SILVERCHAIR BIOGRAPHY


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Silverchair Biography
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Source: http://www.chairpage.com/news/biography.htm

Silverchair is Australia’s most successful contemporary rock band. The group has had more top twenty hits during the last decade than any other local artist and they have sold over six million albums worldwide.

The members of Silverchair were all born in 1979 in the Newcastle surf suburb of Merewether. Singer/guitarist Daniel Johns and drummer Ben Gillies started making music together at primary school and schoolmate Chris Joannou later joined on bass. In the group’s early days they were called Innocent Criminals and their repertoire consisted mainly of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath songs they had learned from their Dads’ old record collections.

The trio played many shows around the Hunter Valley region in their early teens. They got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo competition called “Pick Me” which was conducted by SBS TV show “Nomad” and youth radio station Triple J. The group’s entry was a song called “Tomorrow” which quickly landed them a recording contract.

The band changed its name to Silverchair and in August 1994 they released “Tomorrow”. The song eventually spent six weeks at #1 on the Australian singles charts and in 1995 it became the most played song of the year on U.S. modern rock radio.

Silverchair’s debut album “frogstomp”, recorded in just nine days in early 1995, was a raw sounding slab of edgy alternative rock. A #1 hit in Australia and New Zealand the disc went on to become the first Australian album since INXS to hit the U.S. top 10, selling more than 2.5 million copies throughout the world. As “frogstomp” and “Tomorrow” propelled silverchair to music superstardom through 1996 the group juggled memorable performances on the roof of Radio City Music Hall and tours with Red Hot Chili Peppers alongside full time schooling commitments back home in Newcastle.

The trio also found time that year to record their sophomore album “Freak Show” which was released early in 1997. A more adventurous piece of work than “frogstomp” this disc yielded three top ten singles in Australia - “Freak”, “Abuse Me” and “Cemetery”. “Freak Show” went gold in the United States and global sales eventually exceeded 1.5 million copies in spite of the fact that the band had to juggle world tours while trying to finish their final year of high school.

After finally graduating from school the band were able to spend much more time creating their critically lauded breakthrough, “Neon Ballroom” which was released in March 1999. The group’s songwriter, Daniel Johns had been battling personal demons as he attempted to adjust to Silverchair’s sudden success and he poured these experiences into his new batch of songs. Determined to shake the constant musical comparisons which had previously dogged his band Johns created a truly original sounding album. Fusing heavy rock with orchestral flourishes and synthetic touches with powerfully emotional lyrics, “Neon Ballroom” was universally acclaimed as a huge creative leap for Johns and his bandmates.

Silverchair toured extensively in support of the album propelling it to even stronger worldwide sales than they had achieved with “Freak Show”. In Europe and South America it became the group’s most successful album to date due to the Comet Award winning “Ana’s Song” - a track about Daniel Johns’ battles with an eating disorder. Elsewhere, distinctive tracks like “Emotion Sickness” and the aching “Miss You Love” established once and for all that this young group is not just a fad; they are genuinely talented musicians who are here to stay.

The band toured Europe and the U.S. throughout 1999 including appearances on leading festivals such as Reading and Bizarrefest and tours with bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers and Blink 182. After all this touring the band announced that they would be taking a 12 month break to recharge their batteries.

Having fulfilled their three album deal with Sony Music Australia the group was pursued by labels for much of this year off. At the end of 2000 they announced that they had signed new recording agreements with Atlantic Records for North and South America and their own indie label, Eleven: a music company in Australasia and Asia. As a result of these new deals their former label rush released a compilation album without the band’s involvement.

Silverchair’s one and only gig in 2000 was a sold out appearance at Australia’s Falls Festival on New Years Eve. It was followed on January 21, 2001 by the biggest show of their lives - 250,000 people at Rock In Rio - a performance which the band describe as the highlight of their career to date.

In June 2001 the band entered a studio in Sydney with producer David Bottrill (Tool, Peter Gabriel, King Crimson) to start work on their fourth album, “Diorama”. This time Daniel Johns formally assumed the role of co-Producer and set out to explore even more new musical territory.

A range of other musicians were drawn in to contribute to the disc, most notably the legendary Beach Boys and U2 collaborator, Van Dyke Parks who contributed orchestral arrangements to three tracks including a lush epic called “Luv Your Life”. Also helping out again were “Neon Ballroom” sidemen, Paul Mac and Jim Moginie.

Silverchair fans got their first taste of “Diorama” when a single called “The Greatest View” was released in Australia in January 2002 to coincide with the band’s appearance on the Big Day Out Tour. The track displayed a fresh new sound showing yet another creative leap for the band – now rock veterans at the age of 22!

The enhanced melodic sensibility and newfound vocal confidence of “The Greatest View” attracted unprecedented radio support in Australia on all formats and drove the single to #1 on the alternative charts and #3 on the mainstream singles chart.

Diorama means “a world within a world”. It’s a particularly apt name for Silverchair’s new CD as this evocative piece of work lifts you out of the everyday and carries you into a world of its own.

“No matter what people have got going on in their lives, hopefully when they play this album it will make them forget about everyday stuff. When music does that it’s magical and, for me, that’s what “Diorama” is about”, says Silverchair’s Daniel Johns.

The album sees the Newcastle trio embracing melody and combining it with lyrics that are brighter than most of their previous works. It’s a huge creative leap which also sees them exploring a vast array of instrumentation and musical styles.

The resulting piece of work literally covers the whole musical spectrum – as its colourful cover suggest. It moves from edgy rockers “The Lever” and “One Way Mule” to sweeter tunes such as “After All These Years” and “World Upon Your Shoulders”. There are also irresistible melodic rock songs like “Without You” and the fantasia-esque epics “Across The Night” and “Tuna In The Brine”. It’s a technicolour collage that’s innovative and memorable.

According to Rolling Stone magazine in it’s four and a half star review, the album is “one of the boldest musical statements ever made by an Australian rock band”.

“Diorama” entered the Australian charts at #1 in April and has gone on to sell over 140,000 copies (double platinum) in this country so far. It has also yielded the top 10 single “Without You” and the top 20 hit “Luv Your Life”.

The album’s international performance has unfortunately been severely affected by the band’s inability to tour or do promotional appearances due to Daniel Johns’ ill health. The singer/guitarist has spent 2002 battling a severely debilitating case of reactive arthritis from which he is now recovering. Nevertheless, even without any of the usual promotional support the album has reached #12 in Germany and the top 40 of numerous other countries including Holland, Sweden and Brazil. However, the group’s inability to tour in support of the release still made 2002 a very frustrating year.

This all began to change in October 2002 when the band’s work on “Diorama” won them six ARIA Awards including “Best Group” and “Best Rock Album”. In a last minute surprise the trio returned to the stage to deliver a searing performance of “The Greatest View” which catapulted their album back into the national top 20. The ARIA triumph capped a roller coaster year for the band – a year which in many ways traced the journey of “Diorama” itself – from bleak times into a much happier new dawn.

“Our other albums have all been pretty black”, explains Daniel Johns when asked to summarize the new album. “This time around I wanted to try painting with lots of colours”.

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Review about Silverchair

SILVERCHAIR rocks! | Reviewer: Donna Bongalos | 11/16/09

i love Silverchair ever since I was a kid. you know, I was 10 YEARS OLD THEN when they released their first album "frogstomp", they are expressing their naivety. when they released their 2nd album "freak show"in 1997, it is more adventurous and feeling of anger than the first one. the third album "neon ballroom", expresses their depression. the fourth one "diorama", they are trying to escape from their personal demons particularly, DANIEL JOHNS. when they released their fifth album "young modern" after long years of hiatus, they are expressing their acceptance and I am very happy for them. It inspires me. Silverchair is MY INSPIRATION to pursue my life and my dreams. I am a LOYAL, BIG and NO.1 fan of Silverchair. I love them and their music. their music show their creativity as a band. not only that, they showed us how important is their relationship with each other as BEST OF FRIENDS. we all know guys that they have grown together in same place, they go together in the same school, they graduated from school together in the same year. wow! they showed us the true meaning of friendship. I love them. i wish i could see them personally to express how much I love them especially Daniel Johns. I will love them and their music forever....

I love silverchair | Reviewer: Tristram | 8/24/09

Iam a big silverchair fan I love silverchair my sister ex boyfriend knows the guy that teach them there schooling why they were touring the frog stomp album in the usa. Ihave like them since when the tomorrow ep came out iwas 6years old . I understan why they change there music. I love every silverchair album but when i here frog stomp i feel the same way about the frogstomp&freak show albums as daniel my best silverchair albums r neoballroom diorama young modern. I do like the 1st 2 albums only now and then people who say that silverchair have lost there ways get fucked i love silverchair i look up to daniel his a god i want to lean music and 1 day my dream is to meet daniel and get him to teach me. Every one u have to remember that daniel made frog stomp he was 15 and people grow up and change and he had so much shit with frogstop. That case in the usa tow boys killed there my mum and dad why listening to the song israels son and daniel had shit by people when he did the freak show album he had people giveing him so much of hard time that he was going to end the band affter freak show and all that stuff daniel said on the neoballroom world tour was a pay back to the people who put him down say bad stuff abot his . I hope there new album is going to be real good i think that daniel will keeping doing solf rock with pop i dont mind what kind of music silverchair do i will allways like them they r a part of me keep up the good work silverchair iam so happy that silverchair r still togetther and that they can fund albums from now on thats because label guys try to ster daniel and silverchair in wrong music ways

silverchair tumbs up! | Reviewer: daniel villacruz | 7/18/09

i'm one the solid fan of the band silverchair,shit!your awesome sounds really makes me stoned,my most fav.single of the band silverchair is? "freak" israel's son,suicidal dream,ana's song and learn to hate.i think their new album is kind of oldy songs.

*sigh* | Reviewer: Nessa | 4/27/09

Silverchair is silverchair. That would have been great in the 90's but not now. they're too...fruity? yes, i suppose thats the word, fruity. when someone is compared to silverchair these days most people would turn their nose up and say, "ugh. no way!"
only if your a die-hard chamber-pop (pop music for stuck up posh people) fan would you say, "really? thanks!"
but thats just my opinion.

intense | Reviewer: Anonymous | 7/2/08

The way I see it the first album was naivety, the second one was anger, the third one was depression and the last one was escapism. Young Modern is all about acceptance - Daniel Johns

if you ever want one of the most colourful music experiences, listen to young modern. If you want to hear one of the greatest albums ever made due to the immense effort put in to it and the masterpiece result, then listen to Diorama. If you want to be a tool and be accepted by your friends or to create an cool and individual image about yourself (but its no that individual seeing as though everybody wants to be it) then listen to their first stuff.

hottie | Reviewer: jax | 6/29/08

whatever other people's opinions are, daniel johns is awesome. He is kind hearted, what can i say? he loves animals and as a vegan, that is such a powerful decision to make,. I love this band ever since, and will always love it.. Can't stop listening to without you, ana's song and miss you love.. =)

These guys are awesome | Reviewer: Anonymous | 3/20/08

Silverchair are an awesome band, I've loved their stuff for ages.

I think that their new stuff isn't bad, but its not as good as there old stuff.

even if u don't like their new stuff, u shouldn't be rippin on them, these guys are music legends, they have already earned respect.

fuck you | Reviewer: chris | 2/2/08

i_don't_give_a_shit and others who think Silverchair have sold out needs to fucken grow up, mature. Daniel Johns isn't a druggie, he is one of the best music talents that this country has ever produced, and Silverchair are one of the greatest bands that Australia has ever produced. You disgust me.

Their new album is stunning, it's got so much colour, and is so bright. So what he isn't thinking about killing himself or ghost are surrounding him or he isn't thinking about war and shit. Who cares. He's a happy man. Diorama and Young Modern are top albums, and it shits all over their previous stuff. And I watched the Silverchair live concert on Channel V and I thought it was average, but you should see their performance on the Great Dividence DVD, that's stunning. I don't see you singing or trying hard like him. Daniel Johns is someone to look up too.

arn't people aloud to evolve, grow up? the beatles were moptops then they experimented with drugs with amazing results, and came up with Sgt. Peppers and Abbey Road. pink floyd did phsyidelic shit and they grew up and did the dark side of the moon. fucken get over it you low lifed shits. Daniel is still amazing and shits all over the When I'm Gone shit that Simple Plan and the American crap that we here these days. Silverchair and Powderfinger, they have passion, a drive, a purpose. Fuck off and go and listen to their suicidal shit and commit suicide you fuckheads bogans.

And corban, it is silverchair, because they wrote u fanny rash. and tayla your probably a lesbian.

ugh | Reviewer: i_dont_give_a_shit | 1/29/08

Silverchair.
well i guess lots of people love their new stuff or they woudlnt have gotten number 2 in Triple J Hottest 100 the other day.

I personaly hate their new stuff. its weak.
it's totally different.
and i dont think that if you are a "true fan" you should like it. im a fan of their old stuff.. its part of the sountrack of my childhood. i remember watching Freak with my mum on Rage when i was like 7.

but yeah. their new stuff sucks, but thats just my opinion. they kind of have sold out. but who the fuck cares. either you like it, or you dont. maybe they are trying to cash in with more commercial sounding stuff, maybe its just a different decade with a different sound. they have grown up.

but i MUST say, that Daniel Johns' new plaitnum do is fucking rediculous and he sits there with a smug little grin with a fag out the corner of his mouth and a pair of ray bans and he just looks liek a pretentious tool.

i saw a Siverchair special on Chanel V last year. 1. they sounded crap live form what i could tell & 2. it saddened me to hear Daniel Johns say "i dont think we will ever go back to that grunge sound".

i also hear he likes to snort coke with frinds of mine in popular Sydney nightclubs and he doesnt mind Natalie snog other people ....just thought i might throw that one in for safe measure....

why the fuck am i even bothering to write here?
ugh get a life. who cares????

but uuuh.. good to see a good aussie rock band has stood the test of time. makes me proud to be from this awesome country. nice one guys..

Keep faith in the chair! | Reviewer: A loyal fan. | 1/27/08

I've loved Silverchair since I was a 5 year old rocker listening to them. I loved their style and how they grew with the years. I'm a loyal Chair fan, their music is as rox now as it was when i was wearing a barbie t-shirt and listening to them. They've grown as men, and as musicians.

Plus, now that Daniel and the wench have broken up he's mine >:)

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