Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls and The Get Up Kids

Prior to the earliest incarnation of The Get Up Kids, members Ryan Pope, Rob Pope and Jim Septic had been in a band entitled Kingpin, and Matt Pryor had been frontman in the band the Secret Decoder Ring. After the disbandment of both, The Get Up Kids were formed with Pryor on guitar and lead vocals, Septic on guitar, Rob Pope on bass, and Ryan Pope on drums. The band’s debut release was a 7-inch entitled “Shortly/The Breathing Method”, and before long The Get Up Kids became staples in the underground Midwestern music scene alongside Rocket Fuel Is The Key and Braid.

The Get Up Kids subsequently released the single “A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts”, and the EP “Woodson”. With the success of the releases, the label Doghouse signed the band for a two-album contract, the result of which was “Four Minute Mile” released in 1997. The release and subsequent tour sent ripples across the U.S. and The Get Up Kids signed a new record deal with Los Angeles-based Vagrant Records. In a collaboration with the band Coalesce’s drummer James Dewees, Matt Pryor and Rob Pope released the album “Greatest Hits 1984-1987” under the moniker Reggie and the Full Effect, before returning to the studio as The Get Up Kids.

“Red Letter Day”, a five-track EP arrived in 1998, followed by the band’s genre-defining sophomore album “Something to Write Home About”. Released on Vagrant records, the album propelled the emo genre into the mainstream, and influenced countless bands that would succeed them – with its carefully crafted melodic and introspective energy.

After releasing the album “Endora” featuring previously released material, and touring alongside the likes of Green Day, Hot Rod Circuit and Weezer, The Get Up Kids, released their third full length “On a Wire”. The album was far more minimalist than its predecessor and took the emo genre in a new and sombre direction. Followed by “Guilt Show” in 2004, and a live album “Live @ Granada Theatre” in 2005, the band decided to call it a day and played their last show at their hometown’s Uptown Theatre in July 2005. The Get Up Kids returned in 2009 to marked the 10 year anniversary of “Something to Write Home About”, and subsequently released the EP “Simple Science” and the full-length “There Are Rules”.

Frank Turner has an innovative way of blending the genres of folk, punk and rock with his intelligent lyrics to create quietly anthemic music. Often described as a social commentator, the Bahrain born, Meonstoke raised songwriter released his first album 'Sleep Is for the Week' in 2007 which was received well critically. 'Love Ire & Song' came in the following year and made Turner's first dent in the UK album charts, his reputation was growing quickly as his tours began to sell out by his loyal fan base. He supported The Offspring and The Gaslight Anthem on tours which developed his reputation further.

The next album 'Poetry of the Deed' debuted within the UK top 40 thanks to support from the likes of Kerrang and Q Magazine. This album gained him a nomination for an NME Award in the Best Solo Artist category. He became a regular on the festival circuit, playing Two Thousand Trees, Reading & Leeds and Cambridge Folk to support the release of 2011 album 'England Keep My Bones'. He won two AIM awards in the same year for Best Live Act and Hardest Working Artist.

In 2012 Frank and his support band The Sleeping Souls were personally invited as the warm up act to the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony where they played 'Sailor's Boots' 'Wessex Boy' and 'I Still Believe'. His biggest commercial album to date was released in 2013 and was titled 'Tape Deck Heart', it debuted in the UK at #2 and holds a MetaCritic score of 78/100. It also featured a hit single of sorts in 'The Way I Tend To Be' which became Turner's second ever appearance on the UK singles chart.