The Naked and Famous

Last updated

The Naked and Famous
The Naked And Famous 2016 003.jpg
The Naked and Famous performing in November 2016
Background information
Origin Auckland, New Zealand
Genres
Years active2007–present
Labels
Members
Past members
  • Ben Knapp
  • Jordan Clark
  • Aaron Short
  • Jesse Wood
  • David Beadle
  • Luna Shadows
Website thenakedandfamous.com

The Naked and Famous are a New Zealand indie electronic band from Auckland, formed in 2007. The band currently consists of Alisa Xayalith (vocals, keyboards) and Thom Powers (vocals, guitars). [7]

Contents

The band has released four studio albums: Passive Me, Aggressive You (2010), In Rolling Waves (2013), Simple Forms (2016) and Recover (2020). Since 2012, the band has been based in Los Angeles, California.

History

Xayalith (born 1986 in Auckland) is the daughter of Laotian refugees and was raised together with a younger brother. [8] Her father introduced her to his native folk music and, at the age of 13, she taught herself guitar. [9] Powers had been playing in local bands from an early age after he had been taught to play guitar by his father. [10]

2007–2008: Early years

The band formed in 2007 when Powers and Xayalith were working on what became two extended plays— This Machine and No Light —that they recorded with engineer Aaron Short, a fellow student at Auckland's Music and Audio Institute of New Zealand. [11] [1] The EPs were subsequently released on local independent label Round Trip Mars. Powers and Xayalith began performing live with Ben Knapp and Jordan Clark on bass and drums respectively, while Aaron Short became a performing member of the group. Knapp and Clark left the group in 2009 and were subsequently replaced with Jesse Wood and David Beadle.

2009–2011: Passive Me, Aggressive You

The Naked and Famous at the South by Southwest festival in 2011 The Naked and Famous 2011.jpg
The Naked and Famous at the South by Southwest festival in 2011

After recording "All of This", the group then set about recording the single "Young Blood" and their debut album, recording mostly at home and at Auckland studio The Lab. "Young Blood" debuted on the New Zealand chart at number one on 14 June 2010—the first New Zealand artist in three years to do so. [12] The Naked and Famous released their debut studio album, Passive Me, Aggressive You , on 6 September 2010 on their own label, [13] Somewhat Damaged. [14] The album was produced by Thom Powers and Aaron Short, and mixed by Billy Bush.

On 6 December 2010, the BBC announced that The Naked and Famous had been nominated for BBC's Sound of 2011 poll. [15]

In 2011, the band garnered six nominations at the New Zealand Music Awards for Album of the Year, Single of the Year, Best Group, Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Best Alternative Album and the People's Choice Award. They were also nominated for the NZ On Air Best Music Video and won the MAINZ Best Engineer Award and its Best Producer Award. [16]

2012–2013: In Rolling Waves

The band settled in Los Angeles in mid-2012 after completing touring for Passive Me, Aggressive You. [17] They had performed over 200 shows in 24 countries between 2010 and 2012. Sharing a home over the back of Laurel Canyon, they began work on writing and demoing their second album. They intended to record an album that could be played live, not relying on backing tracks—something the group had always eschewed.

On 28 February 2013, the band announced One Temporary Escape , a concert film recorded at The Warfield in San Francisco in 2012. It was released for free download on 18 March 2013. [18]

Entering Los Angeles' Sunset Sound studio in March 2013 with engineer Billy Bush (who had mixed the previous album), they began the process of recording In Rolling Waves. The album sessions were completed in a month and then in June 2013, The Naked and Famous headed for London where Alan Moulder spent a month mixing the album at his Willesden studio, Assault and Battery. The album was mastered at Sterling Sound in New York by Joe LaPorta, who had also mastered Passive Me, Aggressive You, and was produced by Thom Powers with Aaron Short. Justin Meldal-Johnsen co-produced two tracks with Powers.

On 23 July 2013, the band revealed their new single "Hearts Like Ours" along with the release date for their second studio album In Rolling Waves , on 16 September 2013 in the UK. [19]

2014–present: Simple Forms, Recover and Xayalith solo career

The Naked and Famous performed at Coachella in 2014. [20] On 20 November 2014, the band announced that they had begun working on a third album. [21] The band began tracking for the album in September 2015. In March 2016, they performed at the Wanderland Music and Arts Festival in Manila. [22]

On 3 July 2016, the band announced their new single "Higher" would be released on 7 July. Upon the single's release, the band revealed that their third studio album, Simple Forms , was set to be released on 14 October 2016 via their label Somewhat Damaged in conjunction with Kobalt Label Services. [3] On 24 August 2016, they released another single titled "Laid Low". [3] The album was recorded at Powers' Echo Park studio and released as per the announcement. [3]

In February 2017, it was announced that the band would perform as opening acts, alongside Wavves, in Blink-182's 2017 spring tour which would visit mostly the southern United States. [23]

The band released an acoustic compilation album titled A Still Heart on 9 March 2018, [24] [25] [26] at which time they indicated that they were working on their fourth studio album. [27] That same month, it was announced that Jesse Wood and founding member Aaron Short had departed the band. [7] Following their departure, Luna Shadows joined the band on piano. [28] The group released A Still Heart (Live) on 8 June 2018. [29]

Sometime before March 2020, the group parted ways with Beadle and Shadows. [30]

In April 2020, the band announced that Recover , their fourth studio album, would be released on 24 July 2020. [31]

Xayalith solo career

In late 2021, lead vocalist Alisa Xayalith broadcast a tune called "High Fidelity", the debut song from the singer's forthcoming EP. [32]

Name

The Naked and Famous took their name from English musician Tricky's song "Tricky Kid", which expressed ambivalence about the notion of celebrity. In the song, Tricky quotes the line "everybody wants to be naked and famous", from The Presidents of the United States of America's song "Naked and Famous". [33]

Band members

Timeline

The Naked and Famous

Discography

Awards and nominations

YearOrganisationNominated workAwardResult
2010 APRA Silver Scroll "Young Blood"Won [35]
New Zealand Music Awards [36] [37] Passive Me, Aggressive You Critics' Choice Prize Nominated
2011Passive Me, Aggressive YouMAINZ Best ProducersWon
Passive Me, Aggressive YouMAINZ Best EngineersWon
Passive Me, Aggressive YouAlbum of the YearWon
Passive Me, Aggressive YouBest Alternative AlbumWon
"Young Blood"Single of the YearWon
The Naked and FamousBest GroupWon
The Naked and FamousBreakthrough ArtistWon
The Naked and FamousPeople's Choice AwardNominated
Taite Music Prize Passive Me, Aggressive You Nominated [38]
NMEThe Naked & FamousPhillip Hall Radar AwardWon [39]
2014 New Zealand Music Awards ---
---
---
The Naked & FamousBest GroupWon [40]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parkway Drive</span> Australian metalcore band

Parkway Drive are an Australian metalcore band from Byron Bay, New South Wales, formed in 2003. Parkway Drive have released seven studio albums, one EP, two DVDs, a split album and one book, titled Ten Years of Parkway Drive. The band's latest three albums have reached number 1 of the Australian ARIA Charts – Ire (2015), Reverence (2018), and Darker Still (2022).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Talent</span> Canadian rock band

Billy Talent is a Canadian rock band from Mississauga, Ontario. They formed in 1993 with lead vocalist Benjamin Kowalewicz, guitarist Ian D'Sa, bassist Jonathan Gallant, and drummer Aaron Solowoniuk. There have been no lineup changes, although Solowoniuk has been on hiatus from the band since 2016 due to a relapse of multiple sclerosis. In the three decades since their inception, Billy Talent has sold well over a million physical albums in Canada alone and nearly 3 million albums internationally. During their most successful period, they were ranked as one of the top 10 best-selling native bands in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kids of 88</span> New Zealand new wave duo

Kids of 88 were a New Zealand new wave duo based in Auckland, New Zealand, consisting of Jordan Arts and Sam McCarthy. They are best known for their 2009 single, "My House". They have since signed through Dryden Street to Sony Music and released the album Sugarpills in August 2010. In 2014, the duo stated that 'the [Kids of 88] project has concluded.'

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Blood (The Naked and Famous song)</span> 2010 single by the Naked and Famous

"Young Blood" is a song by New Zealand band the Naked and Famous from their debut studio album, Passive Me, Aggressive You (2010). It was released on 7 June 2010 as the album's second single. "Young Blood" debuted at number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart. The song received the 2010 Silver Scroll for Song of the Year.

<i>Passive Me, Aggressive You</i> 2010 studio album by the Naked and Famous

Passive Me, Aggressive You is the debut studio album by New Zealand indie electronic band the Naked and Famous, released on 6 September 2010 by Somewhat Damaged. The album debuted at number one on the New Zealand Albums Chart. The album spawned four singles: "All of This", "Young Blood", "Punching in a Dream" and "Girls Like You"; with "Young Blood" peaking at number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Punching in a Dream</span> 2010 single by the Naked and Famous

"Punching in a Dream" is a song by New Zealand indie electronic band the Naked and Famous from their debut studio album, Passive Me, Aggressive You (2010). It was released on 23 August 2010 as the album's third single. The song debuted and peaked at number 11 on the New Zealand chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Awolnation</span> American rock band

Awolnation is an American rock band from Los Angeles formed and fronted by Aaron Bruno, formerly of Under the Influence of Giants, Home Town Hero, and Insurgence. The band is signed to Better Noise Music and formerly was signed to Red Bull Records. Their first EP, Back from Earth, was released on iTunes on May 18, 2010. They released their first studio album, Megalithic Symphony, on March 15, 2011; it featured their most notable hit, "Sail", which peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 4 on the Billboard Rock Songs chart, and number 5 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart. On June 14, 2021, Sail became just the 57th song to be certified diamond by the RIAA and has sold 10,000,000 copies in the United States. As of February 29, 2016, the album has been certified platinum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alisa Xayalith</span> New Zealand musician (born 1986)

Alisa Xayalith is a New Zealand musician best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and keyboard player for the indie electronic band the Naked and Famous.

<i>One Temporary Escape</i> 2013 video by The Naked and Famous

One Temporary Escape is a live video album from New Zealand post-punk revival band The Naked and Famous, recorded on 21 April 2012 at The Warfield in San Francisco, California. It was directed by Jordan Blady, produced by Aaron Short, Jordan Blady and Thom Powers, and executive produced by The Naked and Famous. The video was released on 18 March 2013 as a free download, to thank fans for their support.

The 2010 APRA Silver Scroll Awards were held on Wednesday 8 September 2010 at the Auckland Town Hall, celebrating excellence in New Zealand songwriting. The Silver Scroll Award was presented to Alisa Xayalith, Thom Powers and Aaron Short of The Naked and Famous for their song “Young Blood”, and classic rock group The Fourmyula were inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame. The evening also included a tribute to Pauly Fuemana of OMC, who had died in January 2010.

<i>Passive Me, Aggressive You (Remixes & B-Sides)</i> 2013 compilation album by The Naked and Famous

Passive Me, Aggressive You is the first compilation album by New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous. Released on 15 April 2013, the album contains remixes and B-sides from their debut studio album, Passive Me, Aggressive You (2010), along with the song "A Source of Light", a collaboration with New Zealand duo Kids of 88.

<i>In Rolling Waves</i> 2013 studio album by The Naked and Famous

In Rolling Waves is the second studio album by New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous. It was released on 13 September 2013 by Fiction Records and Island Records. On 23 July 2013, the album's lead single, "Hearts Like Ours", premiered on BBC Radio 1. The music video premiered on 29 July 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hearts Like Ours</span> 2013 single by The Naked and Famous

"Hearts Like Ours" is the first single from In Rolling Waves, the second studio album from New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous. The song, which is also the sixth single from the ensemble, premiered 23 July 2013 on BBC Radio 1 as Zane Lowe’s “Hottest Record in the World Today”. The video was released on YouTube on 29 July 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Naked and Famous discography</span>

New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous have released four studio albums, two compilation albums, three extended plays, 18 singles, seven promotional singles, 2 video albums and 16 music videos.

"A Stillness" is a song by New Zealand post-punk revival band The Naked and Famous, from their second studio album In Rolling Waves. The song was released for streaming on August 28, 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Kill Giants (song)</span> 2013 promotional single by The Naked and Famous

"I Kill Giants" is a promotional single from In Rolling Waves, the second studio album from The Naked and Famous.

<i>Simple Forms</i> 2016 studio album by The Naked and Famous

Simple Forms is the third studio album by New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous. It was released on 14 October 2016 by Somewhat Damaged in partnership with Kobalt Label Services. "Higher" was released as the album's lead single on 8 July 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Higher (The Naked and Famous song)</span> 2016 single by The Naked and Famous

"Higher" is a song by New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous from their third studio album, Simple Forms. It was released on 8 July 2016 as the album's lead single.

<i>A Still Heart</i> 2018 compilation album by The Naked and Famous

A Still Heart is the second compilation album from New Zealand electronic music band The Naked and Famous. The album was released on 2 March 2018 in Australia and New Zealand, and 9 March in the United States. It features acoustic performances of several of the songs from previous studio albums.

<i>Recover</i> (The Naked and Famous album) 2020 studio album by The Naked and Famous

Recover is the fourth studio album by New Zealand indie electronic band The Naked and Famous, released on 24 July 2020 by Somewhat Damaged and AWAL.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Collar, Matt. "The Naked and Famous | Biography & History". AllMusic . Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  2. ↑ Brody, Caitlin (27 August 2013). "EXCLUSIVE: The Naked and Famous' New Song, "A Stillness." Listen In!". Glamour . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Geslani, Michelle (7 July 2016). "The Naked and Famous announce new album, Simple Forms, premiere "Higher" — listen". Consequence of Sound . Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  4. ↑ Libman, K.C. (20 August 2014). "The Naked And Famous Keep The Pressure on Themselves". OC Weekly . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "The Naked and Famous". Radio New Zealand . 5 April 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  6. ↑ Unterberger, Andrew (5 November 2015). "Review: We've Awaited Kate Boy's Debut 'One' Since the Midnight Sun". Spin . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Maher, Natalie (8 March 2018). "The Naked and Famous Reveal Departure of Two Members, Drop Nostalgia-Filled Video For Stripped Version of 'Young Blood'". Billboard. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  8. ↑ Mejia, Paula (14 October 2016). "The Naked and Famous Frontwoman Alisa Xayalith Isn't an Asshole, Okay?". Elle . Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  9. ↑ Shafrir, Doree (26 September 2013). "How The Naked And Famous Will Make It in America". BuzzFeed . Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  10. ↑ Russell, Nicola (10 October 2010). "The Naked and Famous truth". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  11. ↑ Last.fm (11 December 2014), The Naked And Famous – Interview Part 1 (Last.fm Sessions), archived from the original on 15 December 2021, retrieved 12 November 2016
  12. ↑ Lambourne, Tim (16 June 2010). "Naked and Famous album set for August release". 3 News . Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
  13. 1 2 3 "SOMEWHAT DAMAGED LIMITED". Open Corporates. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
  14. ↑ Graves, Shahlin (17 August 2010). "The Naked and Famous – 'Punching in a Dream' music video!". Coup de Main. Archived from the original on 2 March 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
  15. ↑ "Sound of 2011 – The Naked & Famous". BBC. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  16. ↑ "THE VNZMA 2011 FINALISTS". FOUR. 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  17. ↑ Zemler, Emily (17 September 2013). "Everything You Need to Know About The Naked and Famous' Sophomore Album 'In Rolling Waves'". Elle. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  18. ↑ "'One Temporary Escape' Now Available". 18 March 2013. Archived from the original on 3 July 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
  19. ↑ "The Naked And Famous Hottest Record". BBC. 23 July 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  20. ↑ Robinson, Michelle (15 June 2014). "15 minutes ... with The Naked and Famous". Stuff.co.nz . Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  21. ↑ "The Naked And Famous – "What an honor to win Best Group at the NZVMA's last night. Sorry we couldn't be there New Zealand – very busy working on album #3"". Facebook. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
  22. ↑ Maria, Bong Sta. (3 March 2016). "Wanderland 2016: The Naked and Famous' Alisa Xayalith on travel, fans, and a new album". GMA Network . Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  23. ↑ Hartmann, Graham (6 February 2017). "Blink-182 Reveal 2017 U.S. Tour Dates with The Naked and Famous + Waaves". Loudwire . Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  24. ↑ "The Naked and Famous Announce March Release Date for A Still Heart". Pastemagazine.com. 18 January 2018.
  25. ↑ "The Naked and Famous Announce New Album A Still Heart". Pastemagazine.com. 8 January 2018. Archived from the original on 4 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  26. ↑ "A Still Heart by The Naked and Famous on Apple Music". iTunes Store. 2 March 2018.
  27. ↑ "The bittersweet continues. Our stripped... – The Naked And Famous". Facebook. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  28. 1 2 Bowman, Lisa (30 May 2018). "The Naked and Famous chat procrastination, sexism and 10 years in the industry". NME. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  29. ↑ "The Naked And Famous". Facebook.com. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  30. 1 2 3 Leeson, Josh (11 March 2020). "The Naked and Famous duo move into the recovery phase". Newcastle Herald.
  31. ↑ "The Naked And Famous". Facebook. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  32. ↑ "The Naked and Famous' Alisa Xayalith drops debut solo single "High Fidelity"". Thelineofbestfit.com. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  33. ↑ Kitty Empire (10 April 2011). "The Naked and Famous; Big Audio Dynamite – review". The Observer . London. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  34. ↑ The Naked and Famous [@TNAF] (16 January 2020). ""BURY US" IS OUT NOW. Beyond excited to share this with you all.... and our new album "Recover", will be COMING OUT IN MAY. Stay tuned!🍇🍉🍈🔪 http://tnaf.lnk.to/buryus" (Tweet). Retrieved 17 January 2020– via Twitter.
  35. ↑ Sundae, Hugh (8 September 2010). "The Naked and Famous win APRA Silver Scroll". The New Zealand Herald . Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  36. ↑ "Winner Found". New Zealand Music Awards. 2010. Archived from the original on 12 October 2010. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  37. ↑ "Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards 2011 Winners" (Press release). New Zealand Music Awards. 4 November 2011.
  38. ↑ "Taite Music Prize 2011". IMNZ. Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  39. ↑ "NME Phillip Hall Radar Award 2011". Independent Music New Zealand . Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  40. ↑ "New Zealand Music Award Winners 2014". Undertheradar.co.nz. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.