Spearmint (band)

Spearmint are a London-based independent band founded in 1995, comprising Shirley Lee (guitar, singing), Simon Calnan (keyboards, singing), James Parsons (guitar, bass) and Ronan Larvor (drums).

Spearmint
Background information
Origin	London, England
Genres	Indie pop, post-Britpop
Years active	1995–present
Labels	hitBACK
Members	Shirley Lee Simon Calnan James Parsons Ronan Larvor
Past members	Martin Talbot Dickon Edwards Andy Lewis

Original bassist Martin Talbot left the band after five shows, being replaced by Parsons in September 1995. Following Talbot's death, the band dedicated their debut album A Week Away to him in 1999. The dedication was repeated in 2009 when a 10th anniversary edition of the album was issued, including a new seven-song-cycle 'Life In Reverse', also in memory of Talbot.

All the group's records have been released on their own 'hitBACK' label, enabling them to maintain control over their artistic output. Most recent album 'Holland Park' is the 57th release on the label.

The band have worked together continuously since 1995, even while Parsons released a side project by Telley in 2009, and Lee released a solo double-album in 2011. At various times, the group has also been aided by Dickon Edwards, Andy Lewis and Rhodri Marsden.

The group has received coverage in the NME,[1] Time Out, Melody Maker and Uncut magazines.[2] and were referenced in the film (500) Days of Summer wherein Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character states “It pains me we live in a world where nobody's heard of Spearmint.”[3]

In 2009, Image Comics of Berkeley, California released the book 'This Is A Souvenir', a collection of graphic novellas based on the songs of Spearmint and Shirley Lee.

Spearmint are preparing to play live in London in December 2023, for the first time in four years.