Paul Durham
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| Paul Durham | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Paul Durham |
| Born | 1969 |
| Origin |  Twin Falls, Idaho, United States |
| Genre(s) | Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter Record producer |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals Multiple instruments |
| Years active | Mid 1990s–present |
| Label(s) | Geffen (1997–1999) Epic (2002–2003) Independent (2003–Present) |
| Associated acts | Black Lab Cake or Death |
| Website | pauldurham.com blacklabworld.com |
Paul Durham (born 1969) is an American musician, and is the lead singer of rock band Black Lab.
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[edit] Biography
Born in Twin Falls, Idaho, Durham started his musical journey singing in Mormon church services and writing folk songs under the influence of Bob Dylan.
In 1990 Durham finished his degree and moved to Berkeley. He supported himself as a substitute teacher in inner-city Oakland, California. Almost immediately, he started recording demos with a bass player he'd met. The two began working with a producer and soon thereafter Durham formed an acoustic band named after himself. Demos were produced, gigs were played, people began responding to the music, but Durham did not find the project creatively satisfying and brought it to a halt.
Durham went electric, forming the band Black Lab, who released their debut album, Your Body Above Me, on Geffen Records in 1998. The album yielded the alternative singles "Wash it Away" and "Time Ago," and went on to sell over 120,000 copies. During this time the band contributed songs to the soundtracks for Can't Hardly Wait, Varsity Blues, Permanent Midnight and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
After a year of touring, their record label was folded into Universal Music. The band went back home and Durham started writing a new album. Over the next two years, Durham left his band, fired his manager and moved to LA. Durham wanted to control the sound around his voice, so he bought a computer and learned to use it. The resulting demos landed Durham with Epic records, as Durham began collaborating with accomplished guitarist, keyboard player and programmer Andy Ellis. Durham finished the second Black Lab album, See the Sun, adding electronic texture to the foundation of Durham's rock songs. Unfortunately, yet more record label troubles loomed for the band, so Durham split with the label to go the independent route. In 2005, See the Sun was finally released, nearly 8 years after the band's debut.
Durham and the band contributed tracks such as "This Blood" to the movie Blade: Trinity and "River of Joy" to the soundtrack to the 2006 movie, The Covenant. Black Lab also continues to produce music for television (MTV's Real World, What I Like About You, The Days, The Shield, Numbers and 6 Degrees) as well as film, such as the 2006 comedy The Benchwarmers and Lovewrecked. On January 16th, 2007, the band's third album was released after five years in the making, followed by its second album of the year, Technologie, in June.
Durham continues to work in Los Angeles as a singer, songwriter, musician, engineer and producer, whilst remaining committed to Black Lab.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
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[edit] Soundtracks
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