ANOHNI and the Johnsons

Antony Hegarty grew up in thrall to British synth-pop artists like Marc Almond and Boy George, but the music she makes in her collective Antony and the Johnsons is more in thrall to the underground idols that she discovered later on in her adolescence like Diamanda Galas and Klaus Nomi. It’s music that’s nakedly emotional, profound and at points, uncomfortable to listen to due to its sheer emotional transparency. It’s also a testament to its quality that with it, Hegarty has become one of the world’s biggest cult artists, with a devoted fan base and the kind of clout that has seen her perform with everyone from Lou Reed to the Britten Sinfonia.

Born in Chichester, Hegarty has spent most of her life living in the U.S. At first relocating to San Francisco with her family when she was a child, but later moving to New York City to attend university. After she had finished her degree she ensconced herself in NYC’s potent performing arts scene, and in 1996 was awarded a grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts for a production of hers called "The Birth of Anne Frank/The Ascension of Marsha P. Johnson". With the money that she’d been granted she assembled a group of musicians and had a set of demos of songs she’d written earlier professionally recorded, first performing live with the newly christened Johnsons in 1997.

This demo fell into the hands of the British experimental musician David Tibet, who was so impressed with the songs that he offered to release the album through his label Durtro. Hegarty accepted and her debut album, 2000’s “Antony And The Johnsons”, was released to masses of underground acclaim. 2001 saw the release of a follow up E.P called “I Fell In Love With A Dead Boy” whose producer, Hal Willner, played to another client of his, Lou Reed. Reed immediately contacted Hegarty and had her sing a song on the album that he was working on “The Raven”. At this point Hegarty was starting to court some mainstream attention, and her debut album was re-released in 2004 by the respected indie label Secretly Canadian.

At this point, her next move would make or break her on the world stage, and in the form of 2005’s “I Am A Bird Now”, she made it in the most spectacular way she could. The record was critically adored and won the U.K’s Mercury Award in the same year, leading to a sales jump in her native country that saw the record certified Gold within a year. The collaborations with Boy George, Devendra Banhart and Rufus Wainwright on “I Am A Bird Now” made her an even higher profile name and ever since then, she’s been a cult hero of the highest order. With sold out shows at New York’s Radio City Music Hall and the Royal Opera House to her name as well as two top twenty albums on the U.K album charts.

Artists like her come along once a century, and for that, Antony and the Johnsons come highly recommended.