About Grinspoon
Grinspoon are an Australian rock band from Lismore, New South Wales, formed in 1995 and fronted by Phil Jamieson on vocals and guitar with Pat Davern on guitar, Joe Hansen on bass guitar and Kristian Hopes on drums. Also in 1995, Grinspoon won the Triple J–sponsored Unearthed competition for Lismore, with their post-grunge song "Sickfest". The name "Grinspoon" was taken from Dr. Lester Grinspoon, an associate professor emeritus of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, who supported marijuana for medical use.
The Grinspoon sound changed to more mainstream rock at the release of their 2002 album, New Detention, gaining fans and peaking at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Charts; similarly, 2007's Alibis & Other Lies also reached No. 2. The 2004 album, Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills, which peaked at No. 4, won the 2005 Best Rock Album Award at the ARIA Music Awards.
The band was signed to Universal Records in the United States by late 1998, and they were promoted with the songs "Champion", which featured in Gran Turismo 3; "Post Enebriated Anxiety", which was on the international version of Guide to Better Living; "Chemical Heart", via the internet; and a cover of the Prong song "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck", from Grinspoon's Pushing Buttons EP, which was included on ECW: Extreme Music. On 4 December 2013, the band members announced an indefinite hiatus to pursue individual projects, although they made a return in earnest in 2017.
In July 1995, Pat Davern , Joe Hansen , Kristian Hopes and Phil Jamieson met at a Lismore hotel, The Gollan, for a jam night—they decided to form a band and enter the Triple J-sponsored Unearthed competition. Their name was taken from Dr. Lester Grinspoon, an associate professor emeritus of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, who supported marijuana for medical use. After winning the competition, with their post-grunge song "Sickfest", they gained considerable airplay on Triple J and independent radio stations and used this to secure gigs. They developed a strong following among the Australian "alternative" and "mosh pit crowd." Their debut was the six-track EP, Grinspoon , which was released in 1995 through the independent Oracle Records. It contained the songs "Sickfest" and "More Than You Are" that became popular with fans and were rerecorded on later releases.
Grinspoon's second EP, Licker Bottle Cozy, recorded in June 1996 and produced by Phil McKellar, was released by Grudge Records in December. It had a slightly heavier sound than their earlier EP with five tracks including the songs "Champion" and "Pig Pen". In September 1997 they released their first full-length album, Guide to Better Living, co-produced by McKellar and well-known Swiss-American heavy metal producer Ulrich Wild. The album peaked at No. 11 on the ARIA Albums Charts and went platinum with sales of over 70,000 in Australia. It represents the Helmet-influenced alternative metal sound of their early career with heavier songs like "Pressure Tested 1984". The Australian version of the album features five live songs—illustrating the band's sense of humour and ability to play live—and a hidden track, the acoustic "Protest". US branch of Universal Records signed the band by late 1998 and released an altered version of Guide to Better Living in March 1999.
Whilst in US touring for ten months as support act for Creed, Lit, Godsmack and Anthrax, Grinspoon released a six track EP, Pushing Buttons, for their Australian market in September 1998. It featured the popular heavy song "Black Friday" and the lighter songs "Busy" and "Explain". After the intense US touring, Grinspoon released their second album, Easy in September 1999, which peaked at No. 4 and went platinum in Australia. It contained the singles "Ready 1" and "Rock Show".
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