Himalayas (band)

Himalayas are a Welsh rock group from Cardiff, Wales, formed in 2015. The group currently consists of Mike Griffiths (lead guitar and vocals), Joe Williams (rhythm guitar and vocals), Louis Heaps (bass) and James Goulbourn (drums).

Not to be confused with the American band The Himalayans.

Himalayas
OriginCardiff, Wales
GenresRock, indie rock, garage rock
Years active2015 (2015)–present
LabelsPeepshow Records
Websitehimalayasband.com
MembersMike Griffiths
Joe Williams
Louis Heaps
James Goulbourn

The group are described as energetic live performers,[1] offering music with "seductive guitar lines, hip bass parts that will groove you to the core all driven by an avalanche of drums."[1]

History

Goulbourn, Griffiths, and Williams all met in school and were later joined in the group by Heaps, who was an acquaintance of Goulbourn. The group cite interests from The Beatles, Otis Redding, Kelly Jones, Green Day, John Bonham, and Cher.[2]

The band began producing music on SoundCloud in July 2016, with their first track titled "Cheap Thrills".[3] This was followed a few months later by their debut EP release "Ecstasy",[4] "How Do You Sleep",[5] and "Intoxicate Me".[6] The group began touring at venues including Clwb Ifor Bach for Cardiff University's Xpresstival,[2] Warehouse 54 in Newport,[2] and Fiddler's Elbow in Camden.[2] The band have been managed since August 2018 by Stephanie Brennan; formerly of WME and Kobalt Records; and James Brennan, both of whom are based with the Dark Horses agency.[7] Their upcoming release The Masquerade is set to be released independently.[8]

The band's music is largely written by Griffiths and Williams and the band have worked closely with former Estrons member Steffan Pringle, who also works with rising Welsh names Adwaith and Jack Perrett.[9]

The band drew large scale attention with the release of their track "Thank God I'm Not You".[10] BBC Cymru Wales presenter Adam Walton reportedly called the band for permission to play the track on air within a day of its release,[11] and the band went on to appear on BBC Radio 1 with Edith Bowman,[12] Virgin Radio, Amazing Radio, and Radio X, with the track named by the latter as the This Feeling Track Of The Week for the week commencing January 8, 2018.[13]

The band toured extensively in 2018 with appearances at BBC Music Introducing Stage at Reading and Leeds Festival, Isle of Wight Festival,[14] the BBC Music Introducing/PRS for Music stage at South by Southwest 2018,[15] Cardiff Sŵn Festival, the Horizons Gorwelion stage at Festival N°6, a two venue run with Kaiser Chiefs, and sets at Truck Festival, Y Not Festival, Tramlines Festival, HOYfest, and a headline set at Nambuccapalooza in London.[1]

To date, the band's headline track "Thank God I'm Not You" has over 15 million streams on Spotify[16] and the related music video is their most viewed upload on YouTube.[17]

The band announced their 2019 single, "The Masquerade", during their BBC Radio 2 debut on the Johnnie Walker show, which will be their first independent release after leaving their previous label.[18]

Band members

Current
  • Mike Griffiths - lead guitar and vocals (2015–present)
  • Joe Williams - rhythm guitar and vocals (2015–present)
  • Louis Heaps - bass (2015–present)
  • James Goulbourn - drums (2015–present)

Discography

Singles
Year Title Label Album
2016 Ecstasy - EP
  • "Ecstasy"
  • "Intoxicate Me"
  • "How Do You Sleep?"
  • "Cheap Thrills"
 Peepshow Records
2017 "Thank God I'm Not You" Peepshow Records
2017 "Sigh on a Hurricane" Peepshow Records
2018 "If I Tell You" Peepshow Records
2019 "The Masquerade" Independent release
2020 "We Love to Hate" Independent release

References
  1. link, Get; Facebook; Twitter; Pinterest; Email; Apps, Other. "[INTERVIEW] with... Himalayas". Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  2. "Himalayas | New Sound Wales". Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  3. Cheap Thrills, retrieved 30 August 2019
  4. Ecstasy, retrieved 30 August 2019
  5. How Do You Sleep, retrieved 30 August 2019
  6. Intoxicate Me, retrieved 30 August 2019
  7. "The Dark Horses - Staff". www.thedarkhorses.com. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  8. "Himalayas". Spotify. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  9. link, Get; Facebook; Twitter; Pinterest; Email; Apps, Other. "[INTERVIEW] with... Himalayas". Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  10. Himalayas - Thank God I'm Not You, retrieved 30 August 2019
  11. "Single Review: Himalayas - Thank God I'm Not You". Redbrick. 31 March 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  12. link, Get; Facebook; Twitter; Pinterest; Email; Apps, Other. "[INTERVIEW] with... Himalayas". Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  13. "THIS FEELING: 60 SECONDS WITH HIMALAYAS – THIS FEELING #BIGIN2018". Northern Exposure. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  14. "New Artist Showcase: Himalayas - Manchester - MCR Live Blog". MCR Live. 20 October 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  15. "BBC Music - BBC Music Introducing, Himalayas - Thank God I'm Not You (SXSW 2018)". BBC. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  16. Thank God I'm Not You, retrieved 30 August 2019
  17. Himalayas - Thank God I'm Not You, retrieved 30 August 2019
  18. "BBC Radio 2 - Sounds Of The 70s with Johnnie Walker". BBC. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
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