Jack Cooper (English musician)

Jack Oliver Cooper (born February 1980) is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. Currently a member of Modern Nature, Cooper was previously a member of The Beep Seals, Mazes and Ultimate Painting.

Jack Cooper
Birth nameJack Oliver Cooper
BornFebruary 1980
Blackpool, England
GenresAlternative rock, indie rock,
Occupation(s)Musician
InstrumentsVocals, guitar
Years active2004-present
LabelsTwisted Nerve Records, My Dad Recordings, Trouble in Mind
Associated actsThe Beep Seals, Mazes, Ultimate Painting, Modern Nature, Jim Noir

Biography

Cooper was born in Blackpool, and re-located to Manchester in the early 2000s. In 2003, he signed to Twisted Nerve Records and released the song Hope I Don't Cry on a 7" single with 2 other artists which was issued as part of the label's mail order single subscription service.[1][2] In 2004, Cooper signed to My Dad Recordings and released his debut EP in July 2004 in the form of Turn The Light Off.[3] My Dad Recordings was the home of local musician Jim Noir, who helped Cooper record demos with his backing band for a possible debut album.[4]

However, instead of continuing to pursue a solo career Cooper served as part of Noir's backing band along with former Alfie guitarist Ian Smith on drums. The musicians dubbed themselves The Beep Seals[5] and helped Noir record and tour his debut album Tower of Love, which was released in December 2005. Following tour commitments, the band parted ways with Jim Noir and began working on their own material with Cooper and Smith co-fronting. Commenting on the formation of the band, Cooper stated that they "all gelled immediately as a band. Me and Ian bonded straight away over obscure psychedelic records, and stuff like that first EP by The Aliens. I was thinking of packing in my solo stuff, anyway, and Ian was looking for a new band after Alfie finished".[6] Through 2007, the band released 2 singles in the form of Tell Your Friends and Stars.[7][8] In 2018, the band released their debut album Things That Roar, which was produced by Teenage Fanclub frontman Norman Blake.[9] They split up in April 2009, cancelling their last planned gig which was part of an all day gig in Glasgow dubbed BeepFest.[10][11]

In 2009, Cooper formed Mazes. Initially conceived as a solo project following the split of the Beep Seals, after some early lineup changes the band lineup was completed by bassist Neil Robinson and drummer Conan Roberts.[12] The band went on to release 3 albums proper; A Thousand Heys in 2011, Ores & Minerals in 2013 and Wooden Aquarium in 2014.[13] Commenting on how the band worked together, Cooper revealed that "on the first record back in 2011, the songs were almost entirely fully formed. And then on Ores the songs were constructed around loops and I think of that record as being a mood board of how we want to sound in the long run. With the new stuff, I’m still bringing in the seeds of songs but we’re collaborating a lot more in the arrangement and vibe. Neil and Conan both have really great taste".

Following the quiet disbandment of Mazes in 2014, Cooper moved on to work with former Veronica Falls member James Hoare and formed Ultimate Painting. The band signed to US record label Trouble in Mind and released 3 albums in quick succession; Ultimate Painting in 2014, Green Lanes in 2015 and Dusk in 2016. Commenting on the productiity of the band, Cooper commented that "after we made the first record I knew that this is something we’d be doing for a while but to do three records in three years does feel like an achievement. Being completely honest, it’s not always easy. We’re two very different people and we disagree about even the tiniest thing".[14] In August 2017, Cooper released his debut solo album Sandgrown via Trouble in Mind, influenced by his childhood in Blackpool.[15][16]

In January 2018, Ultimate Painting announced that their fourth album Up was set for release in the following April via Bella Union and shared lead-single Not Gonna Burn Myself Anymore.[17] A UK tour to coincide with the release was announced and put on sale.[18] On 12 February 2018, Jack Cooper announced that the band were splitting up, adding that "the partnership at the core of this band has always been a very fragile thing, but due to an irreconcilable breakdown we will no longer be working with each other". The previously announced album release was cancelled at Cooper's express request and the UK tour to support it was also cancelled.[19]

In February 2019, Cooper unveilved his new band Modern Nature, announcing their debut EP Nature which was released in March via Bella Union. Commenting on the lineup of the band, Cooper revealed that "the band is so new, it's hard to say who's in and who isn't. At the moment it's myself and Will Young (Beak>), with Aaron Neveu on drums (Woods/Herbcraft), Rupert Gillett on cello and then Jeff Tobias on saxophone". Young also previously played live with Ultimate Painting, and Tobias is a member of US band Sunwatchers[20][21]

Discography

The Beep Seals
  • 2008 - Things That Roar - Heron Recordings

Mazes
  • 2011 - A Thousand Heys - FatCat Records
  • 2011 - IBB Tape - Italian Beach Babes
  • 2013 - Ores & Minerals - FatCat Records
  • 2013 - Better Ghosts - Fat Cat Records
  • 2014 - Wooden Aquarium - FatCat Records

Ultimate Painting
  • 2014 - Ultimate Painting - Trouble in Mind
  • 2015 - Green Lanes - Trouble in Mind
  • 2015 - Live At Third Man Records - Third Man
  • 2016 - Dusk - Trouble in Mind
  • 2018 - Up! - Bella Union

Solo
  • 2004 - Turn The Light Off EP - My Dad Recordings
  • 2017 - Sandgrown - Trouble in Mind


Modern Nature
  • 2019 - Nature EP - Bella Union
  • 2019 - How To Live - Bella Union
  • 2020 - Annual - Bella Union
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gollark: It's right to transmit, not literally all control over that frequency ever.
gollark: It seems strange to sell off fundamental properties of reality, but spectrum is actually quite scarce for many uses.
gollark: You see, the government sells off portions of the electromagnetic spectrum for profit, and the 2.4GHz-ish region is one of the "ISM bands" for which basically-arbitrary use is permitted at no cost.
gollark: This is because of radio licensing.

References
  1. NME (3 February 2004). "GET A DOWNLOAD OF THIS!". NME. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  2. "Various - Jukebox 45 Singles Issue 12". Discogs. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  3. "My Dad Recordings - Releases". 22 February 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2006. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  4. "Jack Cooper - My Dad Recordings - News". 6 August 2005. Archived from the original on 6 August 2005. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  5. "Jim Noir | Universal Music Publishing UK". www.umusicpub.com. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  6. News, Manchester Evening (26 March 2007). "Meet the unsigned supergroup". men. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  7. BBC. "The Beep Seals". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  8. "The Beep Seals – 'Stars'". www.gigwise.com. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  9. "The Beep Seals - Things That Roar". Discogs. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  10. peenko. "Beepfest Stage Times". Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  11. "Beepfest 2009 - eFestivals.co.uk". www.efestivals.co.uk. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  12. "Fatcat Records". www.fat-cat.co.uk. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  13. "Mazes". Discogs. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  14. "Ultimate Painting Interview". theseventhhex.com. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  15. Subscribe. "Ultimate Painting's Jack Cooper announces solo album 'Sandgrown'". DIY. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  16. "Interview: Jack Cooper - M Magazine". M magazine: PRS for Music online magazine. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  17. "Ultimate Painting prep new LP 'Up!' (listen to "Not Gonna Burn Myself Anymore")". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  18. "Ultimate Painting Announce New Album 'Up'". Clash Magazine. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  19. https://www.facebook.com/UltimatePaintingOfficial/posts/1446266252150122%7Ctitle=Ultimate Painting
  20. "Supergroup Modern Nature announce debut EP with 12-minute lead single "Supernature"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  21. "Introducing… Modern Nature | Bella Union". bellaunion.com. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
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