Bleachers (band)

Bleachers is an American indie pop act based in New Jersey. It is the official stage name of songwriter and record producer Jack Antonoff, who is also part of the bands Steel Train, Fun, and Red Hearse. Bleachers' pop music was heavily influenced by the late '80s, early '90s and the high school-based films of John Hughes while still using modern production techniques. Their first single, "I Wanna Get Better", was released February 18, 2014.

For other uses, see Bleachers (disambiguation).

Bleachers
Bleachers performing live at the VMAs "Artist to Watch" Concert at the Avalon Theatre in 2014
Background information
Origin	Bergenfield, New Jersey, United States
Genres	Indie pop new wave alternative rock synth-pop
Years active	2014 (2014)–present
Labels	RCA
Associated acts	Charli XCX fun Nate Ruess Steel Train
Website	bleachersmusic.com
Members	Jack Antonoff

Career

2014-15: Origins and Strange Desire

While on the road with his band, Fun, Antonoff began working on a new project during his time in different cities. For about a year he kept the project a secret until February 18, 2014, when the first single "I Wanna Get Better" was released along with the launch of Bleachers' website, social media profiles, and a selection of tour dates.[1] News of Bleachers was first publicly announced in a Facebook post by Brooklyn music studio Mission Sound in May 2013.[2]

About making the album, Antonoff said, "I spent the past year working on the music but not talking about it, and eventually it became this psychotic alter-ego situation, where it was second nature to have this part of me that no one knew about. Except for a small group of people, most of which happened to be members of my immediate family, no one was aware that this music, or this album even existed ... even though it existed so deeply to me."[3] Antonoff also stated that Bleachers was never meant to be a departure from his position in Fun.,[4] and that he will remain in the band.

Bleachers' debut album Strange Desire was released July 10, 2014, from RCA Records.[5] Variance Magazine called the single "Rollercoaster" a "brilliant summer anthem."[6] Bleachers went on their debut Come Alive! tour, which features Night Terrors of 1927 and Joywave as opening acts, from March to April 2015.[7] From there, they went on the Strange Desire World Tour from July to November of that same year.[8] They juggled this with the Charli and Jack Do America Tour, a tour co-headlined by Bleachers and Charli XCX.

On September 25, 2015, Bleachers released Terrible Thrills, Vol. 2, a sequel to Strange Desire. The album contained songs from Strange Desire being covered by numerous female artists with modified tunes. When asked about the album, Antonoff told Billboard “I hear my songs being sung by females before I change them and make them into my voice. The whole heart of this idea is for people to hear the album the way I hear it in my head, reinterpreted by the artists who sort of inspired it to be written in the first place.” Covers were contributed from artists such as Sara Bareilles, Charli XCX, and Sia.[9] The band appeared as the fictional band Baby Goya and The Nuclear Winters in the 2015 film Hello, My Name Is Doris.

2017-19: Gone Now and Love, Simon

Bleachers' second album Gone Now was released June 2, 2017. Its lead single "Don't Take the Money" has been described by Atwood Magazine as "an epic uplifting pop-rock anthem ultimately about how when love is real, its worth everything that comes along with it". In celebration of the album release, he brought his childhood bedroom on tour with him. He had it dismantled and rebuilt inside of a portable trailer. During May and June concerts, fans could enter the "moving, living art exhibit" and listen to the album prior to its official release. Antonoff explained in a press release, saying "when I thought about where this album was coming from and what it’s kissing goodbye I thought of this room. I wished I could play the album for people who care about Bleachers in this space that it is coming from and leaving."[10] The band was on its Gone Now Era: Part 1 tour from September to November 2017.[11] The tour featured Tove Stryke, Bishop Briggs, and Tangerine as openers.[12]

In September 2017, Bleachers performed on MTV Unplugged at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey. The live session was later released as an album, also entitled MTV Unplugged. The album features 11 tracks from both Gone Now and Strange Desire and was released November 10, 2017.[13]

Antonoff produced the soundtrack of Love, Simon, released on March 16, 2018.[14] He contributed five songs, with four being credited to Bleachers—"Alfie's Song (Not So Typical Love Song)", "Rollercoaster", "Keeping a Secret", and "Wild Heart"— and one credited to his real name, a duet with MØ titled "Never Fall in Love".[14]

Throughout 2019, Bleachers released the third volume of Terrible Thrills in a series of four vinyl records, each featuring covers of songs from Gone Now by female artists as well as new demos by Bleachers.

2020: Third studio album

In late 2019, Antonoff began recording the third Bleachers album. During this time the band embarked on a three day "mini-tour" called the "I Love Making This Album but I'm Also Losing My Mind in Here & Need to Come Out and Play" Tour.[15] On January 6, 2020 Antonoff announced on Twitter that a new Bleachers album would come within the year.[16]

Live band members

While Antonoff performs the majority of the instrumentation in-studio, he is accompanied by a band for live performances.[17][18]

• Jack Antonoff – lead vocals, guitar, keyboards, synthesizers, samples
• Evan Smith – keyboards, synthesizers, saxophone, vocals
• Mikey Hart – bass, guitar, keyboards, synthesizers, piano, vocals
• Sean Hutchinson – drums, sampling pad, synthesizers, backing vocals
• Mike Riddleberger – drums, sampling pad, backing vocals

Discography

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US [19]	US Alt. [20]	US Rock [21]	CAN [22]
Strange Desire	Released: July 10, 2014 (US)[23] Label: RCA Formats: CD, Digital download, LP	11	2	2	19
Gone Now	Released: June 2, 2017 (US)[24] Label: RCA Formats: CD, Digital download, LP	44	6	9	92

Live albums

List of live albums, with selected chart positions

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US Current [25]	US Alt. Sales [26]	US Rock Sales [27]
MTV Unplugged	Released: November 10, 2017 (US)[28] Label: RCA Formats: Digital download, LP	87	21	45

Compilation albums

List of compilation albums

Title	Album details
Terrible Thrills, Vol. 2	Released: September 25, 2015 (US)[29] Label: RCA Formats: Digital download, LP
Terrible Thrills, Vol. 3	Released: March 16, 2019 (US)[30][31] Label: RCA Formats: 4 × 7-inch vinyl

EPs

List of EPs

Title	Album details
Spotify Sessions	Released: August 6, 2014 (US)[32] Label: RCA Format: Streaming
Strange Desire: The Demos	Released: November 28, 2014 (US)[33] Label: RCA Formats: CD, Digital download, LP

Soundtrack albums

List of soundtrack albums, with selected chart positions

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US [19]	CAN [22]
Love, Simon (with Various Artists)[34]	Released: March 16, 2018 (US)[35] Label: RCA Formats: DL, LP, CD	37	24

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Peak chart positions								Certifications	Album
		US	US Adult Pop [36]	US Alt Airplay [37]	US Rock/ Alt [38]	BEL (FL) Tip [39]	CAN Rock [40]	JPN [41]	MEX Air. [42]
"I Wanna Get Better"	2014	—[upper-alpha 1]	—	1	10	52	21	81	49	RIAA: Gold[44]	Strange Desire
"Shadow"[45]		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	43
"Rollercoaster"[46]		—	—	3	19	—	27	—	47
"Like a River Runs"[47]		—[upper-alpha 2]	—	—	—[upper-alpha 3]	—	—	—	—
"Entropy"[50] (with Grimes)	2015	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album single
"Don't Take the Money"	2017	—[upper-alpha 4]	22	3	12	—	47	—	—		Gone Now
"Hate That You Know Me"[52]		—	—	—	50	—	—	—	—
"Everybody Lost Somebody"[53]		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"I Miss Those Days"[54]		—	—	22	—[upper-alpha 5]	—	—	—	—		MTV Unplugged
"Alfie's Song (Not So Typical Love Song)"	2018	—	31	38	—[upper-alpha 6]	—	—	—	—		Love, Simon
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Promotional singles

Title	Year	Album
"Dear Prudence" (Beatles cover)[57]	2015	non-album promotional singles
"Jack HH"[58]	2017
"At My Most Beautiful" (R.E.M. cover)[59]	2020

Notes

1. "I Wanna Get Better" did not enter the main Billboard Hot 100 chart, but did peak at number 1 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart.[43]
2. "Like a River Runs" did not enter the main Billboard Hot 100 chart, but did peak at number 2 on the Hot Singles Sales chart, a component of the main Hot 100.[48]
3. "Like a River Runs" did not enter the main Hot Rock Songs chart, but did peak at number 40 on the Rock Digital Songs chart.[49]
4. "Don't Take the Money" did not enter the main Billboard Hot 100 chart, but did peak at number 10 on the Hot Singles Sales chart, a component of the main Hot 100.[51]
5. "I Miss Those Days" did not enter the US Hot Rock Songs chart, but peaked at number 36 on the Rock Airplay chart.[55]
6. "Alfie's Song (Not So Typical Love Song)" did not enter the US Hot Rock Songs chart, but peaked at number 36 on the Rock Airplay chart.[56]

References

1. "Bleachers NYC". Donyc.com. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
2. Cormier, Ryan. "Just what is Bleachers act announced for Firefly?". Delaware Online. Archived from the original on March 3, 2014. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
3. Montgomery, James (February 17, 2014). "How Taylor Swift And Hayley Williams Helped Fun.'s Guitarist Go Solo". MTV. Archived from the original on March 3, 2014. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
4. Obenschain, Philip (February 19, 2014). "Bleachers (Fun.'s Jack Antonoff) unveil debut single, tour dates, announce Yoko Ono collaboration". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on March 3, 2014. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
5. Jon Blistein (2014-05-15). "Jack Antonoff Details Bleachers Debut Album 'Strange Desire' Via Craigslist Ad | Music News". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-07-14.
6. "Readers Select 2014 Songs of Summer".
7. "Bleachers Announce Spring 2015 North American Tour: See The Dates". Music News, Reviews, and Gossip on Idolator.com.
8. "Bleachers Announce "The Strange Desire World Tour" | Digital Tour Bus". digitaltourbus.com. 2014-07-26. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
9. "Bleachers' Jack Antonoff Explains All-Female Covers Album, Gives New Album Update". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
10. "Bleachers' Jack Antonoff Takes Childhood Home on Tour". Spin. 2017-05-17. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
11. bleachers (2017-07-25). "new headline dates added this fall w/ @thatgirlbishop, tickets on-sale at 10am friday". @bleachersmusic. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
12. "Don't Take The Money". bleachersmusic.com. Retrieved 2017-09-05.
13. "Bleachers Announces MTV Unplugged Album, Shares New "I Miss Those Days" Video: Watch | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
14. "Love, Simon (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Various Artists on Apple Music". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved January 16, 2018.
15. Aniftos, Rania (October 14, 2019). "Jack Antonoff Announces Bleachers Mini Tour While Recording Third Album". Billboard. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
16. Skinner, Tom (January 7, 2020). "Jack Antonoff is releasing a new Bleachers album this year". NME. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
17. Olivier, Bobby (April 26, 2017). "Bleachers is back: N.J. rock star Jack Antonoff is brilliant at NYC concert". NJ.com. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
18. Ganz, Jacob (September 12, 2017). "Bleachers: Tiny Desk Concert". NPR. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
19. "Bleachers – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
20. "Bleachers – Chart History: Alternative Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
21. "Bleachers – Chart History: Top Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
22. "Bleachers – Chart History: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
23. Sendra, Tim. "Strange Desire – Bleachers". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
24. Antonoff, Jack (April 13, 2017). "on june 2nd i'm releasing my second album as bleachers. gone now". Instagram. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
25. "Bleachers: Chart History - Top Current Albums". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
26. "Alternative Album Sales: May 05, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
27. "Alternative Album Sales: May 05, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
28. "MTV Unplugged by Bleachers on Apple Music". iTunes Store. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
29. "Bleachers: Terrible Thrills, Vol. 2". Google Play. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
30. "Mitski, Julien Baker, MUNA and Ani DiFranco to Be Featured On Bleachers' 'Terrible Thrills, Vol. 3' Album". Billboard. November 26, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
31. "Terrible Thrills Vol. 3, by Bleachers". Makayla Bergasse. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
32. "Stream Bleachers' Spotify Session". RCA Records. August 6, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
33. "Bleachers - Strange Desire: The Demos [Black Friday] (Vinyl LP)". Amoeba Music. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
34. "Bleachers' Jack Antonoff To Executive Produce Soundtrack For 20th Century Fox Film Love, Simon". RCA Records. January 22, 2018.
35. "Love, Simon (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". iTunes.
36. "Bleachers – Chart History: Adult Pop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
37. "Bleachers – Chart History: Alternative Songs". Billboard. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
38. "Bleachers – Chart History: Rock Songs". Billboard. Retrieved May 16, 2014.
39. "Discografie Bleachers". ultratop.be (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
40. "Bleachers – Chart History: Canada Rock". Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
41. "Bleachers – Chart History: Japan Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
42. "Bleachers – Chart History: Mexico Ingles Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
43. . Billboard. August 2, 2014 https://www.billboard.com/biz/charts/2014-08-02/bubbling-under-hot-100-singles. Retrieved April 30, 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
44. "American certifications – Bleachers". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 12, 2015.
45. "Shadow (2014)". 7digital (US). Archived from the original on 2014-06-17. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
46. "Rollercoaster (2014)". 7digital (US). Archived from the original on 2014-06-17. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
47. "Like a River Runs (2014)". 7digital (US). Archived from the original on 2014-06-24. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
48. . Billboard. June 20, 2015 https://www.billboard.com/biz/charts/2015-06-20/hot-singles-sales. Retrieved April 30, 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
49. . Billboard. June 20, 2015 https://www.billboard.com/biz/charts/2015-06-20/rock-digital-songs. Retrieved April 30, 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
50. "Entropy – Single by Grimes x Bleachers". iTunes Store (US). Apple. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
51. . Billboard. July 22, 2017 https://www.billboard.com/biz/charts/2017-07-22/hot-singles-sales. Retrieved April 30, 2019. Missing or empty |title= (help)
52. Cook, Cameron (April 18, 2017). ""Hate That You Know Me" by Bleachers Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
53. Rose, Alex Robert (May 15, 2017). "Bleachers Celebrates the Pain on the Stunning "Everybody Lost Somebody"". Noisey. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
54. "I Miss Those Days (MTV Unplugged) - Single by Bleachers on Apple Music". iTunes Store. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
55. "Chart Search". Retrieved May 28, 2020.
56. "Chart Search". Retrieved May 28, 2020.
57. "Dear Prudence (Beatles Cover)". Soundcloud. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
58. "Jack HH by Bleachers". Soundcloud. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
59. "At My Most Beautiful (R.E.M. cover)". Soundcloud. Retrieved April 30, 2020.

External links

• Official website