From early beginnings in 1998 - when a chance meeting in a Manchester club with a guitarist led Zoe to form the band with Danny behind the drumkit - (hooker) began working up songs and quickly debuted on the Manchester circuit; the name was culled from the song 'Beauty School Dropout' from the classic flick "Grease".
They are dynamic and focused. Their eponymous, self-released mini album has sold nigh on a thousand copies. In the past two years they have secured support slots with many of the current cream of the indie scene; Le Tigre, The Donnas, Television, Interpol, 50 Foot Wave, Brassy and The Gossip. In 2003 they undertook a UK tour with Kat Bjelland's Katastrophy Wife.
Together they are a power trio gang in the grand tradition of early P J Harvey or Le Tigre. They purvey short, sharp, arresting punk bursts. To put it simply, (hooker) fuckin' rock.
For bookings, interviews, an mp3 download and other (hooker) sexiness, the band can be contacted through their website www.hookerstuff.com or at [email protected].
Hooker at Le Baron Paris 2006
Add to My Profile | More Videos"Hooker are a gloriously brash Manchester based unreconstructed punk outfit. They're a three piece and, between them, are capable of kicking up no end of fuss. It's very simple, but played with such enthusiasm that they will win you over. Vocalist Zoe Mcveigh does a fine job at holding it all together while thrashing out delightfully raw power chords. Think of them as a sort of punked up 'Au Pairs' and you're half way there. There's something primal about Hooker; it's sparse yet powerful; the twin threads of bass and guitar, both rattling away like marbles in a washing machine, combine with the thudding drums to create something immediate and almost beautiful. Hooker are the epitome of the modern punk band; Short, sharp brutal and very good indeed."-CD Times review
"I love Mclusky. I love Sleater Kinney. I now officially love (hooker) as they sound like the two bands combined, and theyre northern, which gives them extra points. Whipcrack smart songs with sass and snarl spew from Zoe McVeigh, her voice a feral cat scratching at anyone standing in its way." -Natalie Boxall Plan B site review
"(hooker), (hooker), how fuckin good are (hooker)? Why arent they big yet? Why do people fall for half-baked Clash / Smiths reheats when serious femme-punk genius is ripping the throat out of sweat-box pub venues across the land?" -Tim Proctor, sandman magazine
"Singer Zoe McVeighs hugely emotive voice is perfect for their razor-sharp and uncompromising brand of punk but its not just that that makes them. Its not even the fact that a three-piece, playing a bass with three strings and a guitar with four strings, makes as much noise as some six-strong bands. Its the fact that they still seem slightly amazed and embarrassed that the audience loves them, casting little joy-filled glances at each other. (hooker) are without a doubt the most upfront and honest band Ive seen in years, and if you have an ounce of passion in you, see them. Theyll inspire you".
-Kev Eddy, God Is In The TV Online Fanzine
"This is better than anything you've ever heard. How does so much power and vitality come from one small body? It's all sex and jealousy and heartbreak, spitting out lyrics with that voice.’ Raw, punchy garage-punk-pop, compared to bands like X-Ray Spex, The Gossip and Sleater-Kinney. As good as anything on Kill Rock Stars, and that's GOOD! Vocalist Zoe McVeigh has passion and power in equal amounts and her vocal talents will astound". - Moles Club
"(Hooker) are one of those bands who seem to have been around for ever (although I'm not sure quite when they sprouted the brackets) and yet are still young, fired-up and full of energy. Their solid melodic songs (think Sleater-Kinney, only harder) are shot through with raw punk spirit, and yet are tuneful enough to sing along to - and in the form of Zoe McVeigh boast one of the best frontwomen in Manchester or probably anywhere. Tough girl cool in jeans and T-shirt she has one fucker of a pair of lungs on her, switching from almost sweet to pretty menacing in a flash whilst thrashing out beautifully dirty guitar lines. But they're a million miles away from all those girl-at-the-front-boys-at-the-back bands - yes, the other (hooker)s are blokes but they come across as very much a band in the old band-as-gang sense; Andy's low-slung bone-shuddering bass and the shirtless human tornado that is drummer Danny are equally vital points on the triangle. And tonight they end up with an extended rhythm break when Zoe's guitar cuts out - but in true rock'n'roll trooper style she changes it whilst still singing, for one that "cost a fiver from a car boot sale" and carries on as if nothing's happened. Now that IS punk rock". - Manchester Music
"By Monday the timings have rather gone out of the window. (hooker) aren't supposed to be on for hours yet, but there's no mistaking one of the finest female voices in this city - even if its owner is somewhat hidden behind a packed-in crowd enjoying the last few hours of the bank holiday weekend. Zoe McVeigh has after all been fronting various versions of this, one of Manchester's original grrl-punk bands, for almost a decade now with her trusty and ever shirtless drummer Danny, and it's still a complete mystery why they're not absolutely massive. Her voice is a thing of beauty; delicate and bruised in the quieter moments rising to a raw, bleeding holler without losing her fine grasp of melody; whilst her hands thrash out life-affirming powerchords. And the band seem invigorated by (relatively) new addition Steph Walker whose muscular dirty bass is Fugazi-like in its power. Back when (hooker) started out the idea that an emotionally-charged femme-punk trio could crash into the nation's mainstream airwaves would have got you laughed at - but yesterday a performance by the chart-stealing Gossip brought Manchester Pride its most mixed audiences yet. How many of them knew we've got one of our own, and with better tunes to boot?" - Manchester Music 28th August 2007
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