Grinspoon
Background information
Origin	Lismore, Australia
Genre(s)	Grunge Alternative rock Rock
Years active	July 21, 1995–present
Label(s)	Universal (1996-present); Grudge Records (1996-2002); Oracle Records (1995)
Website	Official website
Members
Phil Jamieson Pat Davern Joe Hansen Kristian Hopes

Grinspoon are an Australian alternative/grunge rock band from Lismore, fronted by Phil Jamieson with Pat Davern on guitar, Joe Hansen on bass and Kristian Hopes on drums. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Left Bank Cafe, Spinks Park. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Grunge music (sometimes also referred to as the Seattle Sound) is an independent-rooted music genre that became a commercially successful offshoot of hardcore punk, thrash metal, and alternative rock in the late 1980s and early 1990s. ... Alternative rock (also called alternative music or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s. ... For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Universal Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. ... Grudge Records is an Australian record label. ... Phil Jamieson is an Australian musician from Wauchope, NSW. He attended Wauchope High School and developed his love of music there, particularly under the tutelage of teacher Chris Daley. ... Left Bank Cafe, Spinks Park. ... Phil Jamieson is an Australian musician from Wauchope, NSW. He attended Wauchope High School and developed his love of music there, particularly under the tutelage of teacher Chris Daley. ...

Founded in 1995, they came to fame when they were Unearthed by national, commercial-free radio station Triple J thanks to their track "Sickfest". This won them the competition for the Lismore area. The band was heavily influenced by "grunge" music in their early career, including the band Helmet, and developed a strong following among mosh pit crowds. Their sound changed in their later career to a more mainstream rock sound with their 2002 album New Detention and at this point they lost many of their earlier fans and gained a lot of fans in the mainstream. Lyrically, the band are very cryptic and disjointed, most lines from their songs are not related to the next line and the songs rarely make sense as a whole. This has been attributed to the writer Phil Jamieson and his tendency to pen short lyrics of only a few lines each, and then tying many of these together into a song, creating a lack of consistent themes. Unearthed is the name of a Triple J project to find and dig up (hence the name) hidden talent in regional Australia. ... For other uses, see JJJ. Triple J is a nationally-networked, government-funded Australian radio station (a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation), mainly aimed at youth (defined as those between 12 and 25). ... Helmet is an African funk band formed in Guinea-Bissau by George W. Bush (vocals/dildo) with Pinochet (dildo), Osama Bin Laden (dildo) and Saddam Hussein (dildo) in September 11, 2001. ...

The band name was taken from marijuana supporter Dr Lester Grinspoon. The band has at times promoted recreational drugs during concerts and in their song lyrics. Jamieson has also gained a reputation throughout the industry as a heavy drinker. Lester Grinspoon. ...

The band has had limited success in the United States, most notably for the songs "Champion", due to Gran Turismo 3, "Post Enebriated Anxiety", which was on the international version of Guide to Better Living, "Chemical Heart", via the Internet, and "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck", which was included on an ECW compilation. Guide To Better Living is the debut album by Australian rock group Grinspoon. ...

History

Early years

As a result of winning the national Unearthed competition the band gained considerable airplay, and they used this to secure gigs for themselves. As a result the band generated a strong following among the Australian "alternative" and "mosh pit crowd." Their debut EP, known as the Green EP, was released through the independent record company Oracle. It contained the tracks "Sickfest" and "More Than You Are" that became popular and were rerecorded for later releases. Unearthed is the name of a Triple J project to find and dig up (hence the name) hidden talent in regional Australia. ... Grinspoon EP, also known as the Green Album, was released in 1995 an includes an early version of the song that made the band famous on the Triple J Unearthed competition, Sickfest. ...

Grinspoon's second EP, Licker Bottle Cozy, was recorded by the band and released by Grudge records in December 1996. It had a slightly heavier sound compared to their first EP, with the songs "Champion" and "Pig Pen," and there was little variety in the sound throughout the six track CD. Licker Bottle Cozy EP, was the second EP by the Australian rock band Grinspoon, released in 1996. ...

1997 saw their release of their first LP, Guide To Better Living, the album that best represents the sound and variety of their early career. Heavier songs like "Pressure Tested 1984" open the album, whilst in the middle are more classic rock songs like "Repeat" and "Don't Go Away" and then towards the end the ballad "Bad Funk Stripe." The album also features five live songs illustrating the bands sense of humour and ability to play live including the addition of a hidden acoustic track called "Protest." Guide To Better Living is the debut album by Australian rock group Grinspoon. ...

Whilst in America touring in 1998, Grinspoon released the EP "Pushing Buttons," which featured the popular heavy song "Black Friday," and the lighter songs "Busy" and "Explain."

After heavy touring Grinspoon recorded the Easy LP with little studio time in 1999. The album had less variety than their debut LP and received a disappointing reaction from fans and critics, despite having some very solid and likeable songs like "Ready 1" and "Rock Show." The album was once described by Pinky from Machine Gun Fellatio as the album that should've been famous but wasn't. Easy is the second album from the Australian band Grinspoon. ... Machine Gun Fellatio were an alternative Australian band, composing, recording and playing music of a large range of styles. ...

Changing direction

After a long break to reconsider their direction and sound the band released the much more commercial 2002 album New Detention, which debuted and peaked at #2 on the Australian ARIAnet albums chart. The first single from the album, "Chemical Heart", caused a stir when it was released among long term fans and the media because it was so different from their usual grunge sound, and signalled a change in style for the band. The band insisted the change was a natural one and was made in the interests of improving their sound. Having said that, the band still performs a significant amount of older tracks in their live shows. New Detention is an album which was produced by Australian rock band Grinspoon. ... The Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) is the Australian counterpart of the Recording Industry Association of America. ... Chemical Heart single was the first one released from Grinspoons New Detention album in 2002. ...

They also released an EP in 2003 titled Panic Attack (containing a cover of INXS's song "Don't Change"), which debuted and peaked at #13 on the ARIAnet singles chart. The Panic Attack (EP) was originally released by itself, but now only available as a bonus disc with the Grinspoon album New Detention. ... INXS (pronounced In Excess) are an Australian rock group. ...

In 2004, they released a new single, "Hard Act To Follow", which reached the top 30 in the singles chart. It was from the album Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills, which debuted at #4 in the charts. A second single, "Better Off Alone", was later issued, also reaching the top 30. The third single was "Hold On Me". This time around, the band agreed that they were deliberately seeking a new audience, claiming they wrote a number of songs for the release and rejected the songs that sounded like their earlier work. Thrills, Kills and Sunday Pills is an album which was produced by Australian rock band, Grinspoon. ...

Grinspoon have built a strong local following since their rise, and are regulars at Australian music festivals.

In 2005, Grinspoon won their first ARIA award, winning the category for "Rock Album of the Year" with Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills. They had previously been nominated 9 times.

Most recently Grinspoon released a 2 Disc Best Of compilation entitled Best In Show. The first disc featured all their hits, although several of their older classic songs were included. The second disc is a bonus which includes a collection of covers recorded over the years. Best in Show is a compilation of Australian band Grinspoons best ofs, and was released to coincide with the ten year anniversary of the band. ...

On 26 March 2006, Grinspoon performed "Hard Act To Follow" and "Better Off Alone" at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Closing Ceremony in Melbourne. Grinspoon and Delta Goodrem lip-synched, presumably due to bad sound reception at the MCG. The Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on March 26, 2006 to mark the closing of the 18th Commonwealth Games. ... Delta Lea Goodrem (born 9 November 1984) is a multi-ARIA Award winning Australian singer-songwriter, pianist and Logie Award winning actress. ...

Grinspoon headlined the inaugural Thank God It's Over in Melbourne and then at BOBFest 06 in South Australia this October.

They also headlined the first ever Odyssey 2006 at Dreamworld for New Year's Eve. Dreamworld is a theme park situated on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. ... New Years Eve is December 31, the final day of the Gregorian year, and the day before New Years Day. ...

In February 2007,Phill Jamieson was admitted to rehab due to addiction to methamphetamines.^[1] Methamphetamine is a synthetic stimulant drug which induces a strong feeling of euphoria and is highly addictive. ...

In a candid, personal and revealing interview with Andrew Denton on Enough Rope in July 2007 Jamieson discussed how the drugs had caused him to have an affair and steal money from his bandmates. His rehab and detox experience was very powerful. He is still recovering emotionally and is concerned that his new straight self might be a bit boring and is not sure how others should now take him. Andrew Denton on the poster for his film God On My Side Andrew Christopher Denton (born May 4, 1960) is an Australian comedian and television presenter, and is the host of the ABCs weekly interview program Enough Rope. ... Enough Rope with Andrew Denton (or simply Enough Rope) is a television talk show broadcast on the ABC network in Australia. ...

The band has recently completed a new studio album, Alibis & Other Lies, their final album for Universal. The album was co-produced by the band and Ramesh Sathiah, who worked with the band on their earliest recordings. The first single from the album, "Black Tattoo", has been released as a digital download on 23 June and on CD on 30 June. The album was released in Australia by Universal on the 21st of July. It debuted in the ARIA Charts at number two on July 29, their highest chart position since New Detention in 2002. Alibis & Other Lies is the fifth studio album by Grinspoon, which was released July 21, 2007. ... // A digital download (also known as a digital single or a paid digital download) is an official and legal music single available for purchase through an online store. ... is the 174th day of the year (175th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. ... is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Discography

Main article: Grinspoon discography

The following is the complete Grinspoon discography. ...

References

1. ^ http://www.smh.com.au/news/people/grinspoon-frontman-in-rehab-for-ice-addiction/2007/02/17/1171405452009.html Accessed 2007/07/24

External links

• Official band website
• Grinspoon on Myspace