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Her's

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Her's
Her's performing in 2018
Background information
OriginLiverpool, England
Genres
Years active2015 (2015)–2019 (2019)
LabelsHeist or Hit
Past members
  • Stephen Fitzpatrick
  • Audun Laading
Websitethatbandofhers.com

Her's (also written as thatbandofhers) were an indie rock band from Liverpool, England composed of English guitarist and singer Stephen Fitzpatrick and Norwegian bassist and backing vocalist Audun Laading. They released a compilation album, Songs of Her's (2017), followed by a full-length studio album, Invitation to Her's (2018).

The duo and their tour manager were killed in a road traffic collision in Arizona while touring the United States in 2019.[1] Heist or Hit Records said of the band's legacy: "their energy, vibrancy, and talent came to define our label".[2]

Members

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Fitzpatrick (top) and Laading (bottom) performing at Way Back When Festival, 2017

The band's line-up consisted of Stephen Fitzpatrick, from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England, who sang lead vocals and played guitar, and Audun Laading, from Flekkerøy, Kristiansand, Norway, who played bass guitar and sang backing vocals.[3] Fitzpatrick was also a drummer,[4] but the band used a drum machine with both members contributing to its programming.[5][6][7]

History

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Fitzpatrick and Laading met at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts,[3] (from which they both graduated in 2016 after three-year music degrees, being presented with their certificates by Paul McCartney at a graduation ceremony).[8][9] Whilst still students they formed Her's in 2015, after having previously played together in the rhythm section of another Liverpool band named 'The Sundogs'.[10][11] The duo initially formed Her's in jest, travelling around Liverpool filming comedic music videos and posting them on YouTube.[12]

They released their debut single, "Dorothy", on 7 April 2016.[13] They performed on the 2016 Green Man Festival Rising Stage.[4] A nine-track compilation titled Songs of Her's was released on 12 May 2017.[14] The compilation received four stars from The Skinny.[5] Writing for NME in April 2017, Thomas Smith said:[15]

Her's are not a group to stand still. Each song they produce, from the lo-fi bedroom pop power of debut track to 'Dorothy' to the duo's equally melodic take on slacker-rock on 'Marcel', sees the Liverpool-based duo shift and float between sounds. Never really fitting into one genre, but somehow nailing whatever they end up doing.

The band later released their debut full-length album, Invitation to Her's, on Heist or Hit Records[15] on 24 August 2018.[16][17][18] Her's were featured on Paste's list titled "The 15 New Liverpool Bands You Need to Know in 2018".[19] An acoustic performance by the band at the 2019 South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, US was also featured on BBC Music Introducing.[8] The album includes the single "Harvey" which according to Genius, is a reference to the 1950 film Harvey.[20]

Equipment

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The duo were very loyal to their choice of guitar and bass. Laading used a Rickenbacker 4001 for his main bass while Fitzpatrick used a Fender Blacktop Series Jaguar HH for his main guitar. There were times where they didn't use their main instruments live. During live performances, both of them use a drum machine (specifically the Novation Launchpad USB MIDI Controller for Ableton Live) hooked to a MacBook Pro.[21]

Deaths

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On 27 March 2019, around 1 a.m., Fitzpatrick and Laading (both aged 25), along with their tour manager, Trevor Engelbrektson (aged 37) from Minneapolis, were killed in a head-on traffic collision and subsequent vehicle fire near Milepost 68 on Interstate 10, west of Tonopah, Arizona.[22][23][24][25] They were travelling from Phoenix, Arizona, where they had played at the Rebel Lounge[26] on 26 March, to perform a show on the following evening in Santa Ana, California, some 350 miles (560 km) away, as part of a 19-date second tour of North America.[8][24] The Arizona Department of Public Safety confirmed that Engelbrektson had been driving the band's Ford tour van at the time of the crash.[24][27] The driver of a Nissan pick-up truck, Francisco Rebollar, aged 64, from Murrieta, California, was also killed in the collision; a subsequent police investigation of the scene located a bottle of alcohol in the wreckage.[28][24] At the time of the crash, the Arizona Department of Public Safety was already responding to reports of the Nissan pick-up truck travelling at speed in the wrong direction going eastbound on the westbound carriageway.[25][29]

A requiem mass for Fitzpatrick was held at St. Mary's (Roman Catholic) Church, Barrow-in-Furness, on 23 April 2019.[30]

Legacy

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Musician and friend of the two Strawberry Guy has attributed his stage name to Her's (in which he got his name from a drunk question by Laading.)[a]

The duo's favourite actor, Pierce Brosnan, paid tribute to the band with a Instagram post[32] after they toured with a cardboard cut-out of him (Fitzpatrick went as far to call Brosnan: "Our band spirit animal. Our third member")[33][34]

On the five year anniversary of the duo's deaths, their families and friends opened the Friends of Her's memorial. The fund has aimed to help combat homelessness in Liverpool, United Kingdom, where the two met.

In June 30 2024, The Rebel Lounge hosted a memorial tribute concert for the two, featuring multiple local musicians. Proceeds were donated to Friends of Her's.[35]

On November 8 2024, Heist or Hit Records released a "Song's of Her's" boxset where all proceeds went towards the memorial fund.[36]

Discography

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Albums

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Studio albums

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Title Details
Invitation to Her's

Compilation albums

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Title Details
Songs of Her's
  • Released: 12 May 2017[11]
  • Label: Heist or Hit
  • Formats: CD, digital download, vinyl

Singles

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Title Year Album
"Dorothy/What Once Was"[37] 2016 Songs of Her's
"Marcel"[10]
"Speed Racer"[10] 2017
"I'll Try"[10]
"Loving You"
(Minnie Riperton cover)[4] 		Non-album single
"Love on the Line (Call Now)"[38] 2018 Invitation to Her's
"Low Beam"[4]
"Harvey"[4]
"Under Wraps"[4]

Music videos

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Year Title Director
2017 "Speed Racer" Samuel O'Brien[39]
2018 "Under Wraps" Jorge A. Ramos[40]
2019 "Harvey" James Embrey[41]
"She Needs Him" Sébastien Séjourné[42]
2020 "Marcel" Camille Laading[43]

Notes

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  1. ^ "Strawberry Guy's music is a testament to the memory of the missed duo as Her’s came up with the name Strawberry Guy. ‘It was Audun actually. We were walking back from a festival all quite drunk and we were talking about drinks for some reason. Audun asked me, “If you could have any drink right now that wasn’t alcohol, what would you have?” and I replied with “strawberry milkshake”. He then went “Ah, you’re a strawberry guy!”, and I thought it was a good artist name. He then went “Yeah, you’re Strawberry Guy now.” I knew then when I released music it would be under that name. I thought it was sweet, soft and smooth like my music hopefully.’"[31]

References

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  1. ^ Clarke, Stewart (29 March 2019). "Both Members of British Band Her's, and Their Tour Manager, Die in U.S. Car Crash". variety.com.
  2. ^ Lim, Alex (26 June 2023). "KRUA album review: 'Songs of Her's' by Her's". The Northern Light. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  3. ^ a b Mackay, Emily (25 August 2018). "Ones to watch: Her's". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Steward, Ciaran (23 August 2018). "Her's: "It's crazy; fans know the lyrics and everything"". Dork. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  5. ^ a b Fitzpatrick, Will (8 May 2017). "Her's – Songs of Her's". The Skinny. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Cumbrian musician dies in US crash alongside bandmate". News & Star with The Cumberland News. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  7. ^ Torpey, Christopher (29 March 2019). "Her's: Liverpool's indie scene reels at death of 'the loveliest lads'". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  8. ^ a b c "Her's: Liverpool band killed in US crash". BBC News. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  9. ^ "Stephen & Audun Graduate from LIPA" – via YouTube.
  10. ^ a b c d Dhillon, Achal (25 September 2017). "New dream-pop duo Her's are well worth listening to". Metro. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  11. ^ a b c Clare, Martin (29 March 2019). "Liverpool Duo Her's Have Died While on Tour". Paste. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  12. ^ Milton, Jamie (23 June 2017). "No Joke: Her's". DIY. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Introducing Her's: Hear debut track 'Dorothy'". Heist or Hit. 7 April 2016. Archived from the original on 28 July 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  14. ^ "Her's debut new song, 'I'll Try'". DIY. 10 April 2017. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  15. ^ a b Smith, Thomas (10 April 2017). "New Music Of The Day: Her's' I'll Try". NME. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  16. ^ Goggins, Joe (24 August 2018). "Her's – Invitation To..." DIY. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  17. ^ "Her's announce debut album 'Invitation To Her's' with new track 'Low Beam'". DIY. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  18. ^ Maicki, Salvatore (28 May 2018). "Her's announce debut album, share new single 'Low Beam'". The Fader. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  19. ^ Manno, Lizzie (20 August 2018). "The 15 New Liverpool Bands You Need to Know in 2018". Paste. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  20. ^ Crane, Natalie (2 April 2019). "In Memoriam: Remembering the Life, Spirit, and Energy of Her's". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  21. ^ "Her's | Equipboard". equipboard.com. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
  22. ^ Daly, Rhian (28 March 2019). "Liverpool band Her's have died while on tour in the US". NME. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  23. ^ Stiernberg, Bonnie (28 March 2019). "Liverpool Band Her's Killed in Car Accident While Touring America". Billboard. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  24. ^ a b c d Loose, Ashley (29 March 2019). "UK music duo was killed in AZ I-10 wrong-way crash, BBC says". KNXV. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  25. ^ a b "Wrong-way crash: Members of British indie duo Her's identified as victims". Parker Pioneer. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  26. ^ "Fans react to news that Liverpool band Her's were killed by wrong-way driver after Phoenix show". Azcentral.com. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
  27. ^ "Her's, British indie duo, killed in wrong-way collision in Arizona". Cbsnews.com. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  28. ^ "Her's: Band's crash caused by 'wrong-way driver'". Bbc.co.uk. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  29. ^ "British band 'killed by wrong-way driver'". BBC News. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  30. ^ "Stephen Joshua Fitzpatrick". The Mail. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  31. ^ Secret Meeting (9 December 2021). "Interview: Strawberry Guy". Secret Meeting. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  32. ^ Brosnan, Pierce. "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  33. ^ "Pierce Brosnan Pays Tribute". NME. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  34. ^ "Her's on LIPA, drum machines, and Songs of Her's - The Skinny". www.theskinny.co.uk. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  35. ^ "Her's Tribute Concert". The Rebel Lounge. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  36. ^ Heist or Hit. "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  37. ^ Millar, Mark (29 April 2016). "Track of the Day: Her's – "Dorothy"". XS Noize. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  38. ^ Murray, Robin (22 May 2018). "Listen: Her's – 'Love On The Line (Call Now)'". Clash Magazine. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  39. ^ "Her's – Speed Racer". YouTube. 8 March 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  40. ^ "Her's – Under Wraps". YouTube. 24 October 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  41. ^ "Her's – Harvey". YouTube. 1 March 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  42. ^ "Her's – She Needs Him". YouTube. 29 May 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  43. ^ "Her's – Marcel". YouTube. 26 November 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
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