Atoms for Peace (band) explained

Atoms for Peace
Landscape:yes
Origin:Los Angeles, California, United States
Years Active:2009–2013, 2018
Label:XL
Spinoffs:Ultraísta
Spinoff Of:Radiohead
Past Members:

Atoms for Peace were an English-American rock supergroup comprising the Radiohead songwriter Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano), the Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, the Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich (keyboards, synthesisers, guitars), the drummer Joey Waronker of Beck and R.E.M., and the percussionist Mauro Refosco of Forro in the Dark.

Yorke formed Atoms for Peace in 2009 to perform songs from his debut solo album, The Eraser (2006); they toured in 2010. In 2013, they released an album, Amok, the product of combining Yorke's electronic music with the band's jamming. It received mainly positive reviews, with critics likening it to Yorke's solo work. Amok was followed by a tour of Europe, the US and Japan. The band members have collaborated intermittently since.

History

2009—2010: Formation and first shows

In 2006, the Radiohead songwriter Thom Yorke released his first solo album, The Eraser, comprising mostly electronic music. It was produced by Radiohead's producer, Nigel Godrich. In 2009, Yorke performed solo at Latitude Festival, and found it was possible to perform Eraser songs on acoustic instruments. He contacted Godrich with the idea of forming a band to perform The Eraser without sequencers, reproducing the electronic beats with Latin percussion.

Yorke and Godrich formed Atoms for Peace in 2009 with the bassist Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers; the drummer Joey Waronker, who had performed with acts including Beck and R.E.M; and the percussionist Mauro Refosco, who had performed with acts including David Byrne.[1] Yorke said: "I've been playing with [Radiohead] since I was 16, and to do this was quite a trip ... It felt like we'd knocked a hole in a wall, and we should just fucking go through it."

The band went unnamed for early performances, billed as "Thom Yorke" or "??????".[2] In February 2010, they announced an American tour and the name Atoms for Peace. The name is taken from a song title from The Eraser, which references the 1953 speech by American President Dwight D. Eisenhower.[3] Along with Eraser songs, Atoms for Peace performed the 2003 Radiohead B-side "Paperbag Writer", the unreleased Radiohead track "Follow Me Around" and the 1998 single "Rabbit in Your Headlights", a collaboration with Yorke and Unkle.[4] [5] [6]

2013: Amok

See main article: Amok (Atoms for Peace album). After the tour, Atoms for Peace spent three days jamming and recording in Los Angeles. Yorke and Godrich edited and arranged the recordings over two years, combining it with Yorke's electronic music.[7] This became the band's debut album, Amok, released on February 25, 2013, through XL Recordings.[8] It received mainly positive reviews, with critics likening it to Yorke's solo work.[9] [10] [11]

Amok was followed by a tour of Europe, the US and Japan.[12] The tour included performances of Yorke's 2009 single "FeelingPulledApartByHorses".[13] In 2013, Yorke wrote that determining whether new songs were for Radiohead or Atoms for Peace was a "grey area" and depended on which musicians he is sampling.[14]

Later activity

In 2015, Yorke and Flea performed "Atoms for Peace" on the French television show Le Grand Journal[15] and performed "Default" at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris.[16] In 2018, Atoms for Peace reunited without Refosco to perform "Atoms for Peace" at a Thom Yorke show in Los Angeles.[17] Flea provided trumpet for Yorke's song "Daily Battles" for the 2019 film Motherless Brooklyn,[18] and Waronker contributed drums to one song on Yorke's 2019 album Anima.[19] Waronker and Refosco formed a new group, Jomoro, and released their debut album, Blue Marble Sky, on 4 June 2021.[20]

Members

Discography

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions and sales figures
scope=col rowspan="2"Titlescope=col rowspan="2"Album detailsscope=col colspan="11"Peak chart positions
UKUSBEL
(FL)		BEL
(WA)		CANDENFRAGERIRLNLDSWE
Amok 5261445151612342

Singles

YearSinglePeak chart positionsAlbum
UKUK
Indie
[22] 		BEL
[23] 		JAP
[24]
2012"Default"[25] —31 — 93 Amok
2013"Judge, Jury and Executioner" —— 43 —
"Before Your Very Eyes..." ——61—

Music videos

YearTitleDirector
2013"Judge, Jury and Executioner"Tarik Barri
"Ingenue"Garth Jennings
"Before Your Very Eyes..."Andrew Thomas Huang

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Lea. Tom. 28 January 2013. A new career in a new town: Radiohead's Thom Yorke and Nigel Godrich open Pandora's box and run amok as Atoms for Peace. 2015-05-02. Fact.
  2. Web site: Singh . Amrit . 25 February 2010 . Thom Yorke names his ???? band Atoms for Peace, announces tour dates . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20160419190033/http://www.stereogum.com/278731/thom-yorke-names-his-band-announces-tour-dates/news/ . 2016-04-19 . 2016-04-12 . Stereogum.
  3. Web site: Dombal . Ryan . February 25, 2010 . Thom Yorke names solo band, lines up American spring tour . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20100227180356/http://pitchfork.com/news/38018-thom-yorke-names-solo-band-lines-up-american-spring-tour/ . 2010-02-27 . 2010-03-02 . Pitchfork.
  4. Web site: 2013-06-03 . Watch Atoms for Peace rehearse Thom Yorke's 'Rabbit In Your Headlights' . 2020-05-17 . . en-GB.
  5. Web site: Shutler . Ali . 1 November 2021 . Radiohead finally release fan favourite 'Follow Me Around' . 3 November 2021 . NME.
  6. Web site: Dean . Jonathan . 14 July 2013 . Nuclear energy . 2024-07-02 . . en.
  7. Q&A: Thom Yorke on Atoms for Peace's 'Mechanistic' New Album. Rolling Stone. November 5, 2012. Feb 18, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20140627192707/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/blogs/alternate-take/q-a-thom-yorke-on-atoms-for-peaces-mechanistic-new-album-20121105. June 27, 2014. dead.
  8. Web site: Calendar . Xlrecordings.com . 2013-02-24 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130403135345/http://xlrecordings.com/calendar . 2013-04-03 .
  9. Web site: Tan. Irving. Feb 21, 2013. Album Review - Atoms for Peace: Amok. 22 February 2013. Sputnikmusic.
  10. Web site: Liedel. Kevin. 22 February 2013. Review: Atoms for Peace, Amok. 2021-06-02. Slant. en-US.
  11. Web site: Berman. Stuart. February 25, 2013. Atoms for Peace: AMOK. February 25, 2013. Pitchfork.
  12. Web site: Atoms for Peace Announce U.S. and Japanese Dates. Pitchfork. 18 March 2013 . 2015-11-13. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20151112192612/http://pitchfork.com/news/49991-atoms-for-peace-announce-us-and-japanese-dates/. 2015-11-12. live.
  13. Gentile . John . 2013-09-25 . Thom Yorke introduces himself as Jay Z . 2023-03-11 . . en-US.
  14. Web site: IAmA Atoms For Peace, Thom Yorke & Nigel Godrich AMA. Reddit. 18 February 2013. 3 January 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140105120055/http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/18rblj/iama_atoms_for_peace_thom_yorke_nigel_godrich_ama/. 5 January 2014. live.
  15. Web site: Thom Yorke and Flea reunite to play "Atoms For Peace" on French TV. 2015-12-04. NME. en-GB. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200204073940/https://www.nme.com/news/music/atoms-for-peace-1205551. 2020-02-04. 2020-02-04.
  16. Radiohead's Thom Yorke, Patti Smith & More Raise Climate Awareness on New Pathway to Paris Album. Billboard. 2020-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20200207102354/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7454430/pathway-to-paris-live-album-thom-yorke-patti-smith-climate-change. 2020-02-07. live.
  17. Web site: 2020-02-04 . Atoms For Peace reunite during Thom Yorke concert in Los Angeles: Watch . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20181220211218/https://consequenceofsound.net/2018/12/atoms-for-peace-reunion-orpheum/ . 2018-12-20 . 2018-12-20 . . en.
  18. Web site: Listen to Thom Yorke and Flea's haunting new collaboration, 'Daily Battles'. 2020-02-05. NME. en. 2018-12-20. https://web.archive.org/web/20190821195227/https://www.nme.com/news/music/thom-yorke-flea-new-song-daily-battles-motherless-brooklyn-2540362. 2019-08-21. live.
  19. Web site: Yoo. Noah. 26 June 2019. 5 Takeaways From Thom Yorke's New Album, ANIMA. 27 June 2019. Pitchfork.
  20. Martoccio. Angie. 2021-04-16. Atoms for Peace's Joey Waronker, Mauro Refosco form Jomoro, drop single with Lucius. 2021-06-11. Rolling Stone. en-US.
  21. Web site: Atoms for Peace, releases . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121106080026/http://www.xlrecordings.com/artists/atomsforpeace/releases . 2012-11-06 .
  22. Web site: 2012-09-15 Top 40 Independent Singles Archive. Official Charts Company. August 19, 2013.
  23. Web site: Discografie Atoms for Peace . Discography Atoms for Peace . . Hung Medien . nl . August 19, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131220081827/http://www.ultratop.be/nl/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Atoms+For+Peace . December 20, 2013 .
  24. Web site: Amok – Atoms for Peace: Awards. Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. August 19, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130331100754/http://www.allmusic.com/album/amok-mw0002477358/awards. March 31, 2013. live.
  25. Web site: Thom Yorke's Atoms For Peace Release New Single. pitchfork.com. 2012-09-06. https://web.archive.org/web/20121101111819/http://pitchfork.com/news/47754-thom-yorkes-atoms-for-peace-release-new-single/. 2012-11-01. dead.

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