Faded Paper Figures

Faded Paper Figures
Background information
Origin Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres Electropop, synthpop
Years active 2007–present
Labels Shorthand Records
Website www.fadedpaperfigures.com
Members Kael Alden, R. John Williams, Heather Alden

Faded Paper Figures (abbreviated as FPF) is an American indie pop electronica band from Los Angeles, California. FPF is known for their electro-organic sound sometimes compared to bands and artists like Weevil, The Postal Service, Belle and Sebastian, Lights and Morrissey. The band consists of three members, R. John Williams (guitar and vocals), Kael Alden (bass, guitar, drums), and Heather Alden (vocals). The band formed in February 2007 and released their debut album Dynamo in 2008. Their second album New Medium, was released on May 25, 2010. Their third album The Matter was released on October 22, 2012.[1] Their latest album "Relics" was released on August 5, 2014.

Career

Faded Paper Figures met in early 2007. The genesis was at a party in Irvine, California, where John Williams and Kael Alden were discussing music. Kael was composing music for TV and film with his older brother's company, Robot Repair.[2] John already had some experience as a musician and songwriter. Both full of ideas for a new sound, they decided to record some material together. Over the next few months they wrote and composed a number of songs, experimenting with blending traditional guitar with electronica. The songs went up first on a new MySpace page under the name of Machine Discourse. Heather Alden joined in as a harmony vocalist, rounding out and softening the band's sound. Not long after the band's name changed to Faded Paper Figures, and with a growing song list and a mounting audience, the band's sound solidified. NPR described their first album as "a balance of upbeat and soothing electronics," but their recent music has taken on a more energetic tone, with live drums sounds mixing with electro-beats.[3]

Faded Paper Figures released their first album, Dynamo, on July 11, 2008. The track "Being There" won Best Song of the Year in the UC Irvine Songwriting Contest. A music video of "Metropolis" came out and the band began to play live concerts. They were chosen Best Electronic live band by the OC Music Awards in 2009, and were declared one of the New York Post's "must have" new music of 2009.[4][5]

The group's second album, New Medium, was released May 25, 2010. During their summer 2010 west coast tour, two more people joined the band to translate their studio sound live: Kurt Deninger (drums) and Sebastian Hackett (additional keys and guitars).

The band's third studio album, along with two new music videos, was released in late 2012. The Matter has a generally darker, fuller sound than the previous albums, with several tracks featuring full drums, orchestral arrangements, and buzzy synths. Still, much of the band's signature second-wave synth pop sounds continue, along with sophisticated, deeply literary/philosophical lyrics, and a penchant for unexpected harmonies.[6] The album was among the CMJ top 100 albums during November and December 2012, before falling off the chart again in early 2013.[7] The Matter was also recently released in China (along with Dynamo and New Medium) in a box set on the Chinese "Wind Music" record label.[8]

The band's fourth album was released on Aug. 5, 2014, with various tracks previewing in the weeks before that. The album has already received wider coverage than any of the band's previous albums, with reviews in the U.S. in Paste Magazine,[9] BULLETT Magazine,[10] PopDose;[11] and at Clash Magazine[12] and Wonderland[13] in the UK. The album also debuted in the CMJ top 100.[14]

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

  1. ↑ Justin, Brendan (October 23, 2012). "Faded Paper Figures' New Album 'The Matter' Is Here!". musicunderfire.com. Archived from the original on April 30, 2013. Retrieved 2012-10-24.
  2. ↑ "Faded Paper Figures meets Synthesizer Maintenance Crew". ROBOT REPAIR BLOG. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  3. ↑ NPR (2008-11-25). "NPR: Faded Paper Figures" (http). npr.org. Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  4. ↑ OC Register (2010-07-29). "Orange Pop: Faded Paper Figures Stick Together" (http). ocregister.com. Retrieved 2010-10-05.
  5. ↑ New York Post (2010-10-06). "PopWrap's Fall 2009 New Music". newyorkpost.com. Archived from the original (http) on November 25, 2010. Retrieved 2010-10-05.
  6. ↑ "Album Review!: Faded Paper Figures ~ The Matter!". Through My Headphones!. 2012-11-11. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  7. ↑ "Faded Paper Figures Talk Third LP And 2013 Plans". CMJ. 2012-12-17. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  8. ↑ "您要找的網頁已經移除或不存在，請重新搜尋，或依照我們給您的建議內容！". www.windmusic.com.tw. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  9. ↑ "Album Stream: Faded Paper Figures - Relics". pastemagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  10. ↑ "Premiere: Faded Paper Figures Have Fun Pondering the Beyond On 'Breathing'". Bullett Media. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  11. ↑ "ALBUM REVIEW: Faded Paper Figures, "Relics"". Popdose. 2014-07-08. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  12. ↑ "Premiere: Faded Paper Figures - Spare Me". Clash Magazine. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  13. ↑ "Premiere: Faded Paper Figures | Wonderland Magazine". Wonderland Magazine. 2014-06-30. Retrieved 2016-05-25.
  14. ↑ "Faded Paper Figures #92 at CMJ! | Tinderbox Music". tinderboxmusic.com. Retrieved 2016-05-25.

External links

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