Bleachers (band)
{{Short description|American alternative rock band}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2022}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Bleachers
| image = Bleachers on set of "Modern Girl" music video shoot.jpg
| landscape = yes
| caption = Bleachers on set filming their music video "Modern Girl" in 2023
| alias =
| origin = Bergenfield, New Jersey, U.S.
| genre = {{hlist|Indie pop|new wave|rock|alternative rock|synth-pop}}
| years_active = 2013–present
| label = {{hlist|RCA|Bleachers Band Recordings|Dirty Hit}}
| website = {{Official URL}}
| current_members =
- Jack Antonoff
- Zem Audu
- Mikey Freedom Hart
- Sean Hutchinson
- Michael Riddleberger
- Evan Smith
}}
Bleachers is an American rock band from New Jersey, formed in 2013 by musician Jack Antonoff. Antonoff was the only permanent member of the group until 2023, when longtime touring musicians Mikey Freedom Hart, Sean Hutchinson, Evan Smith, Michael Riddleberger, and Zem Audu became official members.
Bleachers' early music was heavily influenced by the late 1980s and early 1990s, plus the high school-based films of John Hughes while still using modern production techniques.
Their debut single "I Wanna Get Better" was released in February 2014, followed by five studio albums: Strange Desire (2014), Gone Now (2017), Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night (2021), Bleachers (2024), and a re-recording of their debut album, titled, A Stranger Desired (2024).
Career
= 2013–2016: Origins and ''Strange Desire'' =
File:Bleachers Reading and Leeds festival - Chloe Pace.jpg
While on the road with his band, Fun, 11-time Grammy winning producer, singer, songwriter, and musician, Jack Antonoff began working on a new project during his time in different cities. For about a year he kept the project a secret until February 18, 2014, when the first single "I Wanna Get Better" was released along with the launch of Bleachers' website, social media profiles, and a selection of tour dates.{{cite web|title=Bleachers NYC|url=http://donyc.com/artists/bleachers|website=Donyc.com|access-date=23 February 2017}} News of Bleachers was first publicly announced in a Facebook post by Brooklyn music studio Mission Sound in May 2013.{{cite web |first=Ryan |last=Cormier |title=Just what is Bleachers act announced for Firefly? |publisher=Delaware Online |url=https://www.delawareonline.com/story/entertainment/music/2014/01/21/just-what-is-bleachers-act-announced-for-firefly/4724521/|access-date=March 2, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612231220/https://www.delawareonline.com/story/entertainment/music/2014/01/21/just-what-is-bleachers-act-announced-for-firefly/4724521/ |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |url-status=dead }}
About making the first Bleachers album, Antonoff said, "I spent the past year working on the music but not talking about it, and eventually it became this psychotic alter-ego situation, where it was second nature to have this part of me that no one knew about. Except for a small group of people, most of which happened to be members of my immediate family, no one was aware that this music, or this album even existed... even though it existed so deeply to me."{{cite web |last=Montgomery |first=James |url=https://www.mtv.com/news/1722499/jack-antonoff-fun-bleachers-band/ |title=How Taylor Swift And Hayley Williams Helped Fun.'s Guitarist Go Solo |publisher=MTV |date=February 17, 2014 |access-date=January 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140303023848/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1722499/jack-antonoff-fun-bleachers-band.jhtml |archive-date=March 3, 2014 |url-status=dead }} Antonoff also stated that Bleachers was never meant to be a departure from his position in Fun.,{{cite web |last=Obenschain |first=Philip |url=http://www.altpress.com/news/entry/bleachers_fun.s_jack_antonoff_unveil_debut_single_tour_dates_announce_yoko |publisher=Alternative Press |title=Bleachers (Fun.'s Jack Antonoff) unveil debut single, tour dates, announce Yoko Ono collaboration |date=February 19, 2014 |access-date=February 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140301021657/http://www.altpress.com/news/entry/bleachers_fun.s_jack_antonoff_unveil_debut_single_tour_dates_announce_yoko |archive-date=March 1, 2014 |url-status=dead }} and that he will remain in the band.
Bleachers' debut album Strange Desire was released July 10, 2014, from RCA Records.{{cite web|author=Jon Blistein |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/jack-antonoff-details-bleachers-album-via-craigslist-ad-20140515 |title=Jack Antonoff Details Bleachers Debut Album 'Strange Desire' Via Craigslist Ad | Music News |publisher=Rolling Stone |date=2014-05-15 |access-date=2014-07-14}} Variance Magazine called the single "Rollercoaster" a "brilliant summer anthem".{{cite web|url=http://variancemagazine.com/sounds/3312-songs-of-summer-2014|title=Readers Select 2014 Songs of Summer|date=June 25, 2014 }} Bleachers went on their debut Come Alive! tour, which features Night Terrors of 1927 and Joywave as opening acts, from March to April 2015.{{cite web|url=http://www.idolator.com/7572792/bleachers-spring-2015-tour-see-dates|title=Bleachers Announce Spring 2015 North American Tour: See The Dates|work=Idolator|date=December 3, 2014 }} From there, they went on the Strange Desire World Tour from July to November of that same year.{{Cite web|url=https://digitaltourbus.com/news/bleachers-announce-strange-desire-world-tour/|title=Bleachers Announce "The Strange Desire World Tour"|website=Digital Tour Bus|access-date=2018-02-28|date=2014-07-26}} They juggled this with the Charli and Jack Do America Tour, a tour co-headlined by Bleachers and Charli XCX.
File:Bleachers, Bush Hall, London (16643072361).jpg
On September 25, 2015, Bleachers released Terrible Thrills, Vol. 2, a sequel to Strange Desire. The album contained songs from Strange Desire being covered by numerous female artists with modified tunes. When asked about the album, Antonoff told Billboard “I hear my songs being sung by females before I change them and make them into my voice. The whole heart of this idea is for people to hear the album the way I hear it in my head, reinterpreted by the artists who sort of inspired it to be written in the first place.” Covers were contributed from artists such as Sara Bareilles, Charli XCX, and Sia.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/bleachers-jack-antonoff-interview-covers-album-6714493/|title=Bleachers' Jack Antonoff Explains All-Female Covers Album, Gives New Album Update|magazine=Billboard|date=2015-09-29|access-date=2022-01-16}} The band appeared as the fictional band Baby Goya and The Nuclear Winters in the 2015 film Hello, My Name Is Doris.
= 2017–2019: ''Gone Now'' and ''Love, Simon'' =
Bleachers' second album Gone Now was released June 2, 2017. Its lead single "Don't Take the Money" has been described by Atwood Magazine as "an epic uplifting pop-rock anthem ultimately about how when love is real, its worth everything that comes along with it". In celebration of the album release, he brought his childhood bedroom on tour with him. He had it dismantled and rebuilt inside of a portable trailer. During May and June concerts, fans could enter the "moving, living art exhibit" and listen to the album prior to its official release. Antonoff explained in a press release, saying "when I thought about where this album was coming from and what it’s kissing goodbye I thought of this room. I wished I could play the album for people who care about Bleachers in this space that it is coming from and leaving."{{Cite news|url=https://www.spin.com/2017/05/bleachers-jack-antonoff-bedroom-trailer-tour/|title=Bleachers' Jack Antonoff Takes Childhood Home on Tour|date=2017-05-17|work=Spin|access-date=2018-02-28}} The band was on its Gone Now Era: Part 1 tour from September to November 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/bleachersmusic/status/889925272639864838|title=new headline dates added this fall w/ @thatgirlbishop, tickets on-sale at 10am friday|last=bleachers|date=2017-07-25|website=@bleachersmusic|language=en|access-date=2018-02-28}} The tour featured Tove Styrke, Bishop Briggs, and Tangerine as openers.
In September 2017, Bleachers performed on MTV Unplugged at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey. The live session was later released as an album, also entitled MTV Unplugged. The album features 11 tracks from both Gone Now and Strange Desire and was released November 10, 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/bleachers-announces-mtv-unplugged-album-shares-new-i-miss-those-days-video-watch/|title=Bleachers Announces MTV Unplugged Album, Shares New "I Miss Those Days" Video: Watch|website=Pitchfork|date=October 24, 2017 |access-date=2018-02-28}} Antonoff produced the soundtrack of Love, Simon, released on March 16, 2018.{{cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/love-simon-original-motion-picture-soundtrack/1334779517|title=Love, Simon (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists on Apple Music|work=iTunes Store (US)|access-date=January 16, 2018}} He contributed five songs, with four being credited to Bleachers—"Alfie's Song (Not So Typical Love Song)", "Rollercoaster", "Keeping a Secret", and "Wild Heart"— and one credited to his real name, a duet with MØ titled "Never Fall in Love". Throughout 2019, Bleachers released the third volume of Terrible Thrills in a series of four vinyl records, each featuring covers of songs from Gone Now by female artists as well as new demos by Bleachers.{{cite web |title=Mitski, Julien Baker, More To Rework Jack Antonoff Songs On Bleachers' Terrible Thrills, Vol. 3 |url=https://www.spin.com/2018/11/bleachers-terrible-thrills-vol-3-jack-antonoff-songs-reimagined-by-mitski-julien-baker/ |publisher=Spin |access-date=10 November 2022}}
= 2020–present: ''Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night'', ''Bleachers'' and ''A Stranger Desired''=
File:Bleachers Cologne - Chloe Pace.jpg
In late 2019, Antonoff began recording the third Bleachers album. During this time the band embarked on a three-day "mini-tour" called the "I Love Making This Album but I'm Also Losing My Mind in Here & Need to Come Out and Play" Tour.{{cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/8532979/jack-antonoff-bleachers-mini-tour|title=Jack Antonoff Announces Bleachers Mini Tour While Recording Third Album|last=Aniftos|first=Rania|publisher=Billboard|date=October 14, 2019|access-date=August 4, 2020}} On January 6, 2020, Antonoff announced on Twitter that a new Bleachers album would come within the year.{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/en_au/news/music/jack-antonoff-is-releasing-a-new-bleachers-album-this-year-2594089|title=Jack Antonoff is releasing a new Bleachers album this year|last=Skinner|first=Tom|publisher=NME|date=January 7, 2020|access-date=August 4, 2020}} In May, Bleachers was featured on Carly Rae Jepsen's song "Comeback" which was the first official release of the band in nearly two years.
File:Bleachers - Fillmore Minneapolis, 10-26-2021 - 0001 60.jpg
On November 16, 2020, Bleachers released the first two singles from Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night, "45" and "Chinatown", the latter featuring Bruce Springsteen. The same day it was announced that the album would be released in 2021.{{cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/angelicaamartinez/jack-antonoff-bleachers-new-album-bruce-springsteen|title=Bleachers Has A New Album Coming Out In 2021, And We Just Got The First Two Tracks|last=Martinez|first=Angelica|work=Buzzfeed|date=November 16, 2020|access-date=November 16, 2020}} "Stop Making This Hurt", the third single, was released on May 18, 2021.{{cite web|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bleachers-drop-song-video-stop-133500632.html|title=Bleachers Drop New Song and Video, 'Stop Making This Hurt'; Album Due in July. |website=Yahoo! Entertainment| date=May 18, 2021|access-date=May 18, 2021}} Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night was released on July 30.{{cite web|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bleachers-drop-song-video-stop-133500632.html|title=Bleachers Drop New Song and Video, 'Stop Making This Hurt'; Album Due in July. |website=Yahoo! Entertainment| date=May 18, 2021|access-date=May 18, 2021}} Bleachers announced a North American tour for Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night in May 2021.{{Cite web|date=2021-05-18|title=Bleachers Announces New Album and 2021 Tour, Shares Video for New Song|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/bleachers-announces-new-album-and-2021-tour-shares-video-for-new-song-watch/|access-date=2021-11-16|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}} On October 28, Bleachers announced on Facebook that they will be performing two shows in March 2022 at Roadrunner, Boston dedicated to their first two albums: Strange Desire and Gone Now.{{Cite web|title=Facebook|url=https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=423516539142620&set=pb.100044528315633.-2207520000..&type=3|access-date=2021-11-16|website=Facebook.com}} On the January 15, 2022, episode of Saturday Night Live, which was hosted by Ariana DeBose, Bleachers replaced the originally scheduled Roddy Ricch.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2022/01/snl-roddy-ricch-drops-out-1234909358/|title='SNL': Roddy Ricch Drops Out Due To Covid, Pop Band Bleachers Replaces Rapper As Musical Guest|last=White|first= Peter|work=Deadline|date=January 12, 2022|access-date=January 12, 2022}}
Later that month they announced "The 2022 Tour" featuring openers Allison Ponthier, Blu DeTiger, The Lemon Twigs, Beabadoobee, Charly Bliss, and Wolf Alice.{{cite web|url=https://consequence.net/2022/01/bleachers-2022-tour/|title=Bleachers Announce 2022 Tour|work=Consequence Of Sound|date=January 28, 2022|access-date=January 28, 2022}} In November 2022, the band featured on a remix of Taylor Swift's "Anti-Hero".{{cite magazine | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-anti-hero-remix-jack-antonoff-bleachers-1234626690/ | title=Jack Antonoff Offers Taylor Swift Art Bro Reassurance on 'Anti-Hero' Bleachers Remix | magazine=Rolling Stone | date=November 8, 2022 }} On March 24, 2023, the band featured on Lana Del Rey's song "Margaret" taken from Del Rey's album Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd,{{cite web | url=https://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/lana-del-rey/19095 | title=Must-listen: Lana del Rey and Bleachers duet on 'Margaret'|website=Coupdemainmagazine.com | date=March 24, 2023 }} which has surpassed 186 million Spotify streams.
In August 2023, Bleachers signed to independent UK-based record label, Dirty Hit, and later that month released the live album, Live at Radio City Music Hall.{{Cite web |last=Strauss |first=Matthew |date=2023-08-21 |title=Bleachers Sign to Dirty Hit Amid Flurry of Jack Antonoff Industry Moves |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/bleachers-sign-to-dirty-hit-amid-flurry-of-jack-antonoff-industry-moves/ |access-date=2024-10-11 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}
On September 20, 2023, Bleachers released "Modern Girl" as the first single from their fourth studio album, referred to at the time as "B4" in promotional material. A music video for the song was released the same day. "Alma Mater" was released as the second single on November 15;{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/bleachers-and-jack-antonoff-detail-album-share-new-song-alma-mater-listen/ |title=Bleachers and Jack Antonoff Detail Album, Share New Song "Alma Mater": Listen |last=Corcoran |first=Nina |website=Pitchfork |date=November 15, 2023 |access-date=December 13, 2023}} its music video was released on December 7.{{cite magazine |title=Jack Antonoff Takes a Night Drive Through Weird Jersey in Bleachers' 'Alma Mater' Video |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/bleachers-alma-mater-video-1234919790/ |date=December 7, 2023 |access-date=December 13, 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |last=Kreps |first=Daniel |url-access=subscription}} "Tiny Moves", the third single, was released on January 17, 2024.{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/bleachers-margaret-qualley-video-new-single-tiny-moves-3572559 |title=Bleachers share video for new single 'Tiny Moves' starring Margaret Qualley |date=January 18, 2024 |website=NME |last=Ordonez |first=Eli |access-date=January 19, 2024}} The fourth and final single from the album, "Me Before You", was released on February 22.{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/bleachers-drop-romantic-new-single-me-before-you-3591533 |title=Bleachers drop romantic new single 'Me Before You' |date=February 22, 2024 |website=NME |last=Rigotti |first=Alex |access-date=February 22, 2024}}
The album, titled Bleachers, was released on March 8,{{cite news |url=https://people.com/bleachers-announce-new-album-unveil-alma-mater-song-with-lana-del-rey-8402298 |title=Jack Antonoff's Band Bleachers Announce Self-Titled Album and Unveil New Song 'Alma Mater' with Lana Del Rey |date=November 15, 2023 |last=Irvin |first=Jack |access-date=November 18, 2023 |work=People}} with the 22-track deluxe edition of the album released later on May 17.{{cite web |url=https://star991hawaii.iheart.com/featured/mike-jones/content/2024-05-15-bleachers-is-putting-out-a-deluxe-edition-of-their-latest-album-on-friday/ |title=Bleachers Is Putting Out A Deluxe Edition Of Their Latest Album On Friday! |date=May 15, 2024 |website=Star 99.1 |last=Jones |first=Mike |accessdate=May 28, 2024}} On why the album is self-titled, Antonoff said; “I just felt it, I was like ‘this is the album. It’s not a new beginning, it’s not the end of something, it’s just sort of, like, planting a flag in the middle of the journey’”{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=3AB9K8BGqo8x2UKG&v=ND9JhXsUs-w&feature=youtu.be |title=Jack Antonoff on new Bleachers album {{!}} Interview {{!}} Vera On Track |date=2024-03-08 |last=Vera On Track |access-date=2024-10-13 |via=YouTube}}
On July 15, 2024, Jack Antonoff announced on his Instagram that a reimagined version of Bleachers' first album, Strange Desire, would soon be released under the title A Stranger Desired.{{Cite web |last=Dunworth |first=Liberty |date=2024-07-16 |title=Bleachers announce “reimagined” 10th anniversary version of debut album ‘Strange Desire’ |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/bleachers-announce-reimagined-10th-anniversary-version-of-debut-album-strange-desire-3775518 |access-date=2024-10-03 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} The first single, "Wild Heart", was released on August 1,{{Cite web |date=2024-08-02 |title=Bleachers Shares ’Wild Heart’ From The ’A Stranger Desired’ Album |url=https://uproxx.com/indie/bleachers-wild-heart-a-stranger-desired/ |access-date=2024-10-03 |website=UPROXX |language=en-US}} followed by the full album release on September 6.{{Cite web |last=Taylor |first=Sam |date=2024-09-06 |title=Bleachers have released 'A Stranger Desired', reimagining their debut album for its 10th anniversary |url=https://readdork.com/news/bleachers-release-a-stranger-desired/ |access-date=2024-10-03 |website=Dork |language=en-US}}
Following the release of their new self-titled record, the band kicked off their “From The Studio to the Stage” global tour with a 7-show sold out leg throughout the UK, and 40+ shows across the US, Europe, and Japan, including sold out dates at Red Rocks Amphitheatre and their largest headline show to date at Madison Square Garden.
On July 26, 2024, Bleachers released a live recording of "Margaret" with Jeff Tweedy performed live in Chicago, as part of the continuous live album "From the Studio to the Stage." The latest release was the live version of "Merry Christmas, Please Don't Call" performed at the Ally Coalition's Talent Show, performed on December 17th and released to streaming four days later.
Band members
File:Bleachers Kingston UK - Chloe Pace.jpg
Current
- Jack Antonoff – lead vocals, guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, programming, synthesizers, samples (2014–present)
- Mikey Freedom Hart – guitar, keyboards, synthesizers, piano, bass guitar, backing vocals (2023–present; touring 2014–2023)
- Sean Hutchinson – drums, sampler, synthesizers, bass guitar, backing vocals (2023–present; touring 2014–2023)
- Evan Smith – keyboards, synthesizers, saxophone, guitar, backing vocals (2023–present; touring 2014–2023)
- Mike Riddleberger – drums, sampler, keyboards, backing vocals (2023–present; touring 2016–2023)
- Zem Audu – keyboards, saxophone, guitar, bass guitar, backing vocals (2023–present; touring 2021–2023)
Former touring member
- Jon Shiffman – drums, sampler, backing vocals (2014–2015)
Discography
{{Infobox artist discography
| Artist = Bleachers
| Studio = 5
| Live = 3
| Compilation = 2
| EP = 2
| Singles = 15
| Option = 5
| Option name = Promotional singles
}}
= Studio albums =
= Live albums =
= Compilation albums =
= EPs =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+ List of EPs ! scope="col" style="width:16em;"| Title ! scope="col" style="width:19.5em;"| EP details |
| scope="row"| Spotify Sessions
| |
|---|
| scope="row"| Strange Desire: The Demos
|
|
= Singles =
= Promotional singles =
=Other charted songs=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1"
! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:16em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year ! scope="col" colspan="2"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Album |
| scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| US Alt {{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/bleachers/chart-history/avs/|title=Bleachers – Chart History: Hot Alternative Songs|magazine=Billboard|access-date=April 1, 2024}} ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"| US |
|---|
| scope="row"|"Margaret" {{small|(Lana Del Rey featuring Bleachers)}} |2023 | 18 || 43 |
=Guest appearances=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1"
|+Guest appearances credited to Bleachers ! scope="col" style="width:16em;"| Title ! scope="col" style="width:4em;"| Year ! scope="col" style="width:8em;"| Other Artist(s) ! scope="col" style="width:18em;"| Album |
| scope="row"|"Alfie's Song (Not So Typical Love Song)"
|rowspan="2"|2018 |rowspan="2" {{n/a}} |rowspan="2"|Love, Simon (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) |
|---|
| scope="row"|"Keeping a Secret" |
| scope="row"|"Comeback"
|2020 |
| scope="row"|"Instant Karma!"
|2022 |{{n/a}} |
| scope="row"|"Anti-Hero (Bleachers remix)"
|2022 |{{n/a|Non-album remix of a single}} |
| scope="row"|"Margaret"
|2023 |
= Notes =
{{reflist|group=upper-alpha}}
Tours
=Headlining=
- Strange Desire World Tour (2014)
- Come Alive! Tour (2015)
- Charli and Jack Do America Tour (with Charli XCX) (2015)
- Gone Now Era Tour (2017–2018)
- I Love Making This Album but I'm Also Losing My Mind in Here & Need to Come Out and Play Mini-Tour (2019)
- Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night Tour (2021)
- How Dare You Want Tour (2022)
- From The Studio To The Stage Tour (2024)
=Opening=
- Tour Four (with Paramore) (2018)
- At Their Very Best (2023, Finsbury Park){{cite web |last=Brannigan |first=Paul |date=13 February 2023 |title=The 1975 announce their biggest UK headline show ever |url=https://www.loudersound.com/news/the-1975-announce-their-biggest-uk-headline-show-ever |access-date=22 March 2023 |work=Louder Sound}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{commons category}}
- {{Official website|http://www.bleachersmusic.com/}}
- {{allMusic}}
{{Bleachers}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:American pop music groups