Archive (band)

Lore & Background

Archive was formed in 1994 as a trip hop band when Darius Keeler and Danny Griffiths formed up with Roya Arab and rapper Rosko John. After releasing a few singles on their own label, they broke up in early 1996 following a dispute. A few months later, the group reformed with new personnel and began recording their debut album. Londinium was released on Island Records in September 1996. Creative differences on the follow-up resulted in the band once again breaking up. In 1997, Keeler and Griffiths regrouped and continued Archive with another female singer, Suzanne Wooder. In 1999, Archive released their second studio album on Independiente, entitled Take My Head. Due to differences of musical taste with an undisclosed number of producers the band tried to work with on the album, they have described it as their least favorite album the band recorded.

In 2000, Keeler and Griffiths placed an advert in Mojo magazine looking for a new lead singer. Craig Walker answered and began working with the band. Between 2002 and 2005, the band released three studio albums with Walker, marking a turning point toward a psychedelic and progressive style. In November 2004, Archive began their European tour without Walker, posting that he had left due to personal differences. In autumn 2004, Dave Pen replaced Walker on the Noise tour. Keeler and Griffiths met singer Pollard Berrier at a show in Vienna, and by September 2005 they were recording together. From this point, Archive became a collective of individual artists. The album Lights was released in May 2006 and received high critical acclaim in France, Switzerland, Greece and Poland.

In May 2009, Archive released Controlling Crowds I-III, which reached number one in the French charts for a week. The single 'Bullets' was their most acclaimed single to date. In September 2009, the follow-up Controlling Crowds: Part IV was released. Archive continued their tour, having sold out some fifty concerts from September 2009 to February 2010. Subsequent albums include With Us Until You're Dead (2012), Axiom (2014), Restriction (2015), The False Foundation (2016), and Call to Arms & Angels (2022). In 2019, the band released a retrospective collection called '25' to celebrate 25 years of activity.

Reader's Guide

Archive's significance lies in their stylistic evolution from a trip hop band to a collective blending electronic, avant-garde, post-rock, and progressive rock. Over 32 years, they released thirteen studio albums and achieved notable commercial success across Europe, particularly in France, Switzerland, Greece, and Poland. Their 2009 album Controlling Crowds I-III reached number one in France and Greece, and the single 'Bullets' charted in multiple countries. The band's shift from a front-man structure to a collective after 2004 allowed for diverse contributions from multiple vocalists and instrumentalists, including Pollard Berrier, Maria Q, Holly Martin, and Lisa Mottram. Their 2014 project Axiom, a forty-minute short film with accompanying album, demonstrated their ambition beyond conventional music releases. Archive's legacy is marked by their ability to reinvent their sound while maintaining a core identity, and their work has been used in media such as the teaser trailer for Cyberpunk 2077. Despite lineup changes and a hiatus due to Darius Keeler's treatment for colon cancer in 2022, the band continued to tour and record, solidifying their place in European alternative music.

Did You Know?

• Archive was formed in 1994 as a trip hop band by Darius Keeler and Danny Griffiths with Roya Arab and rapper Rosko John.
• The single 'Bullets' was featured in the teaser trailer for Cyberpunk 2077.
• In 2014, Archive released Axiom, a forty-minute short film and accompanying album created with Spanish film collective NYSU.

Formation and Early Turbulence (1994–1999)

Archive emerged in London in 1994 when Darius Keeler and Danny Griffiths assembled a trip hop lineup alongside Roya Arab and rapper Rosko John. After self-releasing a handful of singles on their own label, internal friction forced a split in early 1996. The group quickly reconstituted with fresh members and recorded their debut, Londinium, which landed on Island Records in September 1996. That record blended dark trip hop textures with electronica, string arrangements, and classically influenced songwriting. Yet creative disagreements on the follow-up once again tore the band apart. In 1997, Keeler and Griffiths brought in singer Suzanne Wooder, and in 1999 they issued Take My Head on Independiente. More melodic and symphonic than its predecessor, the album nonetheless became a source of lasting frustration; the duo later called it their least favorite recording, citing repeated clashes of musical taste with an undisclosed number of outside producers they had attempted to collaborate with.

The Craig Walker Era and Sonic Pivot (2000–2004)

In 2000, Keeler and Griffiths began demoing new material and, after settling on a fresh sonic direction, placed an advert in Mojo magazine seeking a lead vocalist. Craig Walker responded and immediately started singing on a track Keeler had written called "Again." Between 2002 and 2005, the trio delivered three studio albums—You All Look The Same To Me, Noise, and the French film soundtrack Michel Vaillant (November 2003)—that collectively marked a decisive turn away from their electronica and trip hop roots toward a more psychedelic, progressive palette. Critical acclaim and growing popularity followed across Europe. However, in November 2004, just as the band launched a European tour, they announced on their website that Walker had departed due to personal differences, and he did not join them on the road.

The Collective Era and European Breakthrough (2004–2010)

After Walker's exit, Dave Pen (BirdPen) stepped in for the Noise tour, and during a show in Vienna, Keeler and Griffiths met Pollard Berrier, formerly of Bauchklang. Berrier had given Keeler a demo CD of his own compositions with the idea of launching a separate project, but the three quickly began writing and rehearsing together, recording at Southside Studios in London by September 2005. Their resulting album, Lights (May 2006), featured all three members co-writing seven tracks, with Pen contributing three and Maria Q singing on three. From that point Archive shed its front-man identity in favor of a true collective. Lights earned high critical praise across France, Switzerland, Greece, and Poland, and the accompanying tour delivered predominantly sold-out shows. In May 2009, Controlling Crowds I-III arrived as their most acclaimed release, topping the French and Greek charts, reaching number two in Switzerland, and featuring the return of original member Rosko John. The single "Bullets" charted in five European countries and later appeared in the Cyberpunk 2077 teaser trailer. A Part IV followed in September 2009, and the band sold out roughly fifty concerts through the 2010 summer festival season.

Self-Reliance and Ambitious Later Projects (2011–2014)

After completing their deal with Warner Music, Archive moved to new management and began crafting their eighth studio album (excluding the Michel Vaillant soundtrack) across London and Paris. Short samples surfaced on their official website as early as November 2011. In May 2012 they confirmed the record, With Us Until You're Dead, would appear on 27 August via their own imprint, Dangervisit Records, accompanied by a European tour that quickly added a London date. Keeler described the material as more personal—essentially love songs—delivered in the band's characteristic non-formatted style. New vocalist Holly Martin featured on the track "Violently," released on the Wiped Out / Violently EP in July 2012. The band's most ambitious undertaking came next: in November 2013 they announced Axiom, a forty-minute short film paired with a full-length album, released 26 May 2014. The film, created with Spanish collective NYSU under director Jesus Hernandez, is set on a cliff-ringed island where an underground city's fate is governed by a single bell. Archive debuted the film and performed live at the 2014 Sundance London festival.

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