Sneaker Pimps
Background information
Origin	Reading, England
Genre(s)	Electronica Trip hop Alternative pop
Years active	1996–present
Label(s)	Clean-up Records Virgin Records
Website	http://www.sneakerpimps.com/
Members
Chris Corner Liam Howe Joe Wilson David Westlake
Former members
Kelli Dayton

Sneaker Pimps is a British Electropop band formed in Reading, England in 1995. They are best known for their first album Becoming X (released in 1996) and particularly the singles "6 Underground", "Spin Spin Sugar" and "Tesko Suicide" from that album. They took their name from an article the Beastie Boys published in their Grand Royale magazine about a man they hired to track down classic sneakers.

The band's founding members were Chris Corner and Liam Howe (both ex-DJs), who then recruited Kelli Dayton (formerly of Lumieres, now recording under the name Kelli Ali) for vocal duties. After the first album, the band felt that demos for second album (on which Corner provided the guide vocals) better suited his voice, especially in regard to the more raw, personal quality of the lyrics. Combined with the fear of being identified with the fad for trip-hop acts (e.g. Portishead), Dayton was asked to leave the group, and Corner became the singer.

Dayton's departure was well received by some critics who felt that it gave the band a more honest, emotional timbre. Some fans feel that the songs on subsequent Sneaker Pimps albums, Splinter and Bloodsport, have lost the bubblegum feel and have gained an emotional intensity, while others enjoyed Dayton's vocals precisely because of that feel.

Currently the band are recording material for an untitled fourth album, having shelved a number of songs previewed live during 2003, and having recruited a new, yet unknown, female singer.

Contents 1 Side projects 2 Members 3 Discography 3.1 Albums 3.2 Singles 3.3 Promo Singles 4 External links

Side projects

Chris Corner released two solo albums in 2004 and 2006 under the band name IAMX titled "Kiss + Swallow" and "The Alternative". He has also sung guest vocals for TIT Jackson and Moonbootica, as well as produced Robots in Disguise. He also collaborates with Sue Denim from Robots in Disguise, under the name Sibling. Joe Wilson formed Trash Money with Chris Tate in 1999 and plays live with Client. Liam Howe records music under the name The Zip as well as producing Free Repeater. David Westlake currently plays drums in Trash Money has sessioned for Natalie Imbruglia, Mediaeval Baebes, Zero-G and played drums with Ultrafox on tour. The band also remix and produce other artists under the name Line of Flight.

Members

In the studio, the band share instrumental duties, however in the live environment they can usually be observed playing the following:

• Chris Corner (guitar, synthesiser, vocals)
• Liam Howe (synthesiser)
• Joe Wilson (bass)
• David Westlake (drums and sampling)

Also note:

• Ian Pickering (co-lyricist and unofficial 5th member)
• Kelli Dayton (ex-vocalist, asked to leave after making their first album Becoming X)

Discography

Albums

• Becoming X (1996) - #27 UK, #111 US, #1 US Heatseekers
• Becoming Remixed (1998) - #30 UK, #24 US Heatseekers
• Splinter (1999) - #38 UK
• Bloodsport (2002) - #59 UK, #16 US Electronic, #46 US Indie
• SP4 (unreleased) - most songs ended up on Chris Corner's IAMX project
• SP5 (2008)

The band are currently working on a 5th album with a brand new (and as yet unknown) female singer. Tracks from the album were recently leaked onto the internet. [1] The leak originated in Russia sometime in mid December and quickly spread on the internet. The tracks leaked were;

• Samaritan
• Sun ate the moon
• Rush
• The Shutdown
• Elias
• Girl in a box
• Satellite (a loop of the music can be heard at the official Sneaker Pimps site)

There is significant question among the listeners as to the authenticity of these leaked tracks. Fans theorize that they may be audition recordings, rough cuts, or outright forgeries. Reasons sited by skeptical fans include the distinct discrepancy in style and tone, and low complexity of the tracks- as compared with other releases by the Sneaker Pimps[2]. There is, as of yet, no official word on the leaked tracks.

Singles

Year	Song	Cover	UK singles	U.S. Hot 100	U.S. Modern Rock	U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play	Album
1996	"Tesko Suicide"		-	-	-	-	Becoming X
1996	"Roll On"		-	-	-	-	Becoming X
1996	"6 Underground"	Image:6 Underground.jpg	15	-	-	-	Becoming X
1997	"Spin Spin Sugar"		21	87	-	-	Becoming X
1997	"6 Underground (re-issued)"	Image:-	9	45	7	-	Becoming X
1997	"Spin Spin Sugar (remixes)"	Image:-	46	-	-	2	Becoming X
1997	"Post Modern Sleaze"		22	-	-	-	Becoming X
1999	"Low Five"	Image:-	39	-	-	-	Splinter
1999	"Ten To Twenty"	Image:-	56	-	-	-	Splinter
2002	"Sick"	Image:-	100	-	-	16	Bloodsport
2002	"Bloodsport"	Image:-	-	-	-	-	Bloodsport
2002	"Loretta Young Silks"		-	-	-	-	Bloodsport

Promo Singles

(This listing excludes the listed official singles which also may have been promotionally released)

• 1996 "Firestarter"
• 2002 "Kiro TV"
• 2002 "M'Aidez"

External links

• Sneaker Pimps Official Website
• Sneaker Pimps Unofficial Website (including discography)
• the Sneaker Box - Unofficial Website (including lot of stuff to listen, read and watch)
• Kelli Ali - Official Website
• Band members' comments about their songs (archive.org copy)
• Robots in Disguise Official Website
• Trash Money Official Website