Orson (band)
Orson |
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Orson were a BRIT Award-winning American rock band from Hollywood, California who formed in 2000.
Career
Originally the band called themselves Halogen. Recently they were also known as Dr. Lady. Their self-financed debut Bright Idea, released by Mercury Records in 2006, was produced in Los Angeles by Noah Shain and went on to find chart success in the UK with their first single, "No Tomorrow". The album reached the number 1 slot in their respective categories.
The band first played on UK radio during a live session on the Dermot O'leary Show, BBC Radio 2. Following this they appeared at the 2006 Virgin Mobile V Festival in Staffordshire and Chelmsford, England in the UK. Whilst in Chelmsford, the lead singer exclaimed 'It's good to be home!'. This is due to the fact that the band relocated to London, from Los Angeles, in 2006.
Lead singer Jason Pebworth stated in an interview that the band's musical influences are Led Zeppelin, Flaming Lips, Beck and Björk.[1]
Although Orson have never officially acknowledged a break-up, they had their last appearance as a band at a concert at the Carling Academy Oxford on 14 December 2007.[2] The members disappeared off the musical radar, with the exception of Roentgen, who is currently pursuing a solo career with his project, Praying Hands.
Members
The band consisted of:
- Jason Pebworth - vocals
- George Astasio - guitar
- Kevin Roentgen - guitar and vocals
- Johnny Lonely - bass
- Chris Cano - drums
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | AUT | FRA | GER | IRE | SWI | UK | |||
| 2006 | Bright Idea
|
— | 51 | 29 | 48 | 32 | 38 | 1 |
|
| 2007 | Culture Vultures
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | 25 | |
Singles
- 1. "No Tomorrow" 27 February 2006 #1 (UK), #1 (UK Download)
- 2. "Bright Idea" 15 May 2006 #11 (UK), #8 (UK Download)
- 3. "Happiness" 7 August 2006 #27 (UK), #68 (UK Download)
- 4. "Already Over" 13 November 2006 #174 (UK), N/A (UK Download)
- 5. "Ain't No Party" 15 October 2007 #21 (UK), #18 (UK Download)
Other contributions
- The Saturday Sessions: The Dermot O'Leary Show (2007, EMI) - "I Can't Go For That"
Trivia
- The group takes its name from Hollywood legend Orson Welles, though not from the person, but from a sandwich named after him.
- Their first single, "No Tomorrow", was released as a free download on the iTunes Music Store. It was the most downloaded "Single Of The Week" since iTunes began.
- While in the UK, Orson appeared on the Sky Sports show Soccer AM and as they were American and did not support a British football team they chose a team randomly out of a hat and they now support the cash-strapped club Rotherham United. To help the club's finances, they were due to play a gig in the town a couple of weeks later.
- Orson have performed as a supporting-band for Duran Duran at Earls Court during Duran Duran's Astronaut Tour, and Robbie Williams during his European leg of his Close Encounters Tour.
- Their single "Tryin' to Help" featured in the 2006 romantic comedy "It's a Boy/Girl Thing".
- Nominated by Q Magazine for "Best New Artist of 2006" along with Lily Allen, Arctic Monkeys, Corinne Bailey Rae, and The Kooks.
- Orson won the 2007 BRIT Award for Best International Breakthrough Act.
- The single, Bright Idea, is heard in the movie Goal! 2 Where Santi is training with Real Madrid.
- Orson appeared at the "Concert for Diana" on 1 July 2007.
- Orson drummer Chris Cano is touring with a hip hop Latin band Ozomatli.
- Multiple unreleased tracks from their debut album Bright Idea can be heard playing in Ollie's shed in current BBC Three comedy Coming of Age.
- Their number 1 single 'No Tomorrow' was used in a promo for episode 5 in the first series of Waterloo Road.
- Pebworth was originally slated to play the role of Judas in the 2000 Broadway revival of Jesus Christ Superstar, but dropped out for unknown reasons. He was replaced by Tony Vincent, who appeared in the 2000 movie remake as Simon Zealotes.