Valley (band)
Valley | |
|---|---|
 Valley performing at History in Toronto in December 2024. Left to right: Karah James, Feurd, Rob Laska, Alex Dimauro | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | indie pop, pop |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Labels | |
| Members |
|
| Past members |
|
| Website | www |
Valley is a Canadian indie pop band based in Toronto.
The band members are lead vocalist Rob Laska, bassist Alex Dimauro, and drummer Karah James.[1] They received a Juno Award nomination for Breakthrough Group of the Year at the 2020 Juno Awards[2] as well as a nomination for Group of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2022.[3]
History
[edit]_profile_photo_by_Shannon_Beveridge_(@nowthisisliving)_2019.jpg)
The band formed in 2014 after the members of two other bands accidentally got double-booked for the same time slot at a local recording studio. Other names considered were Thieves, The Engineers, and Grouphug.[4] They released their debut EP, Car Test, in 2015, and followed up with This Room Is White in 2016.[5] In 2018 they released Maybe Side A, the first of two EPs featuring tracks planned for their full-length debut album;[1] the second EP, Maybe Side B, followed in spring 2019, and the full album Maybe was released in September.[6]
Valley released their single "Nevermind" in July 2020,[7] which was then followed by "Hiccup" in September.[8] On October 15, Valley announced the release of their EP, Sucks to See You Doing Better, which featured both "Nevermind" and "Hiccup", as well as four new tracks, including an acoustic version of "Hiccup".[9]
In February 2021, Valley released their single "Like 1999"[10] and announced they would tour with Coin in over 30 cities across North America, beginning in October.[11]
Midway through 2021, they released the single "Society", which the band says came from their previous experiences of balancing an accessible narrative with their artistic pursuits.[12] On July 23, 2021, they released the single "Tempo".[13]
The single "Homebody" was a nominee for the 2021 SOCAN Songwriting Prize.[14] "Oh Shit...Are We in Love?" was released on September 1, 2021.
In March 2024, lead guitarist Brandolino announced he was parting ways with the band. He stated it was due to wanting to pursue music production full-time. Later that year, the band released Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden on August 30, 2024. The album was their first album as a trio and was produced by Chase Lawrence from the band COIN.[15][16]
Their fans are lovingly called Val Pals which the band has embraced in their email and Instagram content.[17] Val Pals meet up regularly when the band is on tour to show their loyalty and support.
Members
[edit]List of members and roles.
- Rob Laska – Lead vocals, guitar (2014–present)
- Alex Dimauro – Bass, keyboard, backing vocals (2014–present)
- Karah James – Drums, backing and lead vocals (2014–present)
Touring members
- Feurd - Guitar, drums, keyboard, piano, backing vocals (2024-present)
Former members
- Ben Lee – Keyboards, backing vocals (2014-2016)
- Michael "Mickey" Brandolino – Guitar, drums, keyboard, piano, backing vocals (2014-2024)[18]
Discography
[edit]Albums
[edit]| Title | Release date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Maybe | September 17, 2019 | Universal Music Canada |
| Last Birthday | October 1, 2021 | Capitol |
| Lost in Translation | June 23, 2023 | Universal Music Canada |
| songs that got lost in translation | January 19, 2024 | Universal Music Canada |
| Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden | August 30, 2024 | Universal Music Canada |
Extended plays
[edit]| Title | Release date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Car Test | April 22, 2015 | |
| This Room Is White | June 3, 2016 | |
| Sucks to See You Doing Better | October 23, 2020 | Universal Music Canada |
| Last Birthday | January 12, 2022 |
Singles
[edit]| Title | Release date | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Drive" | November 18, 2016 | Non-album singles |
| "Swim (Reprise)" | March 9, 2018 | |
| "LA in Two" (Valley Rework) (with Elio) |
March 19, 2021 | |
| "Like 1999" | March 30, 2021 | Last Birthday |
| "Society" | June 9, 2021 | |
| "Tempo" | July 21, 2021 | |
| "Champagne" | June 16, 2022 | Non-album singles |
| "The Problem Song" | September 29, 2022 | |
| "Throwback Tears" | January 12, 2023 | Lost In Translation |
| "Good, but Not Together" | March 2, 2023 | |
| "Break for You" | April 24, 2023 | |
| "Have a Good Summer (Without Me)" | June 1, 2023 | |
| "We Don't Need Malibu" | June 21, 2023 | |
| "Keep My Stuff" | June 23, 2023 | |
| "When You Know Someone" | May 10, 2024 | Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden |
| "Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden" | June 7, 2024 | |
| "Bass Player's Brother" | July 11, 2024 | |
| "Let it Rain" | August 22, 2024 | |
| "Crawlspace" | August 30, 2024 |
Awards and nominations
[edit]Juno Awards
[edit]The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Themselves | Breakthrough Group of the Year | Nominated |
| 2022 | Themselves | Group of the Year | Nominated |
SOCAN Songwriting Prize
[edit]The SOCAN Songwriting Prize, formerly known as the ECHO Songwriting Prize, is an annual competition recognizing the best in Canadian emerging music, both anglophone and francophone.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | "homebody" | Song of the Year | Nominated |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Alexandra Johnson Dingee, "Seeing yellow with indie rockers VALLEY". Queen's Journal, November 29, 2018.
- ^ Melody Lau, "Alessia Cara and Tory Lanez lead the 2020 Juno nominations". CBC Music, January 28, 2019.
- ^ "And the Nominees Are." The JUNO Awards. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
- ^ John Bkila, "Oakville’s Valley releases debut album". Inside Halton, May 14, 2015.
- ^ "Valley, 'This Room Is White". Exclaim!, June 1, 2016.
- ^ Gina Scarpino, "Get To Know: Valley". Beyond the Stage, September 18, 2019.
- ^ Logan White, "PREMIERE: Valley will be in your head all day with "nevermind"
- ^ Abhigyaan Bavaria, VALLEY releases another upbeat pop banger in "hiccup"
- ^ Jarod, Valley Announce New EP + Release "hiccup" (acoustic)
- ^ melodicmag (2021-04-01). "Valley release music video for TikTok song "Like 1999"". // MELODIC Magazine. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
- ^ "Alt-Pop Trio COIN To Perform At Fillmore On December 2nd". WCCB Charlotte's CW. 2021-04-27. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
- ^ "Valley take a stand against music industry pressures on "Society"–listen". Alternative Press Magazine. June 9, 2021.
- ^ Nguyen, Austin (22 July 2021). "Valley Set the". PopMatters. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
- ^ Megan LaPierre, "SOCAN Songwriting Prize Announces 2021 Finalists". Exclaim!, June 17, 2021.
- ^ Rayner, Ben (13 December 2024). "Losing a band member was traumatic for Valley — but instead of just moping around they made an album: 'Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden'". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
- ^ Megan LaPierre, "Valley Announce Third Album 'Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden'". Exclaim! Magazine, June 6, 2024.
- ^ "Instagram".
- ^ "We hold the last 10 years of friendship and making music with Mickey very close to our hearts..." X / Formerly known as Twitter. March 15, 2024.