The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts of the 1960s, partly due to Morrison's lyrics and voice, along with his erratic stage persona. The group is widely regarded as an important figure of the era's counterculture.
L7 is an American all-female rock band founded in Los Angeles, California, first active from 1985 to 2001 and re-formed in 2014. Their longest standing lineup consists of Suzi Gardner, Donita Sparks, Jennifer Finch, and Dee Plakas. L7 has released seven studio albums and has toured widely in the US, Europe, Japan, Australia, and South America. "Pretend We're Dead" was heavily played on US alternative radio and entered the top 10 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart in 1992.
Norah Jones is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. She has won several awards for her music and, as of 2023, had sold more than 50 million records worldwide. Billboard named her the top jazz artist of the 2000's decade. She has won nine Grammy Awards and was ranked 60th on Billboard magazine's artists of the 2000s decade chart.
Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band's original line-up was composed of Alex Kapranos, Nick McCarthy, Bob Hardy, and Paul Thomson. Julian Corrie and Dino Bardot joined the band in 2017 after McCarthy left during the previous year, and Audrey Tait (drums) joined the band after Thomson left in 2021. The band is one of the more popular post-punk revival bands, garnering multiple UK top 20 hits. They have been nominated for several Grammy Awards and have received two Brit Awards – winning one for Best British Group – as well as one NME Award.
Sparks is an American pop and rock duo formed by brothers Ron (keyboards) and Russell Mael (vocals) in Los Angeles. The duo is noted for their quirky approach to songwriting; their music is often accompanied by sophisticated and acerbic lyrics—often about women, and sometimes containing literary or cinematic references-- and an idiosyncratic, theatrical stage presence, typified by the contrast between Russell's animated, hyperactive frontman antics and Ron's deadpan scowling. Russell Mael has a distinctive wide-ranging voice, while Ron Mael plays keyboards in an intricate and rhythmic style. They have been much more successful in Europe than in their native U.S., though they maintain a loyal cult following in the States.
Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member Sarah Neufeld and multi-instrumentalists Paul Beaubrun, Dan Boeckner and Eric Heigle. Each of the band's studio albums features contributions from composer and violinist Owen Pallett.
Birgit Dieckmann, known professionally as Billie Ray Martin, is a German singer and songwriter, known for her single "Your Loving Arms", which reached the top 10 of both the UK Singles Chart (#6) and the Irish Singles Chart (#8) in 1995, and reached number one on the US Dance Club Chart. She was also one of the vocalists on the S'Express UK top 10 hit single "Hey Music Lover" (1989), and had UK top 40 hits as lead vocalist of Electribe 101 with "Tell Me When the Fever Ended" (1989) and "Talking with Myself" (1990), and as a solo singer with "Running Around Town" (1995) and "Imitation of Life" (1996).
Eric Goulden, known as Wreckless Eric, is an English rock/new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single "Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in Mojo magazine's list of the best punk rock singles of all time. It was also acclaimed as one of the "top 40 singles of the alternative era 1975–2000".
Beachwood Sparks are an American alternative country band from Los Angeles. An article in The Daily Telegraph on America's underground psychedelic pop scene described Beachwood Sparks as "country through a kaleidoscope".
Gemma Hayes is an Irish musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments, including the piano and the harmonica. She is also a member of The Cake Sale and Printer Clips.
Jordin Sparks-Thomas is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame in 2007 after winning the sixth season of American Idol at age 17, becoming the youngest winner in the series' history. Her self-titled debut studio album, released later that year, was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and has sold over two million copies worldwide. The album spawned the Billboard Hot 100 top-ten singles "Tattoo" and "No Air"; the latter, a collaboration with Chris Brown, is currently the third highest-selling single by any American Idol contestant, selling over three million digital copies in the United States. The song earned Sparks her first Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.
Indiscreet is the fifth album by Sparks. It was released in 1975 and later re-released with three bonus tracks. The album was a departure from the glam rock sound of Kimono My House and Propaganda, and emphasised the theatrical elements of their work, with greater use of orchestral arrangements and drawing from non-rock orientated styles such as jazz, big band, swing, vaudeville, and classical music. The album was produced by Tony Visconti, with whom the group reunited in 1997 to produce several tracks for their retrospective album Plagiarism. The song "How Are You Getting Home?" was used in Leos Carax's film Holy Motors.
Big Beat is the sixth album by American rock band Sparks, released in 1976.
Lil' Beethoven is the nineteenth studio album by the American rock band Sparks, released on October 14, 2002. The album was a radical musical departure compared to their previous works. The band only used strings, piano, and voices but no drums: the result was both classical and pop music.
Trace Dempsey Cyrus is an American musician. The son of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus and brother of recording artists Miley Cyrus and Noah Cyrus, he is the backing vocalist and guitarist of the band Metro Station, with time out between 2010 and 2014. In 2010, he began providing vocals and guitar in the pop rock band Ashland HIGH. He also owns the clothing company From Backseats to Bedrooms.
Ian North was an American musician, producer, and painter known for being part of the bohemian punk movement in United States with his power pop band Milk 'N' Cookies.
Yunalis binti Mat Zara'ai, known professionally as Yuna, is a Malaysian singer. Her initial exposure came through the viral success of her music uploaded to Myspace, which received over one million plays. This online success alerted an indie-pop label/management company to her music, and in early 2011 she signed with the Fader Label. She is best known for her collaboration with Usher on her breakout single "Crush", which peaked at number 3 on the US Billboard Adult R&B chart. In 2010-2015, she is the 2nd Most Popular Female Singer in Malaysia which is Siti Nurhaliza at the first place and Stacy (singer) at the 3rd place.
Bronze Rat Records is a British independent record label, established in London in 2006 by Welsh musician and producer Andrew Zammit, and also encompasses subsidiary label Seriés Aphōnos.
Luke Smith is an English record producer, mixing engineer, musician and songwriter. He was the co-founder, songwriter, guitarist and vocalist of the band Clor. His production and writing credits include Foals, Depeche Mode, Foxes, Anna of The North, Keaton Henson, Crystal Fighters, Slow Club, Everything Everything, Fryars and Petite Noir. He has worked on such popular and critically acclaimed albums as Total Life Forever and Sounds of the Universe.
David Kendrick is an American rock drummer who is a current member of Xiu Xiu, a former member of Gleaming Spires and Devo, and has recorded and toured with Sparks. He is based in Los Angeles, California.
