Laurence "Lol" Tolhurst was born on the Third of February 1959, years later
he would discover that it was the very day that Buddy Holly passed on...
...five years later two little boys at their first day of school would
meet...
Lol Tolhurst and Robert Smith would start on a journey that would take them
to the very pinnacle of musical success. In adolescence, Lol and Robert
discovered that they shared a similar vision to form a group like the ones
that influenced them. This simple inspiration would create one of the most
influential, critically acclaimed and commercially successful groups of
modern times: The Cure. From 1978 onwards, Lol and The Cure would chart an
impressive selection of achievements:
* Well over 27 million units sold worldwide
* Extensive touring covering all the continents
* 40 Platinum and Gold plaques in the US, Europe and Japan
* Co-writing many of the group's big hits including "Let's Go
To Bed", "The Walk" and "The Caterpillar"
* Over 20 landmark award-winning music videos
Now, fast forward into the 21st century. With The Cure's influence on
artists growing in greater proportions in recent years, Lol dove headfirst
back into the studio in 2002 with his new project: Levinhurst. A suave,
exotic group comprised of Lol's keyboards, beats, and sonic landscaping
against the stirring vocals of Cindy Levinson, the group met critical
acclaim with their 2004 debut Perfect Life. It covered a much wider musical
range than most electro artists attempt to fill, and pleased Cure fans and
electronic music junkies alike.
The next steps came naturally for Lol. "I started writing initially to
continue where we left off with 'Perfect Life', but found that I really
didn't have the same feeling anymore. I felt strangely stuck. One night, a
friend suggested I should compose as if I was writing a book and treat the
songs as chapters. I cleared the decks, sat down and wrote straight from my
experiences allowing whatever would come to come and not consciously edit
myself."
What came out in the recording session was the new album House By The Sea, a
dark brooding album in every sense of the word that has already been called
the Electronic version of the classic Cure record, Pornography. "I was not
prepared for the torrent of raw emotions and dark seams that I had not mined
for a long time," says Lol. "I felt more like a conduit at times as if the
music and words were coming from another place and we were there to channel
it into a coherent form"
A much more spiritual element also took over the recording process. Since
Perfect Life, Lol began reading and integrating many Eastern spiritual
philosophies in all aspects of his life, including the recording sessions.
This took on added importance when the record was being mixed at the
legendary Village Recordings. "One night, the CEO of the studio, Jeff
Greenberg, told me that the ballroom next to our studio had been used when
the Beatles had first meet the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in California. They
had left the room exactly as it was at that time. You could almost smell
the joss sticks and patchouli!", Lol remembers. "I sat there alone thinking
about the songs and what to do next. Suddenly, I was aware of an odd,
electric, hyperreal atmosphere in the place. It was as if time was standing
still for a short while. After this, I felt quite certain that this album
was being created in exactly the right place with the right energy."
This spiritual energy is what led Levinhurst and the new album to their new
label home in early 2006. Lol recalls, "I was introduced to this gentleman
by a mutual friend at a SxSW party. We started a conversation about several
strange phenomenon and metaphysical topics and found we had much in common.
We talked for an hour before we were really aware of who each other was!"
The gentleman turned out to be Rob Gordon, President of What Are Records?
and a deal for House By The Sea came soon after.
In anticipation of the February 2007 release, What Are Records? is releasing
a digital release entitled The Grey EP that includes alternate versions of 2
songs from House By The Sea along with a new recording of the Cure classic
"All Cats Are Grey", which is featured in the new Sofia Coppola film Marie
Antoinette. Once again, the timing could not be more perfect for more
people to hear Lol's release. Says Lol, "Our latest music connects me to my
past, present, and future in ways that I used to only dream about. There's
so much of my spirit in House By The Sea, it's easily my most personal work
I've ever created. It's also some of my proudest moments as a musician."
Levinhurst edited their profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4
"Tolhurst, meanwhile, was becoming a nuisance. The band found him impossible to work with, and he spent most of the recording process drunk watching MTV."
hey lol - playing main stage endorset festival before e.g. skatalites n buzzcocks sat 9th aug if you or any friends around there - rhythmites dennis on vocal for this gig - must catch up with your tunes soon - big up X Dan
How are you guys? Haven't heard anything in a while, I hope that means you're busy making more ear candy for us! Just wanted to shout, hope all is well with you. XOXO
Lol, How are you man? Still haven't typed that 30 page poem up one year on! Too busy with work. Here's an extract from a gig I did in Malvern. It's a poem about city life called Concrete Babylon.
Lol, How are you man? Still haven't typed that 30 page poem up one year on! Too busy with work. Here's an extract from a gig I did in Malvern. It's a poem about city life called Concrete Babylon.
this summer maybe i'll do a cover of your son called "Sadman", with graves tunes. Love you keybords and words. Both of you are writing the lyrics? Greetings from Paris. Lily
all i want is a man inside my mouth at night . give me it, from the edge of the deep green sea. im a cult hero and i dig you, if only one more time underneath the stars, to wish impossible things. why can't i be you when yesterdays gone, all the young americans in the holy hour of being homesick. in the hanging garden i fight with faith, watching the drowning man in disintergration as the catiplliar and the big hand catch charlotte sometimes as i write a letter to elise to the empty world. the fear of ghost inside the forest in your house makes me feel like a cocatoo. on the last day of summer, i hear the loudest sound from the mint car as jupiter crash and picures of you are out of this world...
Ok we all like Levinhurst and think they should be more well know than they are right now, so I was thinking the other day about that own your friends down load, If we all keep buying Levinhurst and they make it close to the top, well people are going to start noticing them and look at their page and listen to their music, therefore giving them free publicity! If you think this is a good idea feel free to join in and buy them as your pet!
The Bon Bon Club are Sushi Quatro (bass, vox), Thirsty Moore (drums,vox) and Chapatti Smith (perc, vox), although Sushi and Thirsty are better known under different names for their day job as the rhythm section of Sheffield glam-popsters The Long Blondes.
Hey Lol, I've reread some of 10 Imaginary Years lately, and was reminded that you worked as a chemist waaaay back when. What kind of work did you do? As a "budding" chemist myself, I'm really interested. Hope all is well! Keep making that beautiful music :).
how do you have such good memory of all those cure shows? i read a little interview you did recently... very interesting... so... hope all is well with you... was it like a reunion playing with michael? cheeers..k ps did you get along with porl? i didnt offically meet him, although i had him sign something. im still kicking myself that when i went to go order 100% sky, the check out wasn.t working. if only i had that darn book on me for him to sign.. he seemed like a REAL interesting person... cheeers..k
It was AWESOME hanging out with you last nite and getting to see you play BOYS DONT CRY and other Cure songs you co-wrote, on stage in front of 1,000s again!!!
:-)
and thanx for watching your interviews with me on my TV Show, while sitting around backstage ~ glad you liked them!
You're the best!!
Denise Ames News Anchor/Host Los Angeles and LOL FAN FOREVER!
