The Seal Cub Clubbing Club
Encyclopedia
The Seal Cub Clubbing Club are a five-piece post-punk
band from The Wirral, England
. With their lyrics covering wildly different subjects, Thom Yorke
like mutterings, repetitive instrumental hooks and unconventionally catchy choruses and melodys, their music is unlike other Merseyside
bands The Coral
and The Zutons
. They are often compared to the likes of The Fall and Radiohead
.
cover and just 'jamming' in 2003. Their first gig, on a beach in West Kirby
, was ended abruptly after only half-an-hour due to a power failure.
Their name, a mendacity as Seal
infants are called pups not cubs, was an effort to get away from usual one word-searching through the dictionary names that are often used by bands. According to an interview with the band by Steve Lamacq
on BBC Radio 1
, the name simply came from something a friend had said when the band was looking for a name.
Their first EP
, Number One In A Serious, was released in January 2005 on their own mini record label, Boon(e). Containing "Why Don't You Fix It?" and "Slow-Motion Powerslides (in Dee)", it was placed in the recommended section of Rough Trade Records
and received airplay from Steve Lamacq
.
A second EP, the five-track The Seal Cub Clubbing Club EP was released on Nomadic in November 2005 following a UK tour in support of Brakes
. It gained positive reviews from the Channel 4
website and Rough Trade Records
.
The Seal Cub Clubbing Club EP II, a more poppy effort than their previous releases, was released on Nomadic in March 2006. Lead track "Celine" was notable for receiving nationwide airplay and being written "for NME
audiences so they don't cry".
In August 2006, The Seal Cub Clubbing Club played the Leeds Festival
early in the afternoon on the Comedy stage. In September they toured the UK in support of British Sea Power
. They have also toured with The Fall, Brakes, Juliette Lewis
, and Clinic
.
The single "World Of Fashion" was released in November 2006 on Nomadic receiving airplay from Steve Lamacq
and Huw Stevens on BBC Radio 1
. This was followed by nationwide headlinging tour and then a tour in support of Black Wire
.
An album was recorded in a country house in France, during summer 2006 and was ready for release in Spring 2007 according to their interview in Kruger Magazine issue 12.
According to the flyer for the summer 2007 tour supporting The Smiths Indeed
, the album was to be called Super Science Fiction. However, due to contractual wrangles with Nomadic Music, and the subsequent collapse of the label, the album was delayed, finally being released in 2009. In April 2008 the band finally left Nomadic Music, not long after the release of Number Three In A Serious, which was put out on the band's own Boon(e) Records label. The lead track on this release was "May", and a video for the b-side "Tin Drum", a re-edited short film about a man who compulsively attends the funerals of strangers, appeared on YouTube. The band were nominated for an XFM
'Newcomer of the Year' award and performed at the T in the Park
festival, and also recorded a session for Marc Riley
's BBC 6 Music
show.
In November and December 2008, members of the band supported the launch of DING>>DONG - the final exhibition of the year during the European Capital of Culture
programme at the Foundation for Art and Creative Technology
.
In 2010, the band released 'Royal Variety'. The album was made BBC 6 Music's 'Album of the Day' and received strong airplay from regular supporter Marc Riley. The band returned to record another two sessions for the DJ in the same year. In the final of the three sessions the band said that they were 'rubbish' live and claimed that working full-time jobs had restricted their ability to practice and gig. In the same interview they revealed that the second single from 'Royal Variety' would be chosen by a public vote.
The band also run their own book club, bringing books to gigs for fans to borrow or swap.
as sounding like "The Coral
on acid", also being compared to Echo & the Bunnymen
. CityLife
, however, suggested that the band were inspired by The Fall or Kid A
-era Radiohead
. They have also been compared to Super Furry Animals
.
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
band from The Wirral, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. With their lyrics covering wildly different subjects, Thom Yorke
Thom Yorke
Thomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...
like mutterings, repetitive instrumental hooks and unconventionally catchy choruses and melodys, their music is unlike other Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
bands The Coral
The Coral
The Coral are an English band formed in 1996 in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula in England. The band first emerged during the early 2000s and found success with their debut album The Coral and follow up Magic and Medicine...
and The Zutons
The Zutons
The Zutons are an English indie rock band from Liverpool. They were formed in 2001 but did not release their first album, Who Killed...... The Zutons?, until May 2004. They achieved their biggest hits with "Why Won't You Give Me Your Love?" and "Valerie", both taken from their second studio album...
. They are often compared to the likes of The Fall and Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
.
History
As friends of friends at school in The Wirral, The Seal Cub Clubbing Club started off playing Prog-Reggae, a Black Rebel Motorcycle ClubBlack Rebel Motorcycle Club
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, now based in Los Angeles. BRMC is known for their garage rock, blues, folk revival, neo-psychedelia sound. They are influenced by bands such as: The Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Verve, The Rolling Stones, Oasis, T...
cover and just 'jamming' in 2003. Their first gig, on a beach in West Kirby
West Kirby
West Kirby is a town on the north-west corner of the coast of the Wirral Peninsula, England, at the mouth of the River Dee across from the Point of Ayr in North Wales. To the north-east of the town lies Hoylake, with the suburbs of Grange and Newton to the east, and the village of Caldy to the...
, was ended abruptly after only half-an-hour due to a power failure.
Their name, a mendacity as Seal
Pinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
infants are called pups not cubs, was an effort to get away from usual one word-searching through the dictionary names that are often used by bands. According to an interview with the band by Steve Lamacq
Steve Lamacq
Steve Lamacq , sometimes known by his nicknames Lammo or "The Cat" is an English disc jockey, currently working with the BBC radio stations BBC 6 Music and BBC Radio 2.-Early career:He was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire...
on BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
, the name simply came from something a friend had said when the band was looking for a name.
Their first EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Number One In A Serious, was released in January 2005 on their own mini record label, Boon(e). Containing "Why Don't You Fix It?" and "Slow-Motion Powerslides (in Dee)", it was placed in the recommended section of Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
and received airplay from Steve Lamacq
Steve Lamacq
Steve Lamacq , sometimes known by his nicknames Lammo or "The Cat" is an English disc jockey, currently working with the BBC radio stations BBC 6 Music and BBC Radio 2.-Early career:He was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire...
.
A second EP, the five-track The Seal Cub Clubbing Club EP was released on Nomadic in November 2005 following a UK tour in support of Brakes
Brakes (band)
Brakes is a four member band from Brighton, England. The group formed in 2003. It consists of Eamon Hamilton , Thomas White , Marc Beatty , and Alex White .-Biography:Brakes formed in 2003, when Thomas White and Alex White of The Electric Soft Parade saw Eamon Hamilton perform...
. It gained positive reviews from the 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...
website and Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
.
The Seal Cub Clubbing Club EP II, a more poppy effort than their previous releases, was released on Nomadic in March 2006. Lead track "Celine" was notable for receiving nationwide airplay and being written "for NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
audiences so they don't cry".
In August 2006, The Seal Cub Clubbing Club played the Leeds Festival
Leeds Festival
Leeds Festival may refer to:*Reading and Leeds Festivals , a rock music festival in Leeds , West Yorkshire, England*Leeds Festival , European classical music festival in Leeds...
early in the afternoon on the Comedy stage. In September they toured the UK in support of British Sea Power
British Sea Power
British Sea Power are an indie rock band based in Brighton, England, although three of the band members originally come from Kendal in Cumbria. Critics have likened their sound to a variety of groups, from The Cure and Joy Division to the Pixies and Arcade Fire. The band are famed for their live...
. They have also toured with The Fall, Brakes, Juliette Lewis
Juliette Lewis
Juliette Lewis is an American actress and musician. She gained international fame for her role in the 1991 thriller Cape Fear for which she was nominated for both an Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress...
, and Clinic
Clinic (band)
Clinic are a Liverpool based post-punk revival band noted for their often fast-paced, eclectic sound. Their sound is often distinguished by the prominent use of vintage keyboards/organs, most notably the Philips Philicorda, and peculiar off-scale chord progressions.-Formation and early...
.
The single "World Of Fashion" was released in November 2006 on Nomadic receiving airplay from Steve Lamacq
Steve Lamacq
Steve Lamacq , sometimes known by his nicknames Lammo or "The Cat" is an English disc jockey, currently working with the BBC radio stations BBC 6 Music and BBC Radio 2.-Early career:He was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire...
and Huw Stevens on BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
. This was followed by nationwide headlinging tour and then a tour in support of Black Wire
Black Wire
Black Wire were an English indie rock band formed in Leeds, England.-Members:*Daniel Wilson *Si McCabe *Tom Greatorex *Danny Prescott -History:...
.
An album was recorded in a country house in France, during summer 2006 and was ready for release in Spring 2007 according to their interview in Kruger Magazine issue 12.
According to the flyer for the summer 2007 tour supporting The Smiths Indeed
The Smiths Indeed
The Smiths Indeed is a tribute band dedicated to The Smiths. The band is from Liverpool in the North West of England.-Background:The band were formed in 2005. They played their first show in Glasgow in December 2005 and they quickly gained a reputation for excellent live shows...
, the album was to be called Super Science Fiction. However, due to contractual wrangles with Nomadic Music, and the subsequent collapse of the label, the album was delayed, finally being released in 2009. In April 2008 the band finally left Nomadic Music, not long after the release of Number Three In A Serious, which was put out on the band's own Boon(e) Records label. The lead track on this release was "May", and a video for the b-side "Tin Drum", a re-edited short film about a man who compulsively attends the funerals of strangers, appeared on YouTube. The band were nominated for an XFM
Xfm
Xfm is a brand of two commercial radio stations focused on alternative music, primarily indie pop, and owned by Global Radio.-History:Xfm was created in London in 1992 by Sammy Jacob, who later co-founded NME Radio in 2008. Xfm subsequently expanded to a network of four stations; there are...
'Newcomer of the Year' award and performed at the T in the Park
T in the Park
T in the Park is a major British music festival that has been held annually since 1994. It is named after its main sponsor, the brewing company Tennents. It was originally held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire but since 1997 has been held at a disused airfield in Balado, Kinross-shire...
festival, and also recorded a session for Marc Riley
Marc Riley
Marc Riley is a British musician, alternative rock critic and radio DJ on BBC 6 Music. Formerly a member of The Fall, he had his own record label, In-Tape, and also worked as a record plugger...
's BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
show.
In November and December 2008, members of the band supported the launch of DING>>DONG - the final exhibition of the year during the European Capital of Culture
European Capital of Culture
The European Capital of Culture is a city designated by theEuropean Union for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong European dimension....
programme at the Foundation for Art and Creative Technology
Foundation for Art and Creative Technology
FACT is a new media arts centre based on Wood Street in Liverpool, England.-Support for the creative industries:...
.
In 2010, the band released 'Royal Variety'. The album was made BBC 6 Music's 'Album of the Day' and received strong airplay from regular supporter Marc Riley. The band returned to record another two sessions for the DJ in the same year. In the final of the three sessions the band said that they were 'rubbish' live and claimed that working full-time jobs had restricted their ability to practice and gig. In the same interview they revealed that the second single from 'Royal Variety' would be chosen by a public vote.
The band also run their own book club, bringing books to gigs for fans to borrow or swap.
Musical style
The band have been described by Gigwise.comGigwise.com
Gigwise.com is an online music magazine that features music news, photos, album reviews, music festivals, concert tickets, and a community forum. Founded in 2001, the magazine is based in the United Kingdom....
as sounding like "The Coral
The Coral
The Coral are an English band formed in 1996 in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula in England. The band first emerged during the early 2000s and found success with their debut album The Coral and follow up Magic and Medicine...
on acid", also being compared to Echo & the Bunnymen
Echo & the Bunnymen
Echo & the Bunnymen are an English post-punk band, formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bass player Les Pattinson, supplemented by a drum machine. By 1980, Pete de Freitas had joined as the band's drummer, and their debut...
. CityLife
City Life (Magazine)
City Life was a Manchester-based listings magazine that was published between December 1983 and December 2005. It was a distinctive blend of radical politics and coverage of the increasingly exciting Manchester youth culture scene of the early 1980s, coinciding with the rise of Factory Records and...
, however, suggested that the band were inspired by The Fall or Kid A
Kid A
Kid A is the fourth studio album by the English rock band Radiohead, released in October 2000 by the Parlophone label. A commercial success worldwide, Kid A went platinum in its first week of release in the United Kingdom. Despite the lack of an official single or music video as publicity, Kid A...
-era Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
. They have also been compared to Super Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band that lean towards psychedelic rock and electronic experimentation. Since their formation in Cardiff, Wales in 1993, the band has consisted of Gruff Rhys , Huw Bunford , Guto Pryce , Cian Ciaran and Dafydd Ieuan Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band...
.
EPs
- Number One In A Serious (2005), Boon(e)
- The Seal Cub Clubbing Club EP (2005), Nomadic
- The Seal Cub Clubbing Club EP II (2006), Nomadic
Singles
- "World Of Fashion" (2006), Nomadic
- "Number Three In A Serious" (2008), Boon(e)
- "Dawn Lamb" (2009), Jack to Phono