Alex Larke

Alex Larke (born Alexis Kenneth Larke; 25 May 1979) is a British singer/songwriter that represented the United Kingdom as part of the duo, Electro Velvet, in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Still in Love with You". For the majority of his career, Alex has been a solo artist, although some of his other musical endeavours have been varied, working with British rock bands, X and Manimal, before later collaborating with electronica act, Teflon Child and Big beat pioneer, Cut La Roc.

Alex Larke
Alex Larke
Background information
Birth nameAlexis Kenneth Larke
Born (1979-05-25) 25 May 1979
Welwyn Garden City, England
GenresAlternative rock, pop, indie rock, Electronica
Occupation(s)Musician, singer-songwriter
InstrumentsVocals, guitar, keyboards, harmonica, guitar, bass guitar, ukulele.
Years active1999–present
Associated actsElectro Velvet, The Rolling Clones, Cut La Roc, X, Teflon Child
Websitealexlarke.com

In 2017, Larke released his debut solo album, entitled Disposable Love. The album was preceded by two singles, "Shine On" and "Belladonna".

Career

Early beginnings

Born in Welwyn Garden City, Larke was raised, with his sister Anna, by father Jerry, a motorcycle racer, and his Athens, Greece born mother Penelope, a seamstress. Living in a council house, Larke had a very modest, but happy working-class upbringing in a home that forever had music playing on the stereo. Bands such as The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Police and Elvis Presley, would provide him with the basis of his musical influences that would endure through his career.[1]

Larke has performed for The Rolling Stones tribute group The Rollin' Clones, tour the UK and internationally with the band since 2007.

He has recently worked with Big beat pioneer Cut La Roc on his album Larger Than Life, which also features Ice-T collaborator, Donald D and Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody.

2015: Eurovision Song Contest
Main articles: United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 and Eurovision Song Contest 2015

Electro Velvet were selected by the BBC to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with their song "Still in Love with You". The entry was presented on 7 March 2015 via the BBC Red Button service.[2] The song received a mixed to negative reception upon its announcement, but reviews were more favourable as time went on.[3][4] In the Eurovision final they received 5 points and were placed 24th out of 27.[5]

The staging of the song included two pairs of additional dancers, two of whom performed breakdance and acrobatic moves. The television production involved some Busby Berkeley-style shots from above and darkened sequences during which the performer's costumes were illuminated with integral neon strips. There were a couple of pyro effects during the song, including at the very end.[6]

New single

On 26 October 2016, Alex Larke posted a tweet showing a picture of a video editing suite, with a picture of his face on the right hand screen. The less than cryptic message stated, "Making a music video.... #Shhh #TopSecret", alluding to the fact that Larke is releasing a single in the future.

Discography

Extended plays
Album title Album details
Disposable Love

Singles
Year Single Peak chart position Album
UK Indie UK Indie Breakers AUT
[7]
2015 "Still in Love with You" 8253 Non-album single

References
  1. "About". Larkemusic.com. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  2. Taylor, Richard (7 March 2015). "The UK Reveals All: It's Bianca & Alex!!!". eurovoix.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  3. Rickman, Dina (8 March 2015). "The best worst reviews of the UK's Eurovision entry". The Independent. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  4. "Eurovision: UK Duo Electro Velvet earn mixed reaction". BBC. 8 March 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  5. "Eurovision Song Contest: Sweden's Mans Zelmerlow wins". BBC News. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  6. "Stories". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  7. Hung, Steffen. "DiscographIe Electro Velvet". Austrian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
Preceded by
Molly Smitten-Downes
with "Children of the Universe"		 United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
2015		 Succeeded by
Joe and Jake
with "You're Not Alone"
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