Richard Hawley

A journeyman of Brit-pop, Richard Hawley carried his textural guitar sound and often-dark worldview into numerous solo and band projects. Raised in Sheffield, Hawley began writing songs in his early teens and formed the Treebound Story at age 19; their 1986 EP Swimming in the Heart of Jane drew some notice at the time (notably from DJ John Peel) and ultimately became a scarce collector's item. Hawley formed his next band Longpigs with four Sheffield friends including lead singer Crispin Hunt. This band saw more than its share of bad luck, notably a car accident that put Hunt in a coma for three days. They also had some notable supporters, including U2 who signed them to their Mother label, and Radiohead who had them as an opener. Another admirer was Pulp leader Jarvis Cocker, who invited Hawley to tour with them on guitar following Longpigs' breakup in 2000. Hawley made his solo debut the following year with an eponymous EP and the album Late Night Final, both were acclaimed and Hawley's vocals drew comparisons to notable deep-voiced singers including Scott Walker and Leonard Cohen. By 2003's Lowedges he was a solid critical favorite and commercial success eventually followed: 2007's Lady's Bridge featured a romantic orchestrated sound and was his first to make the UK Top Ten. 2012 brought his most successful album to date, Standing at the Sky's Edge, which shifted to louder guitars and angrier lyrics inspired by the rise of British Conservatism. Between solo projects Hawley made numerous collaborations. After the Arctic Monkeys beat him for a Mercury Prize in 2006, he joined up with them to sing two tracks that were released as B-sides. More surprisingly he played on Nancy Sinatra's comeback album in 2004 and played live with her in the UK; he also wrote songs with Lisa Marie Presley and was one of a few Brit-pop figures who appeared on her 2012 album Storm & Grace. In May 2019 he released his eight solo album, Further, whose autumnally-themed lyrics are matched with spacious wall-of-sound production.