Radical Face | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Born | Jacksonville, Florida |
Origin | Jacksonville, Florida |
Genres | Folk, electronic |
Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
Years active | 2000–present |
Labels | Bear Machine Records, Nettwerk Music Group |
Website | www |
Radical Face is a musical act whose main member is Ben Cooper.
History
2003–2010: Early years
Cooper chose the name Radical Face upon seeing it on a flyer. He later learned it was a plastic surgery flyer for a 'Radical Face-Lift' with the word 'lift' ripped off.[1]
Cooper's first album to be recorded under the Radical Face pseudonym was The Junkyard Chandelier (2003). The album was never formally released but has since been available as a free download online. Ghost, released in 2007, was the first official studio album by Radical Face.
2010–2016: The Family Tree
On November 16, 2010, Cooper released a six-track EP titled Touch The Sky, which served as a prelude for an announced trilogy of albums called The Family Tree.
The Family Tree albums follows four generations of the fictional Northcote family, and is narratively based in the 19th and early 20th centuries.[2] Comprising over 30 songs, the trilogy details the lives of an extensive list of family members as they confront war, death, progress, and the supernatural abilities certain family lines possess. Cooper uses different instruments to represent certain family members throughout the trilogy, utilizing only instruments that would have been available at the time the stories take place.[3]
The first entry in the series, The Roots, was officially released on October 4, 2011; however it was accidentally released to users outside of the US on iTunes in August. It was followed by The Branches in October 2013, and The Leaves in March of 2016.[4]
Leading up to the release of The Roots, the first of four EPs of songs that did not make the final cut on the main albums called The Bastards: Volume One was released track by track. The Bastards: Volume Two was released in 2013, following the release of The Branches, and volumes three and four were released in 2015, prior to the release of The Leaves in 2016.
2016–present: Missing Film, EPs, and upcoming projects
The sixth Radical Face album, Missing Film, was released in 2018. The album is fully instrumental, and was released under an open license with the intention for the songs to be used by independent filmmakers without the need for paying royalties.[5]
Since 2017 Radical Face has released a number of EPs, the first being SunnMoonnEclippse, released February 10. The EPs full video is available on a website of the same name.
Starting in August 2020, Cooper released a monthly mailer named "Hidden Hollow". A new song was included with each letter. The last letter posted in February 2021, and the six songs were released as the “Hidden Hollow, Vol. 1 EP.”
According to Cooper, he began working on a project called Into the Woods in 2019, describing it as an album with accompanying visual art and prose created by himself. In 2023 he announced the album, called A Light in the Woods, will release October 20, 2023.
In Popular Culture
The single "Welcome Home" has been featured in a number of ads, TV shows, and films. It was used as theme in Nikon's worldwide campaign "I'M NIKON".[6]
The song "We're On Our Way" was used for the official trailer of the 2012 motion picture The Perks of Being a Wallflower.[7]
Several songs from The Family Tree Albums have been used in films and commercials:
- "The Mute" was featured in the soundtrack of the 2014 comedy-drama Wish I Was Here[8]
- "The Crooked Kind" is featured in the Elementary episode "The Diabolical Kind"[9]
- "Glory" and "All is Well (Goodbye, Goodbye)" were featured in the 2016 motion picture Buddymoon
- "The Road to Nowhere" was featured in a 2021 commercial for Google
The American crime thriller television series The Blacklist featured the songs "Welcome Home", "Baptisms", "Always Gold", "The Road to Nowhere", "Summer Skeletons", and "Letters Home." In 2021, Radical Face released the song "One Last Dream," composed for the season 8 finale of the show.
Discography
Albums
Title | Year | Track listing |
---|---|---|
The Junkyard Chandelier | 2003 |
|
Ghost | 2007 |
|
The Family Tree: The Roots | 2011 |
|
The Family Tree: The Branches | 2013 |
|
The Family Tree: The Bastards | 2015 |
|
The Family Tree: The Leaves | 2016 |
|
Missing Film | 2018 |
|
Ghost (Anniversary Edition) | 2019 |
|
EPs
Title | Year | Track listing |
---|---|---|
Touch The Sky EP | 2010 |
|
Always Gold EP | 2012 |
|
SunnMoonnEclippse | 2017 |
|
Covers, Volume 1: "Lady Covers" | 2018 |
|
Therapy | 2019 |
|
Therapy (Alternate Reality Versions) | 2019 |
|
Reveries | 2020 |
|
Hidden Hollow, Vol. One - Singles - EP | 2021 |
|
A Light In The Woods - Book One: Hidden Hollow | 2023 |
|
Singles
Year | Title | Chart | Certification | Album | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
FR [10] |
NED [11] |
SWI | ||||
2007 | "Welcome Home" | 83 | 18 | 38 | Ghost |
Music videos
Year | Song | Album |
---|---|---|
2007 | "Welcome Home" | Ghost |
2010 | "Doorways" | Touch The Sky EP |
2012 | "We're On Our Way" | The Bastards: Volume One |
2012 | "A Pound of Flesh" | The Family Tree: The Roots |
2012 | "Always Gold" | The Family Tree: The Roots |
2013 | "Holy Branches" | The Family Tree: The Branches |
2014 | "The Mute" | The Family Tree: The Branches |
2016 | "Secrets (Cellar Door)" | The Family Tree: The Leaves |
2016 | "The Road To Nowhere" | The Family Tree: The Leaves |
2016 | "Everything Costs" | The Family Tree: The Leaves |
2017 | "Sunn"
"Moonn" "Eclippse" |
SunnMoonnEclippse |
2019 | "Doubt" | Therapy |
2019 | "Hard of Hearing" | Therapy |
References
- ↑
- ↑ "Review: Radical Face, The Family Tree: The Roots | Timber and Steel". Timberandsteel.wordpress.com. 17 September 2011. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
- ↑ "Radical Face - The Bastards 3 EP; Paste Magazine". pastemagazine.com/noisetrade. Retrieved 2022-10-22.
- ↑ "Radical Face – Touch The Sky [EP]". Randomville.com. 2011-01-19. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
- ↑ j.a.heiser (2018-11-21). "Album Review: Radical Face – Missing Film". The Indy Review. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
- ↑ "Nikon Cameras – I Am". TV Ad Music. March 12, 2010. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
- ↑ "The Perks Of Being a Wallflower Soundtrack". Tunefind.
- ↑ Wish I Was Here (2014) - Soundtracks - IMDb, retrieved 2023-10-19
- ↑ "Elementary" The Diabolical Kind (TV Episode 2014) - Soundtracks - IMDb, retrieved 2023-10-19
- ↑ Steffen Hung. "Discographie Radical Face". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
- ↑ "Radical Face - Welcome Home | Top 40". Top 40. top40.nl. Retrieved 2022-12-12.