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All Music Guide:
Taking his name from a line in a tune by Wilco, Cherry Ghost is the stage name for Simon Aldred, a British singer and songwriter who decided to strike out on his own as a solo act in 2005 after several years of playing in a succession of failing rock bands. Writing evocative songs that mingle joy and sorrow in the manner of his acknowledged influences Sparklehorse and Smog, Aldred began recording his songs at home, using sampling technology to build expansive arrangements for the tunes, and demos of his material started making the rounds of British record companies. Aldred used the name Cherry Ghost for the project, and set up a MySpace page under the moniker, featuring several of the demos he'd recorded at home. Between press attention for the demos and a steady stream of traffic to the MySpace page, Cherry Ghost was quickly earning a reputation as a "band" to watch, and Aldred began performing live under the name, with the accompaniment ranging from a full band to Aldred solo with an acoustic guitar, depending on the circumstances. Heavenly Records made a deal with Aldred, and the debut Cherry Ghost single, "Mathematics," was released in April 2007. A second single, "People Help the People," arrived the following June; it was a preview of the debut Cherry Ghost album, Thirst for Romance, which was produced by Dan Austin and released in July 2007. As Cherry Ghost's performing schedule increased, Aldred turned Cherry Ghost into a "real" band with a stable lineup, with Jim Rhodes, Ben Parson, Grenville Harrop, and Phill Anderson named as his full-time bandmates.
Wikipedia:
Cherry Ghost are an indie rock band from Bolton, England. Their debut album, Thirst for Romance, was released in July 2007 and entered the UK Album Charts at No. 7. A second album, entitled Beneath This Burning Shoreline, was released in July 2010 to positive critical acclaim.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).
History[edit]
The name "Cherry Ghost" is a reference to the Wilco song "Theologians" from the album A Ghost Is Born.
Beginnings and Thirst for Romance (2005–2007)[edit]
Cherry Ghost began in 2005, first as an alias for Simon Aldred as a solo artist, before morphing into a full band. Early sessions with Doves bassist and vocalist Jimi Goodwin and a special appearance on Later...with Jools Holland helped excel the band's beginnings. Cherry Ghost were one of only a handful of bands and musicians to have been invited onto Jools Holland's programme before having released any material. Cherry Ghost signed to Heavenly Records, and released their debut single "Mathematics" in April 2007. The debut album, Thirst for Romance, was released in July 2007, following the release of the single "People Help the People" two weeks before, which charted on the UK Singles Chart at No. 27. The album was met with generally positive reviews, and entered the UK Albums Chart at No. 7. A third single, "4 AM," was released in September 2007 and charted at No. 128. A live EP entitled iTunes Festival: Live in London, recorded in July 2007 at the iTunes Festival, was released digitally in November 2007.
In September 2007, Cherry Ghost were nominated for Best New Act at the 2007 Q Awards. In early 2008, Cherry Ghost won an Ivor Novello Award for "People Help the People" in the category of Best Contemporary Song.
Beneath This Burning Shoreline (2008–present)[edit]
In March 2008, Simon announced through a MySpace blog posting that the band were at the writing stage for the second album and had seven songs written, which had been distilled from over 50 different tunes. The bulk of the album was written across Europe, namely Berlin and Rome. The band began recording the album in January 2009. A later blog post indicated that the band were recording in a converted barn.
On 27 December 2009, Simon posted on MySpace that the second album had been finished and was "due to be mixed in the next month or two." On 29 April 2010, a message on the band's MySpace page stated the title of the new album as Beneath This Burning Shoreline, with a release date of 5 July 2010. Beneath This Burning Shoreline was released to positive reviews, garnering 4-star reviews from publications such as , The Guardian, and The Independent. The album's first single, "Kissing Strangers," was released as a single-track download on 28 June 2010.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).
