+44 (band)

Infobox musical artist
Name = +44


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Background = group_or_band
Origin = Los Angeles, California, USA
Genre = Pop punk [http://www.rockfeedback.com/article.asp?nObjectID=3868] , alternative rock
Years_active = 2005–present
Label = Interscope
Associated_acts = Blink-182
Box Car Racer
Transplants
The Aquabats
The Nervous Return
Expensive Taste
Juliette and the Licks
Mercy Killers
Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards
URL = [http://www.plusfourtyfour.com/ Official website]
Current_members = Mark Hoppus
Travis Barker
Shane Gallagher
Craig Fairbaugh
Past_members = Carol Heller

+44 (also known as Plus 44 and often stylized as (+44)) is an alternative rock and pop punk band based in the United States. The band was formed by former Blink-182 members Mark Hoppus (vocals and bass guitar) and Travis Barker (drums, percussion and keyboards), also consisting of former Transplants touring guitarist Craig Fairbaugh and the lead guitarist of The Nervous Return, Shane Gallagher. The band name refers to the international dialing code of the United Kingdom, the country where Hoppus and Barker first discussed the project.cite web | title = Mark Hoppus Tells All to B182.com| url=http://www.b182.com/askmark1.php
work=b182.com | accessdate = 2006-08-14 ]

History

Formation (2004-2005)

Originally, +44 was only going to be a side-project of Blink-182 when Mark and Travis were talking about it during the Europe tour in late 2004 [http://www.atomik.free.fr/plus-44/en/biography.htm Plus 44 by Atomik] ] , when they noted that Tom DeLonge was acting more and more distant and was becoming less interested in Blink-182. However, the events that followed in February of 2005 caused +44 to become Mark and Travis' main focus rather than a side-project. The project consisted of elements not usually present in Blink-182's work, namely electronic drums, keyboards, and direct computer recordings. Barker later stated that the electronic element of the band was derived from "155", the first song he and Hoppus wrote as a band. [http://www.44disasters.com/scans/drummer_issue40/drummer_issue_40-page07.jpgArticle Scan] As work continued on the demos, Get the Girl vocalist Carol Heller was invited by Hoppus and Barker to audition her vocals. Heller's performance was agreeable enough to the band and as a result the three kept working on more songs together. The band's lineup changed again early 2006, with the addition of guitarist Shane Gallagher.

In order to progress with their demos, Barker and Hoppus acquired a studio, a move which marked a "turning point for +44." The band began working solely in the studio they had purchased, playing live drums, guitars and vocals.

The band's sound had started with an electronic element which became less evident, but still remained a key feature. As a result, Heller found she wasn't compatible with the band's direction, and with the addition of her wish to start a family, she left the band. The vocal work that Heller contributed is still present in the songs "Make You Smile", "Weatherman", and the early mix of "No, It Isn't". After this, Hoppus, Barker, and Gallagher were left to find a new backing vocalist. Guitarist Craig Fairbaugh of Mercy Killers then joined the band.

"When Your Heart Stops Beating" (2006-2007)

As the projected release date started to draw in, speculation on the title of the band's debut album began to circulate. At first, it was believed that the album would be called "Little Death" as it was listed as such in AP magazine. This was later revealed to be one of the tracks of the album. Hoppus finally settled on "When Your Heart Stops Beating". The song "Lycanthrope" was released on the +44 website in early September 2006. This was only the second song that fans had heard other than "No, It Isn't".

Later in September KROQ-FM played the title track of the forthcoming album. The band played their first show on September 7, 2006 at The Roxy Theatre in Hollywood; Hoppus stated it was the first show he had performed in two years. The band followed this up by their second show and first ever UK performance at the London Astoria venue. Both shows were met with very encouraging reactions from fans, considering that at that time, only one completely recorded and mastered song, "When Your Heart Stops Beating" had been heard.

The album was released on November 14, 2006 in North America, November 13, 2006 in Europe, and November 11, 2006 in Australia.

During the shooting of the video for "When Your Heart Stops Beating", Travis Barker injured his arm, which was discovered weeks later after playing a whole European promo tour. This forced him to cancel drumming in the upcoming Australia and Europe tours. Gil Sharone filled in for him in these tours.

+44 then covered The Smashing Pumpkins' song "I Am One" for a MySpace tribute to the band and also participated in the iTunes Foreign Exchange. For this they covered Wir sind Helden's song "Guten Tag" with an English translation and Wir sind Helden covered "When Your Heart Stops Beating" in a German translation, entitled "Wenn Dein Herz zu Schlagen Aufhört".

In 2007, +44 set off on the Honda Civic Tour along with Fall Out Boy, The Academy Is..., Paul Wall, and Cobra Starship. During the tour they filmed themselves playing for the music video of their upcoming single "155". On this tour they began covering "Dammit", "The Rock Show" and "What's My Age Again?", all three by Blink-182

econd studio album (2007-present)

The first mention of +44 pulling out of their European festival and show appearances was on August 6, 2007. The music website "NME" then released the following statement from the band on August 8, 2007 with the official reason of studio commitments for their follow up to their 2006 debut, "When Your Heart Stops Beating".

"We want to start writing new songs and we are really excited about the direction we have planned.

So we're going into the studio instead of playing these few dates. We hope our fans will forgive us for the cancellation; in the end, this will make for an even better live show when we come back."

Hoppus later also revealed some information regarding the writing of the follow-up to their debut album. He stated:

"Now we are starting to write the next record. We've got a bunch of ideas; a studio full of stuff, microphones, and effects; and a soundboard from the 1970's. We're really excited to start putting together a new album."

On October 23, 2007, Hoppus stated that +44 had officially signed a deal with Interscope to start recording +44's second studio album. [ [http://www.himynameismark.com/ himynameismark.com] ] On April 9th, Hoppus stated that the delay of the second studio album was due to the lack of funding by the label. On May 25, he also stated that the new +44 album was still in pre-production. He has been considering releasing demos of the songs on his website, but claims that label management might sue him.

On July 30, 2008, Metromix interviewed Barker where he explained about his solo record. When asked about +44, he stated:

"We're going to be a lot more proactive about it after I get my record finished and Mark [Hoppus] finishes producing the two records he's doing this year."

On September 15, 2008, Hoppus posted a video of himself playing a new song. [ [http://himynameismark.com/?p=300 himynameismark - September 15, 2008] ] On September 18, 2008 Chris Holmes' posted a second video on his YouTube page of Hoppus playing another song. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_Q8bWc-Iag YouTube - September 18, 2008] ]

On September 19, 2008, Travis Barker was injured in a plane crash in Columbia, South Carolina. Barker, according to doctors, is expected to make a full recovery within a year. [ [http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/20/barker.plane.crash/index.html CNN - Blink's Barker critically injured in plane crash] ]

Band members

Current members

*Mark Hoppus – lead vocals, bass guitar (2005–present)
*Travis Barker – drums, percussion, keyboard (2005–present)
*Shane Gallagher – guitar (2006–present)
*Craig Fairbaugh – guitar, backing vocals (2006–present)

Former members

*Carol Heller – vocals, guitar (2005–2006)

Touring members

*Gil Sharone – drum replacement when Barker injured his arm (2006–2007)
*Victoria Asher – vocals on "Make You Smile" during the Honda Civic Tour (2007)

Discography

Albums

ingles

Music videos

Digital download

*iTunes Foreign Exchange – Covered Wir sind Helden's song "Guten Tag"
*AOL Sessions EP - iTunes only EP featuring live performances

Remixes

*"When Your Heart Stops Beating" (Electronic remix)
*"Little Death" (Chris Holmes mix)

Unreleased songs

Demos

*"Make You Smile"
*"Little Death"
*"Cliffdiving"

Live covers

*"The Metro" (originally by Berlin)
*"Nervous Breakdown" (originally by Black Flag)
*"What's My Age Again?" (originally by Blink-182)
*"The Rock Show" (originally by Blink-182)
*"Dammit" (originally by Blink-182)

References

External links

* [http://www.plusfortyfour.com/ Official website]
* [http://www.himynameismark.com Hi My Name is Mark]
* [http://www.myspace.com/plus44 +44] at MySpace