Crispian Mills
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Crispian Mills (born Crispian John David Mills on January 18, 1973 in Hammersmith, London) is an English musician.
Crispian (also known as 'Dodge') was born to the actress Hayley Mills and film director Roy Boulting, and has a half-brother called Jason. He was educated at Highgate School, North London and Stowe School, Buckingham. He is married to the model Jo Mills (nee Branfoot). His grandfather is the English actor Sir John Mills. He currently lives in Bath.
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[edit] History
Mills became famous as the lead singer/songwriter in the Indian-influenced 90s Indie/rock band Kula Shaker in 1996. Kula Shaker's first album, "K", became the best-selling debut album since Oasis' Definitely Maybe. He was one of a clutch of mid-1990s Britpop stars to rise to prominence in the media, before making a series of unfortunate remarks about swastikas and being accused by newspapers such as the Daily Mail of harbouring Nazi sympathies. Crispian was the creative dynamo behind the band's success and his departure, shortly after the release of band's second album - Peasants, pigs and astronauts, signalled the end for the band in 1999.
He spent several years experimenting with new musical ideas, as a part of two bands named Pi and Crispian Mills. Neither led to chart success or even the completion of an album, but the formation of a new band called The Jeevas with Andy Nixon and Dan McKinna (previously both of the band Straw)led to relative success, with the first album selling over 100,000 copies in Japan. Despite extensive touring and sizeable hardcore fanbase, The Jeevas split in early 2005, with Dan and Andy forming a new band named The Magic Bullet Band. The Jeevas and a reformed Kula Shaker have contributed to a charity album with the Californian School of Braja which also features Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders. The album is expected to be released in early 2006.
Crispian is currently working on a film project entitled The Winged Boy, produced by Stephen Fry, which will start filming in Spring 2006. He is also contributing to the soundtrack.
[edit] Kula Shaker Reform
After almost a year of, as Crispian Mills puts it, "neglect", the Jeevas website had been updated in November 2005 with a complete facelift of the front page, and promises by Crispian himself of regular updates, as well as a hint of a "Mystery Project".
Crispian Mills reunited with 2 members of Kula Shaker (Alonza Bevan & Paul Winterhart) to perform a low key gig at the WheatSheaf, Leighton Buzzard on December 21st 2005. The set was over an hour and a half long and the band had performed new material. This gig marked the beginning of a Kula Shaker reunion albeit without keyboardist Jay Darlington. In April, 2006 an EP entitled The Revenge of the King was released on iTunes. Between April and August the band will tour, mainly in the UK. A new album is programmed for late 2006 or early 2007.
[edit] Discography
- K - Kula Shaker (1996)
- Summer Sun EP - Kula Shaker 1997
- Peasants, Pigs & Astronauts - Kula Shaker (1999)
- 1,2,3,4 - The Jeevas (2002)
- Kollected - The Best of - Kula Shaker 2002
- Cowboys and Indians - The Jeevas (2003)
- The Revenge of the King EP - Kula Shaker 2006
