- Beangrowers
Infobox musical artist
Name = Beangrowers
Img_capt = Fan art of the Beangrowers; Ian, Alison, and Mark
Members = Alison Galea, Ian Schranz & Mark Sansone
Years Active = 1999-Present
Origin =St. Julian's ,Malta
Genre = Indie, Rock, Alternative Rock
Label =Minty Fresh ,Rough Trade
Similar Artists =The Happy Hollows ,the Sounds ,Die Mannequin ,Noisettes ,Yeah Yeah Yeahs ,the Maccabees The Beangrowers are a three-member
indie rock band fromMalta , a small country nearItaly . All three were born in 1977 inSt. Julian's , Malta. Notably, all members of the Beangrowers are alsosongwriter s, so their albums reflect diverse influences from the entire band. These influences include otherindie rock , punk, and goth.The band
Ian Schranz and Mark Sansone met in church and were childhood friends from the age of 8, and later started playing music together. They were joined by mutual friend Alison Galea, who proved to be a capable singer. The band went through a number of fourth members before settling on their current three-musician composition. According to the band's official site, the name "Beangrowers" was given by a fan when a promoter demanded a name for
poster s. According to this story, the band had not previously decided on a name.Alison, also a
guitarist andkeyboardist , provides a distinctive and vaguely British-accented voice to Beangrowers songs. Her voice has been described as sweet yet sultry.Drummer Ian Schranz, who comes from a background in professionaltennis , also orchestrates thedrum machine s and other electronic noise for the songs. Bearded Mark Sansone is the Beangrower'sbassist .The Beangrowers recorded demo tapes in early 1996 when they were just 18. Early recordings featured sounds from 1950s
science fiction movies andcomputer -generated noise. Within a year they travelled to play in German clubs with good response. The Beangrowers record heavily in English but they are possibly best known in the German-speaking world where Ian Schranz's family hails from. In 1999 their first single made the top 20 of the Deutsche Alternative Charts ("DAC"), analternative rock sales ranking inGermany . They also have become a minor hit inNew Zealand where the single "José Clemente" from their album "Beangrowers" reached #7 on New Zealand charts and achieved steady rotation onJuice TV , the New Zealand equivalent ofMTV .Relatively obscure in large English-speaking markets, some critics nonetheless think they would do very well in Britain and the
United States if more popularly known.Critics say the group draws influences from other alternative groups like the
Violent Femmes ,Joy Division , and thePixies , but with an alternative pop sound. The band itself readily admits to this noting that "all the greats essentially wrote pop songs, likeThe Cure , Nirvana,Depeche Mode etc." Many Beangrowers songs, such as "Teen Titans" with repeating lyrics "We never listen to the radio" seem to reference the band's own obscure indie status.ingles
*"Astroboy", March 1999
*"Genzora", July 1999
*"Jose Clemente", 1999 (New Zealand only)
*"Feel", May 2000
*"Teen Titans", April 2001
*"This Year's Love", 2002
*"You Are You Are", October 2004
*"I Like You", January 2006 (UK only)
*"Not In A Million Lovers", April 2008Albums
*"48K", June 1999
*"Beangrowers", April 2001
*"Dance Dance Baby", October 2004
*"Not In A Million Lovers", April 2008External links
* [http://www.beangrowers.net/ Official Beangrowers site]
* [http://www.beangrowers.de/ German Beangrowers site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/beangrowers Myspace site]
* [http://www.cdbaby.com/beangrowers/ CD-BABY site]
* [http://www.adequacy.net/reviews/b/beangrowers.shtml page with review of their two albums]
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