- The Panics
Infobox musical artist
Name = The Panics
Img_capt =
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Background = group_or_band
Origin = Perth,Western Australia Australia
Genre = Rock
Years_active = 2002–present
Label = [http://www.littlebigmanrecords.co.uk/ LittleBIGMAN Records]Dew Process
URL = [http://www.thepanics.com.au/ Official website]
Current_members = Jae Laffer
Drew Wootton
Myles Wootton
Paul Otway
Jules Douglas
Past_members =The Panics are an
indie rock band originally from Perth,Western Australia , and currently based in Melbourne, Victoria.History
The band started out while Jae Laffer (then known by his actual first name, Justin) and Drew Wootton were still at high school in
Kalamunda , an outer suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Laffer and Wootton meeting on the first day of school."You just look at someone and go, alright you can be my friend, you have the same haircut as me". - Laffer [cite web |url=http://www.musicaustralia.org/apps/MA?function=showDetail¤tMapsRecord=NAMO~514&itemSeq=7&total=9&&returnFunction=searchResults&scope=scope&simpleTerm=accompaniment&sessionId=reuseSearchAE89BE2888FAB537957EEAD407E27F9D1204503325630 |title=Panics |publisher=Music Australia |accessdate=2008-04-08]
They added Drew's younger brother Myles on drums, Paul Otway on bass and Jules Douglas (Julian Grigor) on slide guitar, keyboards and vocals soon after. After being spotted playing at the Inglewood Hotel byThe Happy Mondays ' Gaz Whelan and Pete Carroll, following The Happy Mondays' Perth performance atThe Big Day Out in 2000 [cite web|url=http://my247.com.au/perth/Capitol-Amplifier-Bar/whats-on/The-Panics.47580 |title=The Panics|publisher=My24/7.com.au |accessdate=2008-10-10] cite web|url=http://groovemagazine.com.au/Features/5/the_panics.html |title=Roadmap to success|publisher=Groove magazine|last=Fox|first=Sylvester|accessdate=2008-10-10] , they were the first signing to the UK-based label [http://www.littlebigmanrecords.co.uk/ LittleBIGMAN Records] , a label set up by Carroll and Whelan. [cite web
url=http://www.cdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=1432
title=Madchester Memories — An Interview with Peter Carroll
publisher=CD Times
date=2004-12-17
accessdate=2007-05-06]"Yeah well that’s what’s been really cool about us and the label is that it was just the fact it was new for everyone and we weren’t just another band that they were adding to their roster. It felt really exciting to be part of a label that seemed to have really good ideals and be run by guys who certainly have their heads in the right place and are pro-artist as opposed to pro-money and I truly believe that. And it’s just good to have people who believe in you and playing for a couple of years it’s very rare that anyone comes along and wants to help you without wanting to take your money straight away and all that kind of thing. It’s just nice when people come along and go “we love what you do and we’d love to help”. And to have someone like the guys that run our label getting us gigs and getting us exposure, it’s like a massive weight off our shoulders that’s for sure. And also we’re really relieved to not have to go through the probable years of sending out demos hoping for replies trying to sweet talk people and suck up to people. It’s nice to straight away be our own little community and just start making records." - Laffer
Their first release, a self-titled
EP in 2002, enjoyed high rotation on Australian radio stationTriple J and community radio stations aroundAustralia , from which they gained some attention. The following two EPs "This Day Last Year" and "Kid You're A Dreamer" also generated radio exposure acrossAustralia .In 2002, The Panics were the first Australian band to be invited to play at In The City, the UK's annual music convention.
"It was just a very spooky event. It was like playing a pub in Perth. It was condensed down to a couple of nights. In this one kind of block in
While inSalford in Manchester there was about ten pubs all within walking distance, each with about five bands playing a night and just a huge huge amount of industry just doing the rounds, walking through. Every person in the crowd had a laminate. Our place was packed when we played which was great but it’s very hard to read industry people ‘cause they don’t want to jump around and cheer. We’d just finished recording and I remember being on stage and we were just having a laugh because it was just so great to be playing in England." - LafferEngland they commenced recording tracks for their debut album, with parts being recorded inManchester UK and the rest co-produced with Steve Bond in Australia, and mixed by Jeremy Allom (The La's ,Massive Attack ). A full-length album, "A House on a Street in a Town I'm From " followed in 2003 to local critical praise. Following the release of "A House on a Street in a Town I'm From " they toured Australia for the first time and also played a series of gigs withMorrissey , Gomez,Grandaddy , The Church andBadly Drawn Boy . They went on to complete several sell out national headline tours of Australia.In 2004, the band signed a worldwide deal with Festival Publishing. They have also had several tracks featured in films, including "This Day Last Year" which was commissioned for "Jew Boy", broadcast in 2005.
In late 2004, the band headed back to England for a second UK tour, including supporting the
Happy Mondays at a sold out show to over 12,000 people onClapham Common inLondon . While in England, The Panics were invited to record a live broadcast for the BBC. They performed three tracks live, which was also broadcast throughout the UK and digitally worldwide. The band then based themselves inManchester and commenced writing new material for their next album, "Sleeps Like a Curse ". On return toAustralia they recorded the album at Megaphone studios in Sydney with Australian producer Tim Whitten (who produced albums by The Clouds,Powderfinger , Art of Fighting,The Go Betweens ,The Necks ,78 Saab and worked in England withThe Smiths ).Their second album, "
Sleeps Like a Curse " was released in August, 2005, and was nominated for aJ Award in the same year [ [http://abc.net.au/triplej/jaward/2005.htm 2005 J Award nominations] ] . Shortly after the release of the album, the band relocated to Melbourne, where they were still based as at November 2007, with a number of the band's members sharing a house in the inner city suburb of Collingwood.The song "Monkeys in the Hallway" (from "
A House on a Street in a Town I'm From ") was used in an episode of the television drama series,Tripping Over in 2007. [cite web |url=http://five.tv/programmes/drama/trippingover/episodeguide/ |title=Tripping Over Episode Guide (Episode Six) |publisher=Five TV |accessdate=2008-04-08]In February 2007 The Panics signed with
Dew Process [cite web
url=http://www.dew-process.com/newsfull.cfm?id=71
title=Dew Process signs The Panics
publisher=Dew Process
date=2007-02-15
accessdate=2007-05-06] , and under this new label their third album, "Cruel Guards ", was released onOctober 13 ,2007 . The album wasTriple J 's feature album for the week of October 8, 2007 [cite web
url=http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/review/album/s2052285.htm
title=Triple J Album review
publisher=Triple J
date=2007-10-20
accessdate=2007-11-05] and went on to win the 2007J Award [ [http://abc.net.au/triplej/jaward 2007 J Award nominations] ] .The song "Don't Fight It" was featured in an episode of the Australian television drama series, Underbelly and appears on the soundtrack album. [http://www.undercover.com.au/News-Story.aspx?id=4394 Undercover - Banned Underbelly Has An Unbanned Soundtrack] ] [ [http://www.shock.com.au/default.aspx?s=releasedisplay&artistid=10339&releaseid=33520 Undercover - Soundtrack] ]
Members
* Jae Laffer - vocals, guitar, keyboards
* Drew Wootton - guitar
* Myles Wootton - drums
* Paul Otway - bass
* Jules Douglas (Julian Grigor) - keyboard, guitar, vocalsDiscography
Albums
*"
A House on a Street in a Town I'm From " -LittleBIGMAN Records (August, 2003)
*"Sleeps Like a Curse " - LittleBIGMAN Records (August, 2005)
*"Cruel Guards " -Dew Process (13 October, 2007)EPs
*"
The Panics (EP 1) " - LittleBIGMAN Records (January, 2002)
*"The Panics (EP 2) " - LittleBIGMAN Records (July, 2002)
*"Crack in the Wall " - LittleBIGMAN Records (April, 2004)
*"Factory Girl" - LittleBIGMAN Records (October, 2006)ingles
*"
Kid You're A Dreamer " - LittleBIGMAN Records (February, 2003)
*"Don't Fight It" - LittleBIGMAN Records (February, 2008)Compilation appearances
*"Home & Hosed - Freshly Plucked" - (October 2004)
*"Kiss My WAMi 2006" - (February 2006)References
External links
* [http://www.thepanics.com.au The Panics Official website]
* [http://www.myspace.com/thepanicsmusic The Panics MySpace page]
* [http://www.amo.org.au/artist.asp?id=514 AMO website]
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