Friday, June 30, 2006
Scissor Sisters
Scissor Sisters is a five-piece American glam rock band.
The band has been influenced by the gay-club scene of New York City, and was named after a lesbian sex position. (The group's initial full name was Dead Lesbian and the Fibrillating Scissor Sisters.) The band was formed in 2001.
Members
(from left)
Guitarist Del Marquis (born Derek Gruen)
Vocalist Ana Matronic (born Ana Lynch)
Lead vocalist Jake Shears (born Jason Sellards)
Drummer Paddy Boom (born Patrick Secore)
Bassist/keyboardist Babydaddy (born Scott Hoffman).
The nucleus of the band formed in 2001 when Shears and Babydaddy connected via mutual friends, and began to play music together. The duo met Ana Matronic at a cabaret night, and the group soon began playing gigs. After becoming a quintet, the band was signed to independent record label A Touch of Class, and recorded a single, "Electrobix", which had as its B-side a disco/glam cover of the Pink Floyd classic, "Comfortably Numb".
"Comfortably Numb" became noticed in the UK when the London hotel Hotel Pelirocco featured the song on a compilation disc that was given away to guests. The song got the attention of British label Polydor, who signed them to a contract.
The group's first single, "Laura", had a limited release in 2003 (reaching #54 in the UK singles chart), but received little attention except from British music paper New Musical Express. 2003 also saw the inclusion of the atmospheric "It Can't Come Quickly Enough" on the soundtrack of the film Party Monster; the song played over its ending credits.
Their first hit was in 2004 when "Comfortably Numb" (reaching #10 in the UK), featuring Paul Leschen on piano and keyboards. This success was followed by fan favourite "Take Your Mama" (#17 in the UK), a re-release of "Laura" (#12 in the UK), the ballad "Mary" (#14 in the UK), and the randy "Filthy/Gorgeous" (#5 in the UK).
All the singles came from the self-titled debut album Scissor Sisters, which reached #1 on the UK albums chart and became the best selling album of 2004, beating their closest rival Keane by just 582 copies.
The lyrics of their songs, largely written by Shears and Babydaddy, are known for their mixture of wit and tragedy. The songs on the debut album dealt with a number of subjects and issues in a variety of styles, from crystal meth abuse in "Return to Oz", to Jake Shears' deep platonic love for his best friend in real life, Mary ("Mary"). The same name was also used for the song. Sadly, Mary died of a brain aneurysm in April, 2006, news which devastated members of the band.
At the 2005 Brit Awards, the group won all the awards they were nominated for: International Group, International Breakthrough, and International Album. It was the first time in the Awards history that an act won all three International categories. They also opened the show with "Take Your Mama", on a set made by The Jim Henson Company.
The band won a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Music Artist on March 28, 2005. On July 2, 2005, the group performed at Live 8. Their set included the previously unheard song "Everybody Wants the Same Thing".
They have received a lot of attention in the United States by VH1 and magazines such as Out and Entertainment Weekly. So far in the U.S., two videos have received play: the "Take Your Mama" clip and the second "Laura" clip. They have also been interviewed on VH1's website and Del Marquis had been interviewed by the music section of IGN.com. As their early successes have been almost exclusively in Europe, they are often mistaken in the U.S. for an import band despite their New York roots.
In late 2004, Shears and Babydaddy co-wrote and produced the hit "I Believe in You" for Kylie Minogue.
The group were one of the headlining acts at the British V Festival in 2005, where they collaborated on stage with Scottish rock group Franz Ferdinand to perform a cover version of David Bowie's "Suffragette City".
This song is one of my camp themes. Great to dance to too.
Filthy/Gorgeous
When you're walkin' down the street
And the man tries to get your business
And the people that you meet
Want to open you up like Christmas
You gotta wrap your fuzzy in a big red bow
Ain't no sum bitch gonna treat me like a ho
I'm a classy honey kissy huggy lovey dovey ghetto princess
Cuz you're filthy Oooh, and I'm gorgeous
You're disgusting Oooh, and you're nasty
And you can grab me oooh, cuz you're nasty
When you're runnin' from a trick
And you trip on a hit of acid
You gotta work for the man
But your biggest moneymakers' flaccid
You gotta keep your shit together
With your feet on the ground
There ain't no one gonna listen
If you haven't made a sound
You're an acid junkie college flunky dirty puppy daddy bastard
Cuz you're filthy Oooh, and I'm gorgeous
You're disgusting Oooh, and you're nasty
And you can grab me oooh, cuz you're nasty
Scissor Sisters' new album Ta-Dah is stores September, 2006.
The new single I Don't Feel Like Dancin' out September 4th, 2006.
Labels: Music
