The Black Seeds

For the album by The Main Ingredient, see Black Seeds (album).

The Black Seeds
Performing in Leicester, August 2012
Performing in Leicester, August 2012
Background information
OriginWellington, New Zealand
GenresReggae, roots reggae, funk, dub, rock, pop, soul, world music
Years active1998–present
LabelsSonar Kollektiv,
Easy Star Records,
Loop, Capitol
MembersBarnaby Weir
Daniel Weetman
Ryan Prebble
Jarney Murphy
Francis Harawira
Nigel Patterson
Barrett Hocking
Matthew Benton
Past membersMike Fabulous
Jabin Ward
Bret McKenzie
Rich Christie
Shannon Williams
Andrew Christiansen
Tim Jaray
Toby Laing
Ned Ngatae
Websitewww.theblackseeds.com

The Black Seeds are a reggae inspired musical group from Wellington, New Zealand.[1] Their rocksteady song "One by One" became an international hit when it was played in top ranked TV series Breaking Bad. Their music is a mixture of big beat funk, dub, afro music, pop, rock, soul, and roots reggae/ragga.[2]

Formed in 1998, the Black Seeds perform with eight members,[3] with instruments including vocals, guitar, saxophone, trumpet, bass, drums, bongos, keyboard and wood block. Black Seeds first album, Keep On Pushing, was released 2001 following a number of live performances.[4] Already very successful in New Zealand and popular in Australia, Europe and North & South America, their third album Into the Dojo (2007) introduced Black Seeds internationally.[5] They have released five albums, a live album, and two remix albums. They have two double-platinum selling albums in New Zealand,[2] and successful European album releases through the German-based Sonar Kollektiv label. In 2011, the Black Seeds was described by Rolling Stone as "The best reggae band in the world right now".[6]

Lead singer Barnaby Weir, the son of veteran radio broadcaster Dick Weir, is also associated with the side-projects Fly My Pretties and Flash Harry.[7] Former band member Bret McKenzie is also a member of international comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, as well as playing the role of Figwit the elf in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings.[8]

The band released their sixth studio album Fabric in early September 2017.

Their song "One by One" was used in AMC's Breaking Bad Season 2 episode "4 Days Out" and also appears on the series' official soundtrack.[9][10]

  1. ^ Campbell-Livingston, Cecelia (2013) "The Black Seeds, rooted in reggae", Jamaica Observer, 27 November 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2013
  2. ^ a b "The Black Seeds Bio". Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  3. ^ "The Black Seeds". Under the Radar. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  4. ^ Kellman, Andy. "The Black Seeds. Biography". AllMusic. AllMusic; All Media Network, LLC. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  5. ^ "The Black Seeds". Loop Recordings Aot(ear)oa. Loop Media, NZ. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  6. ^ "The Black Seeds". Loop Recordings Aot(ear)oa. Loop Media, NZ. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  7. ^ Rebecca Thomson. "Fly My Pretties – Barnaby Weir is Flying High". NZ Musician. Archived from the original on 17 February 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  8. ^ "THE BLACK SEEDS – BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION". Rock Paper Scissors. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  9. ^ "Breaking Bad (Music from the Original TV Series)". iTunes. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  10. ^ Maria Elena Fernandez (18 May 2010). "'Breaking Bad': La musica on sale Tuesday on I-tunes and Amazon". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 April 2012.