Lydia is an American

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 ...

band from Gilbert, Arizona, formed in 2003.

History

Leighton Antelman, William Bradford, Evan Arambul, and Steve McGraw started writing music and booking shows when they were in seventh grade. The band really got their start as ''Rolo 15'' while attending Greenfield Jr. High. They then went on to change the name to ''Nextabest''. After that the band broke up, Antelman and McGraw continued to write and play music. They then soon added drummer Loren Briton and bassist Dustin Forsgren. They won a contest and were able to get a song on the '' Atticus: ...Dragging the Lake, Vol. 3'' compilation CD. Lydia was signed to the Arizona-based record label HourZero, through which they released their debut album ''

This December; It's One More and I'm Free ''This December; It's One More and I'm Free'' is the debut album by Lydia. It was released on September 27, 2005. On September 28, 2015, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the album, the band announced they would release the record on vinyl ...

''. Since then, they have toured extensively throughout the country and participated in the Zumiez Couch Tour,

Vans Warped Tour The Warped Tour is a touring rock music festival that toured the United States and Canada each summer from 1995 until 2019, and returned in 2025 for its 30th anniversary. By 2015, Warped was the largest traveling music festival in the United S ...

, and

The Bamboozle The Bamboozle was an annual three-day music festival which was held in New Jersey from 2003 to 2012, and was scheduled for a 2023 revival in Atlantic City by its founder. Every year, new bands competed for spots during the two days. The event ...

festival. They also played on the first annual Bamboozle Roadshow with Saves The Day, Armor For Sleep, Set Your Goals and

Metro Station A metro station or subway station is a train station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets, board trains, and evacuate the syste ...

in 2008. In 2007, Lydia won the award for Best Emo Band at the 2007 Arizona Ska Punk Awards Ceremony in Phoenix, Arizona. The band won the award again the following year, as well as the award for Best Indie Band, at the 2008 Awards Ceremony. In 2010, the band took home the Best Indie Band Award once again at the 2010 Arizona Ska Punk Awards. They released their second album, ''

Illuminate Illuminate may refer to: Music Bands * Illuminate (2009), a 2009 E.P. by English Progressive Metal band Suns of the Tundra * Illuminate (band), a German gothic music band Albums and EPs * ''Illuminate'' (Joe Morris and Rob Brown album), 1995 ...

'' on March 18, 2008. They went on a late summer tour with

The Dear Hunter The Dear Hunter is an American progressive rock band originating in Providence, Rhode Island. It began as a side project of Casey Crescenzo when he was a member of The Receiving End of Sirens, before becoming his main band in 2006. The band's s ...

Eye Alaska Eye Alaska was an American rock band from Orange County, California, formed in 2006. Two members, Brandon Wronski and Cameron Trowbridge, were former members of Dead Letter Diaries. Eye Alaska signed to Fearless Records in February 2008, and ...

and

You, Me, and Everyone We Know You, Me, and Everyone We Know is a rock band from Washington, D.C. After a decade-plus of lineup changes and hiatuses, the moniker has become a vehicle for singer-songwriter Ben Liebsch. The band has released ten EPs, one of which is a live E ...

. It was announced on August 25, 2008, that the band had signed to Low Altitude Records and re-released ''Illuminate'' on October 21, 2008. They went on tour with Copeland,

Lovedrug Lovedrug is an American alternative/indie rock band formed in Alliance, Ohio, United States, in 2002 by singer/guitarist Michael Shepard. History Lovedrug released their first EP, the ''Lovedrug'' EP, with the follow-up EP, the ''Rocknroll'' ...

, and

Lights Light is an electromagnetic radiation, part of which stimulates the sense of vision. Light or Lights may also refer to: Illumination * Lighting * Light bulb * Traffic light Arts and entertainment Music * Lights (musician) (born 1987), Canadian s ...

in November. They shot a video for the song "

I Woke Up Near The Sea ''Illuminate'' is the second studio album by Lydia. It was released on March 18, 2008, and reissued by October 21, 2008 on Low Altitude Records. Track listing Notes * The album was streamed entirely on AbsolutePunk.net on March 17, 2008 ...

" in December and released it online on February 24. The video was a success among fans, and won the Video of the Year Award at the 2009 Arizona Ska Punk Awards Ceremony in Phoenix, Arizona. The band went on their first headlining tour, called the "Illuminate Yourself Tour" in February with Black Gold and also did a West Coast headlining tour with PlayRadioPlay!,

and Brave Citizens. On October 12, 2009, they released a tour only EP titled '' Hotel Sessions'' which features 4 acoustically re-recorded songs off their first album.

Hiatus

It was announced on March 10, 2010, that

Mindy White Mindy White (born June 19, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter and musician from Nashville, Tennessee. She is recognized for her distinctive and captivating vocals, songwriting abilities, musical versatility, and continual reinvention of her so ...

had decided to leave the band. The band finished recording in the studio with producer Matt Malpass for their next release which was given a tentative release date of July 2010 On May 11, 2010, a version of "We Clean Up So Well" was posted on their Myspace page with a note announcing that the band will break up after a nationwide tour in July. The tour was titled "The Lydia Finale: A Goodbye & Farewell Tour". In a later interview, Leighton explained the breakup, stating, "It's quite simple, the two original band members don't want to put out music together anymore. Simple as that." Their third album, '' Assailants'' was released to online retailers on July 20, 2010. The album stayed in the Top 15 albums sold spot for over two days. It was announced on July 12, 2010, that guitarist Steve McGraw had decided to leave the band and would not be playing on their final tour. On September 15, 2010, a trailer was released for their first ever DVD, ''Lydia: A Goodbye and Farewell''. It was announced on December 22 that all of the footage for the DVD was lost in a hard drive crash. On September 30, they made announced plans to take their farewell tour to Australia in late November. The band also released a music video for their song, "I've Never Seen A Witch".

Return from Hiatus

The band returned in September 2011 with a new song, "Dragging Your Feet in the Mud". An album, '' Paint it Golden'', was released in October, 2011. The band released a cover of "

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical '' Meet Me in St. Louis''. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. ...

" on December 20, 2011. The band supported The Maine on their 2012 Spring/Summer tour. They were featured with Arkells and The Maine on a cover of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

"With A Little Help From My Friends" that was released on May 1, 2012, on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

and featured two live tracks on The Maine's ''The Pioneer North American Tour Live EP''. They spent the end of 2012 recording their new album and going to a west coast winter tour. To accompany the tour, they released the ''Acoustics EP''. On January 28, 2013, they announced new tour dates and a March 19, 2013, release date for their new album ''

Devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...

''. They released their first single from the album, "Knee Deep" the next day. Following this, the band re-released ''Devil'' as a deluxe edition with a bonus disc of b-sides on October 15, 2013. On December 17, 2013, the band announced plans to play ''Illuminate'' from start to finish across North America in the spring of 2014.

''Run Wild''

On August 7, 2015, Lydia announced the release date, cover art, and first single from their upcoming fifth LP, which was released on September 18, 2015. The first single is titled "Past Life", and is available for streaming through the band's SoundCloud account. Pre-orders for the new album were made available in various formats including vinyl and CD. Leighton Antelman stated in an article featured on Alternative Press that the new album would be "a little darker" than their last release, 2013's ''Devil''. The forthcoming album, titled '' Run Wild'', will coincide with a 30-date tour alongside Turnover and Seahaven. For ''Run Wild'', the band worked with two producers—Colby Wedgeworth and Copeland's Aaron Marsh—and vocalist Leighton Antelman explained via press release, "This was the first time for us using two producers. We simply felt like the more the merrier. When ideas start pouring out and bouncing around the room something special happens there." On August 21, 2015, the band released their second single from ''Run Wild'', titled "Late Nights" through their website. The track was made available for streaming and free download.

''Liquor''

On March 8, 2018, Lydia announced the release date, track listing, cover art, and first single from Liquor, their sixth LP. The first single is titled "Goodside". Pre-orders for the album were made available in various formats including vinyl and CD. "Goodside" was made available for purchase on March 9, 2018.

''I Was Someone Else''

On October 30, 2020, Lydia announced their new album I Was Someone Else would be released on November 20, 2020.

''This December (A Favorite of my Dreams)''

On December 18, 2020, Lydia released their new album, 'This December (A Favorite of my Dreams). This album is a complete re-imagining of their 2005 debut album. Maria Sais De Sicilia reappears on this album.

Related bands

* Ethan Koozer is currently playing guitar for the

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

–based band

gates Gates is the plural of gate, a point of entry to a space which is enclosed by walls. It may also refer to: People * Gates (surname), various people with the last name * Gates Brown (1939-2013), American Major League Baseball player * Gates McFadd ...

which contains former members of Bears & Bright Lights. Their debut EP, ''The Sun Will Rise and Lead Me Home'' was released on January 25, 2011. They released their second EP, ''You Are All You Have Left to Fear'' on May 29, 2012, and released their first full-length, ''Bloom & Breathe'' in 2014. * Mindy White formed a band with Bryan and Stephen Laurenson (formerly of the band Copeland) called States. Their first release, the ''Line 'em Up'' EP was released on October 12, 2010. They released their first full-length album, ''Room to Run'' on October 18, 2011, and released it on June 19, 2012, via

Tooth & Nail Records Tooth & Nail Records is a record label founded by Brandon Ebel in California in November 1993. The label later moved to Seattle where it is today. History Brandon Ebel and Michael Knott conceived the label as a joint venture, before Knott backe ...

. * Leighton Antelman and producer Matt Malpass created a project called

The Cinema The Cinema is an American indie pop band from Tempe, Arizona and Atlanta, Georgia. Members of the band include Lydia vocalist, Leighton Antelman, and producer and songwriter, Matt Malpass. The Cinema released its debut album titled ''My Blood I ...

. They released their debut album,

My Blood Is Full of Airplanes ''My Blood Is Full of Airplanes'' is the debut album by American indie pop band, The Cinema. Released on September 13, 2011, singles from the album include: "Kill It", "The Wolf", "Say It Like You Mean It", and "Picasso". The album was not releas ...

on September 13, 2011. They also released a collaborative EP with rapper Somnous titled, ''Postcards'' on June 15, 2012. * Steve McGraw plays under the name The Saturn Hands. They released their first song "Silver Spoon-Fed Sleep Part 1" on January 11, 2010. On March 30, 2010, they released another song titled "Junk Brain Pie". * Maria Sais de Sicilia joined the band Bears of Manitou with touring member Matt Funderburk. They released their debut album ''Origins'' on March 14, 2012. * Loren Brinton has played drums for A Rocket to the Moon,

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and Austin Gibbs and the States.

Band members

Current members

* Leighton Antelman –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

* Matt Keller –

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Mus ...

, guitar,

programming Program (American English; also Commonwealth English in terms of computer programming and related activities) or programme (Commonwealth English in all other meanings), programmer, or programming may refer to: Business and management * Program m ...

* Shawn Strader –

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

* Evan Chapman – drums, percussion

Former members

* Dustin Forsgren – bass guitar,

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

* Maria Sais De Sicilia – vocals,

* Loren Brinton – drums * Evan Arambul – bass guitar * Ethan Koozer – guitar * Jed Dunning – bass guitar *

– vocals, keyboard * Steve McGraw – guitar * Justin Camacho – guitar * Craig Taylor –

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

* Jeremy King – guitar, vocals

Studio albums

* ''

'' (2005) * ''

'' (2008) * '' Assailants'' (2010) * '' Paint It Golden'' (2011) * ''

'' (2013) * '' Run Wild'' (2015) * ''

Liquor Liquor ( , sometimes hard liquor), spirits, distilled spirits, or spiritous liquor are alcoholic drinks produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through ethanol fermentation, alcoholic ferm ...

'' (2018) * ''I Was Someone Else'' (2020)

References

External links

YouTube Channel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lydia (Band) Indie rock musical groups from Arizona People from Gilbert, Arizona