Embrace

There isn't enough music in the world today that manages to truly elevate the listener with its epic intentions and heartfelt emotions, but Embrace want to change all that. The Anglo five-piece specializes in crafting the kind of unforgettable songs that adroitly balance a profound sense of personal intimacy with anthemic hooks.

But we wanted to know music is unforgettable to Embrace. Lead guitarist, Richard McNamara, took some time out of their busy touring schedule to make ARTISTdirect this mixtape and list of essential albums!

1. 22-20’s - "Such a Fool"

2. U2 – "Miracle Drug"

3. Louis XIV - "Finding Out True Love Is Blind"

4. The White Stripes - "Blue Orchid"

5. The Flaming Lips - "A Spoonful Weights a Ton"

6. The Music – “Into the Night”

7. Coldplay – “Fix You”

8. Beck - " Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometimes"

9. Metallica - "Frantic"

10. Muse - "Stockholm Syndrome"

11. Neil Young - "Birds"

12. The Police - "Message in a Bottle"

13. The Stereophonics - "Dakota"

14. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Maps"

15. Aerosmith - "Dude Looks Like a Lady"

Essential Albums List

1. The Joshua Tree – U2
"I've been a fan of this album since the first time I heard it, it's full of positivity both in the lyric and the music, but somewhere in there is a melancholy "ache" that takes me right back to the first time I heard it, and everyone wants to be 15 right??"

2. The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses
"This was the first record I can remember that spawned a whole culture of group playbacks, we would go round to my mates house, who was the only guy that owned it, and we'd teach each other different guitar lines on the album that we'd worked out. It was almost devotional except for the fact that only one of us owned the record. I've bought about 10 copies since then though."

3. Elephant – The White Stripes
"Absolutely genius record and the record that got me back into the guitar. This guy is the new Jimi Hendrix , not in some virtuoso way, but because he can bring a smile to my face with the audaciousness and carefree approach. Definitely the guitarist I identify with the most."

4. St. Anger – Metallica
"I've been a fan of Metallica since "Ride The Lightning" but haven't really been "into" them in a big way since "and justice for all" This record really turned all that around for me I get an adrenaline rush every time I hear it, and of course with the "some kind of monster" DVD, the extra insight just heightens the buzz.

5. Hatful of Hollow – The Smiths
This is a compilation album of radio sessions they did, and some of the versions are just staggeringly good, and in many cases better than the album versions. The Smiths were a band who never let you down, and when it looked like they might...they split up. Absolute genius.

All of Embrace’s picks, along with their new album, Out of Nothing, are available now in the ARTISTdirect Store

Following in the footsteps of Oasis and the Verve, Embrace became a minor pop sensation in post-Brit-pop Britain in the late '90s. Like Oasis, the group has a knack for big, anthemic hooks, yet they turn these catchy numbers into sweeping, sprawling, lugubrious rockers, much like the Verve. This synthesis earned the group an equal number of critics and detractors, but they were able to cultivate a strong fan base in England with their first singles in 1997 and 1998 debut album, The Good Will Out.

Natives of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, brothers Danny (lead vocals, guitar) and Richard McNamara (guitar) formed Embrace in the mid-'90s. After placing an advertisement in a local newspaper, the duo recruited drummer Mike Heaton and bassist Steven Firth. After rehearsing for several months, Richard found "Retread" in Danny's demos; the country-tinged song was unlike anything else in the band's catalog, but its anthemic sensibilities became the keystone for their sound and led them toward their signature fusion of Oasis and Verve.

In October 1996, the group signed with the Virgin subsidiary Hut Recordings; in America, they signed with DGC Records. Eager to establish indie credibility, the group released their debut single, "All You Good Good People," on the hip indie label Fierce Panda in February 1997. Over the next few months it was followed by the singles "Fireworks" and "One Big Family," which were both released on Hut. Those two singles were successful, but the re-release of "All You Good Good People" on Hut in October proved to be their breakthrough, entering the charts at number eight. Released in May 1998 -- shortly after the group received a Brit Award nomination for Best New Band in February -- "Come Back to What You Know," cemented that success and paved the way for the June 8 release of their debut album, The Good Will Out.

Greeted with generally positive, occasionally enthusiastic, reviews The Good Will Out entered the charts at number one. It was released in America the following month, and "All You Good Good People" went on to become a favorite at college radio.

While interest in America was fleeting, Embrace continued to woo UK fans into the new millennium. Both Drawn from Memory (2000) and If You've Never Been (2001) did fairly well. Keyboardist Mick Dale had been added to the English four piece by this time, however creative differences between the band and Hut were too tough to ignore. Embrace released the Fireworks: Singles 97-02 compilation prior to leaving Hut, and signed with Independiente in fall 2002.

The band spent the next two years writing songs for a fourth album. The long-awaited Out of Nothing was issued in the UK by the end of the year, and it debuted at number its first week out. The domestic version appeared on Lava in June 2005. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide