Luna (1990s American band)
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Luna | |
---|---|
Arena Rock Recording Co. | |
Members | Dean Wareham Sean Eden Britta Phillips Lee Wall |
Past members | Justin Harwood Stanley Demeski Byron Guthrie Matt Quigley |
Website | lunamusic.com |
Luna is an American rock band formed in 1991 by singer and guitarist Dean Wareham after the breakup of Galaxie 500. Described by Rolling Stone as "the best band you’ve never heard of," Luna combine intricate guitar work, traditional rock rhythms, and poetic lyrics.
The earliest edition of the band also included drummer Stanley Demeski and bassist Justin Harwood (Demeski formerly of The Feelies and Harwood formerly of New Zealand band The Chills). The original line-up was expanded with the addition of guitarist Sean Eden for their second album, 1994's Bewitched. Lee Wall replaced Demeski on drums in time for 1997's Pup Tent and Britta Phillips of Ultra Baby Fat and The Belltower (also known as the singing voice of animated character Jem) joined when bassist Justin Harwood departed in 2000. Phillips and Wareham became romantically involved and eventually married in 2007.
History
In 1991, after the end of
Elektra's VP of A&R, Terry Tolkin, was impressed and Wareham signed a deal with Elektra, and started pulling together a band. He first contacted Justin Harwood, whom he had met while Harwood was playing with The Chills, and they recruited drummer Byron Guthrie, formerly from Ultra Vivid Scene.[1] The trio recorded demos (produced by Dave Fridmann) and played a series of live dates with Mercury Rev guitarist Grasshopper. Guthrie was replaced by former Feelies drummer Stanley Demeski, and this line-up recorded the first album, Lunapark, produced by Fred Maher and released by Elektra under the name Luna²[1] to avoid confusion with a new-age musician known as "Luna". (Later an accord was reached which allowed the band to use the name Luna.)
Shortly after the release of Lunapark, the band placed an advertisement in the
In 1995, the band went into Sorcerer Sound studio in New York City with producer
In 1999, the band recorded The Days of Our Nights for Elektra, but the label declined the album as "not commercially viable" and dropped the band.[3] The record was ultimately released on Jericho Records in the US.[1] Prior to the album's release, Justin Harwood left the band, and was replaced by Britta Phillips. Phillips and Wareham began a romantic affair, leading to Wareham's divorce; the new couple eventually married.[4]
After releasing Luna Live (2001), Romantica (2002) and Rendezvous (2004) with their new line-up, Luna announced their final tour (at the time), disbanding after a show at the Bowery Ballroom on February 27, 2005.
Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips continued on as the duo Dean & Britta, initially formed in 2003.
In 2012, Sean Eden joined a Dean & Britta performance at the Shine A Light Festival in Brooklyn, performing a short set of Luna tunes in a one-off reunion performance.[5]
In 2014, Dean Wareham announced via Twitter that Luna would reunite for a tour of Spain in 2015, to be followed by US dates.[6]
In 2017, Luna announced two new releases, a Luna covers LP, A Sentimental Education, and a 6-song original instrumental EP, A Place Of Greater Safety, with a tour of Spain in October and a North American tour in November 2017. Since then, Luna has been touring around the United States and Europe.[7]
Discography
Studio albums
- Lunapark (1992)
- Bewitched (1994)
- Penthouse (1995)
- Pup Tent (1997)
- The Days of Our Nights (1999)
- Romantica (2002)
- Rendezvous (2004)
- Lunafied (2006) – available as download and Best of Luna bonus disc
- A Sentimental Education (2017)
Live albums
- Luna Live (2001)
- Live Bewitched (2022)
- Live Penthouse (2022)
- Live Rendezvous (2022)
Compilation albums
- Best of Luna (2006)
EPs
- Slide (1993)
- EP (1996)
- EP (1997) (Australian release consisting of mostly live songs from Pup Tent)
- Close Cover Before Striking (2002)
- A Place of Greater Safety (2017)
- Postscripts (2019)
Singles
- Smile (LP Version)/Slash Your Tires (LP Version)/Rollercoaster/Hey Sister (Demo Version) (1993)
- This Time Around
- Chinatown (Radio Edit)/Chinatown (Album Version) (1995)
- Hedgehog/23 Minutes in Brussels/No Regrets/Happy New Year (1995)
- Bonnie & Clyde (Bonnie Parker Version)/Chinatown/Thank You for Sending Me an Angel/Bonnie & Clyde (Clyde Barrow Version) (1995)
- Bonnie & Clyde/Chinatown (1995)
- Outdoor Miner/Roll In the Sand (1996)
- Season of the Witch (Edit) from I Shot Andy Warhol Soundtrack (1996)
- Season of the Witch/Indian Summer/Lost in Space/23 Minutes in Brussels (1996)
- Bobby Peru (Radio Edit)/Audio Biography (1997)
- IHOP/Fuzzy Wuzzy/Words without Wrinkles (1997)
- Bobby Peru/In the Flesh/Beggar's Bliss (Demo)/Bob le Flambeur (1997)
- Hedgehog/23 Minutes in Brussels (1997)
- Beautiful View/Bobby Peru(U.S. Radio Edit)/California (Live) (1998)
- Superfreaky Memories/Neon Lights/the Bad Vibe Merchant (1999)
- Lovedust/Black Postcards/Only Women Bleed (2002)
- Speedbumps/Astronaut/Eyes in My Smoke (2004)
DVDs
- Tell Me Do You Miss Me(2006)
Other releases
- Dean Wareham Anesthesia containing songs Anesthesia/I Can't Wait/Tomato Poodle
- Dream Baby Dream from the guest album Invitation to a Suicide (1997)
- Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham L'Avventura (2003)
- Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham Back Numbers (2007)
- Dean & Britta 13 Most Beautiful: Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen (2010)
- Dean & Britta Sonic Souvenirs (2003 EP)
- Dean Wareham Emancipated Hearts (2013)
- Dean Wareham Dean Wareham (2014)
Soundtracks
- Irma Vep (1996)
- I Shot Andy Warhol (1996)
- Mr. Jealousy (1997)
- Thursday (1998)
- Kill Me Later (2001)
- Sideways (2004)
References
- ^ ISBN 0-7535-0427-8.
- ^ Rolling Stone Essential Recordings of the '90s last accessed: October 19, 2006
- ^ Full Of Wishes Luna Dropped By Elektra Archived 2014-10-28 at the Wayback Machine last accessed: October 28, 2014
- ^ Men's Vogue (archived) Dean Wareham: Facing the Music last accessed: October 28, 2014
- ^ Brooklyn Vegan 3/4ths of Luna Reunited last accessed: October 28, 2014
- ^ Brooklyn Vegan Luna getting back together, playing US shows and touring Spain in 2015 last accessed: October 28, 2014
- ^ "Luna Concert Setlists". setlist.fm. Retrieved 2020-01-22.