| Sneaker Pimps | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Hartlepool, United Kingdom |
| Genres | Trip-hop Downtempo Electronica Dub |
| Years active | 1994–2005 |
| Labels | Clean Up Records Virgin Records Tommy Boy Records |
| Website | Sneakerpimps.com (archived) |
| Members | |
| Liam Howe Ian Pickering |
|
| Past members | |
| Kelli Dayton Chris Corner Joe Wilson David Westlake |
|
Sneaker Pimps were a British trip-hop band formed in Hartlepool, England in 1994. They are best known for their first album Becoming X (released in 1996) and particularly the singles "6 Underground", "Spin Spin Sugar", and "Tesko Suicide" from the same album. They took their name from an article the Beastie Boys published in their Grand Royal magazine about a man they hired to track down classic sneakers.
The band's founding members were Liam Howe and Chris Corner, who then recruited Kelli Dayton (formerly of Lumieres, now recording under the name Kelli Ali) for vocal duties and long-time friend Ian Pickering to provide lyrics. After the first album, the band felt that demos for the second album (on which Corner provided the guide vocals) better suited his voice, especially in regard to the more raw, personal quality of the lyrics. Following the promotional tour for Becoming X, Kelli was dismissed from the group, and Corner became the singer.[1]
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Chris Corner began working on a side project in 2003 and released three solo albums in 2004, 2006, and 2009 under the moniker IAMX titled Kiss + Swallow , The Alternative, and Kingdom of Welcome Addiction. His latest album was release in March 2011 titled, Volatile Times.[2] He has also sung guest vocals for TNT Jackson, Moonbootica and The Strike Boys, as well as produced material for Robots in Disguise. Corner also collaborated with Sue Denim from Robots in Disguise, under the name Sibling.
Joe Wilson formed Trash Money with Chris Tate in 1999 and plays live with Client.
Liam Howe has become a successful writer / producer and has written and produced the likes of Marina and the Diamonds, and Ellie Goulding, he is signed to Columbia records for his solo project which includes collaborations from Alan Vega, Neneh Cherry and Princess Superstar. David Westlake currently plays drums in Trash Money, has done session work for Natalie Imbruglia, Mediaeval Baebes, Zero-G, and played drums with Ultrafox on tour.
Kelli Ali (Dayton) recorded her third solo album Rocking Horse at the beginning of 2008 and released it through One Little Indian late Autumn 2008. She is quoted as saying this is a very different affair from her two previous solo albums, Tigermouth and Psychic Cat. Rocking Horse was produced by Max Richter.
Ian Pickering is a lyricist/songwriter currently writing and recording with the band Polaroid Kiss with Brandun Reed whose debut album 'Weakness of the Beautiful Souls' is due for release in 2011. He wrote lyrics for a number of tracks on the IAMX albums "Kiss + Swallow" and "The Alternative" and released the album All These Lines Make Noises in 2005 as singer/songwriter/lyricist with the band transporter. He is also currently contributing lyrics to a number of other projects and has previously written lyrics for Anomie Belle, Natalie Imbruglia, Neil Barnes from Leftfield and The SuperDead.
In the studio, the band share instrumental duties, however in the live environment they could usually be observed playing the following:
Also note:
| Year | Song | UK Singles Chart[3] | U.S. Hot 100 | U.S. Modern Rock | U.S. Hot Dance Club Play | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | "Tesko Suicide" | - | - | - | - | Becoming X |
| 1996 | "Roll On" | - | - | - | - | Becoming X |
| 1996 | "6 Underground" | 15 | - | - | - | Becoming X |
| 1997 | "Spin Spin Sugar" | 21 | 87 | - | - | Becoming X |
| 1997 | "6 Underground (re-issued)" | 9 | 45 | 7 | - | Becoming X |
| 1997 | "Spin Spin Sugar (remixes)" | 46 | - | - | 2 | Becoming X |
| 1997 | "Post Modern Sleaze" | 22 | - | - | - | Becoming X |
| 1999 | "Low Five" | 39 | - | - | - | Splinter |
| 1999 | "Ten To Twenty" | 56 | - | - | - | Splinter |
| 2002 | "Sick" | 100 | - | - | 16 | Bloodsport |
| 2002 | "Bloodsport" | - | - | - | - | Bloodsport |
| 2002 | "Loretta Young Silks" | - | - | - | - | Bloodsport |
| 2005 | "Low Five (digital remix EP)" | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | The Mix You Miss website |
| 2005 | "Loretta Young Silks (digital remix EP)" | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | The Mix You Miss website |