Year 7, Day 182

Morning! Today's song is New Light by John Mayer.

Photo from: slgckgc

So John Mayer has been active in the industry since 1998 when he left college to be in a two man band called LoFi Masters. The guys ended up disagreeing on what kind of music they should make, so instead he went solo, making his first EP in 1999. A label took interest in him and released his debut internet-only album in 2001 before being re-released with a bigger parent label. He won a Grammy in 2003, then released a live CD, and his second album the same year. He won another Grammy in 2005, although he didn't think he should've gotten that one, so he cut his name off and gave the award to Alicia Keys. He formed the John Mayer trio and released a live album with them, before going back to solo work with his third album in 2006. He won more Grammys after that then did some collaboration work with other artists in 2009. He took a hiatus for a couple years after that because he had to have multiple surgeries to remove a granuloma in his throat. He released an album in 2012, and continued to deal with his medical stuff through that year. In 2013 he released another album then went on tour since he finally could again. Since then he's released another album in 2017 and some singles in 2018 so he's still going strong. Enjoy!

Peace.

Year 7, Day 181

Morning! Today's song is 1000 Nights by Frenship.

Frenship is a pop duo active since 2013 and made up of James Sutherland and Brett Hite. They met at a Lululemon, which I find pretty funny considering these guys are dudes and Lululemon is normally seen only for preppy girls for their yoga pants. They first started posting music on SoundCloud that got really popular before releasing a single in 2016 in collaboration with Emily Warren. That song is their most well known, but this song is actually the one released after that one. They got signed, then released an EP in 2016. Their debut album came out in 2019, so you should go check out their new stuff. 

Peace.

Year 7, Day 180

Morning! Today's song is Brother by Kodaline.

Photo from: Michihuser

So Kodaline is an Irish band made up of Steve Garrigan, Vinny May, Jr., Jason Boland, and Mark Prendergast. As this group they've been active since 2011, but they were active earlier since 2005 under a different name. The first performance was in 2006 under the name 21 Demands in a talent competition, where they came in second. The next year they were able to release a single through the company who ran the talent show's website. That song topped the singles chart in Ireland, becoming the first independent track to do so. The band released their first EP in 2012 after they changed the name. It got a lot of radio play, and was nominated for BBC's Sound of the Year. They released their debut album the next year. Songs from it were used for a lot of different TV shows and movies for the next couple years, and iTunes had the option of some extra songs on a deluxe version. The announced their next album at the end of 2014, and it was released in 2015. In 2017 they released another single (which will be shown later), followed by another single in 2018 in preparation for the album which was released later in the year. There hasn't been anything since as far as I know, but I'm sure there will be soon, so keep an eye out. 

Peace.

Year 7, Day 179

Morning! Today's song is Obstacles by Syd Matters.

Photo by: caiguanhau

Syd Matters is a French band active since 2001 and made up of Jonathan Morali, Olivier Marguerit, Remi Alexandre, Jean-Yves Lozac'h, and Clement Carle. It originally started as a pseudonym for Morali on his own, which he used to gain a recording contract, release an EP in 2002, and an album in 2003. After that, he recruited the others, so officially the band has been a band since 2005 with the release of a new album. A compilation album of the first two combined was released in America in 2006, and then a third album was released in 2008. In 2011 they had another album, and there doesn't seem to be much since then, but they are still technically active so we'll see if there's more.

Peace.

Year 7, Day 178

Morning! Today's song is Sinners by Lauren Aquilina.

Photo by: Tito

Lauren Aquilina is a English singer whose been active since 2011. She played music and sang from a young age, and after a recital where she sang a Lady Gaga song, she uploaded the recording to Facebook. The man that would become her manager saw it, and started working with her towards her first EP which came out in 2012. The album did well on iTunes, and with performances around Norway she gained more attention. She toured the UK in 2013 as her popularity increased in Malta, which is where her parents are from. By 2014 she had released two more EP's and was signed to a label. She released her debut album in 2016, but a few months later announced it would be her last album and left the music scene. I'm not sure why she left, but she returned to music in 2018 with a single, and with plans for an EP. So I guess we'll all see what happens.

Peace.

Year 7, Day 177

Morning! Today's song is The Night We Met by Lord Huron. 

Photo by: WFUV Public Radio

Lord Huron is an Indie folk band active since 2010 and currently made up of Ben Schneider, Mark Barry, Miguel Briseño, and Tom Renaud. It originally started as a solo project by Schneider, and members were added as he started playing shows. The name is paying homage to Lake Huron that he used to visit with his family, and this might be the first time I've been right about where the inspiration for a band name has come from. There are three EP's, although the first couple were just Shneider, and have three albums. The first from 2012, then another in 2015, and one in 2018. There hasn't been much since then, but these guys tend to have a couple years between when they write new material so I'm sure we'll see more soon. 

Peace.

Year 7, Day 176

Morning! Today's song is You're Somebody Else by Flora Cash.

Photo by: Justin Higuchi

So Flora Cash is a pop duo active since 2012 and made up of Shpresa Lleshaj and Cole Randall. As a child, Lleshaj's family fled to Sweden from Kosovo to escape the war, and so she was living in Sweden when she met Randall through SoundCloud. They started working together, releasing an EP in 2012 and another in 2013 before they got married, which I think is adorable. There was another EP in 2014, then got signed to a Swedish label in 2015 before releasing a seven song album in 2016 which earned them two GAFFA Award nominations. Their official debut alum came out in 2017, followed by them signing with Sony in 2018, and another album released in 2020. They've released a couple of singles this year so they're still around if you like what you hear. And I know you might be wondering about what the band name means, but there is no answer. I guess these two have never shared with anyone what it means, it's just for them. So the mystery lives on.

Peace.