip-synched, presumably due to bad sound reception at the MCG. Grinspoon headlined the inaugural Thank God It's Over in Melbourne and then at BOBFest 06 in South Australia this October. They also headlined the first ever Odyssey 2006 at Dreamworld for New Year's Eve . In February 2007,Phill Jamieson was admitted to rehab due to addiction to Methamphetamines .http://www.smh.com.au/news/people/grinspoon-frontman-in-rehab-for-ice-addiction/2007/02/17/1171405452009.html Accessed 2007/07/24 In a candid, personal and revealing interview with Andrew Denton on Enough Rope in July 2007 Jamieson discussed how the drugs had caused him to have an affair and steal money from his bandmates. His rehab and detox experience was very powerful. He is still recovering emotionally and is concerned that his new straight self might be a bit boring and is not sure how others should now take him. The band has recently completed a new studio album, '' Alibis & Other Lies '', their final album for Universal. The album was co-produced by the band and Ramesh Sathiah , who worked with the band on their earliest recordings. The first single from the album, "Black Tattoo", has been released as a Digital Download on 23 June and on CD on 30 June . The album was released in Australia by Universal on the 21st of July. It debuted in the ARIA Charts at number two on July 29 , their highest chart position since ''New Detention'' in 2002. DISCOGRAPHY See Also: Grinspoon discography REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS |
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