| The Holy Sea | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Origin | Perth, Australia Melbourne, Australia |
| Years active | 1999 - Present |
| Website | Official website |
| Members | |
| Henry F. Skerritt – vocals, guitar, harmonica Daniel Hoey – keyboards Victor Utting – guitar F. David Bower – Drums Gavin Vance – Bass Gareth Skinner – Cello, Banjo Emma Frichot – Vocals |
|
| Past members | |
| Andrew Fuller - Bass David Bryceland – Drums Andrew Weir – Guitar Kate Mathewson – Cello Matthew Ford – Keyboards, Bass Cameron Knight – Bass |
|
The Holy Sea is an Australian rock band formed around singer-songwriter Henry F. Skerritt. It formed in Perth in 1999, before relocating to Melbourne in 2004.
Contents |
The Holy Sea was formed in Perth in 1999 by singer-songwriter Henry F. Skerritt. The group originally performed under the moniker Henry F. Skerritt and the Holy Sea. In 2000, the band released their debut album Blessed Unrest to critical acclaim, with The West Australian declaring it a work of “provoking depth” and “moody genius”.
In 2003, Skerritt relocated to Melbourne to indulge his passion for Australian art history - completing his Masters at the University of Melbourne before taking up a position as curator at a Melbourne gallery. Between 2003-2007, Skerrit performed sporadically around Melbourne as both a solo artist and accompanied by keyboard player Daniel Hoey. In 2007, Skerritt and Hoey decided to reform The Holy Sea to record their second album A Beginner’s Guide to the Sea. Skerritt and Hoey reunited with original member Victor Utting and newly acquired drummer F. David Bower and entered Atlantis Studio to record. They were joined in the studio by cellist Gareth Skinner, bassist Andrew Fuller and vocalist Emma Frichot who would all soon join the group on a permanent basis, along with renowned pedal-steel player Garrett Costigan.
Although not a commercial success, A Beginner’s Guide to the Sea was met with critical acclaim with Drum Media declaring it “evocative, rousing, brilliant!” Reviewers favourably compared the band to The Triffids, The Go-Betweens, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds and The Drones.
In 2009, The Holy Sea was invited by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds to perform at the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival at Mount Buller in Victoria, Australia.
In October 2009, The Holy Sea released the double A-single 'Bad Luck/King of Palm Island'. 'King of Palm Island' recounted the death in custody of Palm Island resident Cameron Doomadgee. The singles preceded the 2010 release of the album 'Ghosts of the Horizon'. 'Ghosts of the Horizon' was The Holy Sea's most critically successful album, garnering positive reviews in most media outlets across Australia.[1][2][3] Ghosts of the Horizon was nominated for album of the year in the annual Australian Rolling Stone magazine awards.[4]