Citizens! Explained

Citizens!
Origin:London, England
Genre:Indie rock, synthpop, indie pop, alternative dance, indietronica
Years Active:2010–present
Label:Kitsuné
Current Members:Tom Burke
Thom Rhoades
Lawrence Diamond
Mike Evans
Past Members:Martyn Richmond

Citizens! are an English indie rock band from London, formed in the summer of 2010. The band consists of Tom Burke (vocals), Thom Rhoades (guitar), Martyn Richmond (bass), Lawrence Diamond (keyboards) and Mike Evans (drums). Their debut album Here We Are was released by Kitsuné on 28 May 2012 in the UK / Europe[1] and on 9 October 2012 in North America.[2]

Lawrence James Diamond is the son of singer/songwriter Jim Diamond.

History

Formation

The band formed in the summer of 2010, when Mike, Tom and Lawrence, previously of Official Secrets Act, sat together at a rather disappointing house party, listening to music. The three of them met Martyn through a mutual friend, and Thom later, after an old friend of the band suggested him to them. The reason they started the band was to make "amazing, imaginative pop music".[3] Their bold statement about pop music is that "pop is not a dirty word, it’s a holy one!"

They named the band after a headline on a Gotham City newspaper in a Batman comic[4] and they like to think of it as "a call to arms, a statement, a mark in the sand".[5]

Lead guitarist Thom Rhoades is also a world renowned Carp angler, finishing as runner up in the 2013 Dorset Carp Angling Championships.

2011-12: Here We Are

In early 2011, the band signed to French independent record label Kitsuné. In Spring that year they recorded their debut album Here We Are in Scotland with Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, who asked to produce their record after hearing one of the band’s early demos.[6] Kapranos told the NME that "there are only three or four bands a decade that really matter. Citizens! sound like one of them to me. They do something you haven't heard before, yet you feel they've always been in your life. They sound fresh because they aren't followers - they have the balls to do something new and it sounds good."[7]

Three singles were issued from the album: True Romance, Reptile and Caroline. An EP of these tracks was released prior to the release of the album in the US. Acts such as Goldroom,[8] White Shadow, Gildas Loaëc[9] and Gigamesh[10] have all remixed their tracks.

Here We Are received generally favourable reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 69, based on 7 reviews.[11] Les Inrocks placed True Romance at number ten on its 100 Best Songs of 2012 list.[12]

The band first began touring the UK and Europe in August 2011.[13] They have toured with The Rapture (2011), The Maccabees, Spiritualized and Two Door Cinema Club (2012).

2013 – present: Second Album European Soul

After completing an extensive world tour including Australia, Asia, South and North America, the band confirmed on Twitter in April 2013 that they were working on their second studio album.[14] Their second album is titled European Soul and released officially on 13 April 2015. Its launch will be supported by a two-month-long European Tour. American dates have yet to be announced.[15]

Awards and nominations

In November 2012 Citizens! were nominated for the "New Blood Award" for Best New Band by Artrocker.[16]

The video for True Romance directed by We Are From L.A. won a number of awards, including the 2013 Fubiz Award for Best Music Video.[17]

Discography

Albums

YearTitle
2012Here We Are
  • Released: 28 May 2012 (UK/EU), 9 October 2012 (US)
  • Format: CD, LP and Digital Download
2015European Soul
  • Released: 13 April 2015
  • Format: CD, LP and Digital Download

Singles

YearTitle
2011True Romance
  • Format: 7", Digital Download
  • Released: 19 December 2011
2012Reptile
  • Format: 7", Digital Download
  • Released: 16 April 2012
2012Caroline
  • Format: Digital Download
  • Released: 2 July 2012

Other appearances

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Citizens! debut album "Here we are" announcement. Kitsuné Journal. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120611072737/http://www.kitsune.fr/journal/2012/03/events/citizens-debut-album-here-we-are-announcement-european-tour/. 11 June 2012. dead.
  2. Web site: Citizens! Here we are album. Homeless Tracks. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20140814001926/http://homelesstracks.com/citizens-album/. 14 August 2014. dead.
  3. Web site: Interview: Citizens!. https://archive.today/20130125134909/http://hootingandhowling.com/interview-citizens/. dead. 25 January 2013. Hooting and howling Magazine. 22 November 2012.
  4. Web site: Radar band of the week no:81 - Citizens!. NME. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121023005001/http://www.nme.com/blog/index.php?blog=15&title=radar_band_of_the_week_no_81_citizens&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1. 23 October 2012.
  5. Web site: Citizens!. Kitsuné Journal. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121125005618/http://www.kitsune.fr/journal/artists/citizens/. 25 November 2012. dead.
  6. Web site: Citizens! - Here we are. Rave Magazine. 22 November 2012.
  7. Web site: Band Crush - Franz Ferdinand on Citizens!. NME. 22 November 2012. 19 April 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120419113603/http://www.nme.com/blog/index.php?blog=15&title=band_crush_franz_ferdinand_on_citizens&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1. live.
  8. Web site: Citizens! - Reptile (Goldroom Remix). Binary Entertainment. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130612192224/http://wearebinary.com/2012/02/citizens-reptile-goldroom-remix/. 12 June 2013. dead.
  9. Web site: Citizens! 'True Romance' (Gildas Kitsuné Club Night Remix). 25 September 2012. Harder Blogger Faster. 22 November 2012. 21 March 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130321134626/http://www.harderbloggerfaster.com/2012/09/citizens-true-romance-gildas-kitsune-club-night-remix-free-download/. live.
  10. Web site: Kitsuné Maison 14 - Citizens! "True Romance" (Gigamesh Remix). Kitsuné Journal. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121109113733/http://www.kitsune.fr/journal/2012/11/events/kitsune-maison-14-citizens-true-romance-gigamesh-remix-gig-in-paris/. 9 November 2012. dead.
  11. Web site: Here We Are Reviews. Metacritic. 6 January 2012. 26 August 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120826110143/http://www.metacritic.com/music/here-we-are/citizens. live.
  12. Web site: Nos 100 meilleures chansons de 2012: le top dans l'ordre. Les Inrocks. 6 January 2012. 31 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121231031019/http://www.lesinrocks.com/2012/12/27/musique/nos-100-meilleures-chansons-de-2012-le-top-dans-lordre-11336102/. live.
  13. Web site: Citizens! Biography. All Music. 22 November 2012. 12 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121212013936/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/citizens!-mn0002804432. live.
  14. Web site: CITIZENS! (GoCitizens) on Twitter. Twitter. 29 July 2013. 5 September 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130905172005/https://twitter.com/GoCitizens. live.
  15. http://www.citizenscitizens.com, 2 April 2015
  16. Web site: Vote for the new blood award. Artrocker. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121120152907/http://www.artrocker.tv/features/article/vote-for-the-new-blood-award-sponsored-by-original-penguin-olympus. 20 November 2012. dead.
  17. Web site: Winners Music Video 2013 Fubiz Awards 2013. Fubiz. 27 June 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130609075228/http://www.fubizawards.com/en/winners/music-video/2013/. 9 June 2013. dead.
  18. Web site: Kitsuné Maison, Vol. 11: The Indie-Dance Issue Review. All Music. 22 November 2012.
  19. Web site: Gildas Kitsuné Club Night Mix #2. Beatport. 22 November 2012. 20 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121220070634/http://www.beatport.com/release/gildas-kitsune-club-night-mix-number-2/838816. dead.
  20. Web site: Gildas Kitsuné Club Night Mix #3. Kitsuné Journal. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121128083424/http://www.kitsune.fr/journal/2012/11/music/gildas-kitsune-club-night-mix-3-out-december-3rd/. 28 November 2012. dead.
  21. Web site: Gildas & Jerry Kitsuné Soleil Mix. Kitsuné Journal. 22 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130128045304/http://www.kitsune.fr/journal/2012/07/events/gildas-jerry-kitsune-soleil-mix-out-now/. 28 January 2013. dead.
  22. Web site: Kitsuné Maison Compilation 14: The Tenth Anniversary Issue Album Review. 8 October 2012. Contact Music. 22 November 2012. 28 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140828202634/http://www.contactmusic.com/album-review/kitsune-kitsune-maison-compilation-14-the-tenth-anniversary-issue. live.

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