Toy (band)

TOY

Toy (Vienna 2012)

Toy performing at Waves Vienna in 2012
Background information
Origin Brighton, England
Genres Indie rock, psychedelic rock, shoegaze
Years active 2010–present
Labels Heavenly
Associated acts Joe Lean & The Jing Jang Jong
Website toy-band.com
Members Tom Dougall
Dominic O'Dair
Maxim Barron
Charlie Salvidge
Alejandra Diez

TOY are an English indie rock/psychedelic rock band from Brighton.[1]

History

The band was formed in 2010 in Brighton by schoolfriends and former Joe Lean & The Jing Jang Jong band members, singer/guitarist Tom Dougall (younger brother of Rose Elinor Dougall, formerly of The Pipettes), guitarist Dominic O'Dair and bassist Maxim "Panda" Barron along with Gloucester born drummer Charlie Salvidge and Spanish keyboard player (and part time A&E nurse)[2] Alejandra Diez.[3] Salvidge had previously presented "The Sixties Show" on Bristol radio station BCFM, and played with punk band Mudfite.[4] Shortly after, the band moved to London and six months later signed to Heavenly Records.

The band's first live performance was at London venue, The Lexington, in support of The Heartbreaks in December 2010. The band played at festivals in 2011 including Field Day and supported The Horrors on their UK autumn tour.[5][6] The Horrors played a big role during the bands first years, supporting and helping them, as Alejandra stated.[7] The band's debut single, "Left Myself Behind", was released in 2011 by Heavenly Records, the initial pressing of 100 selling out in a day.[8] It was reissued in January 2012. The single was described by The Guardian as "excellent...recalls some kind of late-80s/early-90s jam session between Stereolab, Felt and Pulp".[9]

The band were picked as one of NME‍ '​s "100 New Bands You Have to Hear" in January 2012, with Rhys Webb of The Horrors describing them as "the most exciting band to come out last year" and "my favourite band for 2012".[10]

The band's debut album, TOY, was released on September 10, 2012, to critical acclaim. The album was recorded and mixed in two weeks.[2]

The band supported the indie rock band The Vaccines on their UK Tour in May 2013, which included a date at the 20,000 capacity O2 Arena in London.

They announced the release of their second album, Join the Dots on 14 October 2013. It was released on 9 December in Europe and the UK, and the 17th in the USA.[11]

2014 the band toured Europe in a nine week trip including a lot of places outside the usual tour scheme like Ljubljana and Bratislava. End of April they played their biggest show in the UK so far, the Shepherds Bush Empire.[12] Summer 2014 will see TOY playing big festivals in Europe (like Hurricane Festival in Germany) and in the UK, and working on new songs.[13]

Musical style

The band's sound has been described as a combination of psychedelic rock, krautrock, shoegaze and post-punk.[5][6][14] According to O'Dair, early electronic music is one of the band's influences, as are their friends The Horrors.[15]

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

  1. ↑ http://www.talkrocktome.com/toy-if-psych-be-the-food-of-krautrock-play-on/
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Baggs, Michael (2012) "Toy: 'We're already writing our second album'", Gigwise.com, 28 June 2012. Retrieved 7 DEcember 2013
  3. ↑ "Interview: Toy", thestoolpigeon.co.uk, 16 January 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2013
  4. ↑ "From Mudfite to… Toy – Go On Charlie Salvidge!", daveevansmusic.info, 23 May 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2013
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Field Day 2011: The Quietus Review", The Quietus, 11 August 2011, retrieved 2012-01-15
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lidbetter, Liam (2011) "The Horrors/TOY, Brighton, Concorde 2, 24/10/11", The Fly, 7 November 2011, retrieved 2012-01-15
  7. ↑ "Interview: Alejandra from TOY", entertaim.net, 28 April 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2014
  8. ↑ "WATCH: New Toy Video", The Quietus, 12 December 2011, retrieved 2012-01-15
  9. ↑ Robinson, John (2012) "This Week's New Live Music", The Guardian, 14 January 2012, retrieved 2012-01-15
  10. ↑ "100 New Bands You Have to Hear: UK 2012: Generation Next", NME, 7 January 2012, p. 38
  11. ↑ "Join the Dots - TOY". Any Decent Music?. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
  12. ↑ "Interview: Alejandra from TOY", entertaim.net, 28 April 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2014
  13. ↑ "Interview: Alejandra from TOY", entertaim.net, 28 April 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2014
  14. ↑ "The best new acts to watch out for in 2012", Time Out London, retrieved 2012-01-15
  15. ↑ Fullerton, Jamie (2012) "RADAR: Toy", NME, 4 February 2012, retrieved 2012-02-01

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Toy (band).