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The Heavy are an Englishrock band fromBath, Somerset, England, formed in 2007. They have released six albums as well as a wide array of singles. Their music has been widely used in the media, with their 2009 single "How You Like Me Now?" becoming their biggest hit.[1]
The Heavy | |
|---|---|
 The Heavy playing atBowery Ballroom inNew York City in 2010 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Bath, Somerset, England |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2007 (2007)–present |
| Labels | |
| Members |
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| Website | theheavy |
History
editFormed in 2007, the band included five members: Kelvin Swaby (lead vocals), Dan Taylor (guitar), Spencer Page (bass guitar), Chris Ellul (drums) and Amanda McWhirter (backing vocals). Swaby and Taylor became friends in 1998 when they bonded over vintageR&B music andJim Jarmusch films and soon formed the band.
The Heavy released two singles in the last half of 2007. Their first single was "That Kind of Man", which was released by Don't Touch Recordings and was mixed by Corin Dingley. Dingley was the original drummer and co-producer of the first album before being discovered by Ninja Tune, who promptly signed Swaby, Taylor, and Dingley. The Heavy released their first album with the beautiful vocal additions from UK singer Amanda McWhirterGreat Vengeance and Furious Fire on 17 September 2007 in theUnited Kingdom, and on 8 April 2008 in theUnited States.
On 26 March 2008, the Heavy were named ’artist of the day’ inSpin.[2] The band was also mentioned in theRolling Stone Hot List May 2008. They played at the 2008South By Southwest (SXSW) music festival on the 89.3 Current Stage and collected one of the Best Discovery awards inSpin Magazine's "Best and Worst of SXSW 2008".[3][4][5]
The Heavy appeared on the 2009 albumJohnny Cash Remixed with a version of "Doing My Time". On 2 October 2009 their second albumThe House That Dirt Built was released by Counter Records. The band's third albumThe Glorious Dead was released on 21 August 2012 via a partnership between Counter Records and Ninja Tune.[6] The band undertook an extensive tour of the United States from August to September 2012, with sponsorship from the American beer companyMiller Lite. The band also had a string of European dates to supportThe Glorious Dead, from October to November 2012.[7] On 1 April 2016, The Heavy released their fourth album,Hurt & the Merciless.[8]
The Heavy toured Europe and the United States in 2016, making stops at major festivals includingCoachella Valley Music and Arts Festival,South by Southwest,Free Press Summer Fest,INmusic festival,Fuji Rock Festival,Hurricane Festival, andSouthside Festival.
Musical style and influences
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AllMusic described the Heavy's sound as a "potent fusion offunk,soul,hip-hop, and grittyrock" and an "amalgam of soul, funk,R&B, andgarage rock".[9]
In media
edit"How You Like Me Now?" has been featured in several movies, television shows and commercials.
"How You Like Me Now?" could be heard being played over the speakers at theMcCormick Place Convention Center inChicago, Illinois, the 2012 election night location for U.S. PresidentBarack Obama, just after the projected results forOhio were announced. TheElectoral College votes from Ohio clinched the2012 Presidential re-election for him. The band played the song on theLate Show with David Letterman on 18 January 2010. This was the first time that Letterman had ever asked a musical artist to perform an encore on his show.[10][11] On 9 June 2010 "How You Like Me Now?" was featured in the opening montage ofHockey Night in Canada's broadcast of Game 6 of theStanley Cup Finals. "How You Like Me Now?" also featured in the 2014 video gameForza Horizon 2, and in the ending credits of the 2013 videogameKnack. "That Kind of Man" from the band's first album was featured in "Filthy Lucre", an episode of the seriesCalifornication. "How You Like Me Now?" with B-side "The Big Bad Wolf", and "The Sleeping Ignoramus" from third album were featured in the 2011 video gameDriver: San Francisco.[12]
"That Kind Of Man" was used in the trailer forParker and "Coleen" also inFIFA 09 both from the band's first album, was featured in "Play the Man", an episode of the USA network television showSuits. The show also used "What Makes a Good Man?" for the season 2 promo, "Can't Play Dead" in episode "Zane vs. Zane" and "Short Change Hero" in episode "War".
"Short Change Hero", from the Heavy's second album, has been used in the filmFaster; The TV shows "The Outlaws (2021 TV series)",The Vampire Diaries,The Listener,Suits,The Umbrella Academy, andKilljoys; theITV documentaryBest of Enemies; the trailer forBatman: Arkham City, and in the promos for the first season ofHaven and second season ofLongmire. The song was also used as the theme song since the second season ofStrike Back. The video gameBorderlands 2 featured "Short Change Hero" in the opening scene and "How You Like Me Now?" in the end credits. An instrumental jazz version of "Short Change Hero" later appeared inPoker Night 2, which featured characters fromBorderlands. "What Makes A Good Man?" was later used in the credits of the next game released,Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. The band recorded the song "Put It On The Line" for the theme ofBorderlands 3. "Short Change Hero" also features in the virtual reality rhythm shooter gamePistol Whip during the opening level of the campaign "Smoke and Thunder".
"What Makes A Good Man?", from their third album, was used for the launch trailer ofSleeping Dogs, the official theme song for the2013 Royal Rumble pay-per-view event, was featured in the 2013 filmGrudge Match, the video gameNHL 13, the trailer forDallas Buyers Club andGuinness' "Sapeurs" commercial, a production in collaboration with the advertisement agency,AMV BBDO, which was hailed as one of the most successful example of brand-agency partnership as top-classed quality adverts have been consistently produced.[13] In addition, the song also appeared in theH&M commercials featuringDavid Beckham. The band also made their second appearance onLate Show with David Letterman on 28 August 2012 performing "What Makes A Good Man?" gaining their second encore on the show.[14] The song was also featured in an episode ofThe Grand Tour titled "Lochdown".[15]
The band was asked to record a cover of the song "And When I Die" for the fourth season finale ofTrue Blood.[16] It also appeared on the thirdTrue Blood soundtrack.
"Who Needs The Sunshine?" was featured in the penultimate episode of the fourth series ofBeing Human, "Making History". The song was featured in a promo for the Cinemax seriesHunted.
"Big Bad Wolf" was used in the 2010 filmThe Losers (based on the comic series of the same name) and was also used in the episode "Brotherfae of the Wolves" of the Canadian TV showLost Girl and in the credits sequences to Season 2 Episode 1 of the British crime-dramaLuther and to Season 1 Episode 8 ofThe Sandman. It was also used in theBBC Two seriesTop Gear in episode 4 of series 21. TheCBS showBattle Creek used the song throughout its third episode. The song is often used inBlue Angels performances.
The song "Same 'Ol'" was used for the launch trailer for the gameSplinter Cell: Blacklist, while a variation of it was used in the trailer forQuentin Tarantino's eighth feature film,The Hateful Eight. The song was also used in a montage during the first episode ofThe Grand Tour. It was the soundtrack for thePepsiMomotaro CM series featuringShun Oguri
The song "Don't Say Nothing" was used in the trailer forKingsman: The Secret Service, included inGameloft's Gangstar Vegas, and appeared on the soundtrack forFIFA 13.
On 23 February 2016, The Heavy were the musical guest onLe Petit Journal (Canal+) where they performed their single, "Turn Up" from their albumHurt & The Merciless.[17] In addition, the song is featured on the video game soundtrack ofEA SportsMadden NFL 17.
The song "Better As One" was used in the 2019 filmFast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.
Discography
edit- Great Vengeance and Furious Fire (2007)
- The House That Dirt Built (2009)
- The Glorious Dead (2012)
- Hurt & the Merciless (2016)
- Sons (2019)
- Amen (2023)
References
edit- ^"Interview: The Heavy – Songwriting Magazine". 9 April 2016.
- ^The Heavy atSpin Magazine Online
- ^"MPR: The Current Music Blog: The Current's SXSW line-up". Minnesota.publicradio.org. Retrieved21 October 2012.
- ^SXSW '08: SPIN's Best and Worst atSpin Magazine Online
- ^Live at SXSW at Minnesota Public Radio's website
- ^"The Glorious Dead / The Heavy / Releases / Ninja Tune". Ninjatune.net. Retrieved21 October 2012.
- ^"European Tour Announced / The Heavy / Headlines / Ninja Tune". Ninjatune.net. Retrieved21 October 2012.
- ^"Album Review: The Heavy - Hurt & the Merciless".The National Student. Retrieved2 November 2022.
- ^Leahey, Andrew."The Heavy Biography by Andrew Leahey". AllMusic. Retrieved15 May 2023.
- ^Myspace (5 February 2010)."Dig This Song: "How You Like Me Now" by The Heavy | MLive.com". Blog.mlive.com. Retrieved24 March 2012.
- ^The Heavy perform "How You Like Me Now?" onThe Late Show with David Letterman (includes encore performance)
- ^Content, Saving (30 August 2011)."DRIVER: San Francisco - Full Soundtrack Listing".Saving Content. Retrieved8 July 2023.
- ^"World's most creative partnerships: Guinness & AMV BBDO".Campaignlive.co.uk. 21 June 2016. Retrieved2 April 2020.
- ^"The Heavy - The Late Show with David Letterman!".Theheavy.co.uk. Retrieved29 May 2015.
- ^"Music from The Grand Tour S4E03".Tunefind. Retrieved2 October 2022.
- ^"KCRW Exclusive: The Heavy Cover Blood Sweat & Tears for True Blood Finale | KCRW Music Blog". Blogs.kcrw.com. 26 August 2011. Retrieved24 March 2012.
- ^"The Heavy - Turn up - le Petit Journal du 23/02 - CANALPLUS.FR".www.canalplus.fr. Archived fromthe original on 25 February 2016. Retrieved13 January 2022.