Biography
In 1988, five musicians based in Brighton, England, united to launch The Levellers. Mark Chadwick took on vocals, guitar, and banjo, while Alan Miles handled vocals, guitar, mandolin, and harmonica; Jeremy Cunningham played bass and bouzouki, Charlie Heather sat behind the drums, and Jon Sevink supplied fiddle. The ensemble blended a pseudo-hippie, faintly punk-inflected folk-rock sound with Celtic touches, issuing a pair of EPs on their independent Hag imprint during 1989 that secured a deal with Musidisc. Their debut full-length, A Weapon Called the Word, appeared in 1990. Shortly after its release, Miles departed and Simon Friend stepped in as replacement. The Levellers then exited Musidisc to sign with China Records, and later that year they unveiled Levelling the Land, which debuted at number 14 on the U.K. charts and eventually earned gold status. Lead single “One Way” topped the indie charts, prompting a completely sold-out tour that paved the way for an American contract with Elektra.
Throughout 1992 the band sustained its momentum via additional sold-out European runs and the successful 15 Years EP, although stateside impact remained modest. In 1993 the group focused on crafting its sophomore album, Levellers, while maintaining an active touring schedule and releasing the singles compilation See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Do Something. Though Levellers lacked the hit density and critical acclaim of its predecessor, the band’s loyal audience stayed intact. Zeitgeist arrived in 1995 amid divided reviews, after which attendance began to taper. The following year brought the live collection Live: Headlights, White Lines, Black Tar Rivers. On 1997’s Mouth to Mouth the Levellers experimented with alternative guitar pop, issuing a greatest-hits roundup, One Way of Life: The Best of the Levellers, in 1998.
Following an extended break, the Levellers returned forcefully in 2003 with the anthemic Green Blade Rising, a direction mirrored by the equally vigorous Truth & Lies two years later. The remainder of the decade largely involved reinforcing their European fan base through high-profile festival appearances, until 2008 delivered the politically charged Letters from the Underground. Released to mark the group’s twentieth anniversary, the album became their first studio effort on the independent On the Fiddle label and their strongest seller since Hello Pig in 2000. After Chadwick’s late-2010 solo project All the Pieces, the Levellers launched a commemorative U.K. tour in 2011 that presented Levelling the Land in full, two decades after its original appearance. Their tenth studio album, the raw Static on the Airwaves—recorded in the Czech Republic—surfaced in summer 2012 and featured the raucous single “Truth Is.”
Over the ensuing years the band maintained a schedule of festival and concert dates across the U.K. and Europe, marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of Levelling the Land in 2017 with remastered reissues of their first six albums. That same year they entered Abbey Road Studios alongside producer John Leckie to revisit key tracks acoustically with orchestral accompaniment. The resulting We the Collective, which also honored the ensemble’s thirtieth anniversary, emerged at the start of 2018. Two years afterward, their twelfth original studio set, Peace, stood among their most impassioned statements, continuing a three-decade assault on misgovernment and injustice. When touring plans for the album were abruptly halted by COVID-19, the members opted against livestreamed performances and instead regrouped at Metway Studios in Brighton to run through catalog selections. Captured on film for posterity, the sessions yielded The Lockdown Sessions, issued in late 2021 and revealing a seldom-documented facet of the band.
Throughout 1992 the band sustained its momentum via additional sold-out European runs and the successful 15 Years EP, although stateside impact remained modest. In 1993 the group focused on crafting its sophomore album, Levellers, while maintaining an active touring schedule and releasing the singles compilation See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Do Something. Though Levellers lacked the hit density and critical acclaim of its predecessor, the band’s loyal audience stayed intact. Zeitgeist arrived in 1995 amid divided reviews, after which attendance began to taper. The following year brought the live collection Live: Headlights, White Lines, Black Tar Rivers. On 1997’s Mouth to Mouth the Levellers experimented with alternative guitar pop, issuing a greatest-hits roundup, One Way of Life: The Best of the Levellers, in 1998.
Following an extended break, the Levellers returned forcefully in 2003 with the anthemic Green Blade Rising, a direction mirrored by the equally vigorous Truth & Lies two years later. The remainder of the decade largely involved reinforcing their European fan base through high-profile festival appearances, until 2008 delivered the politically charged Letters from the Underground. Released to mark the group’s twentieth anniversary, the album became their first studio effort on the independent On the Fiddle label and their strongest seller since Hello Pig in 2000. After Chadwick’s late-2010 solo project All the Pieces, the Levellers launched a commemorative U.K. tour in 2011 that presented Levelling the Land in full, two decades after its original appearance. Their tenth studio album, the raw Static on the Airwaves—recorded in the Czech Republic—surfaced in summer 2012 and featured the raucous single “Truth Is.”
Over the ensuing years the band maintained a schedule of festival and concert dates across the U.K. and Europe, marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of Levelling the Land in 2017 with remastered reissues of their first six albums. That same year they entered Abbey Road Studios alongside producer John Leckie to revisit key tracks acoustically with orchestral accompaniment. The resulting We the Collective, which also honored the ensemble’s thirtieth anniversary, emerged at the start of 2018. Two years afterward, their twelfth original studio set, Peace, stood among their most impassioned statements, continuing a three-decade assault on misgovernment and injustice. When touring plans for the album were abruptly halted by COVID-19, the members opted against livestreamed performances and instead regrouped at Metway Studios in Brighton to run through catalog selections. Captured on film for posterity, the sessions yielded The Lockdown Sessions, issued in late 2021 and revealing a seldom-documented facet of the band.
Albums
