Hijak Oscar
Encyclopedia
Hijak Oscar are a British blues rock band that formed in York
in 2005. The band consists of Tim Fox (vocals, harmonica), Gaby Milner (vocals), Carl Hetherington (keys, backing vocals), Mark Meilack (bass), Daniel Hill (guitar) and Dave Hartley (drums).
Tim Fox passed a blues
busker on the streets of York
named Mark Wynn. He would become the newest band member. Marks style of playing didn't leave much room for a second guitarist so Lewis Hall left.
, at Carl Hetherington Audio. The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album was released on 30 December 2006, and included the bands most requested song "Bitter Carnival", "Disciple Of Time" and "Dollar Bill". Hijak Oscar have sold over 5000 copies of this album.
After some sell out shows in their home town and receiving good reviews from independent publications Hijak Oscar began to break out of the York
scene and booked shows in various cities around the country including Leeds
, Sheffield
and London
.
Towards the end of 2007 and with a mass array of shows and reviews under their belts, Mark Meilack put the band forward for Channel 4
's Orange Unsigned Act (originally called MobileAct Unsigned.) This move boosted the bands profile and increased the number of fans tenfold. Some members of the band however were not happy to be part of a television show making money from serious musicians with the promise of a "record deal." So at the semi finals, feeling they had achieved all they could from the show, the band asked to leave the competition. Their wish was granted by Simon Gavin (head of A&M Records
and part of Universal Music Group
) much to the despair of fans.
To take full advantage of the exposure MobileAct had given them Hijak Oscar booked "The Hellbound Tour" which was 23 shows in February 2008. One of these shows was on BBC Humber where they played 3 tracks written for the next album BlackSheepMoneyBox
.
With a taste for touring Hijak Oscar then booked another small tour around Scotland
with a band called The Wallbirds. Whilst on this tour they performed a live session for Rapal (a BBC Scotland
show)
Not long before a wide variation of independent summer festivals Mark Wynn and Emma Keaveney-Roys left Hijak Oscar due to general disagreements between members about the direction of the band and Mark Wynn wanting to do more of his own work. Not to be defeated after all the hard work and not wanting to cancel the festival dates Hijak Oscar took onboard long time friend of Tim, Mark and Carl, Rob Gambell. Rob quickly learnt the set and Hijak headed out onto the sunshined stages. Towards the end of the festival season Tim called female vocalist Gaby Milner to see if she'd be interested in joining to help pad out the Hijak sound. Gaby said yes and after a few rehearsals was doing the final festivals of the year with the band. These included a headline slot at Moor Music Festival
and playing the main stage at Beached Festival
.
As the summer came to an end so did Rob Gambell's part in the band. After deciding he wanted to head back to Cambridge
the call was made to Daniel Hill, who had supported Hijak Oscar in previous years with his old band Lemons & Limes. Dan jumped at the chance and was playing shows with the band after just two rehearsals. Feeling things were more secure with the lineup it was time to hit the studio for the long awaited second album.
. This was an epic 16 track album. There was a limited edition version (200 copies) released a week before the official release which was only available to members of the mailing list. This came with a signed photo of the band and was hand numbered on the back sleeve. All 200 of the limited edition version sold before the release date of the album.
Hijak Oscar are now booking dates for 2009 and working on the 3rd album.
Emma Keaveney-Roys went on to join a band called Von Bartha with three other members, Leon Welchman (guitar), Gaz Wills (Bass) and Nick Blackheart (Drums). Nick left the band in 2011 and Graham Dines took over on Drums. Emma writes the vocals for the Bristol based band.
Forlorn and overlooked member, Mark Meilack (8 string bass), formed the band Wonderbus with Lee Spreadbury (keys through hammond b3 module), ex The Dirty Backbeats, Gaby Milner (vocals), ex Hijak Oscar and Danny Southwell (percussion technician) in Oct 2011. They are based in Brighton and due to cut a 5 track ep with a London producer in December. www.reverbnation.com/wonderbus
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
in 2005. The band consists of Tim Fox (vocals, harmonica), Gaby Milner (vocals), Carl Hetherington (keys, backing vocals), Mark Meilack (bass), Daniel Hill (guitar) and Dave Hartley (drums).
Formation and early years (2005–2006)
The band's original line-up came together in 2005, composed of Tim Fox on vocals and harmonica, Emma Keaveney-Roys on vocals, Carl Hetherington on keys, Mark Meilack on bass, Lewis Hall on guitar, Paul Carr on lead guitar and Dave Hartley on drums. This line up didn't last long due to musical differences and where Tim Fox wanted to take the music. After a few months Paul Carr left.Tim Fox passed a blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
busker on the streets of York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
named Mark Wynn. He would become the newest band member. Marks style of playing didn't leave much room for a second guitarist so Lewis Hall left.
Hijak Oscar (2006–2008)
Hijak Oscar recorded their debut album, Hijak OscarHijak Oscar (album)
Hijak Oscar is the debut studio album by the York Blues Rock band Hijak Oscar, first released in the UK on 30 December 2006 . The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album has sold over copies since its release...
, at Carl Hetherington Audio. The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album was released on 30 December 2006, and included the bands most requested song "Bitter Carnival", "Disciple Of Time" and "Dollar Bill". Hijak Oscar have sold over 5000 copies of this album.
After some sell out shows in their home town and receiving good reviews from independent publications Hijak Oscar began to break out of the York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
scene and booked shows in various cities around the country including Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Towards the end of 2007 and with a mass array of shows and reviews under their belts, Mark Meilack put the band forward for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
's Orange Unsigned Act (originally called MobileAct Unsigned.) This move boosted the bands profile and increased the number of fans tenfold. Some members of the band however were not happy to be part of a television show making money from serious musicians with the promise of a "record deal." So at the semi finals, feeling they had achieved all they could from the show, the band asked to leave the competition. Their wish was granted by Simon Gavin (head of A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
and part of Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
) much to the despair of fans.
To take full advantage of the exposure MobileAct had given them Hijak Oscar booked "The Hellbound Tour" which was 23 shows in February 2008. One of these shows was on BBC Humber where they played 3 tracks written for the next album BlackSheepMoneyBox
BlackSheepMoneyBox
BlackSheepMoneyBox is the second studio album by the York Blues Rock band Hijak Oscar, first released in the UK on 3 April 2009 . The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album was pre released to mailing list subscribers, this version was hand numbered and had a signed photo...
.
With a taste for touring Hijak Oscar then booked another small tour around Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
with a band called The Wallbirds. Whilst on this tour they performed a live session for Rapal (a BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who...
show)
Not long before a wide variation of independent summer festivals Mark Wynn and Emma Keaveney-Roys left Hijak Oscar due to general disagreements between members about the direction of the band and Mark Wynn wanting to do more of his own work. Not to be defeated after all the hard work and not wanting to cancel the festival dates Hijak Oscar took onboard long time friend of Tim, Mark and Carl, Rob Gambell. Rob quickly learnt the set and Hijak headed out onto the sunshined stages. Towards the end of the festival season Tim called female vocalist Gaby Milner to see if she'd be interested in joining to help pad out the Hijak sound. Gaby said yes and after a few rehearsals was doing the final festivals of the year with the band. These included a headline slot at Moor Music Festival
Moor Music Festival
The Moor Music Festival is an annual music festival held on a farm in Addingham Moorside, near the town of Ilkley, West Yorkshire.The festival has artists playing from the local area and beyond, many being prominent artists in the New Yorkshire music scene...
and playing the main stage at Beached Festival
Beached Festival
The Beached Festival was a free festival held annually in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England. After 6 years it had grown to become the biggest free festival in the South Bay of Scarborough. It last took place in 2008.-History:...
.
As the summer came to an end so did Rob Gambell's part in the band. After deciding he wanted to head back to Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
the call was made to Daniel Hill, who had supported Hijak Oscar in previous years with his old band Lemons & Limes. Dan jumped at the chance and was playing shows with the band after just two rehearsals. Feeling things were more secure with the lineup it was time to hit the studio for the long awaited second album.
BlackSheepMoneyBox (2008–2009)
On 3 April 2009 Hijak Oscar released BlackSheepMoneyBoxBlackSheepMoneyBox
BlackSheepMoneyBox is the second studio album by the York Blues Rock band Hijak Oscar, first released in the UK on 3 April 2009 . The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album was pre released to mailing list subscribers, this version was hand numbered and had a signed photo...
. This was an epic 16 track album. There was a limited edition version (200 copies) released a week before the official release which was only available to members of the mailing list. This came with a signed photo of the band and was hand numbered on the back sleeve. All 200 of the limited edition version sold before the release date of the album.
Hijak Oscar are now booking dates for 2009 and working on the 3rd album.
August 2010 and Onwards
Tim Fox and former Hijak Oscar sound engineer and writing collaborator Vin North have gigged regularly as a duo, both before and since Hijak Oscar split, as "Fox and North". They have since been joined on drums and percussion by Steve Bradley who has played in a number of bands in York since 1987. The trio perform under the name "Fox North Coalition" and are currently recording their self-produced debut album, "A Block for the Wigs", which is due for release in late 2010. The trio are occasionally augmented by guest musicians for gigs and recording. It was under this auspice that "Fox North Coalition" played their debut gig as a full band featuring ex-Hijak Oscar musicians Carl Hetherington and Daniel Hill at York City Screen Basement Bar on August 11, 2010. The line-up also included Gaz Percival on bass.Emma Keaveney-Roys went on to join a band called Von Bartha with three other members, Leon Welchman (guitar), Gaz Wills (Bass) and Nick Blackheart (Drums). Nick left the band in 2011 and Graham Dines took over on Drums. Emma writes the vocals for the Bristol based band.
Forlorn and overlooked member, Mark Meilack (8 string bass), formed the band Wonderbus with Lee Spreadbury (keys through hammond b3 module), ex The Dirty Backbeats, Gaby Milner (vocals), ex Hijak Oscar and Danny Southwell (percussion technician) in Oct 2011. They are based in Brighton and due to cut a 5 track ep with a London producer in December. www.reverbnation.com/wonderbus
Studio albums
- Hijak OscarHijak Oscar (album)Hijak Oscar is the debut studio album by the York Blues Rock band Hijak Oscar, first released in the UK on 30 December 2006 . The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album has sold over copies since its release...
(2006) - BlackSheepMoneyBoxBlackSheepMoneyBoxBlackSheepMoneyBox is the second studio album by the York Blues Rock band Hijak Oscar, first released in the UK on 3 April 2009 . The album was produced by Carl Hetherington and Hijak Oscar. The album was pre released to mailing list subscribers, this version was hand numbered and had a signed photo...
(2009)
External links
- Hijakoscar.co.uk, Official Site
- myspace.com/hijakoscar, MySpace Page
- facebook.com/group.php?gid=5473258652, Facebook Group