Band of Holy Joy
A rough-and-tumble British band with a melodic folk-punk sound, Band of Holy Joy emerged out of London in the mid-80s, delivering songs steeped in the grit and grime of London street life while maintaining a defiant and often optimistic call-to-arms tone. Led by frontman Johny Brown, they earned critical acclaim with 1989's Manic, Magic, Majestic on Rough Trade, but ultimately fell apart a couple of years after the label's 1991 demise. Almost a decade later, Brown re-formed the band and they worked sporadically throughout the 2000s, then enjoyed a particularly fruitful and creative period in the front half of the 2010s, when they released five more albums. In the late 2010s, Band of Holy Joy issued an ambitious trilogy of politically driven releases which concluded with 2019's Neon Primitives.
The group formed in the New Cross area of London in 1984 out of the remains of a previous punk band called Speed. Their initial sound bore a uniquely guitar-less set-up utilizing accordion, trombone, violin, and a rhythm section which earned them comparisons to the Pogues. Upon signing to the small indie label Flim Flam, Band of Holy Joy debuted with the 1986 EP The Big Ship Sails, followed in 1987 by the full-length More Tales from the City. The group signed to Rough Trade for 1988's "Tactless" single; the next year's Manic, Magic, Majestic won widespread critical acclaim, but the commercial breakthrough projected for 1990's Positively Spooked -- an LP backed by a promotional tour of the U.S.S.R. -- never materialized. The 1991 collapse of Rough Trade further derailed the group's momentum, and 1992's Tracksuit Vendetta -- recorded as simply Holy Joy -- quickly disappeared from sight. After a final single, "It's a Lovebite City," the group disbanded in 1993. Brown later became a freelance journalist, and in 1995 he and Holy Joy drummer Bill Lewington formed the band Superdrug.
In 2002, Johny Brown re-formed Band of Holy Joy and released the album Love Never Fails. The band remained active, recording and touring intermittently throughout the remainder of the decade. A compilation, Leaves That Fall in Spring, appeared in 2007, followed by the full-length studio effort Paramour in 2010. Over the next serval years, Band of Holy Joy enjoyed a rather prolific creative renaissance. 2011's How to Kill a Butterfly arrived after a Greek tour and an appearance at that year's Glastonbury festival and in 2012 the band released The North Is Another Land via German independent record label Moloko Plus. Easy Listening and the Land of Holy Joy arrived in 2014 and 2015, respectively, and in 2017, they launched a trilogy of politically-charged releases that began with the EP, Brutalism Begins at Home. Later that year, the full-length, Funambulist We Love You continued to the series which concluded with the 2019 album, Neon Primitives.
© Jason Ankeny /TiVo
Discografía
11 álbum(es) • Ordenado por Mejores ventas
-
Fated Beautiful Mistakes
Punk - New Wave - Editado por Tiny Global Productions el 2/06/2023
Disponible en24-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
The North Is Another Land
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Radio Joy el 4/08/2014
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
Brutalism Begins At Home
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Tiny Global Productions el 27/01/2017
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
Funambulist We Love You
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Tiny Global Productions el 27/10/2017
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
Dreams Take Flight
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Tiny Global Productions el 18/06/2021
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
Neon Primitives
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Tiny Global Productions el 7/06/2019
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
Isn't That Just The Life
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Stereogram Recordings el 10/08/2015
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
The Land Of Holy Joy
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Stereogram Recordings el 21/09/2015
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
Land of Holy Joy
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Radio Joy el 24/11/2014
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
A Place Called Home
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Radio Joy el 25/08/2014
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo -
When a Gift Is a Curse
Alternativa & Indie - Editado por Radio Joy el 16/06/2014
Disponible en16-Bit/44.1 kHz Estéreo