Athlete (band)

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Athlete
Athlete performing in 2008
Athlete performing in 2008
Background information
Origin Deptford, London, England
Genre(s) Indie rock
Alternative
Years active 1999–present
Label(s) Parlophone (UK)
Astralwerks (USA)
Website http://www.athlete.mu/
Members
Joel Pott
Carey Willets
Steve Roberts
Tim Wanstall

Athlete are an English indie rock band formed in Deptford, London, comprising Joel Pott (lead vocals and guitar), Carey Willetts (bass and backing vocals), Stephen Roberts (drums and backing vocals) and Tim Wanstall (keyboards and backing vocals). Recently, the quartet have recruited Jonny Pilcher of Weevil as a live guitarist.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Debut

Friends since the age of fourteen, Athlete took their wide ranging influences such as Grandaddy and The Flaming Lips and started jamming and practicing in the basement of The Bear, a pub which was converted into a church and sandwich bar, on Deptford High Street in 1999. They began recording there, before sending demos out. Signing with Regal Recordings, they released their first single in February 2002. The band came to prominence in 2003 with their debut album, Vehicles and Animals, producing popular singles such as "You Got the Style" and "El Salvador". The album earned a Mercury Music Prize nomination and went on to sell over 250,000 copies. They played their first live session on UK radio on the Dermot O'Leary Show, BBC Radio 2.

[edit] Second album

Their second album, Tourist, reached Number One in the UK Album Charts in its first week, following the huge success of single "Wires", the song was brought around when the lead singer's newborn baby was rushed to intensive care after a premature birth, which in 2006, won them the Ivor Novello Award for "Best Contemporary Song". In the UK charts, the band has frequently been frustrated by singles just missing out on top 40 placings, due to inconsistent support by music television channels and radio stations. For instance, certain songs, such as "Wires" and "Half Light", were played up to 10 times a day on larger UK radio stations, yet other singles such as "Westside" and "Tourist" received little to no radio play whatsoever, fueling talk of radio stations deciding who becomes a major player in the pop music franchise.

[edit] Latest album

On 10 June 2007, it was announced that the title of their third album would be Beyond the Neighbourhood.[1]. The album was mixed by Ben Allen and Michael Brauer, who also worked on Tourist. Released on 3 September 2007, Beyond the Neighbourhood was a self-produced collection of low-key songs, viewed as a disappointment by some[2], and an interesting sidestep by others[3]. It entered at #5 on the UK album chart.

Athlete at the Academy, 2007
Athlete at the Academy, 2007

They embarked on tours of the UK in late 2007 and early 2008 in support of the album. It has also been announced that they will play during the 2008 TT motorcycle racing festival on the Isle of Man.[4]

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

  1. Vehicles and Animals – (April 7, 2003) #19 UK
  2. Tourist – (January 31, 2005) #1 UK
  3. Beyond the Neighbourhood – (September 3, 2007) #5 UK

[edit] Singles

Year Song UK Singles Chart Album
2002 "Athlete (EP)" 85
2002 "You Got the Style" 37 Vehicles and Animals
2002 "Beautiful" 41 Vehicles and Animals
2003 "El Salvador" 31 Vehicles and Animals
2003 "Westside" 42 Vehicles and Animals
2003 "You Got the Style" re-issue 42 Vehicles and Animals
2005 "Wires" 4 Tourist
2005 "Half Light" 16 Tourist
2005 "Tourist" 43 Tourist
2005 "Twenty Four Hours" / "Stand In the Sun" 42 Tourist
2007 "Hurricane" 31 Beyond the Neighbourhood
2007 "Tokyo" 198 Beyond the Neighbourhood
2008 "The Outsiders EP Beyond the Neighbourhood

[edit] Compilations

Athlete tracks have appeared on the following compilation CDs:

Year Compilation Track
2002 The Album Vol. 4 "Westside"
2004 The Alternative Album Vol. 2 "Westside"
2004 The Best Bands in the World...Ever "Beautiful"
2004 The Best Bands 2004 "You Got The Style"
2005 The Alternative Album Vol. 3 "Shake Those Windows"
2005 The Album: Music from EMI "Wires"
2005 Acoustic Vol.5: Acoustic 05 "You Got The Style"
2005 The Album Vol. 6 "Half Light"
2006 The Last Kiss Original Motion Picture Soundtrack "El Salvador"
2006 The Ultimate Bands - The Classic Anthems "Wires"
2006 Relaxing Songs 2006 "Wires"
2007 The Saturday Sessions "God Only Knows" (Cover)
2007 Top Gear: Seriously Cool Driving Music "El Salvador"

[edit] In popular culture

  • "Chances" from Tourist was used in the 2006 Russell Crowe film A Good Year
  • "Wires" is the theme song for The Learning Channel's show Diagnosis X
  • "El Salvador" is in the movie "The Last Kiss" with Zach Braff
  • "El Salvador appears on the 2 CD set "Top Gear: Seriously Cool Driving Music"; inspired from the BBC 2 TV show.
  • "Tourist" is used in the Adidas commercial Impossible is 0 featuring Washington Wizards star Gilbert Arenas.[5]
  • "Street Map" is heard in the first episode of the third season of CW's "One Tree Hill"

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Athlete.mu
  2. ^ Beyond The Neighbourhood album review from Guardian Unlimited
  3. ^ Beyond The Neighbourhood album review from stv.tv/music
  4. ^ BBC News Online - Rock band Athlete announce TT gig
  5. ^ Gilbert’s Story - Impossible is 0 | Gilbertology.net

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Athlete
Joel Pott | Carey Willetts | Stephen Roberts | Tim Wanstall
Studio albums
Singles
"You Got the Style" · "Beautiful" · "El Salvador" · "Westside" · "Wires" · "Half Light" · "Tourist" · "Twenty Four Hours / Stand in the Sun" · "Hurricane" · "Tokyo" · "The Outsiders EP"
EPs