Born into a musical family, which apparently numbered Nils Lofgren as a close friend, it would have not been unreasonable to predict that Ben would pursue a career in music. What was unlikely was that Ben would have made big steps towards that career by the age of 11, by forming the band Radish.

The band, playing an approximation of grunge, were swiftly signed in Dallas, and released an E.P "Hello" and an L.P "Dizzy" on the small Practice Amp label in 1994. By 1996 the group were the subject of acute speculation, by a music business looking for a new Silverchair. The following year's, Restraining Bolt led the band to briefly becoming stars, notching a UK top 40 hit in "Little Pink Stars". After this brief burst of interest, the band began to falter, with their eventual split in 1999 with Kweller still just 17.

After a period of relative normalcy, Kweller decided to rejoin the music world, moving to Brooklyn and undertaking tours with Evan Dando and Juliana Hatfield. In 2002 he released the wonderful "Sha Sha", a breezy summery album that included the hit "Wasted and Ready". He also had found time to contribute to "The Bens E.P." with fellow Bens, Folds and Lee. In 2004, Kweller released the equally sublime "On My Way". William Fuller

Releases

• Ben Kweller - album, out 11/09/2006 on Columbia Records. 1 review (read/post)
• The OC Mix 3 (Chrismukkah) - album, out 15/11/2004 on Warner Bros.. 1 review (read/post)
• On My Way - album, out 19/04/2004 on ATO. (post review)
• Wasted and Ready - single, out 02/09/2002 on ATO. (post review)
• Sha Sha - album, out 22/07/2002 on ATO. (post review)

Past events

• Tue 21 Nov at Brighton Concorde 2. (post review)
• Wed 19 Apr at London Bush Hall. 1 review (read/post)
• Tue 26 Feb at London Camden Barfly. 1 review (read/post)

News

• 03/05/2007: Smashing Pumpkins tribute LP attracts Deftones, Panic and more
• 18/07/2006: Ben Kweller on Ben Kweller: self-titled effort due September
• 07/02/2006: Drowned in Sound Radio No. 3
• 19/03/2004: Ben Kweller: On His Way
• 02/01/2004: The Bens EP Sees the Light of Day
• 09/07/2003: The Bens Take Time Out
• 10/03/2003: The Bens: Folds, Kweller and Lee
• 02/07/2002: Sha Sha Ben Kweller

Features

• 06/07/2007: Carling Weekender: New Band Tent Reviews
• 22/08/2002: Miranda's picks for Reading...

Links

• Ben Kweller - official site

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