Band of Skulls, from Southampton, England, has been called “one of the UK’s best guitar bands”. At ten years old, guitarist Russell Marsden and drummer Matt Hayward’s parents were friends and would often tell them to keep busy (and out of trouble) by writing music together. In 2004, they formed Fleeing New York with a revolving cast of other musicians.
Once they finalized their lineup as a power trio with bassist Emma Richardson, they recorded a demo in a studio set up in Hayward’s father’s shed, changing their name to Band Of Skulls in 2008. The name was likely inspired by a monthly event they ran titled Club Skulls. Their debut album Baby Darling Doll Face Honey was released March 2009, but the band “didn’t have an audience at all” for months. However, after unexpectedly learning their unused demo “Friends” was included on the chart-topping Twilight New Moon soundtrack later that year, the band began to gain traction and sell out clubs as far away as Vancouver, Canada by the end of the year. In response, the band released “Friends” as a two-track EP the following March.
It wasn’t until “I Know What I Am” became iTunes' first ever Single Of The Week that the band reached the top 5 on the UK Indie Singles chart – almost a full year after their debut album’s release. A few months later “Death By Diamonds And Pearls” found similar chart success. The album charted modestly in Belgium and The Netherlands in the summer of 2010 and Entertainment Weekly named Band Of Skulls as “Your Next Favorite Band”.