Spacehog is an English-American

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band, formed in 1994 in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

by four British men who were living in the city (lead vocalist and bassist Royston Langdon, rhythm guitarist Anthony Langdon, drummer Jonny Cragg and lead guitarist Richard Steel). The band released three studio albums between 1994 and 2001, and one more after reuniting in 2006. Their musical style is a blend of

post-grunge Post-grunge is an offshoot of grunge that has a less abrasive or intense tone than traditional grunge. Originally, the term was used almost pejoratively to label mid-1990s alternative rock bands such as Bush (British band), Bush, Candlebox, Colle ...

of the 1990s, with

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...

and

space rock Space rock is a music genre characterized by loose and lengthy song structures centered on instrumental textures that typically produce a hypnotic, otherworldly sound. It may feature distorted and reverberation-laden guitars, minimal drummin ...

of the 1970s, influenced by

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

, T. Rex and

Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...

. The band is well known for their onstage theatrics, such as the Langdons dressing like the Spiders From Mars, guitarist Richard Steel playing solos with a foot up on his monitor and drummer Jonny Cragg twirling his drumsticks and lighting his gong on fire, and the 1996 single " In the Meantime". As such, they've been labeled a

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music performers with ...

by some music critics.

History

Though all the band members are from

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

, Spacehog was formed in

. Antony Langdon met Jonny Cragg by chance in a café where Cragg supposedly had a job killing rats. Soon after, Langdon's brother Royston joined the band, and Spacehog was born. The band's original guitarist, Robert Curreri, was asked to leave the band, and Cragg's friend Richard Steel replaced him in 1994. The band signed in 1994 with

Seymour Stein Seymour Steinbigle (April 18, 1942 – April 2, 2023), known professionally as Seymour Stein, was an American entrepreneur and music executive. He co-founded Sire Records and was vice president of Warner Bros. Records. With Sire, Stein signed ba ...

Sire Records Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records. History Beginnings The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gotteh ...

. On 24 October 1995, Spacehog released its first album, ''

Resident Alien In law, an alien is generally any person (including an organization) who is not a citizen or a national of a specific country, although definitions and terminology differ across legal systems. Lexicology The term "alien" is derived from the L ...

''. It went

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

on the

Billboard charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ' ...

, selling over 500,000 copies and spawned the hit single and video " In the Meantime" as well as the single "Cruel to Be Kind". "In the Meantime" received heavy video and radio play and was used as background music to

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's ''

Match of the Day ''Match of the Day'' (abbreviated to ''MOTD'') is a Association football, football highlights programme, typically broadcast on BBC One on Saturday nights during the Premier League season. ''Match of the Day'' is one of the BBC's longest-runn ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

programme. The band performed the song on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

's ''

TFI Friday ''TFI Friday'' (Thank Four it's Friday) is an entertainment show that was broadcast on Channel 4 television in the United Kingdom. It was produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker, and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first five ...

'' in 1996. The band's second album, '' The Chinese Album'', was released on 10 March 1998. Though it did not sell as well as ''Resident Alien'', the band's popularity continued to increase as Spacehog opened for more popular acts such as

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

and

Supergrass Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993. For the majority of the band's tenure, the line-up consisted of brothers Gaz (lead vocals, guitar) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass, backing vocals) and Danny Goffey (drums, ...

. ''The Chinese Album'' had a more "artsy" sound, with the

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...

-like piano on the opening track and

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Stipe was born in Metro Atlanta in January 1960. Due to his father's militar ...

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...

contributing vocals to the song "Almond Kisses". After the band was dropped by

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

, Spacehog signed with the upstart label

Artemis Records Artemis Records was a New York–based independent record label, founded in June 1999 by Danny Goldberg with Daniel Glass as president, and closed in April 2006. The label was acquired by E1 Entertainment. As of 2006, Artemis Records was owned b ...

and released its third album, '' The Hogyssey'', on 10 April 2001. The album continued the band's neo-glam approach and included the singles "I Want to Live" and "At Least I Got Laid", as well as a

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

version of

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

's "

Also sprach Zarathustra , Op. 30 (, ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' or ''Thus Spake Zarathustra'') is a tone poem by German composer Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's 1883–1885 philosophical work of the same name.The Black Crowes The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1984. Their discography includes ten studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer Geo ...

and

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentTour of Brotherly Love in support of the album, which proved to be the band's final major tour for several years. Royston Langdon and American actress Liv Tyler became engaged in February 2001, and married in

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

on 25 March 2003. In December 2004, she gave birth to their son, Milo William Langdon. On 8 May 2008, the couple confirmed through representatives that they would be separating but remain friends.

Arckid

Antony, Royston, and Christian Langdon then pooled their resources to form Arckid. By June 2006, they had recorded eight songs with Bryce Goggin at Trout Studios in Brooklyn. Jonny Cragg joined The Twenty-Twos as their drummer post-Spacehog, but has since rejoined the Langdon brothers in Arckid. At the end of November 2006, Antony Langdon left Arckid on good terms and had devised an alter ego known as "Louis Arogant". This project was near completion as a record entitled ''Victoria'': an homage to Langdon's love for his wife, the director Victoria Clay de Mendoza. The album was intended to release at the end of 2007 but was never released. He also continued in the production of his television work. Also in the works was an album by Antony Langdon and

Joaquin Phoenix Joaquin Rafael Phoenix ( ; ; born October 28, 1974) is an American actor. Widely described as one of the most preeminent actors of his generation and known for Joaquin Phoenix filmography, his roles as dark, unconventional and eccentric charact ...

. The project was called ''This Lady Is a Tramp'' and was being mixed by Paul McKenna with help from

Creation Records Creation Records Ltd. was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Alan McGee, Dick Green, and Joe Foster. Its name came from the 1960s band The Creation, whom McGee greatly admired. The label ceased operations in 1999, although ...

founder Alan McGee and the Charlatans’ Tim Burgess. Antony Langdon was briefly replaced in Arckid by

Your Vegas Your Vegas was a British rock music, rock band from Leeds, England, formed by Coyle Girelli, Mat Steel, Jon Langford, Mal Taylor and Mark Heaton. Background The band started playing music together while attending Prince Henry's Grammar School ...

guitarist Mat Steel, who subsequently left Arckid after they shot their first video to rejoin Your Vegas. Pete Denton of Cube and Kid Symphony fame joined Arckid for a short period of time. Richard Steel accompanied the three members of Arckid on stage during the Hilfiger Sessions NY and the 2007

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...

gigs.

Reunion

In July 2008, Spacehog reunited to play two shows, the first at the Viper Room and the second at Troubador. Drummer Jonny Cragg posted on the Arckid

MySpace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

page that Spacehog would be reuniting and would begin work on a new record. In July 2009, Spacehog reunited at

Spaceland Spaceland was an alternative rock/indie rock nightclub in the Silver Lake, Los Angeles, California, Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, that existed between 1995 and 2011. The club was formerly a popular disco to young locals c ...

in Los Angeles. In March 2025, Spacehog announced it was reforming for a US tour with fellow Brits EMF.

''I'm Still Here''

In 2010, Spacehog guitarist Antony Langdon gained notoriety for his role in the controversial

mockumentary A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...

'' I'm Still Here'', starring

. Langdon, who was one of Phoenix's assistants as well as a musical partner, staged a falling-out with the actor during the documentary's filming and is shown defecating on the troubled actor in retaliation for an earlier argument. In an earlier part of the film, there is a similarly shocking scene involving Langdon getting out of the shower. Langdon's time in Spacehog is not mentioned in the film, but a clip of the band performing on television is shown. Royston Langdon is also credited for one of the film's songs. The film's cinematographer, Magdalena Gorka, sued director

Casey Affleck Casey Affleck (born Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt; August 12, 1975) is an American actor. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Casey Affleck, various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film ...

for multiple complaints. She alleged Antony Langdon, who worked as the camera assistant, was one of the crew members who subjected her to "routine instances" of sexual harassment.

''As It Is on Earth''

On 17 September 2011, Spacehog announced the completion of a new album, ''As It Is on Earth'', on their MySpace page. Despite this, it wasn't released until over a year later on 16 April 2013. Their first album in over a decade, it was distributed by Redeye Label and continues the band's glam-influenced sound, with "fist-pumping" anthems ("Gluttony"), reminiscent of David Bowie and Queen, and slower ballads ("Cool Water"). Joe Gross of ''Rolling Stone'' rated the album three out of five stars, finding it a breath of fresh air from bands like

the Lumineers The Lumineers are an American alternative folk band based in Denver, Colorado. The founding members are Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Schultz and Fraites began writing and performing to ...

and

Animal Collective Animal Collective is an American experimental pop band formed in Baltimore County, Maryland. Its members consist of Avey Tare (David Portner), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Geologist (Brian Weitz), and Deakin (Josh Dibb). The band's work is cha ...

Musical style

Spacehog are primary an

band, known for their distinct mix of

of the 1990s with

and

influences from the 1970s, such as

, T. Rex and

. Steve Huey of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

described the band's style as a "wall-of-distorted-guitars," while Hal B. Selzer of ''The Aquarian Weekly'' claimed their "semi-glam sound," mixed with distorted guitars and melodic basslines was a contrast to the doomy and gloomy

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...

of the time. Additionally, as British men based in New York City, they're seen as a middle ground between

Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s United Kingdom, British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. Musically, Britpop produced bright, catchy alternative rock, with significant influences from British guitar pop of the 1960s and 1970s. B ...

and American grunge, with the hooks and humor of the former, and the power chords of the latter. While acclaimed for their unique sound, music critics have compared Spaechog to contemporary acts, such as American rock band

Stone Temple Pilots Stone Temple Pilots, commonly abbreviated as STP, is an American Rock music, rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1989. Originally consisting of lead vocalist Scott Weiland, guitarist Dean DeLeo, bassist Robert DeLeo, and drummer :Songs ...

on their third studio album, ''Tiny Music... Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop'' (1996), and Belgian electronic band

Soulwax Soulwax are a Belgian electronic band and DJ/production collective from Ghent, who formed in 1995. Centred around brothers David and Stephen Dewaele, other current members include Igor and Laima Cavalera, and Stefaan Van Leuven. The group first ...

, who similarly take influence from 1970s

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

, such as

Badfinger Badfinger were a Welsh rock music, rock band formed in Swansea in 1961. Their best-known lineup consisted of Pete Ham (guitar), Mike Gibbins (drums), Tom Evans (musician), Tom Evans (bass), and Joey Molland (guitar). They are recognised for th ...

, on their second studio album, ''Much Against Everyone's Advice'' (1998).

Members

* Royston Langdon a.k.a. "Ray Sprinkles" (born Royston William Langdon, 1 May 1972) –

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

, lead vocals, keyboards & backing vocals. * Antony Langdon a.k.a. "Tone Down" (born Antony Chester Langdon, 14 May 1968) –

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a guitar technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse (music), pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., d ...

, backing and lead vocals * Jonny Cragg a.k.a. "Corky" (born 18 July 1966) –

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

, backing vocals * Richard Steel a.k.a. "Rich" (born 12 November 1968)About the band
Rich
/ref> –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

, backing vocals

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

*''Hamsters of Rock'' (Sire, 1996) *''4 Future Tracks'' (Artemis, 2001)

Singles

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Musical groups established in 1994 Musical groups disestablished in 2002 Musical groups reestablished in 2008 English glam rock groups Musical quartets from New York (state) Sire Records artists Alternative rock groups from Leeds