Violent Soho
| Violent Soho | |
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Violent Soho at the Mercury Lounge in 2009
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Labels | Emergency Music, Ecstatic Peace!, I Oh You, SideOneDummy Records, Dine Alone Records |
| Website | www |
| Members | Luke Boerdam Luke Henery Michael Richards James Tidswell |
Violent Soho are an Australian alternative rock band that was formed in 2004 in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield, Queensland. The band consists of Luke Boerdam (vocals, guitar), James Tidswell (guitar), Luke Henery (bass) and Michael Richards (drums). Their sound has been compared to that of 1980s and 1990s alternative rock bands such as the Pixies, Mudhoney and Nirvana. The band's third studio album, Hungry Ghost, was certified Gold in Australia in September 2014. Their fourth album, WACO, debuted at number 1 on the Australian iTunes and ARIA charts in 2016.
The band members all attended school together in Mansfield and their families continue to reside there. The postcode of the suburb, "4122", appears in the band's merchandise artwork and frequently appears in band-related images, 4122 is also an islander or fob based gang situated in the area and is also a common number amongst the local drug dealers.
In an interview with Tidswell and Boerdam at the 2013 Push Over event in Melbourne, Australia, both members explained that they attended a religious youth group as children, while Boerdam was in a chapel band with drummer Richards. Tidswell revealed in 2014 that he is originally from New Zealand, explaining: "In New Zealand I had to ride a bike to school in the rain every morning when I was four years old, and now I live in Queensland and I never wear a raincoat."
Their debut EP, Pigs & T.V., was released in 2006. Consisting of songs written by Boerdam at 14 years of age, the recording was funded by the sale of Tidswell's car. The EP was produced by Bryce Moorhead, a Brisbane-based producer and sound engineer who the band discovered through early shows they performed with Brisbane punk bands Eat Laser Scumbag! and Gazoonga Attack.
The EP received a positive review in Blunt Magazine—the reviewer gave it an "8" rating (out of 10), writing: "Sounding like The Vines fed on raw meat and produced on a fraction of the budget, Violent Soho are a boisterous pop rock combo from Brissyland reviving the spirit of the grunge era." Writing for the Mess+Noise music website, Jo Nilson described the EP as "both tuneful and snottily defiant", and "an amazing effort, considering their [the band] bawdy pop sensibilities". Liam McGinniss, a reviewer for the Faster Louder website, wrote a positive review of the EP, concluding:
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