More Info on Love and RocketsSimilar Alternative MusicSearch Artistopia
Biography
Infobox musical artist| name = Love and Rockets| image = Love And Rockets Lollapalooza08.jpg| caption = Daniel Ash at Lollapalooza 2008.| background = group_or_band| origin = England| genre = Alternative rock | years_active = 1985–1999, 2007–2009| label = Beggars Banquet Records|Beggars Banquet , RCA Records|RCA , American Recordings (US)|American , Red Ant| associated_acts = Bauhaus (band)|Bauhaus , Tones on Tail , The Bubblemen | website = http://www.loveandrockets.com www.loveandrockets.com| past_members = Daniel Ash Kevin Haskins David J Love and Rockets were an English alternative rock band formed in 1985 by former Bauhaus (band)|Bauhaus members Daniel Ash (guitar, saxophone , and vocals), David J (bass guitar and vocals), and Kevin Haskins (drums and synthesizer s) after the group split in 1983. Ash and Haskins had recorded and performed in another band, Tones on Tail , between 1982 and 1984. Love and Rockets' fusion of underground rock music with elements of Pop music|pop provided an early catalyst for alternative rock, then known as college rock . They released seven studio albums before breaking up in 1999 and reformed briefly in 2007 for a few live shows, before splitting again in 2009.
They are perhaps best known for their 1989 hit single " So Alive (Love and Rockets song)|So Alive ", which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.cite book |last=Whitburn |first=Joel |authorlink=Joel Whitburn |title=The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits |page=381 |edition=8th |publisher=Billboard Books |location= New York |year=2004 |isbn=0-8230-7499-4
History
The band's name was taken from the Love and Rockets (comics)|comic book series of the same name by Jaime Hernandez|Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez . Gilbert later referred to the confusion caused by this in his book Love and Rockets X , as there were several different bands named "Love and Rockets" for a period.
Despite their previous band's status as gothic rock icons, Love and Rockets moved towards a slightly brighter and more pop-influenced sound, as demonstrated by their first minor hit being a cover of the Motown classic " Ball of Confusion ". Their first studio album, 1985's Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven (1985), was an early example of alternative rock, combined with post-punk and Neo-psychedelia|psychedelic leanings.cite web |url= http://www.allmusic.com/album/seventh-dream-of-teenage-heaven-r12004/review |title=Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven |author=Dave Thompson |work= Allmusic |accessdate=24 February 2012 Their second album, 1986's Express (album)|Express , continued in the same vein, adding even more of a pop feel to the mix. It included the dance hit "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man)". The 1987 follow up, Earth, Sun, Moon , had a more acoustic sound and spawned the minor hit "No New Tale to Tell". The following year, they released the single "The Bubblemen are Coming" under the alias The Bubblemen .
In 1989 the band released Love and Rockets (album)|their self-titled album , which presented a more Album-oriented rock|AOR sound.cite news |last=Darling |first=Cary |title=Love and Rockets lifts off with newest album |newspaper= The Pittsburgh Press |location= Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania , United States |page=D6 |date=30 August 1989 |url= http://news.google.com/newspapers? id=Qkg0AAAAIBAJ& sjid=w2MEAAAAIBAJ& pg=6933,9733920& dq=tones-on-tail+everything& hl=en |accessdate=24 February 2012 The second single from the album was the T.Rex (band)|T.Rex -inspired song " So Alive (Love and Rockets song)|So Alive ", which became a hit, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, a feat no Bauhaus-related band or artist has achieved before or since.
After a grueling tour schedule in support of their big hit, Love and Rockets took a few years off before returning to the studio together. The result was a move to an electronic music|electronic sound that had more in common with The Orb than their rock or goth roots. Their label, RCA Records , dropped them. They signed with Rick Rubin 's American Recordings (US)|American Recordings to release Hot Trip to Heaven in 1994, followed in 1996 by Sweet F.A. (album)|Sweet F.A. . In April 1995, during the recording of Sweet F.A. , a fire broke out in the house owned by American Recordings, where the band were living and recording. All of the members were uninjured, but their visiting friend Genesis P. Orridge of Psychic TV was injured whilst escaping the fire. The band lost their gear (a photo of a burnt guitar was used for the album cover of Sweet F.A. ) and months of work on the album. There was a lengthy legal battle between the band, their label, and the label's insurance company. Love and Rockets was found not responsible for the fire, but was left with a large legal bill. http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/loverockets/articles/story/5927855/love_and_rockets_set_to_lift_off Love and Rockets Set to "Lift" Off from Rolling Stone magazinedead link|date=October 2011 Lift (Love and Rockets album)|Lift came out in 1998 on Red Ant Records, and the band disbanded in 1999.
Love and Rockets announced in October 2007 on their MySpace page that they would reform to play one song at "Cast a Long Shadow", a tribute to Joe Strummer and benefit for Strummerville, The Joe Strummer Foundation for New Music, on 22 December 2007 at the Key Club in West Hollywood , California .citation needed|date=October 2011 They covered The Clash 's " Should I Stay or Should I Go ", playing the song twice, the second time inviting members of the audience to join them onstage to sing along.cite web |url= http://www.pixievisionproductions.com/gallery/strummer_tribute122207 |title=LOVE & ROCKETS LIVE - JOE STRUMMER TRIBUTE ~ 22 DECEMBER 2007 |work=pixievisionproductions.com |accessdate=5 October 2011
They performed on 27 April 2008 at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival , and also at Lollapalooza on 3 August 2008 in Chicago . In an interview in June 2009, Ash emphatically stated that he had no further plans to play with Love and Rockets. "We've worked together since 1980. I really want to work with new people, I'm sure everybody feels the same."cite web |url= http://suicidegirls.com/interviews/Daniel+Ash%3A+Rock+On/ |title=Daniel Ash: Rock On |work= SuicideGirls |date=22 June 2009 |accessdate=24 February 2012
A tribute album titled New Tales to Tell: A Tribute to Love & Rockets was released on 18 August 2009 featuring contributions from The Flaming Lips , Frank Black , Puscifer , A Place to Bury Strangers , Film School , Better Than Ezra , Johnny Dowd , The Dandy Warhols , Blaqk Audio , The Stone Foxes , and Monster Magnet .cite web |url= http://www.nme.com/news/flaming-lips/45086 |title=Flaming Lips, Black Francis for Love And Rockets tribute |date=3 June 2009 |work=NME.COM |accessdate=5 October 2011
Discography
main|Love and Rockets discography ; Studio albums
Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven (1985)
Express (album)|Express (1986)
Earth, Sun, Moon (1987)
Love and Rockets (album)|Love and Rockets (1989)
Hot Trip to Heaven (1994)
Sweet F.A. (album)|Sweet F.A. (1996)
Lift (Love and Rockets album)|Lift (1998)
References
Reflist
External links
Official site|loveandrockets.com
Allmusic |class=artist |id=p4794 |label=Love and Rockets
Love and Rockets (band) Category:Bauhaus (band) Category:English alternative rock groups Category:British New Wave musical groups Category:English rock music groups Category:Gothic rock groups Category:Musical groups established in 1985 Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1999 Category:College rock groups
de:Love and Rockets (Band) fr:Love and Rockets (groupe) pt:Love and Rockets (banda) sv:Love and Rockets (musikgrupp) uk:Love and Rockets (????)
