Hobotalk
Encyclopedia
Hobotalk are a Scottish band playing the songs of singer-songwriter
, Marc Pilley.
Having started as a drummer, Pilley started songwriting in 1989. Together with guitar-player Ross Edmond, Al Denholm (Bass) and Iain Bruce (Drums), he founded Hobotalk in the late 1990s. In 1998, Hobotalk signed to Hut Records
. Debut-EP Pictures of Romance
was released in November 1999. Both the EP and the following Scotland-Tour (supporting the indie-rock-band Gomez (band)
) received positive critical response for their heartfelt sound rooted in American-style folk.
Hobotalk's debut album Beauty in Madness was released in 2000 and also widely received with critical acclaim being shortlisted for the Mercury Prize
. Despite all this, the album had only little sales and was hardly noticed by a wider public.
In 2002, the band split from Hut Records
. It was not until 2005 that a second album was released. Notes on Sunset appeared on Circular Records (UK) and Glitterhouse Records
(Europe). Again, the album gained positive reviews, but did not form a commercial breakthrough for the band.
In 2007, Hobotalk's most recent album Homesick for Nowhere was released.
, Tim Hardin
and Joni Mitchell
.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, Marc Pilley.
Having started as a drummer, Pilley started songwriting in 1989. Together with guitar-player Ross Edmond, Al Denholm (Bass) and Iain Bruce (Drums), he founded Hobotalk in the late 1990s. In 1998, Hobotalk signed to Hut Records
Hut Records
VC Recordings trading as Hut Records was a British record label brand which was started in 1990 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Virgin Records...
. Debut-EP Pictures of Romance
was released in November 1999. Both the EP and the following Scotland-Tour (supporting the indie-rock-band Gomez (band)
Gomez (band)
Gomez are an English indie rock band from Southport, comprising Ian Ball , Paul "Blackie" Blackburn , Tom Gray , Ben Ottewell and Olly Peacock . The band is distinguished for having three singers and four songwriters, employing traditional and electronic instruments...
) received positive critical response for their heartfelt sound rooted in American-style folk.
Hobotalk's debut album Beauty in Madness was released in 2000 and also widely received with critical acclaim being shortlisted for the Mercury Prize
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize and currently known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was established by the British Phonographic Industry and British...
. Despite all this, the album had only little sales and was hardly noticed by a wider public.
In 2002, the band split from Hut Records
Hut Records
VC Recordings trading as Hut Records was a British record label brand which was started in 1990 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Virgin Records...
. It was not until 2005 that a second album was released. Notes on Sunset appeared on Circular Records (UK) and Glitterhouse Records
Glitterhouse Records
Glitterhouse Records is an independent record label based in Beverungen, Germany. The label specialises in the alternative country genre, and has released material by artists such as 16 Horsepower, The Walkabouts, Willard Grant Conspiracy, Hazeldine, Helldorado, The Shivers and Tom Liwa, but has...
(Europe). Again, the album gained positive reviews, but did not form a commercial breakthrough for the band.
In 2007, Hobotalk's most recent album Homesick for Nowhere was released.
Influences
Major influences of Hobotalks's music are Tim BuckleyTim Buckley
Timothy Charles Buckley III was an American vocalist, and musician. His music and style changed considerably through the years; his first album was mostly folk oriented, but over time his music incorporated jazz, psychedelia, funk, soul, avant-garde and an evolving "voice as instrument," sound...
, Tim Hardin
Tim Hardin
James Timothy "Tim" Hardin was an American folk musician and composer. He wrote the Top 40 hits "If I Were a Carpenter", covered by, among others, Joan Baez, Bobby Darin, Johnny Cash, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, and Robert Plant, and "Reason to Believe", covered by many, including Rod Stewart, as well...
and Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
.
Discography
- 2008 Alone Again Or
- 2007 Homesick for Nowhere
- 2005 Notes on Sunset
- 2004 A Chair by the Window (unofficial release only available on concerts)
- 2000 Beauty in Madness
- 1999 Pictures of Romance (EP)