Hermitude

Hermitude are an Australian hip-hop and electronic music duo, originating from the Blue Mountains, New South Wales. Multi-instrumentalists, Luke Dubber (a.k.a. Luke Dubs) and Angus Stuart (a.k.a. Elgusto), have collaborated in bands since 1994, when they were aged 16 and 11, respectively. Their first functional band was called "Funk Injection" and included Stuart's sister, Aja Stuart, on bass. After Stuart returned from a trip to the US in 2000 with a set of turntables, the two tried jamming together with Dubs playing keyboard, sans vocals. The combination worked so well that they realised they didn't need anything else, and Hermitude was formed. Signing with the Elefant Traks label, founded by The Herd, Hermitude released the vinyl-only Imaginary Friends EP in 2002. The collection of esoteric instrumental soundscapes, with two vocal cuts provided by Urthboy and Ozi Batla, sold out and has never been transferred to CD, making it a collector's item. In 2003, the band released their first album, Alleys to Valleys. The name referred to their moving between Sydney and a recording studio called Sound Heaven in the Blue Mountains, owned by Stuart's father, John Stuart, which allowed them to live like hermit crabs half the time. The other half of their time they spent coming down from the mountains to try out their new material in the clubs of the city. The popularity of Hermitude's debut allowed them to earn support billing with touring international acts such as, Dizzee Rascal, RJD2, and DJ Krush, and then record Tales of the Drift in 2005. A more percussive, Cuban sound was created, inspired by Stuart's time spent there in his youth. In 2006 Hermitude embarked overseas to pursue bigger success, landing gigs in Europe, Asia and the US. They were invited to perform in Malaysia, Norway and Spain as well as at DJ Kentaro's Japanese album launch, and were booked for Aceyalone and Abstract Rude's West Coast US tour. While on this world tour, Dubber and Stuart wrote the tunes that would make up their 2007 EP, Rare Sightings. Released in November 2007, initially sold at venues on their return tour of Australia, it was their fourth release on Elefant Traks. Hermitude then joined Urthboy and The Tongue on a national tour throughout Australia. Copies of the CD sold out during the tour and had to go back to press before copies could be released in stores. In 2010 Hermitude released the single, "Get in My Life" and in 2011 "Speak of the Devil", from the album HyperParadise, which was released on 3 February 2012. The title track of the album peaked at number 38 on the ARIA Singles Chart in February 2013. "Speak of the Devil" won the 2011 J Award for Music Video of the Year. In 2014 they released the single "Ukiyo" without radio or video servicing, yet in a few months it had millions of plays. In October of that year Hermitude toured North America for the first time, supporting Rüfüs Du Sol. In January 2015 "Through the Roof", the first official single from the new album Dark Night Sweet Light. The album was released in May 2015 and peaked at number 1 on the ARIA Charts. The album spawned four other singles, including multi-platinum selling "The Buzz" which peaked at number 20, becoming Hermitude's highest-charting song. Dark Night Sweet Light has gone Gold in multiple countries. In November 2018 Hermitude released "Stupid World". Hermitude said the song was written in response to the craziness happening globally, whether it be politically or societally, saying "However you wanna deal with what's happening around us in the world right now, you can do it your own way through music." In September 2019 Hermitude released their sixth studio album, Pollyanarchy, featuring Buddy and BJ The Chicago Kid, Vic Mensa and more which peaked at number 18 on the ARIA Charts. In February 2022, the band announced the release of Mirror Mountain and released the single "Promises" featuring Andie. Apart from Hermitude, Stuart has spent the last couple of years playing and touring with Paul Mac as percussionist and DJ, while Dubber has lent his keyboard skills to many local Sydney outfits including Gauche, The Tango Saloon and The Bird, as well as touring with Tom Tom Crew the internationally acclaimed Hip-Hop Circus stage production. The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. The Australian Music Prize (the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J. They commenced in 2005. The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016. Tony Mitchell (2007–2012). "Hermitude". Local Noise. Archived from the original on 3 December 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2012. Hobart Mercury, 30 October 2008, "New kids on hip-hop block" "Hermitude" (PDF). Localnoise.net.au. 14 April 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 7 April 2008. The Malay Mail, 5 April 2006, "Hermitude with attitude" by Tan Hee Hui The Sydney Morning Herald, 12 May 2006, "Brandy snaps" by Paris Pompor The Sydney Morning Herald, 13 April 2006, News "Hermitude: Monocles and booty-shakin'". Inthemix.com. 18 April 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2008. "Three Strikes Tour". Fasterlouder.com. 7 September 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2008. "Hermitude". Elefantraks.com. 30 November 2011. Retrieved 11 November 2011. "australian-charts.com – Hermitude – HyperParadise". Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 24 January 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2015. "J Awards 2011". Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. November 2011. Retrieved 25 January 2012. Newstead, Al (1 November 2018). "First Spin: Hermitude are back with new burner 'Stupid World'". triple j. Retrieved 15 February 2019. "Hermitude Music Available Though Elefant Traks Now". Elefant Traks. Retrieved 15 February 2019. "Hermitude announces 'Mirror Mountain' album and releases new single "Promises"". Ear Milk. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022. All except noted: "australian-charts.com – Discography Hermitude". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 April 2020. Mirror Mountain: "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 16 May 2022". The ARIA Report. No. 1680. Australian Recording Industry Association. 16 May 2022. p. 6. "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 25 May 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2015. "Hermitude announce new album, huge national tour". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 3 February 2022. "Pollyanarchy by Hermitude". Apple Music. Archived from the original on 26 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2019. "Hermitude Announce New Album Eight + National Tour For May". Music Feeds. 17 February 2026. Retrieved 19 February 2026. "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 27 April 2026. Retrieved 24 April 2026. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2013 Singles". ARIA. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 8 April 2020. Peaks in New Zealand: "Phew": "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 5 October 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2020. "St Claire": "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 10 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022. "Promises": "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 7