History
Matthew Ryan approached Neilson Hubbard in 2004 about a collaboration, which could result in an interesting self-distributed release for fans. The collaboration was much more successful than expected and Strays Don’t Sleep was formed with Neilson Hubbard, Brian Bequette, Billy Mercer and Steve Latanation.
In the Autumn 2005 Strays Don't Sleep’s debut self-titled album was released in the UK on One Little Indian. The release includes a DVD of short films that were directed and shot by professional filmmakers and friends, including Gorman Bechard, The Barnes Brothers, Martin Glenn, Matt Boyd and Jared Johnson. Matthew Ryan and Neilson Hubbard also directed three of the short films with the help of Nashville film student, Matt Riddlehoover. A 5.1 surround sound mix of the entire record and films, by Paul PDub Walton of Björk and Sneaker Pimps fame, is available on the DVD.
Gorman Bechard is an American film director, screenwriter and novelist best known for his independent feature films Psychos in Love,Friends, and You Are Alone; his four rock documentaries Color Me Obsessed: A Film About the Replacements,What Did You Expect? The Archers of Loaf Live at Cat's Cradle,Every Everything: The Music, Life & Times of Grant Hart, and Who is Lydia Loveless?; his animal welfare documentary A Dog Named Gucci; and his debut novel The Second Greatest Story Ever Told.
Matt Riddlehoover is an American filmmaker. He is best known for the 2015 romantic comedy Paternity Leave.
Surround sound is a technique for enriching the fidelity of sound reproduction by using multiple audio channels from speakers that surround the listener. Its first application was in movie theaters. Prior to surround sound, theater sound systems commonly had three "screen channels" of sound, from loudspeakers located in front of the audience at the left, center, and right. Surround sound adds one or more channels from loudspeakers behind the listener, able to create the sensation of sound coming from any horizontal direction 360° around the listener. Surround sound formats vary in reproduction and recording methods along with the number and positioning of additional channels. The most common surround sound specification, the ITU's 5.1 standard, calls for 6 speakers: Center (C) in front of the listener, Left (L) and Right (R) at angles of 60° on either side of the center, and Left Surround (LS) and Right Surround (RS) at angles of 100–120°, plus a subwoofer whose position is not critical.
Strays Don't Sleep was released to great reviews from Timeout , Uncut , the Sunday Express and The Times . The success helped secure a US release, which was helped further by a placement in the hit CW (former WB) drama One Tree Hill . "For Blue Skies", a song concerning the sentencing of Matthew Ryan’s brother to 30 years in prison, was made available on the One Tree Hill Soundtrack. The band toured the UK with Josh Rouse to support the album. Strays Don't Sleep was officially disbanded mid-2006.
Uncut magazine, trademarked as UNCUT, is a monthly publication based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections. A DVD magazine under the Uncut brand was published quarterly from 2005 to 2006.
The Times is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register, adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers, since 1981 a subsidiary of News UK, itself wholly owned by News Corp. The Times and The Sunday Times do not share editorial staff, were founded independently, and have only had common ownership since 1967.
One Tree Hill is an American television drama series created by Mark Schwahn, which premiered on September 23, 2003, on The WB. After the series' third season, The WB merged with UPN to form The CW, and from September 27, 2006, the series was broadcast by The CW in the United States until the end of its run in 2012. The show is set in the fictional town of Tree Hill in North Carolina and initially follows the lives of two half-brothers, Lucas Scott and Nathan Scott, who compete for positions on their school's basketball team, and the drama that ensues from the brothers' romances.
Leigh Anne Bingham Nash is an American singer and songwriter who is the lead vocalist for the pop band Sixpence None the Richer and is also a member of Fauxliage and Movement Nashville. Her debut solo album, Blue on Blue, was released on August 15, 2006 by the One Son/Nettwerk record labels.
William Patrick Niederst, best known as Liam Lynch, is a musician, puppeteer and filmmaker. Lynch co-created, co-wrote, played the music for, directed, and produced MTV's Sifl and Olly Show.
Denali was an American indie band formed in April 2000 in Richmond, Virginia. The group disbanded in 2004, but reunited in 2008 for several performances.
Zachary Charles Hill is an American multi-instrumentalist and visual artist. He is best known as the drummer and co-producer of the group Death Grips and math rock band Hella as well as the alternative dreamrock band Team Sleep. His intense, high bpm drumming style is his key hallmark.
Byzantine is a heavy metal band from Charleston, West Virginia, that was formed in 2000. As of March 2016, the band consists of front-man and co-founder Chris "OJ" Ojeda, Brian Henderson (guitar), Matt Bowles (drums) and Sean Sydnor. The band has released three studio albums on Prosthetic Records along with two independent albums. Byzantine is known for its unique sound and modern, "forward thinking" musical style which explores different musical territories and song structures.
Relient K is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Canton, Ohio, by Matt Thiessen, Matt Hoopes, and Brian Pittman during the band members' third year in high school and their time at Malone University. The band is named after guitarist Hoopes' automobile, a Plymouth Reliant K car, with the spelling intentionally altered to avoid trademark infringement over the Reliant name.
Self is an American alternative pop/rock band from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The band is led by Matt Mahaffey. The band currently consists of Chris James, Mac Burrus, and Jason Rawlings (Drums). Past members include Matt's brother, Mike Mahaffey and Timm Nobles. Mahaffey cites Electric Light Orchestra, Prince, and Pixies as some of his biggest musical influences.
Matt Mays is a Canadian indie rock singer-songwriter and was the lead singer of Matt Mays & El Torpedo, a rock music group based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and New York City. Previously, Mays was a member of a Canadian indie band The Guthries. Mays was born in Hamilton, Ontario, and grew up in Nova Scotia.
Hammock is an American two-member ambient/post-rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. Hammock creates atmospheric music by combining orchestral arrangements with electronic beats, piano and droning guitar.
Matthew Perryman Jones is an American singer and songwriter who currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Garrison Starr is a Grammy-nominated songwriter/producer. Her major label debut, "18 Over Me" was released in 1997 (Geffen). Starr's shows have been described as "marrying pop smarts and Americana grit with a voice of remarkable power and clarity". Since that initial record, Starr has released over a dozen EPs and LPs while landing numerous placements on shows and movies like Grey's Anatomy, Pretty Little Liars, Nashville, Hart of Dixie, Switched at Birth, Rookie Blue, Army Wives, and Brothers & Sisters, as well as commercial placements that include Pandora, Virgin Mobile, McDonald's, and Fisher Price.
Jypsi was an American country music group composed of four siblings, all with the surname Rische: Amber-Dawn, Frank, Lillie Mae, and Scarlett. Signed to Arista Nashville in 2007, the group has released three singles, including "I Don't Love You Like That", which reached number 38 on the U.S. country singles charts that year. The band also released its self-titled debut album in May 2008.
Eastmountainsouth is an American pop/rock band formed in 1999 composed of vocalists Kat Maslich-Bode and Peter Bradley Adams.
Trent Dabbs is an American singer-songwriter who was raised in Jackson, Mississippi and is based in Nashville for his professional career. As a solo artist, Dabbs has released eleven albums, including his latest album, Positano, as well as a self-titled collaboration album with Ashley Monroe since his move to Nashville. His songs have been played in several TV shows, including Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, One Tree Hill, Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars, Parenthood, American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, and commercials for Crate & Barrel and Zales. He also co-produced and co-wrote many of the songs from Pure Country: Pure Heart.
A Silent Film are an English alternative rock band from Oxford. The band consists of Robert Stevenson (vocals/piano/guitar) and Spencer Walker (drums). Their first album, The City That Sleeps, was released on 6 October 2008, with one reviewer describing it as "a surefire winner". One critic has said that A Silent Film's style "distinctly echoes" Coldplay, Snow Patrol and The Killers. Their latest album, A Silent Film, was released in October 2015.
Brett Charles Young is an American country pop singer-songwriter from Orange County, California. He was a college baseball pitcher but took up songwriting after an elbow injury. His self-titled debut EP, produced by Dann Huff, was released by Republic Nashville on February 12, 2016. The lead single, "Sleep Without You", was released on April 11, and he had a major success with his following single, "In Case You Didn't Know". He released his second major label album Ticket to L.A. in 2018.
Doug Lancio is a guitarist and record producer, based in Nashville, Tennessee. He has worked with a wide range of artists including John Hiatt, Nanci Griffith, and Patty Griffin.
