Hard-Fi
The first time I heard Hard-Fi was at a Green Day concert in mid-2005.
They were a support act substituting for Simple Plan who had pulled out. Apart from enjoying the catchy Cash Machine ("There's a hole in my pocket, my pocket, my pocket"), I thought nothing much of them and spent more of my energy on enjoying the 65,000 crowd with a camera in one hand and a beer in the other. They were to release their debut album a month later.
And they've since grown on me to the point that they're currently one of my favourite bands.
They formed in Staines, England (the home of Ali G, aaii) in 2003 and have two studio albums: Stars of CCTV and Once Upon a Time in the West (an interesting read concerning the cover art, or lack thereof, including those for the singles).
Hard-Fi's musical style is a mix of post-punk, indie and a Clash style of punk rock. They also take inspiration from other genres such as ska. On Stars of CCTV, they had a very raw sound, loud guitars, and frequent use of guitar, in contrast to Once Upon A Time In The West, on which there is a lot more orchestration, the use of strings is very apparent, most notably in the song "Watch Me Fall Apart".
And an obligatory YouTube pick from the hardfiband channel - 'Suburban Knights', the first track off their second album:
You might also enjoy fellow Brit bands:
- Kaiser Chiefs
- The Fratellis
- Athlete
- Razorlight
- And NYC's The Bravery (I always thought they were British too...)
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9 Comments
I shall add to your list as it is woefully short!
The Futureheads – check “The Beginning of the Twist”
The Zutons – check “Always Right Behind You”, and also the whole of the Who Killed the Zutons album.
Pigeon Detectives
and finally, the riduclously brilliant (but from NYC)
Vampire Weekend
Yeah, I’m a great fan of Hard-Fi! (And Razorlight and Kaiser Chiefs for that matter). I’ll have to check out these other recommendations though – thanks!
@Francois: you’ve been served!
@Ian: shot for the recommendations. Here’s some more.. The Kooks, The Hoosiers (“The Trick to Life” .. title track). Have you listened to Rilo Kiley? Awesome awesome.. check out “Under the Blacklight” (title track). Kubb – I remember seeing their album posted all over the underground and thinking they were a dance act. Or for something completely different – MGMT – “Kids” off their album “Oracular Spectacular”.
Oh and The Dirty Skirts are touring the UK, 11-21 September – definately try make it. Went to their album launch on Friday night, they keep getting better. Their new album has grown on me. Check out Can’t Remember Your Name
@Lorissa: Athlete, try “Hurricane”. You will probably recognise “Tourist” and “Wires”. The Bravery, “The Sun and the Moon” – entire album is just perfect. Enjoy ;)
Hard-Fi are pretty good, yeah.
I didn’t enjoy Once Upon a Time in the West as much as Stars of CCTV though … it was a bit predictable and polished for me.
Hard-Fi are awesome.
Agree with Ian, you have to add Pigeon Detectives to your list of awesome brit bands.
@Mark: I listened to The Pigeon Detectives’ “Wait For Me” to death, will have to check out their new album. They get some scathing reviews but their stuff is pretty catchy.
Dude… I was waaaaay ahead of the curve on Kubb. Not listened to anything since their debut though (which I actually bought with proper money and all!)
Another hot tip (although I’ve mentioned them so many times alread it’s more luke warm now) – Bombay Bicycle Club.
They’re so damn good I actually legally own both albums (more like EP’s really) and the latest single via iTunes and also have a vinyl copy of Open House. Listen to ‘How Are You’, ‘Evening/Morning’, and ‘Cancel On Me’.
They have a great cover of “seven nation army” by the white stripes. You should look for it.
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03 August 2008
Francois03:02 am
Is good good good bru!