Keane
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- This article is about the English band. For other uses, see Keane (disambiguation).
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Keane is an English piano rock band from Battle, East Sussex. The current members are Tim Rice-Oxley (composer, writer, bass guitarist and pianist), Tom Chaplin (lead vocals and organ), and Richard Hughes (percussion). Former members include guitarist, Dominic Scott, who left in 2001. Keane is known for using a piano as its lead instrument instead of using guitars, unlike most rock bands. However, the band does make use of effects pedals and synthesizers, giving it a wide range of sounds not limited to traditional piano tones.<ref>Keane explain their new sound. Retrieved on August 19, 2006.</ref> Tom Chaplin's vocals, which often make use of falsetto, are also considered to be a notable part of the band's style.<ref name="Strangers">Strangers DVD</ref><ref name="Shore">Q Magazine: The Shore Thing. Retrieved on September 26, 2006.</ref>
Keane's first two studio albums, Hopes and Fears and Under the Iron Sea achieved number one status in the United Kingdom upon release and have achieved very high sales worldwide, notably in Europe. The band is managed by Adam Tudhope, who is also involved in film production through his company, White House Pictures and has contributed to some English films such as Love Actually.<ref>Keane Fanzine. Retrieved on September 16, 2006.</ref> Tudhope was friends with Rice-Oxley at university.
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[edit] History
[edit] Formation and early years (1979-1998)
Rice-Oxley's brother — also called Tom — was born in the same hospital on the same day as Chaplin, on March 8 1979. Their mothers became friends, as did Chaplin and Rice-Oxley.<ref name="Strangers"/> Both attended Vinehall School (and, later, Tonbridge School in Kent) where they met the third member of the band, Richard Hughes. While at secondary school, circa 1988, Rice-Oxley and Hughes wished to form a band. However, being a sports-related school, he and Hughes found it very difficult to make an impression. Hughes said, "the idea of trying to form a band in that sort of environment is quite challenging. If there's no bat and ball involved, you're seen as borderline insane."<ref name="Shore"/> While studying at UCL for a degree in classics in 1995, Rice-Oxley finally managed to form a rock band with his friend and guitarist Dominic Scott and invited Hughes to play drums. "The Lotus Eaters" started as a cover band, playing songs by the members' favourite bands, including U2, Oasis, and The Beatles, and rehearsing at home.
Although Hughes and Scott were originally opposed to Chaplin joining<ref name="Strangers"/>, Chaplin joined the band in 1997, as vocalist and acoustic guitarist. Chaplin's recruitment also marked a change of name from "The Lotus Eaters" to "Cherry Keane", after a friend of Chaplin's mother, whom Rice-Oxley and Chaplin knew when they were young.<ref>Keanemusic.com - Ezine - Tom answers your questions. Retrieved on September 16, 2006.</ref> The name was shortened to "Keane" soon afterwards.<ref>Chapman, Tegan. "Keane man on success, songs and Steve Lamacq", greatreporter.com, January 13, 2005.</ref>
In an interview with The Irish Times on June 2 2006, Rice-Oxley was quoted as saying that the band had originally been named "Coldplay"<ref>Keane Edge. Retrieved on August 19, 2006.</ref>, but he later denied that he ever made the comment to the interviewer. <ref>Tim Rice-Oxley refutes "Coldplay" name queries. Retrieved on September 10, 2006.</ref>However, after listening to Rice-Oxley's piano playing during a weekend at Virginia Water in Surrey, Chris Martin invited him to join the early Coldplay but Rice-Oxley declined since he didn't want to leave Keane: "I was seriously interested, but Keane were already operational and Coldplay's keyboard player idea was dropped."<ref name="Shore"/>
With original material, Keane made its debut live appearance at the "Hope & Anchor" pub on July 13, 1998<ref name="Strangers"/>. After this gig, throughout 1998 and 1999 the band performed on London's pub gig circuit. It was around this time that Chaplin made the decision to quit his art history degree and move to London, in order to pursue a full-time musical career.<ref name="Shore"/>
[edit] Early releases and Scott's departure (1999-2003)
In late 1999, and without a record deal, Keane recorded its first promotional single, "Call Me What You Like". Released on CD format, it was sold after the gigs at the pubs where Keane used to play during February 2000. Five hundred copies were reportedly sold.<ref>Keaneshaped - Discography - Call Me What You Like. Retrieved on September 16, 2006.</ref> Some tracks can now be found on the internet. The members have declared they are not against fans sharing tracks that are unreleased on CD, such as "More Matey" and "Emily". Chaplin has commented "They most likely see those recordings as an interesting extra to get hold of - I don't see it causing any damage. If it was the album we have coming out leaked early (Under the Iron Sea) then I'd probably feel differently."<ref>Keaneshaped - Discography. Retrieved on September 12, 2006.</ref> The EP was reviewed by eFestivals who listed "Closer Now" as the best song of the record.<ref>Keane.at Articles: Call Me What You Like review. Retrieved on September 12, 2006.</ref> The CD was released through Keane's own label, Zoomorphic. Four months after the "Call Me What You Like" re-recording in February 2001, their second single, "Wolf at the Door" was released. Only fifty hand-made copies are known to have been made, using CD-Rs.<ref name="Wolf">Keaneshaped - Discography - Wolf At The Door. Retrieved on August 4, 2006.</ref> Both singles are considered highly valuable collectors' items by fans. In particular, "Wolf at the Door" has been known to fetch over £1000 on ebay.<ref name="Wolf"/>
Due to the limited success Keane had at this time, Scott decided to leave the group a month after this single was released, in order to continue his studies at the LSE.<ref>Keane.at - Ancient Keanolgogy. Retrieved on September 19, 2006.</ref> Shortly after this, Keane was invited in July 2001 by record producer James Sanger to his recording studio at Les Essarts, France, where the band recorded a number of tracks, including "Bedshaped" and "This Is The Last Time". It was during these sessions that the idea of using a piano as lead instrument began to emerge. Sanger received a shared credit for four songs that appeared on Keane's debut album Hopes and Fears, including the song "Sunshine", the only one composed there.<ref>Keane Undercover Music Interviews. Retrieved on August 19, 2006.</ref> All three members returned to England in November 2001. Soon after, they signed to BMG to publish their music but at this time they did not have a recording contract. In December 2002, the band returned to performing live. One gig, at the Betsey Trotwood in London, was attended by Simon Williams of Fierce Panda Records. Williams offered to release the first commercial single by the band. This release was "Everybody's Changing", which Steve Lamacq went on to name single of the week on Lamacq Live on April 19, 2003; the CD Single was released on May 12, 2003.<ref>Keaneshaped - Discography - Everybody's Changing (Fierce Panda). Retrieved on August 4, 2006.</ref> As a result of the attention created by this release, a bidding war for the band ensued between major labels,<ref>Keane interview. Retrieved November 4, 2006</ref> with the band deciding to sign with Island Records in summer 2003.
After signing with Island, the band released "This Is The Last Time" on Fierce Panda in October 2003 between "Everybody's Changing" and their first major-label release.
[edit] Hopes and Fears (2004-2005)
With the release of its first major single, Keane began to achieve recognition in the United Kingdom and the United States, where "This Is The Last Time" was released and remained as the only single sold there until "O' Lanky Ought" in late 2006. In January 2004, Keane was named the band most likely to achieve success in the coming year in the BBC's annual Sound of Music poll. <ref>Sound of 2004 music poll revealed. Retrieved on September 10, 2006.</ref>.
A month later, Keane's first release on Island was "Somewhere Only We Know", which reached number three on the UK Singles Chart in February 2004. On May 3, a re-release of "Everybody's Changing" followed and featured new cover and b-sides; it reached number four in the UK Singles Chart.
Keane's debut album, Hopes and Fears, was released on May 10 2004 in the UK, just a day before starting their first world tour. It debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and went on to become the second-biggest selling album of the year in the UK, only losing the top spot to the Scissor Sisters on the last day of the year.
The album has sold approximately five and a half million copies around the world. In the UK, it stayed in the top 75 of the UK Albums Chart for 72 weeks, appearing again on its 115th week.<ref>UK Albums chart. Retrieved on August 2, 2006.</ref>
The band won two awards at the 2005 Brit Awards in February; Best British album for Hopes and Fears and the British breakthrough act award, as voted for by listeners of BBC Radio 1. Three months after, Rice-Oxley received the Ivor Novello award for songwriter of the year.
As a member of the Make Poverty History foundation, Keane performed at the Live 8 concert, which took place in London on July 2.
Keane is also patron of War Child, and in September 2005, it recorded a cover version of Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" to the charity album Help: a Day in the Life. Previously, the band also had recorded a cover of the Walker Brothers' "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore", which was available as a download-only track from the War Child website. It was later released as a 7" single as a gift to members of the Keane e-mailing list.<ref>Keaneshaped - Discography - The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore. Retrieved on August 4, 2006.</ref>
As the 1985 version, Band Aid (now called Band Aid 20) recorded a new version of "Do They Know It's Christmas?". Rice-Oxley and Chaplin both contributed vocals.
During the year, the band achieved minor recognition in the United States due to its extensive touring, which culminated with a series of gigs as the opening act for U2. The group was also nominated for a Grammy in the Best New Artist category along with Sugarland, John Legend, Ciara, and Fall Out Boy, but ultimately lost out to Legend.<ref>48 Grammy Awards: Nominees. Retrieved on January, 2006.</ref>
[edit] Under the Iron Sea (2006-present)
In April 2005 and on the middle of the Hopes and Fears Tour, the band began recording its second album, Under the Iron Sea with producer Andy Green — who also worked with them previously on Hopes and Fears — , and later recruiting Mark "Spike" Stent for mixing duties. Recording took place in Helioscentric Studios, Rye, East Sussex —where Hopes and Fears was recorded — and later at The Magic Shop Studios in New York City. The band revealed the title of the album on March 14 2006 by posting a handwritten note on its official website.
Drawing style differences from the previous album, Under the Iron Sea, taking its name from the eight track and third single "O' Lanky Ought" — and referring to Rice-Oxley's feelings about the future of the band, and its relationship with producer Karl Outen — , the album was made following a fairytale style, notable on the box of the CD+DVD version, with drawings representing every song on the album; this has been commented by the band as a "sinister fairytale-world-gone-wrong".<ref>MySpace: Keane. Retrieved on October 17, 2006.</ref>
The album's release was preceded by the release of "Atlantic", a download-only music video, and lead single "Is It Any Wonder?" — released on 29 May 2006 — which reached number three on the UK Singles Chart. The album had a worldwide release date of June 12 2006 (see the album's article for exceptions), and was at number 1 in the UK Albums Chart for the first two weeks of its release. As of October 3, 2006, it has sold more than 1,600,000 copies. The album has met with critical acclaim, with press referring to it as "dark and heavy"<ref name="Mixup">Revista Mixup July 2006, Mexico</ref>, and commenting that it may attract a new, wider audience.<ref>Inside Bay Area - British popsters emerge from Under the Iron Sea. Retrieved on September 26, 2006.</ref>
The third single from the album was "O' Lanky Ought", considered as Chaplin's favorite song, describing it as "one the catchiest and memorable songs on the record"<ref>Tom Chaplin on "Crystal Ball" </ref>. The single was released on August 21, 2006, reaching number 20 in the UK singles charts.
On August 22, 2006, Chaplin announced he had admitted himself to a clinic for drink and drug problems. This initially resulted in the cancellation of three gigs and postponement of their September US tour. The entire North American tour was later cancelled outright to allow continued treatment.<ref>Keane announce cancellation of US tour. Retrieved on September 8, 2006.</ref> As a result of this, the upcoming UK and European tours - scheduled for October and November 2006 - were considered to be liable for possible postponement depending on Chaplin's treatment. In early October, Concert Live announced it was releasing a limited edition CDs (1000 per concert) of every Keane live performance during 2006 in the UK. Chaplin left the Priory Clinic in London on October 6 but he is still receiving treatment, supported by many people, including famous composer Sir Elton John.
The fourth and newest single from Under The Iron Sea was "Nothing In My Way", released on October 30, 2006. A confirmed rumour is that "A Bad Dream", considered a fan favourite and referred to by Chaplin as "the best song we've ever written"<ref>V Festival, Weston Park Stafford, August 20 2006.</ref>, will be the next single, set for release on January 22 2007<ref>Keane official page. Retrieved on November 23, 2006.</ref>.
In late October 2006, Rice-Oxley collaborated with Gwen Stefani as a co-writer of the song "Early Winter", that will appear on her second album, The Sweet Escape. According to fansite Keane.at he contributed on keyboards and piano duties. Stefani had been wishing to work with the band since 2005; Rice Oxley's response came into reality: "we might give her a go".
Similar to the previous album, some songs have yet appeared on the media; "Is It Any Wonder?" appeared on the Madden 2007 soundtrack, "Nothing In My Way" on the soundtrack to the FIFA 07 football video game and "A Bad Dream" was featured in the season 4 premiere of The OC (It plays when Summer tells Seth she is leaving Newport).
[edit] Controversies and criticism
Due to the piano-based music and the alternative sound of the debut album, critics first regarded Keane as Coldplay imitators; the media supporting Keane, however, started calling it the "new Coldplay"<ref name="Shore"/> as a reference to the success they were having. Other bands such as Morning Runner have been now compared to both Keane and Coldplay for the piano-oriented sound of their music.<ref name="Sonika">(Sonika Magazine (Spanish)) Sonika 53: Keane o entre la suerte y el talento. Retrieved on September 26, 2006.</ref> Critics, especially from The Guardian had attacked it with tabloid stories like the supposedly styled image Keane had.<ref>Petridis, Alexis. "We're gonna make you a star", The Guardian, July 8, 2005.</ref>
[edit] Musical style and themes
Tim Rice-Oxley and Dominic Scott were the main writers of the band's songs during its early years.<ref name="Strangers"/> When Scott left in 2001, Rice-Oxley became the main composer.<ref name="Songs">Keaneshaped - FAQ - Who writes the songs?. Retrieved on August 4, 2006.</ref> However, Rice-Oxley credits the rest of the band on all compositions, so that royalties for song credits are shared.<ref name="Songs"/>
Keane has cited bands such as The Beatles, U2, Oasis, R.E.M., The Smiths, Radiohead, Queen, Pet Shop Boys and Paul Simon as influences.<ref>Keane - Interviews. Retrieved on August 19, 2006.</ref> The band has been known as "the band with no guitars", due to its heavily piano-based sound. By using delay and distortion effects on their piano sound, they often create sounds that aren't immediately recognisable as piano.<ref name="Mixup">Revista Mixup. Mexico, July 2006</ref>Rice-Oxley said during an interview in Los Angeles that they tend to think piano-related music is boring and what they really wanted to do was trying something different. He referred to the piano as an odd instrument to form part of a rock band instrumentation, comparing it to the sitar used on The Beatles' "Within You Without You". <ref name="Sonika"/> During its early years, lyrically, most songs were about love (most notably "She Has No Time" and "On A Day Like Today"). However, other themes - including the relationship between Rice-Oxley and Chaplin - have emerged in more recent compositions.<ref>(Q4 Music) Q Magazine: Keane, Hearts of Darkness (July 2006 issue, p.94). Retrieved on September 26, 2006.</ref>. B-side "Maybe I Can Change" - composed by Chaplin - gives his side of the story with the lyrics "...but still somehow I have to say I'm on my way gone"<ref>"Maybe I Can Change" </ref>. Other themes have been explored; for example "Is It Any Wonder?" and "A Bad Dream" are both about war.<ref>Keaneshaped - FAQ - What are the songs about?. Retrieved on October 5, 2006.</ref>
[edit] Live and studio instrumentation
- Visit Keaneshaped for more information about Keane's equipment
After Scott departed, Rice-Oxley started using a Yamaha CP-70 piano, a quality instrument especially designed for touring. A Yamaha CP60 is currently used as an electric piano and located during the gigs on the top of the main piano. Main instrumentation includes:
- Yamaha CP70/CP70B/CP70M/CP60 pianos
- Fender basses
- Yamaha Drums
- Hammond organ
- Yamaha DX-7 synthesizer
Rice-Oxley's PowerBook G4 is used to play back pre-recorded bass tracks during live performances. The computer software includes an electronic click-track transmitted wirelessly to the three members' Sennheiser earphones to aid accurate playback. It also controls the extra synthesizer sections that would be impossible to play live with the current line-up. In October 2004, when "Hamburg Song" and "Nothing In My Way" debuted, Chaplin played a Hammond MK2 organ, having played no instrument in the live band since 2001. Following this, in 2006 he started to play a distorted CP60 for some songs like "The Frog Prince" and "Crystal Ball".
[edit] Members
- Tim Rice-Oxley - piano, keyboards, bass, backing vocals (lead vocals from 1995 to 1997)
- Tom Chaplin - vocals, live keyboards, organ (acoustic guitar before 2003<ref>Chaplin played an acoustic version of "Your Eyes Open" with guitar on October 2006.</ref>)
- Richard Hughes - drums, live backing vocals
[edit] Former members
- Dominic Scott - electric guitar, keyboard, lead vocals (from 1995 to 1997), backing vocals (from 1997 to 2001)
[edit] Discography
There are a few differences between Keane releases in different territories. On Hopes and Fears, the song "On A Day Like Today" was excluded from the international version of the album but remained on the UK and Japanese editions. However, "Allemande" appears on the latter as a bonus track. For Under the Iron Sea no songs were excluded but "The Iron Sea" appeared as a hidden track on the international version. The b-side "Let It Slide" was included as a bonus track on the Japanese version. Most single releases however were not released worldwide. Some singles such as "Somewhere Only We Know" were only released in Europe and other such as "Is It Any Wonder?" worldwide; on the other hand, "Bend and Break" was only released in some European countries but not in the United Kingdom.
 <center>May 10 2004 |
 <center>May 3 2005 |
 <center>June 12 2006 |
- "Somewhere Only We Know" (MIDI) (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- "Somewhere Only We Know" from Hopes and Fears.
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
- "To The End Of The Earth" (OGG) (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- "To The End Of The Earth", b-side from "Everybody's Changing".
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
- "Is It Any Wonder?" (MIDI) (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- "Is It Any Wonder?", lead single from Under the Iron Sea.
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
- "The Frog Prince" (MIDI) (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- "The Frog Prince", closing track from Under the Iron Sea.
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
</div>
[edit] Tours
- Hopes and Fears Tour (2004-2005)
- Under the Iron Sea Tour (2006-present)
[edit] Awards and Nominations
[edit] Awards
| Year | Award | Category | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Q Awards | Best Album | England |
| 2004 | Premios Onda | Best International Band | Spain |
| 2004 | Ivor Novello | Composers of the year | England |
| 2005 | Brit Awards | Best Album | United Kingdom |
| 2005 | Brit Awards | Best Breakthrough Act | United Kingdom |
| 2006 | GQ Awards | Band of the year | United Kingdom |
[edit] Nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Q Awards | Best New Act | United Kingdom |
| 2005 | Brit Awards | Best British Group | United Kingdom |
| 2005 | World Music Awards | World's Best Selling New Group | United States |
| 2006 | Grammy Awards | Best Newcomer | United States |
| 2006 | TMF Awards | Best International Act | Holland |
| 2006 | UK Festival Awards | Anthem Of The Summer | United Kingdom |
| 2006 | MTV Europe Music Awards | Best Group | European Union |
| 2006 | MTV Europe Music Awards | Best Rock Group | European Union |
| 2006 | Q Awards | Best Album | England |
| 2006 | World Music Awards | World's Best Rock Group | Worldwide |
[edit] See also
- List of songs by Keane, a list of all Keane songs (released and unreleased). The list includes MIDI and OGG music samples.
[edit] Notes
<references/>
[edit] References
- Keaneshaped. British fansite. Retrieved June 2006.
- Keane.at. Austrian fansite. Retrieved June 2006.
- NME News. Keane explain their new sound. Retrieved July 17 2006.
- Great Reporter. Keane Man on Success. Retrieved August 11 2006.
- NME News. The Darkness V Keane - It's War!. Retrieved August 11 2006.
- Contact Music. Keane's Oxley: "Libertines are middle class liars". Retrieved August 11 2006.
- SONIKA*. Sonika 53: El triunfo del Indie: Keane o entre la suerte y el talento (August 2006). Retrieved August 15 2006
- Q Magazine. English magazine, July 2006. Keane: Hearts of Darkness. Retrieved August 11 2006.
[edit] External links
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to: |
[edit] Official sites
- Keanemusic – Official site
- Keane – Official Myspace profile
[edit] Major fansites
- Keaneshaped – British fansite with lyrics, official FAQ, discography and tablatures
- Keane.at – Austrian fansite with news and photos
- Keane.fr – Interviews and articles in French and English
- Keanecn.com – Chinese fansite with news, discography, photos, interviews and articles in English and Chinese translation and forum in Chinese
- Keane.co.kr – Korean fansite with news, lyrics, photos, music video, Live video and articles in Korean.
| Keane |
|---|
| Tim Rice-Oxley | Tom Chaplin | Richard Hughes |
| Adam Tudhope | Dominic Scott |
| Discography |
| Studio albums: Hopes and Fears | Under the Iron Sea |
| Lives and EPs: Live Recordings 2004 | Keane Live 06 |
| Singles: "Call Me What You Like" | "Wolf at the Door" | "Everybody's Changing (Part 1)" | "This Is The Last Time (Part 1)" | "Somewhere Only We Know" | "Everybody's Changing (Part 2)" | "Bedshaped" | "This Is The Last Time (Part 2)"| "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" | "Bend and Break" | "Atlantic" | "Is It Any Wonder?" | "Crystal Ball" | "Nothing in My Way" | "A Bad Dream" |
| DVDs: Hopes and Fears DVD | Strangers | Under the Iron Sea DVD |
| Tours: Hopes and Fears Tour | Under the Iron Sea Tour |
| Other: List of songs by Keane |
| Related articles |
| Piano rock | Battle, East Sussex | Rye, East Sussex | War Child (charity) | Help - a Day in the Life |
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