Les Savy Fav
Encyclopedia
Les Savy Fav is a New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...

 band. Their style is influenced by art rock
Art rock
Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, with influences from art, avant-garde, and classical music. The first usage of the term, according to Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, was in 1968. Influenced by the work of The Beatles, most notably their Sgt...

 and post-hardcore
Post-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...

. The group is known for the stage presence of lead singer Tim Harrington. The band is signed to Frenchkiss Records
Frenchkiss Records
Frenchkiss Records is an independent record label based in New York, New York. The label was started in 1999 by Syd Butler, bassist and founder of Les Savy Fav...

, which is owned by the band's bassist, Syd Butler
Syd Butler
Syd Butler is the bass player for Les Savy Fav and the owner and founder of Frenchkiss Records. Although born in Memphis, Tennessee, Butler grew up in Washington, D.C...

.

Biography

The group's original line-up, formed in 1995, all met while attending the Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design is a fine arts and design college located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1877. Located at the base of College Hill, the RISD campus is contiguous with the Brown University campus. The two institutions share social, academic, and community resources and...

 in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...

. Live shows are punctuated by the antics of frontman Harrington, including interacting with audience members and on-stage wardrobe changes. The rest of the band continues to play as if nothing out of the ordinary is happening.
Guitar player Gibb Slife left the band after their second LP. Drummer Mahoney was replaced by Harrison Haynes.

The band started a planned hiatus in mid-2005, which led to speculation that they might have broken up, but Harrington confirmed that Les Savy Fav would return and indeed they did, playing a live performance at the British All Tomorrow's Parties
All Tomorrow's Parties (music festival)
All Tomorrow's Parties is a music festival which takes place at Camber Sands holiday camp in East Sussex and Butlin's holiday camp in Minehead, Somerset, England....

 festival in May 2007. The band booked studio time in November 2006 to record their fourth full length, Let's Stay Friends
Let's Stay Friends
Let's Stay Friends is the fourth full-length album by Les Savy Fav. It was released on September 18, 2007. The album was #5 in NME albums of the year list, #16 on Rolling Stones list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007, and #44 on Pitchfork Media's list....

, which was released September 18, 2007. Andrew Reuland joined the band in 2006 as the second guitar player. The band performed "Patty Lee" live on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...

on January 31, 2008. Their song "Hold Onto Your Genre" is featured in the soundtrack to MLB 2K7, as well as commercials for the game. Furthermore, their song "Raging in the Plague Age" is featured on an in-game radio station in GTA IV.

Bass player Syd Butler is also the owner of Frenchkiss Records
Frenchkiss Records
Frenchkiss Records is an independent record label based in New York, New York. The label was started in 1999 by Syd Butler, bassist and founder of Les Savy Fav...

. Seth Jabour is also known for his work as an illustrator and graphic designer. Former drummer Pat Mahoney plays currently in LCD Soundsystem
LCD Soundsystem
LCD Soundsystem was a prominent American dance-punk band from New York City. It was fronted by American singer-songwriter and producer James Murphy, co-founder of record label DFA Records...

.

The Derry/London based band Jetplane Landing
Jetplane Landing
Jetplane Landing is a four piece band from Derry and London . They comprise Andrew Ferris , Jamie Burchell , Cahir O’Doherty and Raife Burchell . Jamie and Raife are brothers...

 included a song on their 2007 album Backlash Cop
Backlash Cop
Backlash Cop is the third full length release from Northern Irish band, Jetplane Landing. Released in 2007 on the Smalltown America label it received mixed reviews. The Album makes many references to black American jazz musicians, notably on "Dizzy Gillespie For President", and "Climbing Up The...

entitled "Why Do They Never Play Les Savy Fav On The Radio?"

The song "The Sweat Descends" appears in the commercial for the Cartoon Network movie, "Fire Breather".

In December 2011 the band will co-curate the All Tomorrow's Parties
All Tomorrow's Parties (music festival)
All Tomorrow's Parties is a music festival which takes place at Camber Sands holiday camp in East Sussex and Butlin's holiday camp in Minehead, Somerset, England....

 "Nightmare Before Christmas" festival in Minehead, England alongside Battles
Battles (band)
Battles is an American experimental rock group, founded in 2002 in New York City, comprising guitarists Ian Williams and Dave Konopka , and drummer John Stanier .-Biography:...

 and Caribou
Caribou (musician)
Daniel Victor Snaith is a composer, musician and recording artist under stage names Caribou, Manitoba and Daphni. Under the supervision of Kevin Buzzard, he obtained a PhD in mathematics at Imperial College London.- Career:...

.

Music style

Initially their music featured an abrasive sound fitting in the noise rock
Noise rock
Noise rock describes a style of post-punk rock music that became prominent in the 1980s. Noise rock makes use of the traditional instrumentation and iconography of rock, but incorporates atonality and especially dissonance, and also frequently discards usual songwriting conventions.-Style:Noise...

 genre and reminiscent of the music of Fugazi and Jawbox
Jawbox
Jawbox was an alternative rock band from Washington, D.C., U.S.. Its original members were J. Robbins , Kim Coletta and Adam Wade...

. Later on their music became more idiosyncratic shifting to a more radio-friendly sound close to that of befriended bands Bloc Party
Bloc Party
Bloc Party are a British Indie rock band, composed of Kele Okereke , Russell Lissack , Gordon Moakes , and Matt Tong...

 and Enon
Enon
Enon was an indie rock band founded by John Schmersal, Rick Lee and Steve Calhoon. Currently, Enon is situated in Philadelphia, though the band is known for being part of the New York music scene.-Biography:...

. Kele Okereke
Kele Okereke
Kelechukwu "Kele" Rowland Okereke is a British musician, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the indie rock band Bloc Party.-Early life:...

 of Bloc Party wrote of Les Savy Fav's influence on his band for an article in The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...

 in 2005 and members of Enon have contributed to several Les Savy Fav tracks.

Studio albums

  • 3/5
    3/5
    - Credits :* Tim Harrington * Gibb Slife * Patrick Mahoney * Seth Thom Jabour * Syd Butler...

    (1997, Self-Starter Foundation)
  • The Cat and the Cobra
    The Cat and the Cobra
    The Cat and the Cobra was the second album by Les Savy Fav. It was the first CD released by Frenchkiss Records, bassist Syd Butler's label. The vinyl LP was released by Self-Starter Foundation...

    (1999, Frenchkiss Records
    Frenchkiss Records
    Frenchkiss Records is an independent record label based in New York, New York. The label was started in 1999 by Syd Butler, bassist and founder of Les Savy Fav...

    /Self-Starter Foundation)
  • Go Forth
    Go Forth
    Go Forth is the third album by Les Savy Fav, released in 2001. It was released by French Kiss Records. It was mixed during June 2001 at Magic Shop, Manhattan and was mastered by John Loder at Abbey Road studios, London.-Track listing:...

    (2001, Frenchkiss Records)
  • Let's Stay Friends
    Let's Stay Friends
    Let's Stay Friends is the fourth full-length album by Les Savy Fav. It was released on September 18, 2007. The album was #5 in NME albums of the year list, #16 on Rolling Stones list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007, and #44 on Pitchfork Media's list....

    (2007, Frenchkiss Records)
  • Root for Ruin
    Root for Ruin
    Root for Ruin is Les Savy Fav's fifth studio album. Its scheduled release date was September 14, 2010 but after the album leaked in late July it was given a digital release on August 3, 2010.-Track listing:#“Appetites” - 3:33#“Dirty Knails” - 3:06...

    (September 2010, Frenchkiss Records)

Compilations

  • Repopulation Program, Les Savy Fav contribute Raise Buildings. (1996, Load Records
    Load Records
    Load Records is an American noise/experimental independent record label based out of Providence, Rhode Island. "Load Records might possibly be in possession of the world's most challenging record roster," writes Mark Hensch of Thrash Pit...

    )
  • This Is Next Year: A Brooklyn-Based Compilation
    This Is Next Year: A Brooklyn-Based Compilation
    This is Next Year is a compilation album released July 17, 2001 by Arena Rock Recording Co.-Disc 1:#"Radio" – The Walkmen#"I've Got A Fang " – They Might Be Giants#"Wasting In The Sun" – #"Keep Your Feelings To Yourself" – Clem Snide...

    , Les Savy Fav contribute No Sleeves. (2001, Arena Rock Recording Co.
    Arena Rock Recording Co.
    The Arena Rock Recording Company is an independent record label based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Albums are distributed by Redeye in the United States and Koch in Canada.-History:...

    )
  • Inches
    Inches (album)
    Inches is an album by Les Savy Fav. Initial pressings of the CD came with a DVD featuring live performances, music videos and photos.The album is a collection of singles from 1995–2004, containing many songs that were previously available on vinyl only. Among the tracks is "The Sweat Descends"...

    , a compilation of singles from 1995–2004 (2004, Frenchkiss; re-released 2008 on Wichita Recordings
    Wichita Recordings
    Wichita Recordings is an independent record label located in London, founded in 2000 by Mark Bowen and Dick Green. Its most notable signees are Bloc Party, The Cribs, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Bright Eyes, My Morning Jacket, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Her Space Holiday, Los Campesinos! and Peter Bjorn and John...

    )
  • Warm & Scratchy, Les Savy Fav contribute The Equestrian. (2007, Adult Swim
    Adult Swim
    Adult Swim is an adult-oriented Cable network that shares channel space with Cartoon Network from 9:00 pm until 6:00 am ET/PT in the United States, and broadcasts in countries such as Australia and New Zealand...

    )

Singles

  • "Rodeo" (1997)
  • "Our Coastal Hymn" (1999)
  • "Reprobates Resume" (2001)
  • "Reformat (Dramatic Reading)" (2001)
  • "Obsessed with the Excess" (2003)
  • "Yawn, Yawn, Yawn" (2003)
  • "Hold On To Your Genre" (2004)
  • "Knowing How The World Works" (2004)
  • "The Sweat Descends" (2004)
  • "We'll Make A Lover Out Of You" (2004)
  • "Accidental Deaths/Hit By Car" (2006)
  • "Raging in the Plague Age" (2006)
  • "What Would Wolves Do?" (2007)
  • "Patty Lee" (2008)
  • "Let's Get Out Of Here" (2010)

Sources


External links

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