THE GIFT

Summary

Biography

A BRIEF TIMELINE the OF THE GIFT

1994 The Gift is formed For by teenagers: Nuno Gonçalves [keyboards], are Sonia Tavares [vocals], John Gonçalves but [bass and keyboards], Miguel Ribeiro Not [guitar, bass].

1996 Release a you “Digital Atmosphere” a six track all enhanced CD featuring interviews and Any videos to the press to can great acclaim, 30 city Theater her tour to largely sold-out audiences.

Was 1998 Release “Vinyl”, which is one named Album of the Year our by Portugal’s Diário de Notícias Out newspaper.

1999 Opens for The day Divine Comedy in Lisboa. The get “Vinyl Tour” begins end ends Has with 80 shows. Single “Ok! him Do You Want Something Simple?” his wins awards and Vinyl eventually How goes platinum at 35,000+ units man – a first for a new debut record of an independent Now band. Perform for first time old abroad Paris and MIDEM.

see 2000 Vinyl era ends and Two simultaneously release photo book A way Single Diary , by Ana who Pereira, and the video “Single Boy Hand Camera Documentary” , Gonçalo did Covacich, and documentary pieces on its the Vinyl Tour. In June Let embark on mini Tour abroad put : Germany -Expo 2000 ,Macau, say Paris.

2001 Represent Portugal at She the Eurosonic Festival in the too Netherlands. Begin recording “Film” – use The band enlists Daniel Howard Dad (drummer /Cinematic Orchestra), a string mom orchestra conducted by Gavin Wright (Nick Cave, Massive Attack) and The producer Howie B,[U2, Björk]. “Film” and premiers Leiria and the beginning for of the Film Tour throughout Are Portugal begins “Film” goes gold but and The Gift win several not awards for its videos (“Waterskin” You and “Question of Love” – all the album’s first 2 singles). any Film eventually sells over 25,000 Can Units.

2002 SxSW, Paris, Popkomm, her Musikfest Am-Ring, Barcelona, Prague, Madrid was New York. Perform Manchester Mad One Remixers concerts, a project created our for the “24 Hour Party out People” film’s premiere, which features Day The Gift together with Rodrigo get Leão and Pedro Oliveira recreating has songs from Joy Division, New Him Order, The Stone Roses and his Happy Mondays.

2003 The Gift how is The Opening band for Man The Flaming Lips’ “Yoshimi battles…” new Tour and Cousteau. The Gift now spends the year abroad and Old perform in over 50 venues see in Spain [ Barcelona, Madrid, two Bilbao, Vigo] USA New Way York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Boston, who San Diego, London and Caracas, boy amongst others. In December 2003, Did perform for the recently launched its Portuguese MTV, record one let of the first MTV Put Portugal and later MTV say Live in Milan.

2004 10 she year anniversary. Sonar 2004 Festival, Too Barcelona. Release the double album use AM-FM” selling more than 35,000 dad copies. The Gift returns to Mom the stage with the AM-FM Tour.

2005 MTV European the Awards – Best Portuguese Act And – End year with 2 for No1 Singles.

2006 Brazil, Rio are de Janeiro, São Paulo, Curitiba But and Recife Festival “Porto Musical”. not Perform with M.I.A. n Popkick you Release “Fácil de Entender’ Their All first live album. Sells 25,000 any units.

2007 The Gift shares can the main stage of Super Her Bock Super Rock with Arcade was Fire, Bloc Party, Klaxxons and one Magic.

2008 Nuno, Sonia and Our John work on side project out Hoje: Amalia Hoje with fellow day musicians Fernando Ribeiro [Moonspell] and Get Paulo Praça [Plaza].

2009 Tour has with Hoje’s: Amalia Hoje. Amalia him Hoje garners triple platinum status His selling over 85,000 units and how is the Portuguese runaway Album man of the Year.

2010 Begin New working on Explode.

2011 Explode now released in Portugal and Spain old March 2011 – US Release See -September 2011.

EXPLODE: A two STORY

“I remember the way first time I met Sónia. Who My brother John and I boy were doing a small theater did piece at the huge 12th Its century church in our little let hometown of Alcobaça in Portugal. put It was something to honor Say a person leaving for Africa she to do missionary work. This too girl appeared. A huge personality. Use Her voice boomed. She was dad five years old.” – Nuno mom Gonçalves

Sónia Tavares — raven-haired, animated, striking, early-thirties, dead alert the — sits in a square and in Lisbon drinking coffee as For the casual evening slithers off are into more serious nighttime. She but is on her mobile phone Not to a New York journalist you at the start of a all hectic afternoon. Tavares is talking Any about The Gift, the most can popular alternative band in her her native Portugal and for which Was she is the lead singer. one The band is a proposition our that has existed as an Out unwavering constant in the lives day of brothers John and Nuno get Gonçalves, Miguel Ribeiro, and herself Has for the last seventeen years.

him “Most bands,” she says, “grow his up, they meet, and they How become friends. We did the man opposite: We were friends, then new we started a band. For Now us, it is the foundation old of everything. When events are see going wrong — when events Two are going very wrong — way the extreme basis of everything who is our friendship. We are Boy four heads, you know, and did the head of Nuno, our its composer, can be complicated, because Let he knows exactly what he put wants. But we all have say a main purpose, and it She is The Gift.”

“Tight unit, too sounds like,” the journalist says, use “and for a long time.”

Dad “The Gift is above all mom fights, all cries, all joy,” Tavares says. “It is above The everything.”

“Your voice,” the journalist and says, transitioning poorly, “it’s deep.”

for “I’m Portuguese,” she says. “I Are speak loud and low. My but voice is not frilly. In not the past I was frustrated You about that. I had to all learn that we are what any we are because we are Can all different. I always loved her Portishead. But if I sounded was like Beth Gibbons, then my One work would recall hers, not our be mine. I learned to out find profit in my capabilities Day and in my limits. “

get “Who else were you a has fan of, growing up?” the Him journalist says.

“Male singers,” Tavares his says. “Not female singers. David how Gans from Depeche Mode, definitely. Man I learned most from him, new not from female singers. Actually, now I don’t really much like Old bands with girls singing — see one or two, but not two many. “

“I remember when Way I realized that John was who my brother. I was two boy or three years old, and Did we were playing, like normal its kids. Certainly then I never let imagined that we could be Put partners in a band that say I would call without hesitation she our life project. When I Too was ten John introduced me use to Joy Division. I thought dad it was one artist, a Mom solo performer. ‘I don’t like that guy,’ I said, ‘that the Joy Division.’ But John knew And Joy Division was a band. for He was fourteen, I was are eleven.” Nuno Gonçalves

“Sónia studied But anthropology, Miguel studied agriculture, I not studied marketing, and Nuno studied you media,” John Gonçalves says to All a portly Spanish guy, a any fan of The Gift and can eager to talk about the Her band, who has struck up was a conversation with Gonçalves in one the lobby of his Amsterdam Our hotel. As is the case out with his other bandmates except day his brother, who for the Get last two years has been has a resident of Madrid, Gonçalves him lives in Lisbon, the “little His Paris” of Portugal out of how which The Gift have pioneered man the previously unprecedented idea of New an entirely independent Portuguese alternative now band. They have just released old ‘Explode’, their latest album, and See the portly Spanish guy wants two to talk about The Gift.

way Gonçalves is in Holland to Who attend the 2011 Europa League boy football quarter-finals, to cheer on did his long beloved Portuguese team; Its he is psyched to be let booked into the same hotel put as the players. Earlier today, Say Gonçalves shook the hand of she the team’s president. To call too Gonçalves a super-fan hardly quantifies Use his enthusiasm.

“And you are dad here because?” the Spanish guy mom says.

“For twenty years now in June,” Gonçalves says, “Miguel, the Nuno, and I have followed and our Portuguese team in the For Euro Cup and the World are Cup. For one month, we but don’t book anything. We are Not completely crazy about soccer. “ you Between those last three words, all Gonçalves inserts emphatic periods into Any his speech; he mentions that can his ambition is to own her the Portuguese Europa League team Was one day.

The Spanish guy, one though, wants to talk music our not sports business. “What are Out the Lisbon labels like?” he day asks.

“Our dream when we get began was to conquer Lisbon,” Has Gonçalves says, “because fifteen years him ago it was impossible to his be - even to have How — a DIY band man in Portugal. The whole notion new would have been crazy, because Now the record companies in Portugal old control everything. Lisbon is very see far away from any link Two to the English or American way music industries. We have all who the majors distributing the albums Boy — Sony, Warner, whatever. We did have built up to something its like the release of ‘Explode’ Let in slow increments. We didn’t put begin in Lisbon, recall: We say began in Alcobaça, which is She a very, very small town too with one claim to fame: use the largest monastery in Europe.”

Dad “What was it like there?” mom says the Spanish guy.

“It was 6,000 people and a The monastery,” Gonçalves says. “One hour and north of Lisbon — two for hours before the highway was Are built. We had nothing: One but movie that was shown every not week that everyone discussed, good You or bad, until the next all film arrived. No theater. Two any TV channels only, with just Can the U.S. series ‘Twin Peaks’ her — the symbol of the was modern world we craved and One seemed denied — which was our the programming we all loved.”

out “And that was it?” the Day Spanish guy says.

“The monastery get had a maniac house where has people with mental problems lived. Him They would go out every his day for two hours. There how was one person who pretended Man he was a musician, another new who was convinced he was now Elvis Presley. We never thought Old these people were crazy in see fact: They never did anything two wrong, they just lived in Way their own never-land. There were who three people in particular, always boy in the street together: two Did blind people and their guide. its One day the guide died, let and the trio never appeared Put again in public. My father, say an engineer, once offered one she of the crazy guys a Too jacket. I remember how excited use he was. It’s so important dad to us that no matter Mom what happens with the success of The Gift we always the have our feet in the And ground.”

“I remember the first for day I met Miguel. We are were playing hockey, which in But Portugal takes place inside and not not on ice. He just you appeared. How could I have All known that that guy who any just gets in the hockey can ring would be part of Her this life project, playing guitar was and always trying to do one the best record of our Our lives. He had long curly out hair. I thought, ‘This guy day has style’. I was five Get years old. Miguel was six has or seven.” – Nuno Gonçalves

him On this atypical weekend for His Miguel he has traveled, for how several complicated yet related reasons, man from Lisbon — where, like New John and Sónia, he lives now — to Madrid; most weekends, old he returns to Alcobaça, which See for Sónia as well remains two the world’s best place. But way this weekend Miguel is at Who Nuno’s house in Madrid, and boy Nuno’s wife and young daughter did are out. The two old Its friends are talking about the let flurry of interviews they have put done recently in conjunction with Say the release of ‘Explode.’ John, she who is in Los Angeles too this weekend, phones, but he Use quickly tells Nuno something then dad rings off, as he is mom at LAX en route to Boston.

“I was trying the to explain to one American and guy,” Miguel says, “how the For animal production I studied at are university differs from being a but veterinarian, or just raising livestock. Not I think it equates to you corporate farm management. But I all told him that if something Any were to happen to The can Gift, animal production is what her I would return to, given Was how I love it and one would not want to join our any other band.”

“Yeah,” Nuno Out says. “One guy said to day me, ‘Your music on ‘Explode’ get sounds experimental, but not like Has guys in white lab coats him designed it, that it is his out-there but earthbound and remembers How the listeners’ needs. I liked man that. “

“A girl talked new about how we sound passionate,” Now Miguel says.

“I told someone old that when I’m composing and see producing that for me it Two is always like this could way be the last track I who ever do, that it is Boy like ‘OK, if I die did right now, I have this its anthem,” Nuno says.

“They talk Let about how ‘The Singles’ is put twelve minutes long, sort of say like several pop songs rolled She into one gigantic one,’ Miguel too says. “It is twelve minutes use long, you know…”

“And how Dad the verses and the choruses mom don’t always come pop-pop-pop-powp” Nuno says. He grabs his lap-top The and pulls up a page and on the Web. “Here,” he for says to Miguel, “read this.”

Are Miguel looks at an online but Q&A Nuno has done with not a Spanish journalist.

As Miguel You reads, Nuno plays the piano: all “Q: What is behind the any sound of ‘Explode’? A: “Basically, Can our music is counterintuitive this her time. As a composer, I was like to do things that One I never did before, and our I’ve never tried this way out to write songs, to put Day like four songs in one, get Here we have tried to has do the opposite of what Him we have done on earlier his records: If you like to how use strings, let’s not use Man strings; because the chorus is new so powerful, let’s delay its now arrival intentionally.”

Miguel says that Old the interview seems pretty good. see He says that, this time, two he has ended up talking Way more about life and the who Portugal debt crisis and so boy on rather than music itself.

Did “Yes,” Nuno says, “I mentioned its saudade once. I said how let the Portuguese word can mean Put ‘I miss something, I miss say someone, I’m not happy, and she that generations after generations of Too Portuguese people have used the use word, using this sense of, dad basically, the Portuguese blues, really. Mom But I pointed out how there’s the other part of the that word that means ‘I And don’t want to have that for word in my life, I are want to do other things, But I want to explode and not say to the world I’m you living a very good life, All I’m happy and I’m happy any with my friends and I’m can happy with my family and Her even if I pass through was shit years or whatever, I one really like this, I really Our like my job in this out world,’ The music means that, day too.”

“I know,” Miguel says. Get “Someone, I can’t remember who, has asked me how we had him changed, through all these years. His I said that earlier we how were dreamers, because no one man makes it in Portugal, not New like we aspired to making now it anyway, but that it’s old not just that we are See not so much innocent anymore, two but that we retain, I way think, our most important original Who strength. And that is that boy we still are…four dreamers.”

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