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AWOLNATION at Irving Plaza

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AWOLNATION
Irving Plaza
New York, NY
June 27, 2015

AWOLNATION grew out of the ashes of frontman Aaron Bruno's former bands Under the Influence of Giants, Hometown Hero, and Insurgence. The band started out as a solo project for Bruno, who was searching for an outlet for his songs that weren't quite right for his other musical outlets. The project allowed Bruno to create freely, mix genres and "break the rules."

Eventually, multi-instrumentalist Bruno recruited additional musicians and the band was signed to Red Bull Records. The band's name, AWOLNATION, is derived from a nickname that Bruno earned while in high school. Bruno has been quoted as saying that he "would leave without saying goodbye because it was just easier, so that's where the name AWOL came from."

Red Bull released AWOLNATION's first EP, Back From Earth in 2010. In 2011, the band released its first full-length CD Megalithic Symphony (Red Bull Records). That album featured "Sail" which became a multi-platinum single reaching number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 5 on the alternative songs chart and number 4 on the rock songs chart. Megalithic Symphony has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

In June of 2012, the band released a free EP called I've Been Dreaming that was available for download on its official website. The limited release included three unreleased songs, ("I've Been Dreaming," "Shoestrings" and "Swinging From The Castles") as well as live versions (recorded in Toronto) of the fan favorites "Kill Your Heroes," "Not Your Fault" and "People."

In early 2015, the band began teasing its Facebook followers with portions of the lyrics to new songs and a countdown to the release the single "Hollow Moon (Bad Wolf)." The single was released in late January 2015 along with a video that was made available on Red Bull Records YouTube page. Two more singles followed in March 2015. With two sold-out shows at the legendary Irving Plaza, AWOLNATION returned to New York City in support of its recently released sophomore album RUN (Red Bull Records, 2015). On a rainy Saturday evening in late June, Bruno, the architect and Svengali behind the band and its sound, led the group through a high-octane set that featured lasers, wild backlighting and a lot of smoke created by what must have been hundreds of pounds of dry ice. Cutting a lanky frame on the compact stage, Bruno's surfer physique didn't stand still for more than a moment. Sporting a white "Mariner Too" t-shirt, depicting a vintage unlimited hydroplane from the 1960s, Bruno was a frenetic blur among the carefully choreographed stage lights full of sharp spotlights darting everywhere.

The band treated the crowd in the packed-to-the-gills club to exactly what they came for—an evening of fun indie rock/electro-pop hybrid music that was polished, atmospheric, high-spirited, aggressive, forceful and intense. There wasn't an inch of space on the floor in front of the stage, with fans spilling out the doors along the side of the main area and into the hallway. Though the set relied heavily on new material, the audience responded to all the songs (old and new) by singing along at the top of its collective lungs. Some members even attempted to surf the crowd before security put an end to the shenanigans. In addition to the title track from Run, the band played songs from Megalithic Symphony (including "Jump On My Shoulders" and "Not Your Fault"). The musicians weaved their way from the present to the past to the present and back again with stellar versions of "Hollow Moon (Bad Wolf)," "Windows," "KOOKSEVERYWHERE" and "Knights of Shame."

When the main set ended, the band left the stage for the only a minute and returned with burning renditions of "I Am" from RUN and its monster hit, "Sail."

Though banter with the crowd was kept to a minimum, Bruno showed that he and the band were all business, turning in a performance that enraptured the sweaty crowd and left them wanting more. The catharsis at the end of the set was that of a strenuous workout, one felt by both the musicians on stage and the appreciative fans below.

Photo Credit: Christine Connallon
[Additional article contributions by Christine Connallon].

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