Electro Velvet are a British vocal duo that represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Still in Love with You" finishing 24th.[1] The duo consist of Alex Larke and Bianca Nicholas.
Electro Velvet | |
|---|---|
 Electro Velvet at Eurovision 2015 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | United Kingdom |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2014–2015, 2018 |
| Labels | Band of Sisters Recordings |
| Past members | Alex Larke Bianca Nicholas |
Career
editEarly beginnings
editNicholas has appeared both on The X Factor and The Voice UK.[2][3][4] She has also sung a duet with Will Young and performed in front of Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry.[2][5] In 2011, Nicholas released a single "Hold On To Your Dreams", which entered the UK Top 100 singles chart.[2][5] She also had a small role in the 1999 American film Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp.[6] She suffers from cystic fibrosis.[5]
Born in Welwyn Garden City, Larke is currently lead singer for The Rolling Stones tribute group The Rolling Clones, and has toured the UK and internationally with the band. He has recently worked with Big Beat pioneer Cut La Roc on his album Larger Than Life, which also features Ice-T collaborator, Donald D and Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody. Larke works part-time in a primary school, and also teaches ukulele and recorder. In 2014 he worked in a special needs school with children and young adults with profound to severe learning difficulties.[7]
On their official Facebook page, the duo thanked their fans for all their support during their time at Eurovision, as well as announcing "we'll be in touch soon about what we are up to next."[8]
2015: Eurovision Song Contest
editElectro Velvet were selected by the BBC to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with their song "Still in Love with You". The entry was presented on 7 March 2015 via the BBC Red Button service.[9] The song received a mixed to negative reception upon its announcement.[10][11] In the Eurovision final they received 5 points and were placed 24th out of 27.[12]
The staging of the song included two pairs of additional dancers, two of whom performed breakdance and acrobatic moves. The television production involved some Busby Berkeley-style shots from above and darkened sequences during which the performers' costumes were illuminated with integral LED strip light.[citation needed]
On 22 June, their debut EP was launched on PledgeMusic where it was available to pre-order, along with many other exclusives. It was cancelled due to Nicholas' continued ill-health.[13]
Discography
editSingles
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart position | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | UK Indie | UK Indie Breakers | AUT [14] | |||
| "Still in Love with You" | 2015 | 114 | 8 | 2 | 53 | Non-album single |
| "Take Me Home" | 2018 | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released. | ||||||
References
edit- ^ Roxburgh, Gordon (7 March 2015). "Electro Velvet to represent the United Kingdom". EBU. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ a b c "BBC News - Eurovision: Duo Electro Velvet picked for UK Eurovision entry". BBC News. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ Ellie Cambridge. "X Factor singer belts out Frozen tune for Long Ditton girls' charity mission". This Is Local London. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ "BBC One - The Voice UK, Series 3, Blind Auditions 7, Bianca Nicholas' Blind Audition". BBC. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ a b c "'Cystic fibrosis won't stop me singing'". Nhs.uk. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ "Eurovision 2015: Electro Velvet named as UK entrant". Telegraph.co.uk. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ Jones, Hannah (7 March 2015). "Eurovision 2015: Who is Alex Larke?". Walesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ "Electro Velvet". Facebook.com. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ Taylor, Richard (7 March 2015). "The UK Reveals All: It's Bianca & Alex!!!". Eurovoix.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- ^ Rickman, Dina (8 March 2015). "The best worst reviews of the UK's Eurovision entry". The Independent. Archived from the original on 30 April 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
- ^ "Eurovision: UK Duo Electro Velvet earn mixed reaction". BBC. 8 March 2015. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
- ^ "Eurovision Song Contest: Sweden's Mans Zelmerlow wins". BBC News. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
- ^ Larke, Alex (26 June 2015). "Electro Velvet". Pledgemusic.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "DiscographIe Electro Velvet". Austrian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
External links
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