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Vocalist Arnar Gudjonsson was formerly the guitarist with MowerMower (band)
Mower is a Hardcore/Punk jazz band from San Diego, California formed in the early '90s. The band released their debut album Mower in 2003 on Suburban Noize Records. The band's alter ego Slower is a softer version of the band with more of a softer Jazz/Lounge punk sound.-Biography:Mower is a punk...
, and he was joined by Hallur Hallsson (bass guitar), Arnar Ólafsson (guitar, accordion), Bjarni Grímsson (drums), and Andri Ásgrímsson (keyboards). Late in 2001 they played with Emiliana Torrini
Emilíana Torrini
Emilíana Torrini Davíðsdóttir is an Icelandic singer, best known for her 2009 single Jungle Drum, 1999 album Love in the Time of Science and for performing "Gollum's Song" for Peter Jackson's film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.-Early life:Torrini grew up in Kópavogur, where, at the age of...
and drew early praise from the New York Times. They came to prominence in 2002 with their single "Race" (which reached number 66 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
), and début album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, Breathe, drawing comparisons to groups such as Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, Muse
Muse (band)
Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard...
, The Verve
The Verve
The Verve were an English rock band formed in 1989 in Wigan by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bassist Simon Jones, and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboardist Simon Tong later became a member. Beginning with a psychedelic sound indebted to shoegazing and space...
and Doves. The album was released in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
first to positive reviews, reaching number 71 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, then was re-released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and a tour of both the UK and the U.S. followed. Their second album, The Angela Test, was released in 2005 and their third album, We Are Shadows, was released in 2009.
The name of the band refers to Nick Drake's first album Five Leaves Left
Five Leaves Left
Five Leaves Left, recorded in 1969, was the first of three albums by British folk musician Nick Drake. Like Bryter Layter but unlike Pink Moon, this album contains no completely solo songs...
.
Members
Current- Arnar Guðjónsson: lead vocals, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Elís Pétursson: bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Nói Steinn Einarsson: drumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s - Andri Ásgrímsson: keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
Former
- Arnar Ólafsson: guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... - Bjarni Grímsson: drums
- Hallur Hallsson: bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Albums
- Breathe (2002), B-Unique - UK #71
- The Angela Test (2005), Universal/Island
- We Are Shadows (2009)
Singles
- "Breathe" (2002), B-Unique
- "Race" (2002), B-Unique - UK #66
- "Catch" (2002), B-Unique - split single with The CoralThe CoralThe Coral are an English band formed in 1996 in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula in England. The band first emerged during the early 2000s and found success with their debut album The Coral and follow up Magic and Medicine...
and Electric Soft Parade - "Silence" (2002), B-Unique