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The Hives are a garage rock and punk rock band from Fagersta, Sweden that emerged in the US and the UK in the early 2000s as front runners of the garage rock revival.
Members
- Howlin' Pelle Almqvist (vocals)
- Nicholaus Arson (real name Niklas Almqvist) (guitar)
- Vigilante Carlstroem (real name Mikael Karlsson Åström) (guitar)
- Dr. Matt Destruction (real name Mattias Bernvall) (bass)
- Chris Dangerous (real name Christian Grahn) (drums)
Randy Fitzsimmons
The band claims that their songs are written by an honorary "sixth Hive", Randy Fitzsimmons. It was revealed in NME that Randy Fitzsimmons is a registered pseudonym belonging to Nicholas Arson. This has lead many to believe that Randy Fitzsimmons is in fact a myth, and that it is Arson who writes the songs. Arson and the rest of the band deny this and insist on the existence of Randy Fitzsimmons as the band's songwriter.
Live Performances
The Hives are widely regarded as one of best live bands in the world today, and have won several awards for their live performances. Howlin' Pelle Almqvist is seen as a great showman partly due to his habits of stage diving, climbing amps, executing scissor kicks and saying nonsensical and slightly arrogant things between songs. He is often compared to a young Mick Jagger due to his appearance and style of dancing.
Image
The Hives are almost as famous for their image as they are for their music. Their style is very distinctive, making them instantly recognisable. Initially wearing charity shop suits to annoy the punks in their home town, The Hives went on to adopt a black and white image but it was not until around the year 2000 that all five band members started to wear matching outfits. The band has had several different images, including one of their most famous looks: the black shirt and trousers, and the white tie and shoes combination. The band was modelling a black shirt and trousers as well as black shoes, a white jacket, white spats and a white bow for Tyrannosaurus Hives. The Band has shown off a new outfit at The Hurricane Festival which includes black pants, black shirt, suspenders and a neckercheif.
History
The band was formed in 1993 under the guidance of Randy Fitzsimmons. According to The Hives it was Fitzsimmons who was responsible for the formation of the band. The Hives claim that Fitzsimmons gave each one of them a letter with a time and place to meet. Upon their arrival Fitzsimmons suggested that they form a garage rock band. Fitzsimmons still acts as a songwriter and Svengali for the band.
In 1995 they were signed by Peter Ahlqvist to Sidekick records, a subsidiary of the Swedish skate punk record label Burning Heart Records. The following year they released their debut EP Oh Lord! When? How? Impressed, Ahlqvist decided to promote the band to Burning Heart.
1997 would see the release of The Hives debut album "Barely Legal" (an early stage name of Vigilante's), and much touring ensued. The following year they would release their second EP "a.k.a I-D-I-O-T".
After a two-year break The Hives returned with a new album entitled "Veni Vidi Vicious". Veni Vidi Vicious saw The Hives move away from the raw punk rock intensity of their early work to more of a garage rock sound. The band themselves described the album as being like 'a velvet glove with brass knuckles, both brutal and sophisticated at the same time'. The album produced singles such as "Hate To Say I Told You So", "Main Offender", "Die, All Right!", and "Supply & Demand" and received universal acclaim.
After seeing the video for "Hate To Say I Told You So" on German TV, Alan McGee (Oasis, Creation Records) decided to sign the band to his newly formed Poptones label. From this label The Hives would release a 'best of' compilation entitled "Your New Favourite Band" which would be their breakthrough, reaching #7 in the UK album charts. Following the success of the album, the band re-released singles "Hate To Say I Told You So" and "Main Offender" which reach numbers #23 and #24 respectively in the UK Singles chart. The band also re-released "Veni Vidi Vicious" in the US.
It was during the promotion of "Veni Vidi Vicious" / "Your New Favourite Band" that The Hives signed a record deal with Universal Music, reportedly worth $12 million. This led to a dispute between The Hives and Burning Heart, who claimed that The Hives were still contracted to them for one more album.
After extensive touring, the band retreated to Fagersta to record their third album. The result was 2004's "Tyrannosaurus Hives", their first new material in four years. The album includes the hit singles "Walk Idiot Walk" (which debuted at #13 on the UK singles charts) "Two-Timing Touch And Broken Bones", and "A Little More For A Little You".
The Hives are currently in the studio working on the follow-up to "Tyrannosaurus Hives" due out by autumn 2006.*
The Hives have recently performed two new songs at the Hurricane Festival in Germany one called "Hey Little World" and a second untitled track *
Discography
Albums
Compilations
EPs
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | US Hot 100 | US Mainstream Rock | US Modern Rock | |||
| 2000 | Hate To Say I Told You So | - | - | - | - | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2001 | Main Offender | - | - | - | - | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2001 | Supply and Demand | - | - | - | - | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2001 | Die, All Right! | - | - | - | - | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2002 | Hate To Say I Told You So (re-release) | #23 | #86 | #35 | #6 | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2002 | Main Offender (re-release) | #24 | - | - | - | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2002 | Die, All Right! / Supply and Demand | - | - | - | - | Veni Vidi Vicious |
| 2004 | Walk Idiot Walk | #13 | - | #36 | #19 | Tyrannosaurus Hives |
| 2004 | Two-Timing Touch and Broken Bones | #44 | - | - | - | Tyrannosaurus Hives |
| 2005 | A Little More For Little You | - | - | - | - | Tyrannosaurus Hives |
DVDs
- "Tussles in Brussels" (2005)
External links
Rock music groups | Swedish musical groups | The Hives | Epitaph Records groups
The Hives | The Hives | The Hives | ההייבס | ハイヴス | The Hives | The Hives | The Hives
"The Hives"