Swervedriver @ Thalia Hall in Chicago

About the artist

Swervedriver are an English alternative rock band formed in Oxford in 1989 around core members Adam Franklin and Jimmy Hartridge amidst the shoegazing movement. During their initial decade-long run, the band released four studio albums and numerous EPs and singles despite a considerable flux of members, managers, and record labels. By 1993 the band’s lineup had settled with Franklin on vocals/guitar, Hartridge on guitar, Jez Hindmarsh on drums, and Steve George on bass. A heavier rock sound had also emerged and over the next five years evolved to include elements of psychedelia, classic pop, and indie rock. After losing their fourth label in as many years, the band dissolved at the end of 1998. A continually devoted fanbase of “Swervies” garnered the release of an anthology in 2005 and remastered versions of their first three albums in 2008. Swervedriver reunited for major tours in 2008 and 2012 and are scheduled for an Australian mini-tour in September and October 2013.