Paul Epworth

Paul Epworth
Origin	London, England
Genres	Indie, punk, hip-hop, pop, dance
Occupation(s)	Record producer, songwriter, musician, Remixer
Instrument(s)	Drums, bass, guitar, keyboards, trumpet, percussion
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Columbia Records
Website	paulepworth.com

Paul Epworth is an award-winning British music producer, musician, and songwriter. His production credits include Adele, Cee Lo Green, Florence and the Machine, Plan B, Friendly Fires, Bloc Party, Primal Scream, The Rapture, Jack Peñate, Kate Nash, Foster the People and Maxïmo Park.

Career

Lomax

From 2002–2004 Paul provided lead vocals & guitar for the band Lomax. He later remixed two songs from the band's catalogue – "Reiterator" and "Modern Life".

Phones/Epic Man

Epworth is well known for his remix work under the name Phones. He began to gain recognition with this moniker based on his work with Bloc Party's track "Banquet"; he has since provided remix work for New Order, U2, P-Diddy, Goldfrapp, Nine Inch Nails, Simian Mobile Disco, The Streets, Interpol, Tom Vek, Death from Above 1979, and Annie. His debut of original material under the Phones name, "Sharpen The Knives/Worryin", was released on French label Kitsuné in November 2006. In 2008 he announced he had killed off the Phones moniker but has said he continues to remix anonymously.

In early 2006 Paul Epworth began making music under another alias, Epic Man. His debut single, "More is Enough", featured Plan B and was featured on the soundtrack for Need For Speed: Pro Street and was released on Epworth's own Good & Evil Records, a subsidiary of 679 Recordings. He has since returned to his Phones name and there are no known plans to release under Epic Man again.

Production

In 2004-5, Epworth produced a quartet of critically acclaimed releases, including two Mercury Music Prize nominations in Silent Alarm by Bloc Party and A Certain Trigger by Maximo Park, the bulk of The Futureheads eponymous debut (including the hit Kate Bush cover "Hounds Of Love"), and Capture/Release by The Rakes as well as singles by Babyshambles and The Long Blondes. He also wrote and produced tracks for British rappers, Kano ("Don't Know Why") and Plan B ("No Good" and "Where You From") This was followed in 2006 by production work on Pieces of the People We Love by The Rapture and the debut album by French band Black Strobe, entitled Burn Your Own Church.

In 2007, Epworth began to contribute more co-writing credits alongside his production. For example, his production on the #1 debut album Made Of Bricks by Kate Nash included a writing credit on the hit single "Foundations" (for which he was nominated for an Ivor Novello songwriters award.) In 2008, Paul Epworth produced much of Sam Sparro's eponymous debut album which entered the UK album charts at number 4 and the Primal Scream single, "Cant Go Back", along with the title track of their recent album Beautiful Future. Epworth also completed production duties on much of the new Bloc Party record, Intimacy and co-wrote and produced Friendly Fires track "Jump In The Pool".

Early 2009 saw Epworth co-writing and recording Jack Peñate's critically lauded second album Everything Is New including the singles "Tonight's Today" and "Be the One". He also co-wrote and produced tracks for Florence and the Machine's debut album Lungs, including hit single "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)" along with the album tracks "Howl", "Cosmic Love", "Hurricane Drunk" and "Blinding". He also worked further with Friendly Fires on a single version of the track "Skeleton Boy" and produced the forthcoming single by The Big Pink, "Stop The World". In February 2009 he won best newcomer at the inaugural Music Producers Guild Awards. In Spring 2009, Paul co-produced another single with The Big Pink entitled "Dominos", and a new Friendly Fires single "Kiss Of Life".

Summer 2009 brought Epworth his third and fourth Mercury music prize nomination in the shape of Florence and the Machine's "Lungs" and Friendly Fires' eponymous debut. He also finished album tracks for Norwegian pop artist Annie for her delayed album "Don't Stop", and wrote the "Zingolo" for Cadbury's "Fair Trade" advert, featuring Ghanaian MC Tinny, mixed the track "Silva & Grimes" for Holy Fuck's Latin lp. He finished up the year working on new tracks by London MC/Singer Plan B for his number 1 album "The Defamation Of Strickland Banks" including the top 10 single "Stay Too Long", and tracks for Canadian duo Crystal Castles (including single Celestica), writing with Grammy winner Adele, singer Sky Ferreira and producing a single version of album track "Tonight" with The Big Pink.

In February 2010 Epworth won Brit Award / Music Producer's Guild Award for Producer Of The Year and received Music Week Producer of the Year in April.

Early 2010 saw Epworth deliver tracks for London band Chapel Club's forthcoming LP and begin work on both Friendly Fires' and Florence and the Machine's sophomore LPs. Alongside this, he also signed a solo deal with Columbia Records, with an album due late 2010 or early 2011. Epworth added his production hand to Primary 1's forthcoming album including lead single "Princess". Summer 2010 saw him also provide production on two versions of Cee Lo Green's cover of Band Of Horses' "No One's Gonna Love You", and for the single "It's OK".

Late 2010 / early 2011 saw the release of the acclaimed Epworth co-written and produced worldwide Number 1 single "Rolling in the Deep" from Adele, from the album 21. The album features three Epworth co-writes with Adele, of which he produced "I'll Be Waiting", while "He Won't Go" was produced by Rick Rubin. Summer 2011 saw Epworth working on The Big Pink's forthcoming lp "Future This" and the critically acclaimed "Ceremonials" by Florence + The Machine.

In December 2011 he received 4 Grammy Nominations for Producer of The Year, Album of the Year, Song Of The Year and Record of the Year while records he worked on received a further 4 nominations in various categories.

Discography

Singles (as Phones)

• 2006 "Sharpen The Knives / Worryin"

Singles (as Epic Man)

• 2006 "More Is Enough" (feat. Plan B)

Production

• 2004 The Futureheads – The Futureheads (679 Recordings)
• 2004 Babyshambles – "Killamangiro" (Rough Trade Records)
• 2005 Bloc Party – Silent Alarm (Wichita)
• 2005 Red Organ Serpent Sound – In Search of Orgazmus (Vertigo Records)
• 2005 Death from Above 1979 – Romance Bloody Romance (one track: "You're Lovely (But You've Got Problems)") (Vice Records)
• 2005 Maxïmo Park – A Certain Trigger (Warp Records)
• 2005 The Rakes – Capture/Release (V2)
• 2005 The Long Blondes – "Separated By Motorways" (Rough Trade Records)
• 2005 Kano – Home Sweet Home (one track: "I Don't Know Why") (679 Recordings)
• 2006 Acoustic Ladyland – Skinny Grin (6 tracks) (V2)
• 2006 The Rapture – Pieces of the People We Love (Motown/Universal)
• 2006 Plan B – Who Needs Actions When You Got Words (679 Recordings)
• 2006 White Rose Movement – Kick (Independiente)
• 2007 Black Strobe – Burn Your Own Church (Playlouderecordings)
• 2007 Kate Nash – Made of Bricks (Polydor)
• 2007 Shy Child – Noise Won't Stop (2 tracks) (Play It Again Sam)
• 2008 Sam Sparro – Sam Sparro (2 tracks) (Island Records)
• 2008 Primal Scream – Beautiful Future (2 tracks) (B-Unique)
• 2008 Bloc Party – Intimacy
• 2008 Friendly Fires – "Jump in the Pool" (XL Recordings)
• 2009 Friendly Fires – "Skeleton Boy" (XL Recordings)
• 2009 Friendly Fires – "Kiss Of Life" (XL Recordings)
• 2009 Jack Peñate – "Tonight's Today" (XL Recordings)
• 2009 Jack Peñate – Everything Is New (XL Recordings)
• 2009 Florence and the Machine – Lungs (Island Records)
• 2009 The Big Pink "Dominos" single (4AD)
• 2009 The Big Pink "Stop The World" single (4AD)
• 2009 Annie – Don't Stop
• 2010 Plan B – The Defamation of Strickland Banks (679/Atlantic)
• 2010 Cee Lo Green – The Lady Killer (Elektra)
• 2011 Adele – "Rolling in the Deep" single XL Records / Columbia
• 2011 Adele – "21" XL Records / Columbia
• 2011 Foster the People – "Torches" (Columbia Records)
• 2011 Friendly Fires – "Pala" (XL Recordings)
• 2011 Florence and the Machine – Ceremonials (Island Records)
• 2012 The Big Pink – Future This (I4AD)
• 2012 Azealia Banks- "Bambi"

Remixes

• 2004 Annie – "Heartbeat"
• 2004 Bloc Party – "Banquet"
• 2004 Death from Above 1979 – "Romantic Rights"
• 2004 The Futureheads – "Decent Days and Nights"
• 2004 The Streets – "Fit But You Know It"
• 2004 The Futureheads – "Hounds of Love"
• 2005 Gang of Four – "Not Great Men"
• 2005 Goldfrapp – "Ooh La La"
• 2005 The Kills – "Love Is a Deserter"
• 2005 New Order – "Krafty"
• 2005 The Killers – "Smile Like You Mean It"
• 2005 The Others – "This Is for the Poor"
• 2005 The Rakes – "Retreat"
• 2005 Tom Vek – "I Ain't Saying My Goodbyes"
• 2005 Tom Vek – "Nothing But Green Lights"
• 2005 White Rose Movement – "Alsatian"
• 2005 U2 – "City of Blinding Lights"
• 2006 Black Strobe – "Shining Bright Star"
• 2006 Bloc Party – "The Prayer"
• 2006 Muse – "Supermassive Black Hole"
• 2006 Wolf & Cub – "Thousand Cuts"
• 2007 Peter Bjorn and John feat. Victoria Bergsman – "Young Folks"
• 2007 Diddy – "Tell Me"
• 2007 New Young Pony Club – "The Bomb"
• 2007 Nine Inch Nails – "Capital G"
• 2007 Roxy Music – "Editions of You"
• 2007 Interpol – "The Heinrich Maneuver"
• 2007 Dead Soul Bros – "Come On Now"
• 2008 Pin Me Down – "Cryptic"
• 2008 Jape – I Was A Man
• 2008 The Black Ghosts – "Repetition Kills You"
• 2008 Friendly Fires – "Skeleton Boy"
• 2008 Bloc Party – "Talons"
• 2008 Santogold – "Say Aha"

External links

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