Elena Jane Goulding is an English singer and songwriter. In July 2009, she signed a recording contract with Polydor Records, and later that year, she released her debut extended play, An Introduction to Ellie Goulding. Goulding released her debut studio album, Lights, in 2010, which debuted at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart. In November 2010, the album was reissued as Bright Lights, spawning two successful singles: a cover of Elton John's "Your Song" and "Lights", the latter becoming her highest-charting single to date.
Finlay Dow-Smith, known professionally as Starsmith, is a British songwriter and producer. He co-wrote and produced "Good Thing" by Zedd and Kehlani, and "I'll Be There" by Jess Glynne which went to number one in the UK and was nominated for Best Single at the 2019 Brit Awards.
English singer Ellie Goulding has released five studio albums, two remix albums, eight extended plays, 46 singles, 11 promotional singles and 43 music videos. As of February 2023, Goulding had sold 27 million albums and 216 million singles, and amassed 43 billion streams worldwide. Additionally, she had sold over 1.5 million albums and over 4.3 million singles in the United Kingdom alone as of February 2014.
"Lights" is a song by English singer Ellie Goulding from Bright Lights (2010), the reissue of her debut studio album, Lights (2010). Written by Goulding, Richard Stannard and Ash Howes, the song was inspired by Goulding's childhood fear of the dark. It was released on 13 March 2011 as the album's sixth single overall, and second from Bright Lights. Originally a bonus track on the UK and German iTunes edition of Lights, the song was re-edited for inclusion on Bright Lights in late 2010, serving as the single version.
Alt-J are an English indie rock band formed in 2007 in Leeds. Their lineup includes Joe Newman, Thom Sonny Green (drums), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards/vocals), and formerly Gwil Sainsbury (guitar/bass).
An Awesome Wave is the debut album by English indie rock band alt-J, released on 25 May 2012 through Infectious. The album includes the singles "Matilda"/"Fitzpleasure", "Breezeblocks" and "Tessellate". It peaked at number thirteen on the UK Albums Chart, and also charted in Belgium, France, Netherlands and Switzerland. An Awesome Wave won the 2012 British Barclaycard Mercury Prize, and in 2013 was named Album of the Year at the Ivor Novello Awards. The title is a reference to a quote from the 2000 American-Canadian film American Psycho.
"Breezeblocks" is a song by British indie rock band alt-J from their debut studio album An Awesome Wave (2012). The song was released on 18 May 2012 as the album's second single. The song was written by Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, Gwil Sainsbury, Thom Green and produced by Charlie Andrew. It reached the top ten in the UK Indie and US Alternative charts, and was voted into third place in Australian radio station Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2012, behind "Thrift Shop" and "Little Talks".
Halcyon is the second studio album by English singer and songwriter Ellie Goulding, released on 5 October 2012 by Polydor Records. The album was recorded between 2011 and 2012, during promotion for her debut album, Lights (2010). Goulding worked with several producers on the album, including Jim Eliot, Starsmith, Billboard, Justin Parker, Monsta, Madeon and Mike Spencer, in addition to collaborating with artists such as Tinie Tempah and Calvin Harris.
"Anything Could Happen" is a song by English singer Ellie Goulding from her second studio album, Halcyon (2012). It was released on 17 August 2012 as the album's lead single. Written and produced by Goulding and Jim Eliot of English electropop duo Kish Mauve, the song received positive reviews from music critics. "Anything Could Happen" peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart. Outside the United Kingdom, "Anything Could Happen" peaked within the top ten of the charts in Poland, the top 20 of the charts in Australia, the Czech Republic Ireland and New Zealand and the top 50 of the charts in the United States.
"Hanging On" is a song by American singer and songwriter Active Child from his debut studio album, You Are All I See (2011). It was written by Active Child and Ariel Rechtshaid, and produced by Rechtshaid. The song's music video, directed by T.S. Pfeffer and Robert McHugh, debuted on January 19, 2012. English singer Ellie Goulding covered "Hanging On" in 2012, while Australian alternative rock band Something for Kate included an acoustic cover of the song as a bonus track on the two-disc special edition of their 2012 album Leave Your Soul to Science.
"Chalk Outline" is the lead single from Canadian rock band Three Days Grace's fourth album, Transit of Venus. The band released many "snippets" of the song before August 14 to tease fans. It reached No. 1 on the U.S. Active Rock chart for a total of 10 weeks and won the "Rock Song of the Year" award given by Loudwire. Billboard ranked the song at number 8 on their "Greatest of All Time Mainstream Rock Songs" list.
"Explosions" is a song by English singer and songwriter Ellie Goulding from her second studio album, Halcyon (2012). Written by Goulding and John Fortis, it was released as a promotional single on iTunes Ireland on 3 August 2012 and on iTunes UK on 1 October 2012, but was removed shortly thereafter on both occasions. In late January 2013, it was announced that the track would be released as the official third single from the album. The official music video premiered on 30 January 2013 and consists of exclusive live footage of Goulding from The Halcyon Days Tour.
"Something Good" is a song by English indie rock quartet alt-J from their debut studio album An Awesome Wave (2012). The song was released on 28 September 2012 as the album's fourth single. The song was written by Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, Gwilym Sainsbury, Thom Green and produced by Charlie Andrew.
Halcyon Days is the reissue of English singer Ellie Goulding's second studio album, Halcyon (2012). It was released on 23 August 2013 by Polydor Records. Following the release of Halcyon, Goulding announced that she had plans to repackage the original album, with new songs that focused on electronic music. For the reissue, Goulding recorded 10 new songs and worked with a variety of producers, including Ryan Tedder, Calvin Harris and Greg Kurstin, to create her desired sound.
"How Long Will I Love You?" is a song by folk rock band the Waterboys from their fifth studio album, Room to Roam (1990). Written by Mike Scott, it was released as the album's lead single. The song was subsequently covered by English singer Ellie Goulding and released as the second single from her album Halcyon Days (2013). Goulding's version is included on the soundtrack to the 2013 film About Time, which also features a different cover by Jon Boden, Sam Sweeney and Ben Coleman.
This Is All Yours is the second album by English indie rock band alt-J, released on 22 September 2014 through Infectious. It was promoted with four singles: "Hunger of the Pine", "Left Hand Free", "Every Other Freckle", and "Warm Foothills". It topped the UK Albums Chart, was runner up in Belgium, Australia, and Canada and reached #4 in the United States. It was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
"Hunger of the Pine" is a song by English indie rock band alt-J. It was released as the lead single from the band's second studio album This Is All Yours on 19 June 2014.
"Matilda" is a song by British rock band alt-J from their debut studio album An Awesome Wave, released on 10 January 2012 as a digital download. It was released as a split single with "Fitzpleasure" on 24 February as a digital download and on 10" triangle shaped vinyl. It was written by Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, Gwilym Sainsbury and Thom Green and produced by Charlie Andrew. The song relates to the movie Léon, specifically the relationship between the main character and a young girl called Mathilda. The band would later release the song "Leon", a tribute to the main character of the film. The cover image is a photograph of Ball's Pyramid.
"In Cold Blood" is a song by British indie rock band alt-J. It is the second track and second single from their third studio album, Relaxer, and was released as a digital single on 29 March 2017 by Infectious Music and Atlantic Records. The song was written by Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, and Thom Sonny Green and produced by Charlie Andrew. It features a brass section recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London and a Casiotone the band purchased for £1.05 on eBay. The song's title is a reference to the novel of the same name by American novelist Truman Capote. The song's composition dates back to when the band started during their studies at the University of Leeds.
"Close to Me" is a song by English singer Ellie Goulding with American musicians Diplo and Swae Lee, released on 24 October 2018 from the former's fourth studio album, Brightest Blue (2020). It was premiered by Annie Mac on BBC Radio 1 as the "Hottest Record in the World".
