The School (British band)

The School are a Welsh indiepop group based in Cardiff, Wales.

The School
OriginCardiff, Wales
GenresPop
Years active2007–present
LabelsElefant Records
Associated actsThe Loves
The Voluntary Butler Scheme
Little My (band)
Pagan Wanderer Lu
Albatross Archive
Francesca's Word Salad
MembersLiz Hunt
Ryan Cox
Steph Doble
Harri Davidson
Fran Dimech
Kay Russant
Kit Denison
Andy Regan

Their sound owes heavily to 1960s influences such as The Beach Boys and girl groups such as The Ronettes and The Shangri-Las, along with more recent indiepop acts Camera Obscura and Belle and Sebastian.

Career

Formed in 2007, the band signed with Spanish label Elefant Records, after playing only 4 live shows, supporting Saturday Looks Good to Me.[1]

Debut double A-Sided single "All I Wanna Do"/"Valentine" was released on limited edition bubblegum pink vinyl in February 2008, followed by the "Let It Slip EP" in June. "And Suddenly" (Left Banke cover) was released in August on Slumberland Records, as a split single with George Washington Brown.

The band's debut album "Loveless Unbeliever" was released on 31 May 2010, produced by Ian Catt.[2]

In 2010 The School performed a live concert on Spanish television show 'Los Conciertos De Radio 3'.[3] They were also nominated for 'Best International Artist' at the Spanish Independent Music Awards 2011.[4]

Second album "Reading Too Much into Things Like Everything" was released on 14 May 2012.[5] It was recorded at Bryn Derwen Studios in Bethesda, North Wales, by David Wrench.

Limited edition picture disc 7" single "When I Fall in Love" was released in August 2014 on the label Where It's at Is Where You Are's '7777777' singles club (and digitally through Elefant), with an illustration by artist Andy Hart.[6]

In 2015 record label Kingfisher Bluez released a series of 7" singles curated by other independent labels. Buddy System: A Kingfisher Bluez Singles Club included a split single chosen by Elefant Records, featuring 'When I Fall in Love (Pagan Wanderer Lu remix)'.[7]

The band's third album Wasting Away and Wondering was released in September 2015 by Elefant Records.[8] It was recorded at Giant Wafer Studios in Mid Wales, by Rob Jones aka The Voluntary Butler Scheme.

Liz Hunt featured on Helen Love's 2015 Christmas single "The Townhall Band" (Alcopop! Records), alongside Tim Wheeler from Ash.[9]

The School 'Christmas EP' will be released on 6 December 2019 by Elefant Records, recorded by Tom Rees of Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard.

Discography

Singles
  • "All I Wanna Do"/"Valentine" vinyl (Elefant Records, 2008)
  • "I Love Everything" digital (Elefant Records, 2011)[10]
  • "Hoping And Praying" digital (Elefant Records, 2011)[11]
  • "When I Fall In Love" picture disc (Where It's At Is Where You Are, 2014)[12]
  • Kingfisherbluez Singles Club 7" featuring "When I Fall In Love (Pagan Wanderer Lu Remix)", split with The Yearning[13]
  • "Do I Love You?" digital (Elefant Records, 2015)[14]
  • "My Arms, They Feel Like Nothing" digital (Elefant Records, 2016)[15]

EPs
  • "Let It Slip EP" (Elefant Records, 2008)
  • "Never Thought I'd See The Day" (Elefant Records, 2012)[16]
  • "All I Want From You Is Everything" (Elefant Records, 2015)
  • "Christmas EP" digital & Christmas card with download (Elefant Records, 2019)

Albums
  • Loveless Unbeliever (Elefant Records, 2010)
  • Reading Too Much into Things Like Everything (Elefant Records, 2012)
  • Wasting Away and Wondering (Elefant Records, 2015)[8]
  • Loveless Unbeliever vinyl reissue (Elefant Records, 2016)[17]

Compilation albums
  • Happy New Year (Elefant Records, 2007, contained "Kiss You in The Snow")
  • Counter Culture 08 (Rough Trade Shops, 2009, contained "All I Wanna Do")
  • Searching for the Now 6 (Slumberland Records, 2009, contained "And Suddenly")
  • Play Some Pool, Skip Some School, Act Real Cool – Bruce Springsteen Tribute (Where It's at Is Where You Are, 2009, contained "Hungry Heart")
  • Indiepop09 (Rough Trade Shops, released 9 November 2009, contained "And Suddenly")
  • 12 Days of Christmas[18] (Bubblewrap Records, 2009, contained "Drummer Boy")
  • A Very Cherry Christmas (Cherryade Music, 2009, contained "Let Me Be The Fairy On Your Christmas Tree Tonight")
  • Space Escapade - Unit 1 (Destination: Pluto 68) (Elefant Records, 2010, contained "Is He Really Coming Home" and "Tell Me")
  • Happy Gift For The Pop Kids (charity release, 2011, contained "Drummer Boy")
  • Sensible Record Labels Volume 2 (A RSD Compilation) (Alcopop! Records, 2016, contained "All I Want From You Is Everything (Alternative Version)")
  • This Is My Street (Daytrip Records, 2018, an indie pop tribute to The Kinks, contained "Animal Farm")

Film & Television
  • Un Cuestion De Sexo Soundtrack (SonyBMG, 2008, contained "Let It Slip")
  • Degrassi (various episodes, TeenNick, 2009)
  • Degrassi Goes Hollywood: Music From The Original Movie (SongBMG, 2009, contained "All I Wanna Do")
  • Yo, También Soundtrack (Elefant Records, 2009, contained "I Don't Believe in Love" and "Kiss You in the Snow")
  • Fuga de Cerebros 2 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 2011, contained "Hoping And Praying")
  • Made In Chelsea (E4, various episodes)
  • Jelly Jamm (Cartoon Network, 2012, contained "Don't Get Angry" featuring Liz Hunt singing with Guille Milkyway)
  • US Office trailer (Comedy Central, 2013, UK trailer contained "Valentine")
  • The Law Of Thermodynamics (Netflix, 2018)
  • Gypsy (Netflix, 2018)
  • Christmas Joy (Hallmark, 2018, contained "You're Coming Home Tonight")
  • Elite - Season 2 Soundtrack (Netflix, 2019, contained "You Make Me Hear Music (Inside My Head)")[19]

References
  1. "The School biography". Elefant Records. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  2. "How to buy our debut album". The School Blog. 5 March 2010.
  3. "Los conciertos de Radio 3 – The School". RTVE. 7 December 2010.
  4. "ELEFANT bands in the UFI 2011 Independent Music Award Finals: TREMBLING BLUE STARS, THE SCHOOL, LUCKY SOUL, STEREO TOTAL". Elefant Records website. 6 June 2011.
  5. "THE SCHOOL: Release their second album". Elefant Records website. 14 May 2012.
  6. "release date – the School". WIAIWYA blog. 7 August 2014.
  7. "Too Shy / When I Fall in Love". Kingfisher Records BandCamp. 15 February 2015.
  8. Tim Sendra (4 September 2015). "Wasting Away and Wondering – The School | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  9. "Helen Love - Townhall Band, by Helen Love". Alcopop! Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  10. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  11. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  12. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  13. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  14. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  15. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  16. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  17. "Elefant Records". Elefant Records. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  18. "Bubblewrap Collective – 12 Days of Christmas". Bubblewrap.bigcartel.com. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  19. "Élite - Season 2 Soundtrack, a playlist by Javier Roldán Villarreal on Spotify". Spotify. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.