| The Electric
Soft Parade |
| Background information |
| Origin |
Brighton, England |
| Genre(s) |
Indie rock |
| Years active |
2001–present |
| Label(s) |
Truck Records (UK)
Better Looking Records (US) |
Associated
acts |
Brakes |
| Website |
Official
website |
| Members |
Alex White
Tom White
Matthew Twaites
Mathew
Priest |
The Electric Soft Parade are an English indie
rock band from Brighton,
comprising siblings Alex and Tom White, who are the creative
core of the band, as well as a number of other musicians who they
record and perform live with; Matthew Twaites from Restlesslist on bass and Mathew
Priest from Dodgy
on drums.
Alex and Tom formed Fixed Ascent, which became The Feltro
Media (with bassist Alistair Gavan, now of Diomedes), before
renaming themselves The Soft Parade and signing to indie label DB in
early 2001 (without Gavan). They added the 'Electric' part of their
name shortly after their early singles began getting some attention in
the rock press - they were threatened with legal action by a Doors
tribute band if they did not change it. This did not halt their rise to
(relative) fame at all, however, and their debut album, Holes
In The Wall, was issued in February 2002. It was nominated
for the Mercury Music Prize later that
year, although they did not win the award.
Their second album, The American Adventure
appeared in October 2003, now on BMG records.
Alex and Tom have since started a side project in the form of Brakes
with British Sea Power's ex
keyboardist Eamon Hamilton and Marc Beatty of The Tenderfoot. The White brothers
have also been assisting up-and-coming Brighton acts such as The
Pipettes and Actress Hands.
The band released the six-track The
Human Body EP on Truck
Records in December 2005, with more than enough ideas for a third
full-length LP, released April 2007 (titled No Need to Be Downhearted,
a lyric from a song called "15 Ways" by The
Fall from the Middle Class Revolt album)
The U.S. Human Body EP released in May
2006 on Better Looking Records
included the bonus track The Captain. The Electric
Soft Parade made their first U.S. appearance at the South by Southwest
Festival in March and played at The Great Escape Festival, Brighton in
May.
Following their appearance at the Truck
Festival, Oxford in July 2006 they have a track on the festival
compilation, titled The Friday Before Christmas.
They played Europa Music Festival, Rotterdam and End Of The Road
Festival, Dorset in September, followed by a UK Tour in
September/October.
They next released a 7" single, Life in the Backseat,
in November 2006, backed with Actress Hands' Why the Sale?
(part of a limited series to mark the 10th anniversary of Truck
Festival in 2007). The song also appeared on the It's Not
Like Christmas compilation in aid of the Shelter
charity.
In March/April 2007 they made their second visit to the South by Southwest
Festival, took part in A Tribute To Billy
MacKenzie at Shepherds Bush Empire in aid
of Sound
Seekers and played a UK tour. There was also an extensive USA tour in
May/June 2007 with Brakes
Truck Records released the single If
That's the Case, Then I Don't Know in April. Misunderstanding
follows on July 23rd, on 7" single and download, including covers of Blue
It Is by Billy MacKenzie and Across
The Universe by The Beatles
July/August 2007 Electric Soft Parade make appearances at UK
and European Festivals in Austria, France, Switzerland and Germany.
The Electric Soft Parade's Silent to the Dark
is included on the Dermot O'Leary compilation CD The
Saturday Sessions released July 23rd 2007 and also features
on the Isle Of Wight Festival 2004
DVD.
Discography
- Holes in the Wall
(February 2002)
- The American Adventure
(October 2003)
- The Human Body EP
(December 2005)
- No Need to Be Downhearted
(April 2007)
External links
