Suede

Suede are an English alternative rock band from London, formed in 1989. The group's most prominent early line-up was Brett Anderson (singer), Bernard Butler (guitarist), Mat Osman (bass guitarist) and Simon Gilbert (drummer). By 1992, Suede were described as "The Best New Band in Britain",^[1] and attracted much attention from the British music press. The following year their debut album Suede, went to the top of the charts by becoming the fastest-selling debut album in almost ten years. It won the Mercury Music Prize and helped foster Britpop as a musical genre. However, the band's lush follow-up, Dog Man Star (1994), showed Suede distancing themselves from their Britpop peers. Although it is often regarded as the band's masterpiece, the recording sessions for Dog Man Star were fraught with difficulty, and ended with Butler departing the band after confrontations with Anderson and musical differences with the other members. Its sales suffered due to these events, however it was met with a generally enthusiastic reception on release and has, over time been lauded with universal acclaim from critics.

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Keane

Keane are an English rock band from Battle, East Sussex, formed in 1995. The group currently comprises Tim Rice-Oxley (piano, synthesisers, backing vocals), Richard Hughes (drums, percussion, backing vocals), Jesse Quin (bass guitar, acoustic/electric guitar, backing vocals) and Tom Chaplin (lead vocals, acoustic/electric guitar). Their original line-up included founder and guitarist Dominic Scott, who left in 2001.

Keane immediately achieved mainstream, international success with the release of their debut album, Hopes and Fears, in 2004. The album won several awards, including the Brit Award for Best British Album, and was the second best-selling British album of the year.^[2] Their second album, Under the Iron Sea, continued the band's success, topping the album charts in the UK and debuting at number four on the Billboard 200 chart. Their third album, Perfect Symmetry, was released in October 2008. The launch featured a series of symmetry-based installations including a 10m long half image of a sleeping woman pasted over 100 cardboard boxes and reflected in 400 mirror tiles on the floor to reveal a full person.^[3]

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The Stone Roses

The Stone Roses are an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. They were one of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement that was active during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The band's most successful lineup consists of vocalist Ian Brown, guitarist John Squire, bassist Mani, and drummer Reni.

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Phantom Planet

Phantom Planet is an American alternative rock band from Southern California. Formed in 1994 in Los Angeles, the band consists of Alex Greenwald (vocals, rhythm guitar), Darren Robinson (lead guitar), Sam Farrar (bass guitar) and Jeff Conrad (drums). The band is best known for its track "California", which became the theme song for the Fox TV series, The O.C.. The band featured actor Jason Schwartzman on drums until 2003 and continued to release well-received albums in his absence. On November 25, 2008, the band announced in a blog entry on their website that they are going on "hiatus, and will not be playing any more live shows or making any new records, indefinitely."^[1] They played their last pre-hiatus show on December 12, 2008, in Los Angeles, but have since reunited and are currently in rehearsals for an upcoming tour.

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