The Cribs and North

Prior to setting up their own lo-fi, analogue studio, Springtime Studios, as a recording outlet for the band, The Cribs had debuted at a family party in the late ’80s, when all the brothers were younger than 10. Growing up on the same diet of the Beatles, Sex Pistols and the Smiths, the trio became finely tuned with one another and recorded well-received demo. The demo caused a stir and along with successful performances at the likes of Leeds’ Brudenell Social Club and the Metro in London, the band signed with indie-label Wichita Recordings in 2003.

The band re-recorded a number of the songs on their demo, working with avant-garde musician Bobby Conn and music engineer Ed Deegan. It wasn’t long before the Cribs became highly revered by music publications, notably NME, and their self-titled debut, recorded in seven days, perked the ears of many in the industry. The album led to an extensive period of touring, including significant slots at the festivals Reading and Leeds and T in the Park, which garnered the band an intensely devoted following.

The Cribs’ next released came in 2005 with the album “The New Fellas”, this time working with Orange Juice singer-songwriter Edwyn Collins. The album, like its predecessor has an unpolished lo-fi approach to it and features the singles “Hey Scenesters” and “Haunted”, the latter of which was recorded on Scarborough beach in the UK. The band’s subsequent release “Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever” in 2007, features a who’s who of esteemed collaborations including Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, and mixed by Andy Wallace. The single “Men’s Needs”, reached No. 17 on the UK Singles Chart and marked the Cribs’ first breakthrough onto mainstream radio.

By this time the Cribs had become a high-profile indie rock band and were afforded the luxuries of headlining and main stage festival slots. By chance, Gary of the band met Johnny Marr, at the time member of Modest Mouse, who went on to officially join the band for their subsequent release “Ignore the Ignorant” in 2009. On top of appearing on the recording, which became the Cribs’ first Top Ten UK hit, Marr joined the band on tour, including dates in Australia and New Zealand and at Reading and Leeds.

Johnny Marr announced his more than amicable departure from the band in 2011, and the Cribs subsequently released the albums “In the Belly of the Brazen Bull” in 2011 and “Payola” in 2012, the latter of which features the single “Leather Jacket Love Song” released in 2013.