Hector Berlioz, active as a music journalist in Paris in the 1830s and 1840s.

Music journalism is criticism and reportage about music. It began in the eighteenth century as comment on what is now thought of as 'classical music'. This aspect of music journalism, today often referred to as music criticism (although that risks confusion with the academic discipline), comprises the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of music and its performance. Modern art music journalism is often informed by music theory consideration of the many diverse elements of a musical piece or performance, including (as regards a musical composition) its form and style, and as regards performance, standards of technique and expression. It was expressed, for example, in journals such as Neue Zeitschrift für Musik founded by Robert Schumann, and is continued today in the columns of serious newspapers and journals such as The Musical Times.

Today a major branch of music journalism is an aspect of entertainment journalism — covering popular music and including profiles of singers and bands and album reviews. In the 2000s, online music bloggers are to some degree displacing newspaper and magazine-based pop music critics.

Origins[link]

Before about the 1840s, reporting on music was either done by musical journals, such as Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung or the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik (founded by Robert Schumann), and in London such journals as The Musical Times (founded in 1844 as The Musical Times and Singing-class Circular); or else by reporters at general newspapers where music did not form part of the central objectives of the publication. An influential English 19th-century music critic, for example, was John Davison of The Times. The composer Hector Berlioz also wrote reviews and criticisms for the Paris press of the 1830s and 1840s.

Several factors — including growth of education, the influence of the Romantic movement generally and in music, popularization (including the 'star-status' of many performers such as Liszt and Paganini), among others — led to an increasing interest in music among non-specialist journals, and an increase in the number of critics by profession, of varying degrees of competence and integrity. The situation here was distinguished from that before the 1840s, in that the critics now — on the whole — were not also practising musicians; this could be considered a turning‐point.

Amongst modern practitioners of the classical music tradition who also write (or wrote) on music may be included Alfred Brendel, Charles Rosen, Paul Hindemith and Ernst Krenek.

Decline of art music journalism[link]

A "decline in [quantity of] classical criticism" has been occurring since the early 1980s, "when classical-music criticism visibly started to disappear". In the early 1980s, "Time magazine had a full-time classical critic" and "Vanity Fair had a classical critic", but by the early 1990s, Classical critics were dropped in many magazines. In part this is because there "...been a decline of interest in classical music, especially among younger people".^[1]

In 2007, The New York Times stated that "Classical music criticism, a high-minded endeavor that has been around at least as long as newspapers...has taken a series of hits in recent months", because "[c]ritics’ jobs have been eliminated, downgraded or redefined at newspapers in Atlanta, Minneapolis and elsewhere around the country and at New York magazine, where Peter G. Davis, one of the most respected voices of the craft, said he had been forced out after 26 years".^[2] The Classical music scene views "...robust analysis, commentary and reportage as vital to the health of the art form".^[2] In the late 2000s, Classical music criticism is increasingly available on blogs. Nevertheless, a "number of major newspapers still have full-time classical music critics, including The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, The Philadelphia Inquirer [,] The Boston Globe" and "The New York Times [,which] maintains a staff of three full-time classical music critics and three freelancers".^[2]

Popular music[link]

Music writers only started "treating pop and rock music seriously" in 1964 "after the breakthrough of the Beatles...".^[3] One of the early music magazines in Britain, Melody Maker, complained in 1967 about how "newspapers and magazines are continually hammering [i.e., attacking] pop music".^[4] Melody Maker magazine advocated the new forms of pop music of the late 1960s. "By 1999, the 'quality' press was regularly carrying reviews of popular music gigs and albums", which had a "key role in keeping pop" in the public eye. As more pop music critics began writing, this had the effect of "legitimating pop as an art form"; as a result, "newspaper coverage shifted towards pop as music rather than pop as social phenomenon".^[5]

Steve Jones claims that both popular music articles and academic articles about pop music are usually written from "masculine subject positions". As more pop music critics began writing, this had the effect of "legitimating pop as an art form"; as a result, "newspaper coverage shifted towards pop as music rather than pop as social phenomenon";^[6] as well, in the way that critics differentiate between pop music and rock, using terms like "trivial", "fluffy", or "formulaic" for pop (versus "serious", "raw", and "sincere" for rock), there is an implicit or even explicitly gendered dichotomy.^[7] Simon Frith notes that pop and rock music are closely associated with gender; that is, with conventions of male and female behaviour.^[8]

In the world of pop music criticism, there tends to be a quick turnover. The "pop music industry expects that any particular [music critic] star can disappear within five years; in contrast, the "stars" of rock criticism are more likely to have long careers with "book contracts, featured columns, and editorial and staff positions at magazines and newspapers. Critic Robert Christgau was the "originator of the 'consumer guide' approach to pop music reviews", an approach to writing pop recording reviews that was designed to help consumers to decide whether to buy a new album.^[9]

In the realm of rock music (as indeed in that of classical music),^[10] critics have not always been respected by their subjects. Frank Zappa declared that, "Most rock journalism is people who can't write, interviewing people who can't talk, for people who can't read." In the Guns N' Roses song "Get in the Ring", Axl Rose verbally attacked critics who gave the band negative reviews because of their actions on stage; such critics as Andy Secher, Mick Wall and Bob Guccione, Jr. were mentioned by name.

US music writer Robert Christgau was one of the first rock critics in the 1960s.

Carl Wilson describes "an upsurge in pro-pop sentiment among critics" during the early 2000s, a "new generation [of music critics] moved into positions of critical influence" and then "mounted a wholesale critique against the syndrome of measuring all popular music by the norms of rock culture."^[11] In 2008, Ann Powers of the LA Times argued that "[p]op music critics have always been contrarians", because "pop music [criticism] rose up as a challenge to taste hierarchies, and has remained a pugilistic, exhibitionist business throughout pop's own evolution."^[12]

Powers claims that "[i]nsults, rejections of others' authority, bratty assertions of superior knowledge and even threats of physical violence are the stuff of which pop criticism is made"; at the same time, the "best [pop criticism] also offers loving appreciation and profound insights about how music creates and collides with our everyday realities." She states that pop criticism developed as a "slap at the establishment, at publications such as the hippie homestead Rolling Stone and the rawker outpost Creem." She notes that the "1980s generation" of post-punk indie rockers "has lately [i.e., in the 2000s] been taken down by younger "poptimists," who argue that lovers of underground rock are elitists for not embracing the more multicultural mainstream". Powers claims that with the 2000s-era "poptimism" critical approach, debates about bands and styles are "like the scrum in rugby", because "[e]verybody pushes against everybody else, and we move forward in a huge blob of vehement opinion and mutual judgment".^[12]

Slate magazine writer Jody Rosen discussed the 2000s-era trends in pop music criticism in the article "The Perils of Poptimism". Rosen notes that much of the debate is centred over the perception that that rock critics "...regard rock as "normative … the standard state of popular music … to which everything else is compared."^[13] At a 2006 pop critic conference, attendees discussed their "...guilty pop pleasures, reconsidering musicians (Tiny Tim, Dan Fogelberg, Phil Collins) and genres (blue-eyed soul, Muzak)" which rock critics have long dismissed as lightweight, commercial music. Rosen states that "this new critical paradigm" is called "popism"—or, more evocatively (and goofily), "poptimism". The "poptimism" approach states that "Pop (and, especially, hip-hop) producers are as important as rock auteurs, Beyoncé is as worthy of serious consideration as Bruce Springsteen, and ascribing shame to pop pleasure is itself a shameful act".^[14] In 2006, Martin Edlund from the New York Sun argued that music bloggers are to some degree displacing newspaper and magazine-based pop music critics. Edlund notes that while the "Internet has democratized music criticism, it seems it's also spread its penchant for uncritical hype".^[15]

See also[link]

• List of writers on popular music
• Women in Music (1935-1940) Periodicals chronicling the activities of women classical musicians from ancient Egyptian times to the then present, published by conductor Frédérique Petrides)

Sources[link]

• Bojan Bujic, Criticism of Music in The Oxford Companion to Music, Oxford Music Online.

References[link]

External links[link]

• International Federation of Music Journalists - an international group of media professionals who treat any aspect of music on any media. Publishes the "Directory of Music Journalists" and confers "Music Journalist Award".
• Our critics' advice - In this article Alex Petridis gives advice to young, aspiring, would-be music journalists.
• Don't look back - The Guardian, 27 June 2009. In this article John Harris writes about music journalism with reference to the well-known journalists Nick Kent and Lester Bangs.
• Is Music Journalism Dead? - Drowned in Sound, 21 July 2009. Popular music website Drowned in Sound dedicated a week to the subject of the past, present and future of music journalism. Included are articles by Everett True and Stuart Braithwaite.
• Master in Music Journalism - an international professional distance course organized by the International Federation of Music Journalists.
• BA(Hons) Popular Music Journalism course - a three years BA(hons) degree course at Southampton Solent University, UK
• Who cares what critics say? - Jay Nordlinger

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (June 2010)

Robert Hilburn (born September 25, 1939) is a pop music critic and author. As critic and music editor of the Los Angeles Times from 1970 to 2005, his reviews, essays and profiles have appeared in hundreds of publications around the world. Hilburn reflects on those years in a memoir, “Corn Flakes with John Lennon (And Other Tales from a Rock ‘n’ Roll Life),” which was published on Oct. 13, 2009 by Rodale. He is a member of the nominating committee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and lives in Los Angeles.

Early life[link]

Born in Natchitoches, Louisiana, and lived until he was 5 mostly on his grandfather’s cotton plantation in nearby Campti. During those years and when visiting his grandparents in later summers, he was exposed to the blues and country music styles that eventually gave birth to rock ‘n’ roll. After a few years in Dallas, Texas, he moved with his family to Southern California, where he graduated from Reseda High School in 1957 and California State University, Northridge (journalism degree) in 1961. His first musical hero was Elvis Presley. He worked as a news reporter on a suburban Los Angeles newspaper (the Valley Times TODAY) for two years, but tired of journalism and became a public information officer for the Los Angeles Unified School District in the mid-1960s. While there he began missing writing around the same time he fell in love with the work of Bob Dylan and the Beatles. Eager to write about music, Hilburn did a series of freelance pieces on such figures as Johnny Cash and Janis Joplin for the Los Angeles Times before being hired full-time by the paper.

[edit] The Los Angeles Times

While at the Times, Hilburn was the only music writer to accompany Johnny Cash for his landmark Folsom Prison concert. He also went with Elton John when John became the first Western rock figure to play in Russia; with Paul Simon on the “Graceland” tour stop in Zimbabwe; with Bob Dylan on his first concert swing through Israel, and with Michael Jackson on much of his “Victory” tour. He also spent a week on the road with the Sex Pistols during their first and only U.S. tour. At the Times, Hilburn was an early defender of such new pop culture movements as punk, techno and, especially rap when it was under attack by law enforcement agencies and members of Congress.

[edit] “Corn Flakes with John Lennon”

The book is a highly opinioned and deeply personal look at rock ‘n’ roll, focusing on a group of artists who not only helped build rock as an art form but whose craft and commentary helped shape the social values of our times. They include John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Phil Spector, Michael Jackson, U2, Kurt Cobain and N.W.A. He also wrote a biography, “Bruce Springsteen,” in 1985 as one in a series of Rolling Stone Press books that also included biographies of Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.

Critical philosophy[link]

When he started writing about music, Hilburn writes on his website, RobertHilburnOnline.com, he thought of rock as an inevitable chain of events—much like thousands of dominoes in a line that neatly fell one after another once Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry helped kick things off. But he eventually realized that concept was naïve. If you took away as few as four dozen artists from that endless row of dominoes, rock would have collapsed as an art form. Imagine your record collection without Bob Dylan, the Beatles or U2. Because of that, he felt one of the main challenges of a critic was to focus on those musicians who contributed to expanding that art form. In search of those artists, he says he frequently ended up writing about false promises; artists who ran out of ideas, self-destructed or compromised their music in hopes of wider sales. But he was also fortunate enough to connect with the most important artists of the rock era.

Interacting with those figures, Hilburn came to appreciate the tremendous toll that rock can put on an artist’s personal life; how there is often far more drama off-stage than on. In the end, all it takes to be a star is luck and a commercial sound, which explains why we have so many mediocre hit-makers. To be a true artist, you need enormous talent, fierce ambition, an original vision and an unyielding toughness. He saw some artists triumph because they were tough and others die because they weren’t tough enough.

“What linked Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash and Ray Charles, the Beatles and Bob Dylan was the old fashioned American notion that each individual can make a difference, whether you are a truck driver from Memphis or a blind piano paper from southwest Georgia. Rock ‘n’ roll was the promise of a better day and the best artists spread that message with an almost missionary zeal,” he declares on his website. “I’ve always believed in that liberating message, which is probably why I responded most to artists who fought to keep the promise alive.”

Hilburn is married and lives in Los Angeles.

References[link]

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (January 2010)

• Hilburn’s Official website
• Hilburn’s biography, Los Angeles Times

External links[link]

• RoberHilburnOnline.com - official website
• CornFlakesWithJohnLennon.com

The following is a list of significant men and women known for being the father, mother, or considered the founders mostly in Western socities in a field, listed by category. In most non-science fields, the title of being the "father" is debatable.

Church[link]

Games[link]

Humanities[link]

Military[link]

Nations[link]

Natural and social sciences[link]

Sports[link]

Technology[link]

Fields[link]

Inventions[link]

Towns, cities and regions[link]

Transport[link]

See also[link]

• List of inventors
• Father of medicare
• Founders of statistics

References[link]

The Cribs
The Cribs in Sao Paulo, Brazil, June 2011
Background information
Origin	Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England
Genres	Indie rock, garage rock, punk rock, lo-fi
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Wichita, Warner Bros., Universal
Website	www.thecribs.com
Members
Gary Jarman Ryan Jarman Ross Jarman
Past members
Johnny Marr

The Cribs are an English three-piece indie rock band originally from Wakefield, West Yorkshire. The band consists of twins Gary and Ryan Jarman and their younger brother Ross Jarman. They were subsequently joined by ex-The Smiths and Modest Mouse guitarist Johnny Marr who was made a formal member of the group in 2008. Marr would remain as part of the band until 2011; his departure was officially announced on 11 April through the band's website. Despite returning to the original trio, the band currently enlists David Jones of Nine Black Alps as a second guitarist for live shows. The band, who first became active on the concert circuit in 2002, were initially tied to other like-minded UK bands of that time, most notably The Libertines, by a British music press that were looking for a 'British rearguard' to the wave of popular US alternative rock bands of the time. They had outgrown this tag by the time of the commercial success of their third LP. In 2008, Q magazine described the band as "The biggest cult band in the UK".

History[link]

Formation and early years (2001–2003)[link]

The Cribs were formed in late 2001 as a recording project for the three brothers, who had set up their own Springtime Studios, a lo-fi, all analogue affair in an ancient mill.^[1] After recording a demo and garnering label interest, the band started playing live around this time, at venues like the Brudenell Social Club in Leeds, and "squats and warehouse parties" with artists such as Calvin Johnston, Subway Sect, Herman Dune, and Ballboy. They also released a split 7" single on Leeds based garage/riot grrrl/punk label Squirrel Records during this period with former Shove/Boyskout member Jen Schande.^[2] Limited to 300 copies on blue vinyl the record is now a rarity that sells for upwards of $150 on eBay.^[3] According to Mojo magazine, 'On the strength of one demo, the rush to find the UK Strokes saw the three-piece fielding calls from major labels, pluggers and label managers' in 2002.^[1] After several high profile support slots, the band signed to the fledgling independent label Wichita Recordings in 2003 "we thought (they) were great because they sounded a bit like Pavement and had a big hook. We went to see them at the Metro on Oxford Street and completely fell in love with them. They seemed like such an obvious pop band. Every song sounded like a single" - Mark Bowen, Wichita Recordings.^[4]

[edit] The Cribs (2004)

After signing with Wichita Recordings, the band began re-recording many of the songs from the original demo, as well as several new tracks for what would be their debut record. Sessions began in London with Chicago based avant-garde musician Bobby Conn producing, after the band had supported him on some UK dates and impressed him "They had this cassette demo they had recorded on a boom-box, I suggested overdubs, they were too kitchen-sink for overdubs. I tried handclaps, they were 'not sure about handclaps'. It was all 'Keep it real'" - Bobby Conn.^[1] Then sessions moved to Toe Rag Studios studios in Hackney with the band self-producing. The album was completed in 7 days, live to 8-track tape, with Ed Deegan engineering.

Released on 8 March 2004, the album found early supporters in the NME, who commented on its "supreme pop melodies", and referred to it as "lo-fi, hi fun" giving it an 8/10 review.^[5] Lo-fi would be a term that would follow the band around for the next few years, and something that became synonymous with the group. Again, from the NME in 2011: "Recorded in a week, it's the definition of indie lo-fi. But not willful indie lo-fi; the scratches, clangs and gawwumps all heard here are genuinely the product of the trio's shoestring methods rather than the usual contrived fuzz that bands spend ages poring over beaten up eight-tracks to achieve".^[6] Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq was also an early champion. Lois Wilson of Mojo magazine described the album in 2009 as "intelligent lyrics on a background of clipped guitars and tumbling drums, with nods to The Strokes, Beat Happening, and C86's inept charm"^[1] Three singles were released from the album – the limited edition 7" only "Another Number"/"Baby Don’t Sweat" in November 2003, followed by first single proper "You Were Always the One", which climbed to #2 in the indie charts. "What About Me" was the third and final single from the album, again making the indie top 10. The Cribs toured extensively throughout 2004 and into 2005, both as headliners as well as supporting artists like old friend Bobby Conn, Death Cab For Cutie and The Libertines. Over the campaign they toured the UK and Ireland, Europe, Japan, and the USA, as well as several significant international festival appearances such as Reading and Leeds Festivals, Summersonic, T in the Park and Pukkelpop amongst others.^[7] Though only a moderate underground success at the time "Another Number" has gone on to become one of the band's most enduring ‘hits’ – seldom being left off the set-list and usually accompanied by a full crowd sing-along of the signature, repeated guitar riff.^[4][8]

[edit] The New Fellas (2005–2006)

After concluding touring duties for the first record, the band were taken off the road to start writing the follow up. However, The Cribs decided they still wanted to tour and took to posting their phone numbers and email addresses on the internet, professing to play anywhere for fuel money and a crate of beer. This DIY approach is something the band and label now feel was a key factor in their success, as it helped nurture a very strong, passionate fanbase.^[4][9]

The New Fellas, the band's second album release, was recorded with Edwyn Collins, the singer-songwriter and guitarist from Glasgow's influential Orange Juice in London at his own West Heath Studios. Again, it was a comparatively unpolished record sonically, as both the producer Collins and the band themselves were achieving sounds similar to those heard on the Orange Juice records. This was, however, the intention and the reason the band and producer were put together. "They had definite ideas what they wanted the record to sound like…They had this work ethic, there was nothing spoiled about them - they were proper indie; everything done on a shoe-string and they just got on with it….they were tremendous" - Edwyn Collins.^[1] One song, "Haunted", was even recorded on Scarborough beach on a whim, after hearing a Steve Martin ukulele duet recorded on a beach.^[10]

The first release from the record was the single "Hey Scenesters!" on 18 April 2005. It reached no. 27 in the UK charts, and started their run of 7 consecutive top 40 singles. The album followed on 20 June 2005 although it had leaked onto the internet several months prior to the official release date, hampering its first week sales. The record has however, gone on to be certified Silver by the BPI, and in a recent poll held by the NME was proved to be the overall fans favourite record.^[6] The other singles released from the record were "Mirror Kissers", "Martell", and non album track "You're Gonna Lose Us" (produced by Bernard Butler), which was paired with "The Wrong Way To Be" as a AA side. The extensive New Fellas world tour took in several UK tours, Europe, USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, Scandinavia, and their first trip to Iceland.^[11][12] They appeared at numerous festivals at this time, including an appearance on the main stage at Reading and Leeds Festivals (becoming the first band to ever progress through all three stages in consecutive years), headlining the tent at T in the Park, Fuji Rock festival in Japan as well as an extensive USA arena tour with Death Cab for Cutie and Franz Ferdinand. A European tour during this period with ex Pavement man Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks would introduce Gary to his future wife Joanna Bolme.

Shortly before their appearance at the Fuji Rock festival, The Cribs released a Japan-only mini album called Arigato Cockers, made up of B-sides and rarities from both the first and second albums.

In their year-end issue, the NME made The New Fellas the #11 album of the year, and Hey Scenesters a single of the year.^[13]

[edit] Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever (2007–2008)

At the conclusion of The New Fellas campaign, The Cribs signed a major label deal with Warner Bros. Records – though they remained on Wichita in the UK at the bands insistence. The subsequent album, Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever saw the band finally take steps to progress forth from their 'lo-fi' roots, being recorded in Vancouver, BC, Canada with Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand as producer. The band and producer had met during the US tour the bands did together with Death Cab for Cutie, and hit it off immediately.^[14] The album was mixed by Andy Wallace (Nirvana, Foo Fighters). They collaborated with Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth on the track "Be Safe" – Ranaldo contributing his spoken word poetry to the band's music.

Prior to the records release The Cribs took in a run of small UK club dates to preview songs from the new record. This is documented in the first Cribs documentary Leave Too Neat. The first cut from the album was the single "Men's Needs", released on 7 May. It proved to be the band's first breakthrough with mainstream radio and reached no. 17 in the UK charts, becoming their biggest hit to date. The accompanying video, filmed in Hollywood by director Diane Martel has achieved over 7 million Youtube views to date.^[15]

The album was released on 21 May 2007, and entered the UK album charts at #13.

Touring began at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 30 March for the Teenage Cancer Trust. The rest of 2007 and most of 2008 was spent on the road promoting the record, taking in extensive UK and European touring, several USA and Canada tours, Japan, and the band's first trip out to Mexico for a main stage appearance at the MX Beat Festival, as well as some later headline shows.^[16][17] During their US touring schedules they appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Late Show with David Letterman, and the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.

The second single to be released from the record was "Moving Pictures", again charting in the UK Top 40, and then later a 7" only release of "I'm a Realist". The latter was backed with a cover of The Replacements song "Bastards of Young", a band The Cribs cite as a large influence.^[18] Another non-album single "Don't You Wanna Be Relevant" was paired with album cut "Our Bovine Public" and again climbed to the UK top 40. There were numerous festival slots around this time including main stage slots at Lollapalooza, T in the Park, and V festival, as well as returning to Fuji Rock, and a first time appearance at Coachella amongst others. In November 2007, The Cribs were invited by a re-formed The Sex Pistols to play with them for three nights at Brixton Academy in celebration of the 30 year anniversary of Never Mind the Bollocks^[19] In December the band announced three intimate shows at their old haunt the Brudenell Social Club in aid of Cystic Fibrosis where they would play all three albums to date in sequence with secret unannounced support bands each night (Franz Ferdinand, Kate Nash, and Kaiser Chiefs respectively). This was documented for the band's second DVD, the 3 disc Live at the Brudenell Social Club. In the year-end issues "Men's Needs" was named third-best track of 2007 by NME^[20] with the album coming in at #9,^[21] Track of the Year 2007 by the Metro newspaper and finishing in the 100 best tracks in Rolling Stone magazine in the USA.

2008 began with The Cribs being nominated for 4 awards at the annual NME awards ceremony (Best British Band, Best Live Band, Best Track and Hero of the Year for Ryan Jarman).^[22] Through this they were asked to headline the annual NME Awards Tour, which they undertook through January and February featuring some of the bands largest headline shows up to that point and culminating in a show at the o2 Arena in London. They also made a live appearance at the Awards ceremony itself, playing "I'm a Realist" and a cover of The Smiths' "Panic", featuring their new guitarist Johnny Marr (of the aforementioned The Smiths), who had been guesting with them throughout the tour. Another USA tour followed this, and then some more festival appearances including main stage slots at the Isle of Wight Festival, Rockness, Primavera Festival, Fuji Rock and Sziget, as well as a headline appearance on the John Peel Stage at Glastonbury, and headlining the second stage at Reading and Leeds Festivals.^[17]

[edit] Ignore the Ignorant (2009–2010)

After a chance meeting with Johnny Marr (at the time a member of Modest Mouse) in Portland, OR The Cribs and Johnny became close friends.^[23] Once Modest Mouse completed touring duties for their record, The Cribs and Johnny started to hang around and jam together - "It's been going well and it would be shame to cut it short, the original intention was to be doing an EP" the band told BBC 6 Music in January 2008.^[24] However it was later announced that they would be working on an album together and that Johhny had joined as a full-time member of the group.

Much of the remainder of 2008 was spent writing new material in Portland, OR, Manchester and Wakefield, followed by a short UK tour taking in Glasgow ABC, Bradford St. Georges Hall, two nights at Manchester Ritz, and Heaven in London to road-test some of the new songs before recording commenced. Studio time was booked for March 2009 in Los Angeles with veteran producer Nick Launay (Nick Cave, PIL, Yeah Yeah Yeahs).^[25] Ross Jarman performed most of the drum tracks for the recording with a broken wrist after a skateboard accident.^[26]

Preceded by the single "Cheat On Me", the album Ignore the Ignorant was released on 7 September 2009, and scored The Cribs their first UK Top Ten album. Released the same week that The Beatles re-issued their entire 13 LP back-catalogue, Ignore The Ignorant managed to out-sell all but two of them to chart at number 8, something the band described as "surreal". Touring began with a headline slot at the White Air festival in Brighton followed by a UK tour of large halls. The band then went on to tour Japan (including a show at Budokan with Arctic Monkeys) then on to South Korea where they headlined the Grand Mint festival at the Olympic Park, Seoul. Next was a USA/Canada tour, as well as a European arena tour with Franz Ferdinand before The Cribs returned to the UK for their largest headline shows to date.^[27]

In December 2009, Ignore the Ignorant was placed at number 11 in Mojo magazine's "Albums of the Year", and at number 7 in The Fly's "Albums of the Year". NME also placed it at #30 in their end of year list,^[28] as well as making "Cheat On Me" a track of the year. In Japan, Crossbeat magazine placed it at #8 in its "Albums of 2009" list, whilst Music Magazine called it the #1 album of 2009. Both magazines are leading publications in Japan. At the same time, The New Fellas was named an "Album of the Century" by Q.

2010 began with another extensive USA and Canada tour, before heading off for dates in Australia and New Zealand. Festival appearances including Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, Fuji Rock, Benecassim, and Pukkelpop amongst others followed. During this time the band were invited to support Aerosmith at two arena shows in Spain and France.^[29] For Record Store Day 2010 The Cribs released "So Hot Now" as a split 7" single with Portland, OR band The Thermals on legendary riot grrrl label Kill Rock Stars. On 9 August 2010, BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe announced during his show that he would be playing a brand new Cribs song that night. The very next day, "Housewife" was released officially on iTunes. No one, from music industry insiders to the band's fans, had any idea that a new single was being geared up until that moment.^[30] The cover art featured Ryan and Gary in drag.^[31] Later that month the band appeared on the main stage once again at the Reading and Leeds festivals to close the album campaign. These would be Marr's last shows with The Cribs.

[edit] In the Belly of the Brazen Bull (2011–present)

After announcing Marr's departure from the group on 11 April 2011,^[32] The Cribs started work on writing the follow up to Ignore the Ignorant, mooted for a May 2012 release.^[33] They played several headlining slots at UK festivals in 2011, as well as a show at Le Zenith in Paris with The Strokes. In June 2011 they made their first trip to Brazil, playing two shows in São Paulo. In December 2011 they headlined the Clockenflap festival in Hong Kong.^[34]

The Cribs announced the title of their fifth studio album as In the Belly of the Brazen Bull and its track-listing on 14 January 2012. The album was recorded at Tarbox Road studio in New York with David Fridmann, London’s Abbey Road and Chicago's EAR studio with engineer Steve Albini. On 14 February, BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe premiered the first taster from the album, "Chi-Town", on his radio show and played the song 3 times. During this time, both the band and the song title were trending on Twitter.

On 29 February 2012, In the Belly of the Brazen Bull was made available for pre-order via the Wichita Recordings web store. Pre-order options include various bundles containing items such as an exclusive t-shirt, a 'making of the album' DVD and a signed poster, as well as the chance to win a ‘Golden Laminate’ which will gain free entry to any Cribs headline show in the world, for life.^[35] The album was released on 7 May 2012.

Band members[link]

Current members

• Gary Jarman – bass, vocals (2000–present)
• Ryan Jarman – guitar, vocals (2000–present)
• Ross Jarman – drums (2000–present)

Former members

• Johnny Marr – guitar (2008–2011)

Touring members

• David Jones – guitar (2011–present)

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]