Bio and profile of The Grates

"The Grates are a three-piece band from Brisbane, Australia, comprising Patience Hodgson (vocals), John Patterson (guitar) and Alana Skyring (drums). They have been lauded for their catchy songs and enthusiastic and energetic live shows, as Patience spends much of the time bouncing around, even while singing. Their music is frequently described as "fun": "We just wanna have fun and hope other people do too." (Patience [1]). Their sound has been compared to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and be your own PET. In March 2006 they played at the South by Southwest trade music fair in Texas.

The band has a distinctive style. All three members have a background in art and they design their own album artwork, posters, t-shirts and even socks. [2]

They released an array of limited edition recordings before releasing what is referred to as their debut EP, The Ouch. The Touch, in Australia on 14 February 2005. The EP received a United Kingdom release two months later via the Captains of Industry collective.

An 8-track recording of one of the band's songs, "Trampoline", was submitted to national Australian radio station Triple J in 2004. The song was well-received, and appeared on the nominations list for Triple J's 2004 Hottest 100 alongside two other Grates songs, "Rock Boys" and "Sukkafish".

In 2005 the buzz surrounding the band only grew, with festival performances at the Big Day Out, Meredith, Falls Festival and Homebake.

Their debut album, Gravity Won't Get You High, was released on April 8, 2006. It debuted at #9 in the ARIA charts and reached a peak of #9. It has also been slated for release in the UK and the United States (June 2006). The first single off the album, "19 20 20", was released in March as a 7" and iTunes music download.

They have been growing in popularity since being invited to perform at the 2006 Big Day Out Australian leg. They also launched on a national tour in the first half of 2006 and have supported The Zutons in their 2006 UK tour, The Young Knives in 2006, The Go! Team in 2005 and Arctic Monkeys in their 2006 tour of Australia.

Four of their songs got into the Hottest 100 2006, entering the top 20 and top 10. "Lies Are Much More Fun" was #71, "Inside Outside" was #42, "Science is Golden" was #17 and "19 20 20" reached #10.

Their live DVD 'Til Death Do Us Party' was released on April 30, 2007. It was filmed at the Forum Theatre in Melbourne on October 13, 2006."