Second Person (band)
Encyclopedia
Second Person were a British
band that existed for 10 years between 2001 and 2011 and mixed influences from trip hop
, jazz
, hip hop
and electronica
to form Post Trip Hop http://www.secodperson.net.
In late 2001, singer Julia Johnson
and producer
/bassist Mark Maclaine met, and early the following year formed the band Second Person. Drummer Álvaro López
was recruited in mid 2004 to complete the final line up and their debut album Chromatography
was released later that year. It went on to sell out of its initial white-label run in United Kingdom
, USA
and Australia
through word of mouth and publicity generated by musical placements on documentaries and extreme sports films. The opening song "Too Cold To Snow" was later featured in the closing credits of 2006 film Dolls
. The band went on to record a live DVD at The Bedford
in London, score music for a number of British broadcasters (including BBC
and Channel 4
) and became one of the main suppliers of music for the international broadcaster: The Extreme Sports Channel
.
The band released their second album The Elements
on 9 August 2007, it was co-produced and mixed by producer/engineer
Tony Platt
(Bob Marley
, Iron Maiden
and also credited with engineering the second biggest selling album of all time: AC/DC
's Back in Black
). This album gained a high media profile in Europe as Second Person were the first British band to have raised the $50,000 target on Sellaband
- which allowed fans to invest directly in bands on the site.
Julia and Mark composed the music for the British feature film City Rats
, starring Danny Dyer
and Tamer Hassan
and released in the cinemas in April 2009. The film reached number 6 in the UK DVD charts and went on to sell over 400,000 copies world-wide http://www.secodperson.net.
The band announced their split on 2 April 2011 http://www.secondperson.net, along with the release of their third and final album: "Come to Dust
". This full length album includes songs such as Gone Fishing, the video for which (directed by Katy Davis) gained extensive play on MTV
and was used as part of Cobra Beer
's sponsorship of ITV
movies in the UK. Other video directors include: Ebba Erikzon (Radiohead
's "2+2=5
" video), Mina Song (Gnarls Barkley
: "Crazy
"), Everton Sebben and Mark Maclaine.
In a final email to their fans the band wrote: "Second Person has always been an expression of our combined love of many styles of music and was founded on a shared desire to tell powerful stories. We had to do this during times of big change in the music industry, and although sometimes scary, it also allowed us to do things our own way. Something that kept us going was the support and love of a core group of dedicated fans. You are those people and we wanted to thank you for being there for us." http://www.secondperson.net
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
band that existed for 10 years between 2001 and 2011 and mixed influences from trip hop
Trip hop
Trip hop is a music genre consisting of downtempo electronic music which originated in the early 1990s in England, especially Bristol. Deriving from "post"-acid house, the term was first used by the British music media and press as a way to describe the more experimental variant of breakbeat which...
, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
and electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
to form Post Trip Hop http://www.secodperson.net.
In late 2001, singer Julia Johnson
Julia Johnson
Julia Johnson is a London-born singer-songwriter and a founder-member of Post Trip-Hop band Second Person. Her first solo album, I Am Not The Night, recorded at Livingston Recording Studios and produced by Tristan Ivemy , was released in May 2011 through the independent label Blue January.- Trivia...
and producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
/bassist Mark Maclaine met, and early the following year formed the band Second Person. Drummer Álvaro López
Álvaro López
Álvaro López is the drummer from British post trip hop band Second Person. His most well-known project to date has been as drummer/programmer on Second Person's 2004 debut release Chromatography and its follow up The Elements with band-mates Julia Johnson and Mark Maclaine.The Madrid-born...
was recruited in mid 2004 to complete the final line up and their debut album Chromatography
Chromatography (album)
Chromatography is a 2004 Post Trip Hop album by Second Person.This is the band's debut album and all songs were written by Julia Johnson and Mark Maclaine, except "Word for Word" which also credits Ed Webber and Tristan Kajanus, "Demons Die" which also credits Álvaro López and "Divine" which was...
was released later that year. It went on to sell out of its initial white-label run in United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
through word of mouth and publicity generated by musical placements on documentaries and extreme sports films. The opening song "Too Cold To Snow" was later featured in the closing credits of 2006 film Dolls
Dolls (2006 film)
- Plot :Inspired by a story that appeared in a 1950s newspaper, this short film plays out a year in the life of a young girl, Mouche. Deemed too skinny to make a living at the Moulin Rouge, Mouche is cast out and saved from suicide by a group of puppets traveling from town to town performing street...
. The band went on to record a live DVD at The Bedford
Live at the Bedford
Live at the Bedford is a 2006 live DVD album by British Post Trip Hop band Second Person.This is the band's first live DVD and contains songs from their debut album Chromatography. The performance was filmed at The Bedford in Balham, London on 23 May 2005 but due to recording and writing...
in London, score music for a number of British broadcasters (including BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
) and became one of the main suppliers of music for the international broadcaster: The Extreme Sports Channel
Extreme Sports Channel
The Extreme Sports Channel is a Netherlands-based extreme sports television channel available across Europe and the Middle East. Al Gosling had the idea for the channel in 1998.-History:...
.
The band released their second album The Elements
The Elements (album)
The Elements is a special edition Post Trip Hop album produced by Second Person for and was released on 9 August 2007.This is the follow-up to the band's debut album, Chromatography, and was written by Julia Johnson, Mark Maclaine and Álvaro López at their studio in West London, UK...
on 9 August 2007, it was co-produced and mixed by producer/engineer
Audio engineering
An audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
Tony Platt
Tony Platt
Tony Platt is a music producer/engineer best known for his work with a diverse mix of artists including AC/DC, Cheap Trick, Bob Marley, Iron Maiden, Shy, Buddy Guy, Foreigner, Sparks, Jazz Jamaica All Stars and Motörhead. He has recently completed an album with Jazz trio The Bad Plus and is...
(Bob Marley
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
, Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
and also credited with engineering the second biggest selling album of all time: AC/DC
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...
's Back in Black
Back in Black
Back in Black is an album by Australian rock band AC/DC. It is the seventh Australian and sixth internationally released studio album by the band....
). This album gained a high media profile in Europe as Second Person were the first British band to have raised the $50,000 target on Sellaband
Sellaband
Sellaband is a music website that allows artists to raise the money from their fans and the SellaBand community in order to record a professional album. It was set up by Johan Vosmeijer , Pim Betist , and Dagmar Heijmans in August 2006. Its offices are located in Amsterdam, Netherlands, but it was...
- which allowed fans to invest directly in bands on the site.
Julia and Mark composed the music for the British feature film City Rats
City Rats
City Rats is a black comedy feature film, released on April 24, 2009 and starring Tamer Hassan, Ray Panthaki, Susan Lynch, Kenny Doughty, MyAnna Buring, James Lance and Natasha Williams and Danny Dyer.-Cast:* Tamer Hassan as Jimbo Jones...
, starring Danny Dyer
Danny Dyer
Danny Dyer is an English actor, media personality, and chairman of Greenwich Borough, a non-League football team.-Biography:Daniel John Dyer was born in Custom House, an area of East London, to Antony and Christine Dyer...
and Tamer Hassan
Tamer Hassan
Tamer Hassan is a British actor of Turkish Cypriot descent.-Early life:Hassan was born in London, England into a Turkish Cypriot family. Having sustained an injury in boxing, Hassan started to run nightclubs and restaurants and is now the owner, chairman and player/coach of Greenwich Borough and...
and released in the cinemas in April 2009. The film reached number 6 in the UK DVD charts and went on to sell over 400,000 copies world-wide http://www.secodperson.net.
The band announced their split on 2 April 2011 http://www.secondperson.net, along with the release of their third and final album: "Come to Dust
Come to Dust
Come to Dust is a Post Trip Hop album by UK band Second Person.This is the third and final album from the band, and their first full length studio release since their debut Chromatography. It was produced by Mark Maclaine at The Silence Corporation Studios, London...
". This full length album includes songs such as Gone Fishing, the video for which (directed by Katy Davis) gained extensive play on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and was used as part of Cobra Beer
Cobra Beer
Cobra Beers main product is an extra-smooth premium beer with an alcohol strength of 5% volume. The beer was founded in 1989 by Karan Bilimoria, who thought that Britain needed a smoother, less gassy lager, which would appeal to both ale drinkers and lager drinkers alike...
's sponsorship of ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
movies in the UK. Other video directors include: Ebba Erikzon (Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
's "2+2=5
2 + 2 = 5 (song)
"2 + 2 = 5" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, released as the third and final single from their sixth album Hail to the Thief in 2003. The song reached number 15 on the United Kingdom singles chart.-Lyrics and background:...
" video), Mina Song (Gnarls Barkley
Gnarls Barkley
Gnarls Barkley is an American soul duo comprising Danger Mouse and Cee Lo Green. Their first studio album St. Elsewhere was released in 2006; along with its first single "Crazy". Both single and album were a major commercial success and have been noted for their large sales by download...
: "Crazy
Crazy (Gnarls Barkley song)
"Crazy" is the debut single from Gnarls Barkley, a musical collaboration between Danger Mouse and Cee Lo Green, and is taken from their 2006 debut album St. Elsewhere...
"), Everton Sebben and Mark Maclaine.
In a final email to their fans the band wrote: "Second Person has always been an expression of our combined love of many styles of music and was founded on a shared desire to tell powerful stories. We had to do this during times of big change in the music industry, and although sometimes scary, it also allowed us to do things our own way. Something that kept us going was the support and love of a core group of dedicated fans. You are those people and we wanted to thank you for being there for us." http://www.secondperson.net
Band members
- Julia JohnsonJulia JohnsonJulia Johnson is a London-born singer-songwriter and a founder-member of Post Trip-Hop band Second Person. Her first solo album, I Am Not The Night, recorded at Livingston Recording Studios and produced by Tristan Ivemy , was released in May 2011 through the independent label Blue January.- Trivia...
- Vocals/Piano/Keys - Mark Maclaine - Bass/Production/Programming
- Álvaro LópezÁlvaro LópezÁlvaro López is the drummer from British post trip hop band Second Person. His most well-known project to date has been as drummer/programmer on Second Person's 2004 debut release Chromatography and its follow up The Elements with band-mates Julia Johnson and Mark Maclaine.The Madrid-born...
- Drums/Programming
Albums
- ChromatographyChromatography (album)Chromatography is a 2004 Post Trip Hop album by Second Person.This is the band's debut album and all songs were written by Julia Johnson and Mark Maclaine, except "Word for Word" which also credits Ed Webber and Tristan Kajanus, "Demons Die" which also credits Álvaro López and "Divine" which was...
(2004) - Live at the BedfordLive at the BedfordLive at the Bedford is a 2006 live DVD album by British Post Trip Hop band Second Person.This is the band's first live DVD and contains songs from their debut album Chromatography. The performance was filmed at The Bedford in Balham, London on 23 May 2005 but due to recording and writing...
(2006) - The ElementsThe Elements (album)The Elements is a special edition Post Trip Hop album produced by Second Person for and was released on 9 August 2007.This is the follow-up to the band's debut album, Chromatography, and was written by Julia Johnson, Mark Maclaine and Álvaro López at their studio in West London, UK...
(2007) - Come to DustCome to DustCome to Dust is a Post Trip Hop album by UK band Second Person.This is the third and final album from the band, and their first full length studio release since their debut Chromatography. It was produced by Mark Maclaine at The Silence Corporation Studios, London...
(2011)
Film and TV scores
- City RatsCity RatsCity Rats is a black comedy feature film, released on April 24, 2009 and starring Tamer Hassan, Ray Panthaki, Susan Lynch, Kenny Doughty, MyAnna Buring, James Lance and Natasha Williams and Danny Dyer.-Cast:* Tamer Hassan as Jimbo Jones...
(Feature Film - Full Score: 2009) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1090646/ - Streetball Extreme: Battle for Europe (TV Series Score: 2006) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0853077/
- Genex (TV Series Theme : 2006) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0804415/
- The Passenger (Film Score : 2006) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0796347/
- DollsDolls (2006 film)- Plot :Inspired by a story that appeared in a 1950s newspaper, this short film plays out a year in the life of a young girl, Mouche. Deemed too skinny to make a living at the Moulin Rouge, Mouche is cast out and saved from suicide by a group of puppets traveling from town to town performing street...
(Final Credits Music : 2006) - Snows in the House 3 (Feature Documentary Score : 2004) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0814325/
- Verbier Ride 2004 (TV Series Score : 2004) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0410846/
- Snows in the House 2 (Feature Documentary Score: 2003) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0814324/
External links
- Official Website
- Official Sellaband website
- Second Person live at Fabchannel at Paradiso in Amsterdam, January 7, 2007
- BBC Radio 6 Interview, March 14, 2007