Lovebugs (band)
Encyclopedia
The Lovebugs are a Swiss Britpop
inspired band from Basel
, Switzerland
founded in 1992.
They are one of Switzerland's most successful bands with three number one albums in the Swiss charts. However, international success has eluded them so far.
, Sebastian "Baschi" Hausmann and Julie Lauper, after Adrian placed a sign in a music shop: Drummer Wanted. They won a local talent contest which enabled them to record their first album. One year later, the drummer, Julie, left the band and was replaced by Simon Ramseier.
In 1994, their first album called Fluff was released.
In 1995 they went on their first tour which included shows around Europe. Their second album, Tart was released the same year.
In 1996 they got their first breakthrough when their single "Fantastic" reached number 40 in the Swiss charts. They signed to BMG Ariola.
In 1998 an additional guitarist, Thomas Riechberger, joined the band.
In 2000 came another major break-through with the album Transatlantic Flight, which reached number 3 in the Swiss album charts. It was their first release under Warner Music label. This was followed by Awaydays, which was the band's first number 1 album. The single "Music Makes My World Go Round" reached number 6. Bassist Sebastian left the band to dedicate himself to the glam-rock project Fucking Beautiful. He was replaced by Florian Senn. At the same time, Stefan Wagner joined the band on keyboards.
After a short break, Lovebugs were back in 2003 with the album 13 Songs With A View which contained the singles "A Love Like Tides" and "'72". The album was not as successful as the two earlier albums and only reached number 7 in the Swiss charts. The next album, Naked, was a live and unplugged album. It was their 2nd number 1 album. It was produced by Chris von Rohr, former member of fellow Swiss band Krokus
.
In 2006 another successful album that reached the top of the list was released. This one was called In Every Waking Moment and contained Lovebugs' most famous songs. Two of them were The Key and Avalon
. The song Avalon featured the Norwegian singer Lene Marlin
. The song reached 10th place on the Swiss charter list and 27th on the Norwegian.
That contributed to making Lovebugs famous outside Switzerland
.
After 2006, Lovebugs took a break, partly for recovery and partly because the singer Adrian Sieber
wanted to carry out a long-planned solo career under the name Adrian Solo.
In 2009, Lovebugs were chosen to represent Switzerland
at the Eurovision Song Contest
in Moscow
, Russia
. They presented the song "The Highest Heights
", but did not qualify for the finals even though they were considered favourites and were confident during the rehearsals. They ended up 14th in the first semi-final held on Tuesday, 12 May 2009, out of 18 contestants.
They had some sound problems during the Eurovision and Sieber later said in a interview that Lovebugs were primarily a live band, and weren't used to all the cameras.
At the same time, a new album, The Highest Heights, was released. The album reached 2nd place in the Swiss charts. The first single "21st Century Man" reached number 55 in Switzerland. The second single and Eurovision entry, "The Highest Heights", reached 25th in Switzerland and 57th in Sweden.
Adrian Sieber writes most of the band's songs. Simon Ramseier directs the band's promo videos.
Britpop
Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
inspired band from Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
founded in 1992.
They are one of Switzerland's most successful bands with three number one albums in the Swiss charts. However, international success has eluded them so far.
History
Lovebugs was founded in 1992 by Adrian SieberAdrian Sieber
Adrian Benjamin Sieber, is a Swiss singer and the lead singer in the Swiss britpop band Lovebugs, and has been so since the band started in 1992. Sieber is has written a the majority of the Lovebugs' songs....
, Sebastian "Baschi" Hausmann and Julie Lauper, after Adrian placed a sign in a music shop: Drummer Wanted. They won a local talent contest which enabled them to record their first album. One year later, the drummer, Julie, left the band and was replaced by Simon Ramseier.
In 1994, their first album called Fluff was released.
In 1995 they went on their first tour which included shows around Europe. Their second album, Tart was released the same year.
In 1996 they got their first breakthrough when their single "Fantastic" reached number 40 in the Swiss charts. They signed to BMG Ariola.
In 1998 an additional guitarist, Thomas Riechberger, joined the band.
In 2000 came another major break-through with the album Transatlantic Flight, which reached number 3 in the Swiss album charts. It was their first release under Warner Music label. This was followed by Awaydays, which was the band's first number 1 album. The single "Music Makes My World Go Round" reached number 6. Bassist Sebastian left the band to dedicate himself to the glam-rock project Fucking Beautiful. He was replaced by Florian Senn. At the same time, Stefan Wagner joined the band on keyboards.
After a short break, Lovebugs were back in 2003 with the album 13 Songs With A View which contained the singles "A Love Like Tides" and "'72". The album was not as successful as the two earlier albums and only reached number 7 in the Swiss charts. The next album, Naked, was a live and unplugged album. It was their 2nd number 1 album. It was produced by Chris von Rohr, former member of fellow Swiss band Krokus
Krokus (band)
Krokus is a hard rock/heavy metal band from Switzerland. They enjoyed moderate success in North America during the 1980s.Krokus was founded in Solothurn in 1974 by bassist Chris von Rohr and guitarist Tommy Kiefer...
.
In 2006 another successful album that reached the top of the list was released. This one was called In Every Waking Moment and contained Lovebugs' most famous songs. Two of them were The Key and Avalon
Avalon (Lovebugs song)
"Avalon" is a song by the Swiss rockband Lovebugs. The song is featuring the Norwegian singer Lene Marlin bute Lovebugs as also recorded and played the song themselves. Avalon is included in Lovebugs album In Every Waking Moment from 2006. The song was released as single the same year. And the...
. The song Avalon featured the Norwegian singer Lene Marlin
Lene Marlin
Lene Marlin is a Norwegian musician.-Playing My Game :Marlin made her Norwegian debut on 12 October 1998, with the single "Unforgivable Sinner", which proved to be a hit as it reached number one and kept that position for eight weeks...
. The song reached 10th place on the Swiss charter list and 27th on the Norwegian.
That contributed to making Lovebugs famous outside Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
After 2006, Lovebugs took a break, partly for recovery and partly because the singer Adrian Sieber
Adrian Sieber
Adrian Benjamin Sieber, is a Swiss singer and the lead singer in the Swiss britpop band Lovebugs, and has been so since the band started in 1992. Sieber is has written a the majority of the Lovebugs' songs....
wanted to carry out a long-planned solo career under the name Adrian Solo.
In 2009, Lovebugs were chosen to represent Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
at the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 2009
The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 was the 54th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and was hosted by Russia after their win in 2008. It took place between 12 and 16 May 2009 at the Olympic Indoor Arena in Moscow, Russia....
in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. They presented the song "The Highest Heights
The Highest Heights
"The Highest Heights" is a song by the Lovebugs and was the Swiss entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2009, held in Moscow, Russia.The song competed in the first semi-final on 12 May 2009 but failed to reach the final on 16 May.-Charts:-Year-end charts:...
", but did not qualify for the finals even though they were considered favourites and were confident during the rehearsals. They ended up 14th in the first semi-final held on Tuesday, 12 May 2009, out of 18 contestants.
They had some sound problems during the Eurovision and Sieber later said in a interview that Lovebugs were primarily a live band, and weren't used to all the cameras.
At the same time, a new album, The Highest Heights, was released. The album reached 2nd place in the Swiss charts. The first single "21st Century Man" reached number 55 in Switzerland. The second single and Eurovision entry, "The Highest Heights", reached 25th in Switzerland and 57th in Sweden.
Current line-up
The current line up consists of:- Adrian SieberAdrian SieberAdrian Benjamin Sieber, is a Swiss singer and the lead singer in the Swiss britpop band Lovebugs, and has been so since the band started in 1992. Sieber is has written a the majority of the Lovebugs' songs....
(vocals) - Thomas Riechberger (guitar)
- Florian Senn (bass)
- Stefan Wagner (keyboards, back vocals)
- Simon Ramseier (drums)
Adrian Sieber writes most of the band's songs. Simon Ramseier directs the band's promo videos.
Albums
- 1994: Fluff
- 1995: Tart
- 1996: Lovebugs (CH #44)
- 1997: Lovebugs (Remix album)
- 1999: Live via satellite - the radio X-Session
- 2000: Transatlantic Flight (CH #3)
- 2001: Awaydays (CH #1)
- 2003: 13 Songs with a View (CH #7)
- 2005: Naked (Unplugged) (CH #1)
- 2006: In Every Waking MomentIn Every Waking MomentIn Every Waking Moment is a platinum awarded album by the Swiss band Lovebugs from 2006. The album includes hits like Avalon , The Key and Back To Life. The album reached the highest position on the Swiss charts....
(CH #1) - 2009: The Highest Heights (CH #2)
- 2009: Only Forever: The Best of Lovebugs
Singles
- 1994: "Take Me as I Am"
- 1995: "Slumber"
- 1996: "Starving"
- 1996: "Fantastic"
- 1996: "Marilyn"
- 1996: "Whirpool"
- 1996: "Fingers and Thumbs"
- 1998: "Angel Heart" (CH 32)
- 1999: "Under My Skin" (CH #17)
- 2000: "Bitter Moon" (CH #42)
- 2000: "Wall of Sound"
- 2001: "Music Makes My World Go Round" (CH #16)
- 2001: "Coffee and Cigarettes" (CH #46)
- 2002: "Flavour of the Day" (CH #28)
- 2003: "A Love Like TidesA Love Like Tides"A Love Like Tides" is a single by the Swiss rock band Lovebugs, released in 2003. A unplugged version is also recorded and included in the bands 2005 unplugged album, Naked. The song reached 63rd place on the Swiss charts.-Track listing:...
" (CH #63) - 2003: "'72"
- 2005: "Everybody Knows I Love You" (Unplugged)
- 2005: "When I See You Smile" (Unplugged)
- 2005: "A Love Like Tides" (Unplugged)
- 2006: "The Key" (CH #17)
- 2006: "AvalonAvalon (Lovebugs song)"Avalon" is a song by the Swiss rockband Lovebugs. The song is featuring the Norwegian singer Lene Marlin bute Lovebugs as also recorded and played the song themselves. Avalon is included in Lovebugs album In Every Waking Moment from 2006. The song was released as single the same year. And the...
" (Featuring Lene MarlinLene MarlinLene Marlin is a Norwegian musician.-Playing My Game :Marlin made her Norwegian debut on 12 October 1998, with the single "Unforgivable Sinner", which proved to be a hit as it reached number one and kept that position for eight weeks...
) (CH #10), (NO #13) - 2006: "Listen to the Silence"
- 2006: "Back to Life"
- 2009: "21st Century Man" (CH #55)
- 2009: "The Highest HeightsThe Highest Heights"The Highest Heights" is a song by the Lovebugs and was the Swiss entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2009, held in Moscow, Russia.The song competed in the first semi-final on 12 May 2009 but failed to reach the final on 16 May.-Charts:-Year-end charts:...
" (CH #25), (SE #57) - 2009: "Shine"