Bat for Lashes

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Bat for Lashes

Background information
Also known as Natasha Khan
Born 25 October 1979 (1979-10-25) (age 29)
Origin Brighton, UK
Genre(s) Indie
Alternative
Label(s) She Bear Records, Parlophone, Manimal Vinyl
Notable instrument(s)
Vocals, piano, harpsichord, autoharp, bass, guitar[1]
Live band line-up
Members
Ben Christophers
Charlotte Hatherley
Sarah Jones
Former members
Abi Fry
Caroline Weeks
Katherine Mann
Alex Thomas
Lizzy Carey

Bat for Lashes is the pseudonym of British musician Natasha Khan (born 25 October 1979), a Brighton-based songwriter.

Contents

[edit] Background

Khan was born to a Pakistani father and English mother on 25 October 1979. Her father, Rehmat Khan, is a former professional squash player and coach who is best known as the coach of his cousin, former world champion Jahangir Khan.[1] Natasha graduated in music and visual arts;[2] while at university her experimental work was influenced by artists such as Steve Reich and Susan Hiller, and she produced multi-media work centred on sound installations, animations and performance. She went on to work as a nursery school teacher, and it was during this period that she began writing the material for her first album. "Whenever I'm writing music it's a very visual place in my mind," said Khan. "It has a location full of characters and colours and landscapes, so those two things really complement each other, and they help the other one to blossom and support the other. They are like brother and sister."[3]

Her debut single, "The Wizard," was released digitally through Drowned in Sound records and on seven-inch vinyl through Khan's own imprint, She Bear Records. She then signed to the record label Echo, alongside Feeder and former Moloko singer Róisín Murphy, and released her debut album, Fur and Gold, on 11 September 2006. In 2007, Bat for Lashes parted company with Echo and signed to Parlophone records. Fur and Gold was re-released with the addition of bonus material. A limited vinyl version was released by Los Angeles indie label, Manimal Vinyl in May 2007.

Bat for Lashes' music has been likened to the work of Björk, PJ Harvey, Annie Lennox, Tori Amos, Fiona Apple. Her album "Two Suns" has been compared to the work of Stevie Nicks, Dolores O'Riordan, Fleetwood Mac and Clannad.

In 2007, Bat for Lashes appeared at Glastonbury and toured the USA.[4] On 17 July, Fur and Gold was announced as one of the albums nominated for the 2007 Mercury Prize, losing out to Klaxons' Myths of the Near Future despite being a favourite of British media to win the award.[5]

Also in 2007, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) awarded her with the ASCAP Vanguard Award and chose her to perform at ASCAP's prestigious "ASCAP Presents..." showcase at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas.

She was one of the nominees for 'Best British Breakthrough Act' and 'Best British Female' at the Brit Awards 2008.

She came to prominence in 2008 for her distinctive music video for "What's a Girl to Do." [2]

Thom Yorke and M.I.A. have previously complimented her work, Björk was also spotted at her early gigs.[3][6] Radiohead's 2008 tour featured several shows with Bat for Lashes as their opening act.[3]

Bat for Lashes appeared on Manimal Vinyl's tribute record Perfect As Cats, which is a tribute to The Cure. She covered "A Forest," which was originally a single by The Cure in 1980.

The Bat for Lashes live line-up contains an ever-revolving cast of musicians often changing on a per-tour basis. The latest line-up includes Ben Christophers, Charlotte Hatherley and Sarah Jones, who also plays drums with New Young Pony Club. This line-up was announced in March 2009.

Bat for Lashes released her second album Two Suns in April 2009, with the song "Daniel" released as the first single in March.

In April 2009 she appeared on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. She performed an acoustic version of the single, "Daniel," and also covered "Use Somebody" by Kings of Leon.

Her first appearance on US broadcast television was 1 May 2009 on The Late Show with David Letterman, performing the song "Daniel."[7]

On May 15, 2009 she appeared on NPR (World Cafe) where she performed live Daniel (similar to the BBC Radio One version), Moon and Moon (piano only) and Prescilla. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104190614

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

Year Title Peak Chart Positions Certifications
(sales thresholds)
UK IRE CHE FIN FLA FRA US WAL
2006 Fur and Gold 48 — — — — 130 — —
2009 Two Suns
  • Released: April 6, 2009
  • Formats: CD, vinyl, digital download
 5 17 94 39 26 56 141 74

[edit] Singles

Year Song Chart positions Album
UK ITA BEL
2006 "Trophy" — — — Fur and Gold
"The Wizard" — — —
2007 "Prescilla" — — —
"What's a Girl to Do?" 141 — —
2009 "Daniel" 36 31 47 Two Suns
"Pearl's Dream" — — —

[edit] Other contributions

[edit] Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result
2007 Mercury Prize Fur and Gold Nominated
2007 ASCAP Awards Vanguard Award Won
2008 Brit Awards British Breakthrough Act Nominated
2008 Brit Awards British Solo Female Nominated

[edit] References

  1. ^ Bat for Lashes: off the wall, The Daily Telegraph, 26 February 2009
  2. ^ interview with Natasha Khan, arbobo.fr, June 11, 2007.
  3. ^ a b c Interview with Natasha Khan, David Shankbone, Wikinews, September 28, 2007.
  4. ^ Bat for Lashes
  5. ^ Mercury Prize: The nominees BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Mercury Prize: The nominees
  6. ^ Zane Lowe - BBC Radio 1 August 15 2007
  7. ^ "Live on David Letterman - May 1st". http://www.batforlashes.com/latest_news/entry/live_on_letterman_-_may_1st/. Retrieved on 2009-05-03. 

[edit] External links

Sister project Wikinews has related news: Bat for Lashes plays the Bowery Ballroom: an Interview with Natasha Khan
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bat_for_Lashes"
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