Richard Archer
| Richard Archer | |
|---|---|
Archer performing live in London in 2008
|
|
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Rich |
| Born |
18 January 1977 Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey, England |
| Origin | Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey, England |
| Genres | Alternative rock, indie rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, electric guitar, melodica, piano, keyboard |
| Labels | Atlantic Records |
| Associated acts |
Hard-Fi Contempo |
| Website | Hard-Fi |
| Notable instruments | |
| Fender Telecaster Custom, Yamaha Acoustic | |
Richard Archer (born 18 January 1977 in Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey, England) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, principal songwriter and main composer of indie rock band Hard-Fi. Hard-Fi have produced several top 10 hits and two #1 albums. The influence of Archer's hometown of Staines is often evident in his lyrics. He used to front a band called Contempo from 1997 until 2001.
Archer is a music graduate from Kingston University. He grew up in Staines, a suburban location of North West Surrey which is a huge influence in the lyrics of the songs he has written with band Hard-Fi. Archer explains, "There's no record shops, there's no decent pubs, there's no venues, there's no decent clothes shops. Look around, it's quite pleasant but if you're a young person living here then you're into a certain type of music - chart house - and a certain fashion, and if you're not into that there is nothing here for you. Here, you can't get home if you're out in central London after eleven. There's no night bus, there's no late train, you have to get a cab if you can find one and that'll charge you eighty quid to get home from central London. A lot of people live like that."
Contempo formed in Staines-upon-Thames during the summer of 1997, originally going by the name "Parachute".
Mick Jones produced demos that were intended to be released as an album in 2000 but whose release was delayed and eventually cancelled. Some of these tracks have been reworked as Hard-Fi songs.
Contempo's first release was a limited 7" vinyl on the Blue Dog label with the tracks "On The Floor" and "Stronger" (the latter also released as a b-side for the Hard-Fi single Hard to Beat).
In November 2000 Contempo announced they had left London Records after months of a mutually tense relationship. After these events, Contempo released a six track EP called "This Is Contempo", which featured the ska song "Ain't Going Out Tonight" on their own label "Nu-Suburban Sounds". Another album, "Contempo - The Demos", was a bootleg CD featuring demos of what would become Hard-Fi tracks: "Better Do Better", "Can't Get Along (Without You)", "Living for the Weekend", "Move On Now" and "Unnecessary Trouble".
...
Wikipedia