The Thermals
The Thermals were an American indie rock band based in Portland, Oregon, United States. The group was formed in 2002. With influences heavily rooted in both lofi, as well as standard rock, the band's songs were also known for their political and religious imagery.[1]
The Thermals | |
|---|---|
 The Thermals final line-up (left to right): Westin Glass, Kathy Foster and Hutch Harris | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Portland, Oregon, United States |
| Genres | Indie rock, lo-fi, punk rock |
| Years active | 2002–2018 |
| Labels | Kill Rock Stars, Saddle Creek, Sub Pop |
| Past members | Hutch Harris Kathy Foster Westin Glass Jordan Hudson Ben Barnett Caitlin Love Lorin Coleman Joel Burrows |
| Website | www |
History
In 2002 former bandmates Hutch Harris and Kathy Foster came together to form the Thermals, having previously worked together, most notably in the folk duo Hutch & Kathy. Their first album, More Parts per Million, was released in 2003 by Sub Pop Records. The album was recorded and performed entirely by Hutch Harris, who played every instrument. The first live lineup was Harris with Kathy Foster on bass, Jordan Hudson (also of M. Ward and The operacycle) on drums and Ben Barnett on guitar.[2] Their follow-up album, 2004's Fuckin A, was mixed by Death Cab For Cutie member Chris Walla.[3] During that period Ben Barnett left the band and Hutch Harris took over the role as guitarist.
Their third album The Body, The Blood, The Machine was produced by Brendan Canty of Fugazi[4] and won the group much recognition and acclaim, appearing on multiple top album lists for 2006 such as NPR, The AV Club and Pitchfork.[5] The song "A Pillar of Salt" was also featured on EA's Skate 3 in-game radio. Jordan Hudson dropped out of the band during the recording of their third album. Kathy Foster took over percussion duties in the recording studio, which Lorin Coleman performed on tour.
The Thermals' fourth album Now We Can See, was released in 2009 on the label Kill Rock Stars and produced by John Congleton. Again, Foster worked as the percussionist on the album. Westin Glass joined the group as a drummer after the album had been completed.
The Thermals fifth album, Personal Life was released September 7, 2010.
The Thermals' cover of the song "Little Boxes" was used as the opening song for Weeds season 8 episode 8, "Five Miles From Yetzer Hara" which aired on August 19, 2012; their song "Here's Your Future" from The Body, The Blood, The Machine having been previously used in the second episode of the third season ("A Pool and his Money" August 20, 2007).
In October 2012, former guitarist Joel Burrows died from complications from a car accident.[6]
On January 31, 2013, The Thermals signed to Saddle Creek Records and planned to release their new album Desperate Ground on April 16, 2013.[7][8] In March 2013, The Thermals were named one of Fuse TV's 30 must-see artists at SXSW.[9]
On January 6, 2016, The Thermals announced the release of their seventh studio album titled We Disappear. It was released on March 25, 2016 via Saddle Creek records.[10]
On April 9, 2018, the band announced[11] that they were officially disbanding after 16 years.
Band members
Final lineup
- Hutch Harris – vocals, guitar, keyboard (2002–2018)
- Kathy Foster – bass, vocals (2002–2018)
- Westin Glass – drums, vocals (2008–2018)
Former members
- Jordan Hudson – drums (2002–2005)
- Ben Barnett – guitar (2002–2003)
- Caitlin Love – drums (2006)
- Lorin Coleman – drums (2007–2008)
- Joel Burrows – guitar (2007)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [12] |
US Heat [13] |
US Indie [14] | ||
| More Parts per Million |
|
— | — | — |
| Fuckin A |
|
— | — | — |
| The Body, the Blood, the Machine |
|
— | — | — |
| Now We Can See |
|
191 | 5 | 20 |
| Personal Life |
|
180 | 1 | 30 |
| Desperate Ground |
|
— | 1 | 39 |
| We Disappear |
|
— | 11 | 36 |
| "—" denotes album that did not chart or was not released | ||||
EPs
| Title | EP details |
|---|---|
| No Culture Icons | |
| A Pillar of Salt |
|
| Desperate Ground Demos |
|
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Sales [18] |
UK Indie [18] | ||||||||||||
| "How We Know"[19] | 2004 | — | — | Fuckin A | |||||||||
| "A Pillar of Salt"[20] | 2007 | — | 34 | The Body, the Blood, the Machine | |||||||||
| "Returning to the Fold" | 2008 | — | — | ||||||||||
| "Now We Can See" | 2009 | — | — | Now We Can See | |||||||||
| "We Were Sick" | — | — | |||||||||||
| "Canada" | 2010 | — | — | Non-album single | |||||||||
| "I Don't Believe You" | — | — | Personal Life | ||||||||||
| "Never Listen To Me" | 84 | — | |||||||||||
| "Not Like Any Other Feeling" | 2011 | — | — | ||||||||||
| "Born To Kill" | 2013 | — | — | Desperate Ground | |||||||||
| "Hey You"[21] | 2016 | — | — | We Disappear | |||||||||
| "My Heart Went Cold" | — | — | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||
Split singles
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Ballad of Big Nothing" / "Division Day" | 2006 | We Are Telephone | To Elliott, from Portland |
| "When I Died" / "Cool Yourself You Are Flush Red"[22] | 2009 | Thao & The Get Down Stay Down | Non-album singles |
| "Separate" / "So Hot Now" | 2010 | The Cribs |
Live albums
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Insound Tour Support 2.0 | Insound |
| 2008 | LIVE at the Echoplex - December 7, 2007 | Kufala Recordings |
Compilations
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | The Wonder of the Underground Pressed On Plastic, Vol. 1 | Meow Meow |
| 2004 | Sub Pop: Patient Zero | Sub Pop |
| 2006 | To Elliott: From Portland | Expunged Records |
| 2006 | Terminal Sales Vol. 2: This Delicious | Sub Pop |
| 2007 | Bridging the Distance: a Portland, OR covers compilation | Arena Rock Recording Co. |
References
- "The Thermals Interview". Unfoldamsterdam.nl. Archived from the original on 2012-06-07. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- "More Parts Per Million". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- "Fuckin A info". Subpop.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-23. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- "Thermals Interview". Pitchfork.com. 13 September 2006. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- "Thermals Award info". Subpop.com. Archived from the original on 2013-05-14. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- Lannamann, Ned (2012-10-29). "Goodbye, Joel Burrows of the Minders and the Thermals | End Hits". Portlandmercury.com. Archived from the original on 2013-05-10. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- Minsker, Evan (31 January 2013). "Thermals Detail New LP, Sign to Saddle Creek". Pitchfork. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
- Thomas, Fred (2013-04-15). "Desperate Ground - The Thermals : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- "30 Must-See Acts at SXSW 2013 - Photos - South by Southwest - Festivals - Fuse". Fuse.tv. 2013-02-28. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
- Minsker, Evan (6 January 2016). "The Thermals Announce New Album We Disappear, Share "Hey You"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
- "The Thermals Twitter ನಲ್ಲಿ: "We are officially disbanding! After 15 years and 7 records, we feel our band has reached far beyond our initial expectations and goals, and are stepping away from it while we still cherish it."". 9 April 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-04-09. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
- "The Thermals - Billboard". Billboard.com.
- "The Thermals - Billboard Heatseekers". Billboard.com.
- "The Thermals - Billboard Independent". Billboard.com.
- "No Culture Icons - EP by The Thermals on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "A Pillar of Salt 7" by The Thermals on Sub Pop Records". Sub Pop. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "Desperate Ground Demos - EP by The Thermals on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "Thermals Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "The Thermals "How We Know"". HIP Video Promo. 9 March 2012. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "New Thermals Video – "Pillar Of Salt"". Stereogum. 6 September 2006. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "Hey You - Single by The Thermals on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- "Thermals and Thao with the Get Down Stay Down plan plan split for Record Store Day". Punk News. 6 February 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
External links
- Official website
- The Thermals at Sub Pop Records
- The Thermals on FreeIndie
- The Thermals at AllMusic