Hopes and Fears

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the album by Keane. For the album by Art Bears, see Hopes and Fears (Art Bears album).
Hopes and Fears
Hopes and Fears cover
Studio album by Keane
Released May 10, 2004
Genre Piano rock
Length 50:30
Label Island (UK)
ILPS8145 (LP)
CID8145 (CD)
Interscope (US)
B0002507-02 (CD)
B0003785-82 (DualDisc)
Producer Andy Green, Keane
Professional reviews
Keane chronology
Hopes and Fears
(2004)		 Live Recordings 2004
(2005)
Alternate cover
Alternate cover
Singles from Hopes and Fears
  1. "Somewhere Only We Know"
    Released: February 16, 2004
  2. "Everybody's Changing"
    Released: May 4, 2004
  3. "Bedshaped"
    Released: August 16, 2004
  4. "This Is the Last Time"
    Released: November 22, 2004
  5. "Bend and Break"
    Released: July 25, 2005

Hopes and Fears is the debut album by English piano rock band Keane and was released on May 10, 2004 in the United Kingdom. It topped the UK album charts upon release, was the best selling British album of 2004, and has since gone eight times platinum. It returned to the top of the charts after winning a BRIT Award for Best Album in February 2005. With almost six million copies sold, it has been ranked the 16th biggest-selling album of the millennium so far in the UK.[1]

Contents

[edit] Album information

Unlike their follow-up album, Under the Iron Sea, most songs were already composed by the album's conception date; the track "She Has No Time" was composed circa 1999, making it the earliest composed song appearing on the album and the remaining were composed just after Scott's departure in July 2001. Most of the album tracks were too recorded during the Sanger sessions, from August to November of the same year. The tracks "On a Day Like Today" and "We Might As Well Be Strangers" became the last to be composed, circa 2003.

The album takes its name from the song "Snowed Under", released as a B-side on the single for "Somewhere Only We Know".

Hal Leonard music published two versions of the official score book for Hopes and Fears, designed for differing skill levels. The Music Sales Group also published a book, including two demo CDs with accompanying bass and drum tracks, along with scores for the B-side songs "Snowed Under", "Walnut Tree" and "Fly To Me".

The objects on the cover of Hopes and Fears are piano hammers in allution to the band's characteristic piano sound. In addition, the many different versions of the album can be distinguished by the colour of the artwork. The original UK version has a green cover, the European version a black one, the US version is white, the international version has a red-brown scheme and the Japanese version is blue; the original British one includes the track "On a Day Like Today" and the Japanese "Allemande"

The typeface selected for this, and for all Keane releases off the album was the font "Cochin", designed originally in 1912. The modern italic design of the letters was also followed with similar fonts by some fansites, like former British site Keaneshaped. The cover single "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" was however released with a different font, as it was released by the War Child website, not by Island.

[edit] Singles

For accurate chart positions for each single, see Keane discography.
Single Peak position (UK) Release date
"Somewhere Only We Know" 3 February 16, 2004
"Everybody’s Changing" 4 May 4, 2004
"Bedshaped" 10 August 16, 2004
"This Is the Last Time" 18 November 22, 2004


[edit] Track listing

All tracks written by Tim Rice-Oxley, Tom Chaplin, and Richard Hughes, excepting tracks 6, 8, 9 and 12 (UK), with James Sanger.

[edit] UK/Mexican edition

This is considered by the band and fans to be the definitive version of the album.[2] The Mexican version with the original track listing was released in late 2007.

  1. "Somewhere Only We Know" – 3:57
  2. "Bend and Break" – 3:39
  3. "We Might As Well Be Strangers" – 3:12
  4. "Everybody’s Changing" – 3:36
  5. "Your Eyes Open" – 3:22
  6. "She Has No Time" (Rice-Oxley, Chaplin, Hughes, Sanger) – 5:46
  7. "Can’t Stop Now" – 3:38
  8. "Sunshine" (Rice-Oxley, Chaplin, Hughes, Sanger) – 4:12
  9. "This Is the Last Time" (Rice-Oxley, Chaplin, Hughes, Sanger) – 3:29
  10. "On a Day Like Today" – 5:27
  11. "Untitled 1" – 5:36
  12. "Bedshaped" (Rice-Oxley, Chaplin, Hughes, Sanger) – 4:39

[edit] International/US editions

Accompanied by a red cover, or a white cover in the US.

  1. "Somewhere Only We Know"
  2. "This Is the Last Time"
  3. "Bend and Break"
  4. "We Might as Well Be Strangers"
  5. "Everybody’s Changing"
  6. "Your Eyes Open"
  7. "She Has No Time"
  8. "Can’t Stop Now"
  9. "Sunshine"
  10. "Untitled 1"
  11. "Bedshaped"

[edit] Chart positions and sales

The album stayed at the Top 75 for 72 weeks, peaking 1 several times.

Country Peak position Sales Certification
Austria 18 NC NC
Finland 23 NC NC
France 5 357,000 Platinum
Ireland 1 50,000 5x Platinum
Mexico 10 100,000 Platinum
Netherlands 8 70,000 Platinum
New Zealand 11 NC NC
Spain 8 100,000 Platinum
Sweden 10 NC NC
Switzerland 22 40,000 Platinum
United Kingdom 1 2,600,000 8x Platinum
United States 45 944,000 Gold
Italy 14 50,000 Gold
Europe N/A 4,000,000 4x Platinum

Total approximate international sales: 5,500,000

[edit] Bonus DVD

Hopes and Fears
Hopes and Fears cover
Video by Keane
Released 2004
Recorded Helioscentric Studios, various film sets.
Genre Piano rock
Length 19:40
Label Island, Universal
Keane video chronology
Hopes and Fears DVD
(2004)		 Strangers DVD
(2005)

A CD+DVD version was released internationally over the course of 2005. This version included two bonus tracks, "Snowed Under" and a remix dance version of "We Might as Well Be Strangers" by DJ Shadow. The DVD contained the four international videos for "Somewhere Only We Know", "Everybody’s Changing", "Bedshaped" and "This Is the Last Time", and the US video for "Somewhere Only We Know". This version of Hopes and Fears featured also a different box cover design; white and with Keane's Everybody's Changing promotional image. The inner 2CD box had the same cover as the international version.

[edit] Track listing

  1. "Somewhere Only We Know" (international version video)
  2. "Somewhere Only We Know" (US version video)
  3. "Everybody’s Changing" (version 1 video)
  4. "Bedshaped" (video)
  5. "This Is the Last Time" (version 4 video)

[edit] Japanese version

  1. Keane 30 second TV advertisement
  2. "Somewhere Only We Know" (live)
  3. "She Has No Time" (live)
  4. "This Is the Last Time" (live)
  5. "We Might as Well Be Strangers" (live)
  6. "Everybody’s Changing" (live)
  7. "Bedshaped" (live)
  8. "Somewhere Only We Know" (international version video)

[edit] Song information

 Music samples:

"On a Day Like Today"

Chorus and bridge for second part.
Problems listening to the file? See media help.
"Somewhere Only We Know" 
The first major-label release from Hopes and Fears; reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart in February 2004.
"Bend and Break" 
Main article: Bend and Break
"Bend and Break" was released as a single in certain European territories in early 2005. It did not receive a UK release, and as such is considered a "bonus" single.
"We Might as Well Be Strangers" 
Main article: We Might As Well Be Strangers
"We Might as Well Be Strangers" was never released as a single. The song's title has been "borrowed" for the new users board on the official Keane forum, and is referred to in the title of Strangers.
“ "This song is kinda about being forced to be away from someone you really love."[3]. ”
"Everybody’s Changing" 
Main article: Everybody’s Changing
The second single to be released in support of the album, charting at #4 on the UK Singles Chart on May 9, 2004.
"Your Eyes Open" 
"Your Eyes Open" was composed sometime in 2003 by Tim Rice-Oxley. On Strangers, a demo version appears being played with electronic sounds, according to Rice-Oxley, inspired on Radiohead's Kid A.
"She Has No Time" 
"She Has No Time" appeared for the first time on the rare single "Wolf at the Door", played on an acoustic guitar by Chaplin. It was composed by Tim Rice-Oxley in early 2001. After Scott's departure, Rice-Oxley recomposed the song using synthesisers and the piano - it is this new version which appears on Hopes and Fears. The first version of the song was recorded at Sync City and the album version at Helioscentric Studios, East Sussex.
Rice-Oxley wrote the song for Chaplin as consolation, after Chaplin was dumped by the girl he considered (at the time) to be the love of his life. This is a fact elaborated on in Chaplin's introduction to the song at most gigs where it is played.
"Can’t Stop Now" 
Main article: Can’t Stop Now
"Can’t Stop Now" was composed sometime in 2002 by Rice-Oxley. It was the opening track on the band's setlist for live performances during 2004 and 2005.
"Sunshine" 
"Sunshine" was composed at Les Essarts, France by Rice-Oxley. In the live version, Rice-Oxley usually plays the song on a synthesiser or electric piano.
The lead vocal on this track is subject to much debate, as it is Rice-Oxley, not Chaplin, who sings lead vocal on the verses, with Chaplin taking over in the chorus. However at live gigs, Chaplin sings lead throughout. James Sanger's first demo of this song however, featured Rice-Oxley as the lead trough the whole song, with voices calling "bye bye" and "see you later" on the final chorus.
“ [This song is about] looking after stuff you love. [4] ”
"This Is the Last Time" 
Main article: This Is the Last Time
The fourth single to be released from the album, this reached #18 in the UK Singles Chart in November 2004.
"On a Day Like Today" 
Main article: On a Day Like Today (song)
A power ballad from the album.
"Untitled 1" 
No information about this song has been given by Tim Rice-Oxley. Hughes indicated to a fan in a post-gig discussion that Rice-Oxley takes lead vocal duties on a verse of this song; Hughes is also rumoured to have sung on the track, but denies this. The song's introduction also bears some resemblance to that of ABBA's song SOS. [5]
"Bedshaped" 
Main article: Bedshaped
The third single to be released from Hopes and Fears, "Bedshaped" reached #10 in the UK Singles Chart in August 2004.

[edit] Technical information on songs

Song Length Tempo Key Time signature
"Somewhere Only We Know" 3:57 87bpm A (La major) 4/4 on 16 beats
"Bend and Break" 3:39 134 bpm E (Mi major) 4/4 on 8 beats
"We Might as Well Be Strangers" 3:12 72bpm Dm (Re minor) 4/4 on 8 beats
"Everybody’s Changing" 3:36 92bpm C (Do major) 4/4 on 16 beats
"Your Eyes Open" 3:22 132bpm CMaj7 (Do major seventh) 4/4 on 16 beats
"She Has No Time" 5:46 72bpm Dm (Re minor) 4/4 on 8 beats
"Can’t Stop Now" 3:38 120bpm F (Fa major) 4/4 on 8 beats
"Sunshine" 4:12 100bpm D (Re major) 4/4 on 8 beats
"This Is the Last Time" 3:29 132bpm G (Sol major) 4/4 on 16 beats
"On a Day Like Today" 5:27 72bpm F (Fa major) 4/4 on 8 beats
"Untitled 1" 5:36 104bpm Am (La minor) 4/4+ on 8 beats
"Bedshaped" 4:39 76bpm E (Mi major) 4/4 on 8 beats

[edit] References

  1. ^ Keaneshaped - Discography - Hopes and Fears. Retrieved on September 21, 2006.
  2. ^ Richard Hughes comments on differing versions of Hopes and Fears. Retrieved on September 10, 2006.
  3. ^ Tom Chaplin, London Basement gig - 26 February 2004
  4. ^ Tom Chaplin, Cologne gig, 17 October 2004
  5. ^ Berlin Kesselhaus, May 17, 2006

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Keane
Tim Rice-Oxley · Tom Chaplin · Richard Hughes
Dominic Scott · Andy Green · James Sanger · Adam Tudhope
Studio albums
Hopes and Fears · Under the Iron Sea
Live albums and EPs
Singles
DVDs
Hopes and Fears DVD · Strangers · Under the Iron Sea · Keane Live
Tours
Related articles