Salad (band)
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1992 in London, England |
| Founder | Marijne van der Vlugt, Paul Kennedy, Pete Brown, Rob Wakeman |
| Defunct | 1998 (initially) |
| Fate | Reunited in 2017 |
| Headquarters | London , England |
| Products | Music albums and singles |
Salad is an alternative rock band that originated in London in 1992. The founding members were Dutch singer and keyboardist Marijne van der Vlugt, guitarist Paul Kennedy, bassist Pete Brown, and drummer Rob Wakeman, formerly of Colenso Parade.[1] In 1996, Charley Stone, who later joined Gay Dad, became part of the group as a touring guitarist, keyboard player, and backing vocalist. The band dissolved in 1998[2] but reunited in 2017.
Biography
Van der Vlugt, who started her career as a model and MTV Europe VJ,[1] established Salad following her performances with The Merry Babes alongside then-partner Paul Kennedy. The lineup was completed in 1992 with Pete Brown on bass and Rob Wakeman on drums.[2] Songwriting duties were primarily shared by Kennedy and van der Vlugt, with Wakeman playing a key role and managing sampling.[2] The band’s distinctive sound featured the Kawai K1 synthesizer and backing vocals by Kennedy.
Their initial releases—the "Kent" EP and "Diminished Clothes"—were issued on their own Waldorf label, attracting significant media attention and earning them a supporting slot on Blur's 1993 Sugary Tea tour. This exposure secured a contract with Island Records, initially through its indie imprint Island Red.[1] Following the release of another EP titled "On A Leash," these singles along with B-sides were compiled into Singles Bar (1994). Their first full-length album, Drink Me (1995), peaked at No. 16 on the UK Albums Chart and featured four singles; notably, "Motorbike to Heaven" narrowly missed entering the UK top 40. In 1996, they released the standalone single "I Want You," coinciding with Charley Stone joining for live shows.[2] Their sophomore album Ice Cream (1997) did not meet commercial expectations, resulting in their release from Island and eventual disbandment in 1998.[2]
After the split, van der Vlugt formed Cowboy Racer, whose song "Yellow Horse" was featured on the US television series Grey's Anatomy. Meanwhile, Brown and Wakeman created the entertainment website BoreMe, which is now managed solely by Brown. Stone participated in multiple bands including Gay Dad. Between 1999 and 2002, Wakeman produced Tech House and Techno tracks and co-founded the band Lapwing in 1999.
In 2016, van der Vlugt and Kennedy revisited Salad’s catalogue in an acoustic format called Salad Undressed, performing their first radio session in nearly two decades at Phoenix FM.[3] They later teamed up with longtime collaborator Donald Ross Skinner to release Good Love Bad Love in March 2018.[4]
The band announced a full electric reunion in 2017 featuring original members Brown and Stone alongside Skinner. This preceded the release of a new single in 2018 titled "The Selfishness of Love," followed by a complete album. Their third studio effort, The Salad Way, was launched on 30 August 2019 through independent distributor Republic of Music to widespread critical praise.
During the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020-21, van der Vlugt hosted live listening sessions via Facebook. In May 2021, Salad became a quartet after Stone departed to pursue solo projects. Later that year in August, they released “Things in Heaven” accompanied by a striking black-and-white video showing van der Vlugt emerging from the sea. Live performances resumed by late 2021 with plans for additional new recordings underway. In January 2022, bassist Pete Brown left the group and was succeeded by Jon Hunt.
Studio albums
- Drink Me (1995) – reached No. 16 on UK charts
- Ice Cream (1997) – peaked at No. 127 in the UK
- The Salad Way (2019)
Compilations
- Singles Bar (May 1994) – collection of first three singles
- The Lost Album, Vol. 1 (2017)
- Good Love Bad Love (2018 released as "Salad Undressed")
- The Lost Album, Vol. 2 (2019)
Singles
| Title | Year | Chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK | |||
| Kent EP | June 1993 | — | |
| Diminished Clothes | November 1993 | — | |
| "On a Leash" | April 1994 | 85 | |
| "Your Ma" | July 1994 | 82 | Drink Me |
| "Drink The Elixir" | February 1995 | 66 | |
| "Motorbike to Heaven" | May 1995 | 42 | |
| "Granite Statue" | August 1995 | 50 | |
| "I Want You" | October 1996 | 60 | |
| "Cardboy King" | May 1997 | 65 | Ice Cream |
| "Yeah Yeah" | August 1997 | 84 | |
| "Being Human" | July 2017 | — | Good Love Bad Love (as "Salad Undressed") |
| "Evergreen" | May 2018 | — | |
| "The Selfishness Of Love" | November 2018 | — | |
| "Under The Wrapping Paper" | June 2019 | — | The Salad Way |
| "You Got The Job" | July 2019 | — | |
| "Details" | February 2020 | — | |
| "Things in Heaven" | August 2021 | — | |
| "I Didn't Know You'd Gone" | March 2023 | — |
Other works
- Dream a Little Dream of Me (May 1995) – collaboration with Terry Hall for the War Child initiative, featured on The Help Album
- Back Street Luv (1996) – included on the Childline charity compilation
- Girl Don't Come (1996) – duet with Sandie Shaw on The White Room project
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedStrong - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedLarkin90 - ↑ http://www.phoenixfm.com/2016/08/05/marijne-and-paul-from-salad-live-at-phoenix-fm/
- ↑ https://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/salad-undressed