Kenickie
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| Kenickie | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Sunderland, England |
| Genre(s) | Alternative rock Dream pop Punk |
| Years active | 1994 – 1998 |
| Label(s) | Fierce Panda EMI EMI Disc |
| Members | |
| Lauren Laverne Marie du Santiago Emmy-Kate Montrose Johnny X |
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Kenickie were a four-piece punk-indie band from Sunderland, UK. The band were formed in 1994 and consisted of lead vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Lauren Laverne (b. Lauren Gofton), drummer Johnny X (real name Pete Gofton, Lauren's brother), lead guitarist and occasional vocalist Marie du Santiago (b. Marie Nixon) and bass guitarist Emmy-Kate Montrose (b. Emma Jackson). The band's name comes from their favourite character in the 1970s film Grease.
Contents |
[edit] History
Kenickie originally worked with Newcastle punk label Slampt before signing to Saint Etienne's EMI subsidiary, EMIDisc. Kenickie registered in the UK singles chart in the high 20s, their highest position being 24 with the single In Your Car, which opened Top of the Pops on the 10 January 1997 edition, and gained cult appeal after a well-received first album At The Club, which charted at 9 in May 1997.
After meeting them in New York, Courtney Love said:
They're a big bunch of sex, that band Kenickie. They're a big, raw-boned bunch of fucking sex - all three of them and the boy. I hope they get good. I hope we're a good example to them, I hope this record's huge and then the big labels will start sniffing around and then those big fucking raw-boned sexy Newcastle [sic] girls will be huge and have Number Ones and there will be an Amazon planet the way I want it.[citation needed]
The band's second album, Get In appeared in 1998. It was generally less well received than its predecessor in the music press (although Melody Maker rated it 8/10), and sold less well. The album showcased a change in direction, away from punk pop to a lounge music sound reminiscent of groups like Saint Etienne and Stereolab. Johnny X, who now referred to himself as Pete X, moved to guitar, with the live band augmented by Graham Christie (later of Data Panik) on drums and Dot Allen on keyboards.
Kenickie disbanded on 15 October 1998 after a London Astoria gig, where Lauren closed the night by saying "We were Kenickie ... a bunch of fuckwits".
[edit] After Kenickie
Marie and Emmy-Kate went on to form a new band called Rosita, and released two singles before splitting up. Johnny X went on to record under the name J Xaverre. Lauren Laverne released one solo EP and sang on the Mint Royale single, Don't Falter. Since then she has presented various radio shows on radio station Xfm, most notably the breakfast show, before quitting in April 2007. She is also a television presenter, including having been joint host of ITV music programme cd:uk and a regular host of BBC 2's The Culture Show. The band's one-time touring keyboard player Tony O'Neill (known in the band as Elvis Wesley) is now an author, living in the United States.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Title | Release date |
Label | U.K. albums peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| At the Club | 1997 | EMIdisc | 9 |
| Get In | 1998 | EMIdisc | 32 |
| The John Peel Sessions | 2000 | Strange Fruit Records | - |
[edit] Singles
| Info | Track listing |
|---|---|
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Catsuit City EP |
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Skillex EP
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Punka
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Millionaire Sweeper
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In Your Car |
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Nightlife |
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Punka (rerelease) |
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I Would Fix You
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Stay In The Sun |
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[edit] Other Releases
- Walrus (demo) (on "Signal Vs Noise" compilation - 1994)
- Hey, Punka (on "Laugh Hard at the Absurdly Evil compilation - 1995)
- Rebel Assault (on "Electric Jet Mission" compilation - 1995)
- Gary II (on The "Camden Crawl" compilation - 1995)
- Come Out 2Nite (live) (on "Phoenix The Album" compilation - 1997)
- It Started With a Kiss (feat. Errol Brown) (on "Come Again" compilation - 1997)
[edit] Misc Songs
Other songs performed on radio sessions include:
- Un-named Acoustic Song
- Letter To Memphis (Pixies cover)
[edit] See also
- List of bands from the North East of England
