Eleanor Friedberger (born September 2, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She is best known as one half of the
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
duo
The Fiery Furnaces
The Fiery Furnaces are an American indie rock band, formed in 2000 in Brooklyn, New York.. - ''In 2000 they moved Brooklyn... and began playing as the Fiery Furnaces late in the year''. - Allmusic The band's primary members are Matthew and El ...
, alongside her older brother
Matthew Friedberger. In the band she contributes the majority of the vocals both on record and during their live performances.
In 2011, The Fiery Furnaces went on hiatus, with both Friedberger siblings embarking upon solo careers. To date, Friedberger has released four solo studio albums: ''
Last Summer'' (2011), ''
Personal Record A personal record, or a personal best (abbreviated to PB), is an individual's best performance in a given sporting discipline. It is most commonly found in athletic sports, such as track and field, other forms of running, swimming and weightlifting ...
'' (2013), ''
New View'' (2016) and ''
Rebound'' (2018), all four of which have peaked in the top 20 of the ''Billboard''
Heatseekers Albums
The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
chart.
Early life
Friedberger was born in
Oak Park, Illinois
Oak Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, adjacent to Chicago. It is the List of municipalities in Illinois, 26th-most populous municipality in Illinois, with a population of 54,318 as of the 2020 census. Oak Park was first se ...
, and grew up singing with her grandmother Olga Sarantos and family in a Greek Orthodox church.
Solo work
2011–2012: ''Last Summer''
Friedberger released her first solo album ''Last Summer'' on July 12, 2011 through
Merge Records
Merge Records is an independent record label based in Durham, North Carolina. It was founded in 1989 by Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan. It began as an outlet for music from their band Superchunk and music created by friends, and has expand ...
; the record was classified as "experimental pop."
The album elicited generally favorable reviews from music critics, and entered the ''Billboard''
Heatseekers Albums
The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
chart, on which it ultimately attained a peak of number 20.
2013–2015: ''Personal Record''
Friedberger released her second album, ''Personal Record'', on June 4, 2013. The album peaked at number 9 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, becoming her first top ten entry; it also peaked at number 43 on the
Independent Albums
The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
chart.
2016: ''New View''
Following the release of Personal Record, Friedberger moved from New York City to upstate New York; the experience inspired her while she was writing and recording her third studio album.
Her third album, ''New View'', was released on January 22, 2016. It is her first release on
Frenchkiss Records
Frenchkiss Records is an independent record label based in New York City. The label was started in 1999 by Syd Butler, bassist and founder of Les Savy Fav. The label's first purpose was to release Les Savy Fav's second album ''The Cat and The Cob ...
, having released her first two albums through
Merge Records
Merge Records is an independent record label based in Durham, North Carolina. It was founded in 1989 by Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan. It began as an outlet for music from their band Superchunk and music created by friends, and has expand ...
. The album peaked at number 16 on the Billboard
Heatseekers Albums
The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
chart, and also became her highest-peaking entry on the US
Independent Albums
The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
chart, where it attained a peak of number 34.
2017–present: ''Rebound''
In January 2017, after the results of the 2016 United States presidential election and her tour in support of ''New View'', Friedberger took a trip to
Athens, Greece
Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
, out of a desire to reconnect with her Greek heritage and to explore the Greek music scene.
While there, on the recommendation of a friend, she visited an '80s-themed goth nightclub called Rebound, which made an impression on her and ultimately became the namesake of her fourth studio album.
For ''Rebound'', Friedberger adopted a more pop-influenced sound, recording most of the music herself and using synthesizers and drum machines as opposed to the live bands which characterized her earlier solo work.
On February 14, 2018, Friedberger announced that ''Rebound'' would be released on May 4; in conjunction with the announcement, she released the lead single from the project, titled "
In Between Stars;" several weeks later, she released an accompanying music video, which she had filmed herself with assistance from former
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...
frontwoman
Kim Gordon
Kim Althea Gordon (born April 28, 1953) is an American musician, singer and songwriter best known as the bassist, guitarist, and vocalist of alternative rock band Sonic Youth. Born in Rochester, New York, she was raised in Los Angeles, Califor ...
.
On April 20, 2018, "Everything" was released as the second single from the album, ahead of its release; an accompanying music video was directed by Jonah Freud.
On May 4, 2018, ''Rebound'' was released by Frenchkiss Records. The album drew universal acclaim from music critics, who noted Friedberger's stylistic departure.
It became Friedberger's fourth consecutive top-twenty entry on the Billboard
Heatseekers Albums
The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
chart, where it peaked at number 20.
Personal life
Friedberger's brother Matthew dedicated his 2006 solo album, ''
Winter Women'', to her.
She has dated both
Britt Daniel
John Britt Daniel (born April 14, 1971) is an American musician. He is the co-founder, lead singer and guitarist of the indie rock band Spoon, as well as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist, and singer of the band Divine Fits. Daniel also founded ...
of
Spoon
A spoon (, ) is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl (also known as a head), oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery (sometimes called flatware in the United States), especially as part of a table setting, place setting, it ...
and
Alex Kapranos
Alexander Paul Kapranos (born 20 March 1972) is a Scottish musician. He is the lead singer and lead guitarist of Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand. He has also been a part of the supergroups FFS and BNQT.
Early life
Alexander Paul Kapranos ...
of the Scottish rock band
Franz Ferdinand. The Spoon song "Anything You Want" and the Franz Ferdinand song "
Eleanor Put Your Boots On" are both written about her.
Discography
Solo albums
* ''
Last Summer'' (2011)
* ''
Personal Record A personal record, or a personal best (abbreviated to PB), is an individual's best performance in a given sporting discipline. It is most commonly found in athletic sports, such as track and field, other forms of running, swimming and weightlifting ...
'' (2013)
* ''
New View'' (2016)
* ''
Rebound '' (2018)
with The Fiery Furnaces
*''
Gallowsbird's Bark
''Gallowsbird's Bark'' is the debut studio album by The Fiery Furnaces released by Rough Trade Records in 2003.
Additional information
"Inca Rag"/"Name Game" is actually two songs that blend into each other, this being an indication of the direc ...
'' (2003)
*''
Blueberry Boat'' (2004)
*''
EP'' (2005)
*''
Rehearsing My Choir'' (2005)
*''
Bitter Tea'' (2006)
*''
Widow City'' (2007)
*''
Remember - Double live album'' (2008)
*''
I'm Going Away'' (2009)
*''
Take Me Round Again'' (2009)
*''
Stuck In My Head'' (2024)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Friedberger, Eleanor
1976 births
Living people
American people of Greek descent
American women rock singers
Musicians from Oak Park, Illinois
The Fiery Furnaces members
21st-century American women singers
21st-century American singers
Singers from Illinois
Merge Records artists
Frenchkiss Records artists