Robert Charles Edward DeLong (born February 18, 1986) is an American

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

ian from

Bothell, Washington Bothell () is a city in King and Snohomish counties in the U.S. state of Washington. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area, situated near the northeast end of Lake Washington in the Eastside region. It had a population of 48,161 reside ...

and currently residing in Los Angeles, California. With a background in percussion and influences from a number of indie rock bands, DeLong's primary genres include

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken ...

, and moombahton. He has released three full-length albums on

Glassnote Records Glassnote Records (also known as Glassnote Entertainment Group LLC) is a record label that was launched by American music executive Daniel Glass in 2007. The label primarily has a lineup of indie rock and alternative rock artists, most notably ...

: ''Just Movement'' in January 2013, ''In the Cards'' in September 2015, and ''Walk Like Me'' in November 2021. His fourth studio album, ''Playlist of Doom'', was released in September 2024.

Early life

DeLong grew up in the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

suburb of Bothell. His father was a drummer. Robert played in various bands while he was in high school. He studied drums at

Azusa Pacific University Azusa Pacific University (APU) is a private evangelical research university in Azusa, California, United States. The university was founded in 1899 in Whittier, California, with classes first held on March 3, 1900, and degrees offered in 193 ...

, partially supported by a scholarship. While in college, he played in the band The Denouement and settled in Los Angeles after graduation.

Career

DeLong started as a drummer for

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 ...

bands but added more electronic elements to his compositions following his exposure to their use at

rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mus ...

s. DeLong is notable for using video-game peripherals, such as a

Wii remote The Wii Remote, colloquially known as the Wiimote, is the primary game controller for Nintendo's Wii home video game console. An essential capability of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with an ...

and a

joystick A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Also known as the control column, it is the principal control devic ...

, connected to a

MIDI Musical Instrument Digital Interface (; MIDI) is an American-Japanese technical standard that describes a communication protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, ...

interface, to modify his sound. He cites as influences

Death Cab for Cutie Death Cab for Cutie (commonly abbreviated to DCFC or Death Cab) is an American rock music, rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. Death Cab for Cutie's music has been classified as indie rock, indie pop, and alternative rock. The ...

Modest Mouse Modest Mouse is an American rock music, rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, and currently based in Portland, Oregon. The founding members were lead singer/guitarist Isaac Brock (musician), Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green and ba ...

, Dreamers, and

Boards of Canada Boards of Canada are a Scottish electronic music duo consisting of the brothers Mike Sandison and Marcus Eoin. Signing first to Skam Records, Skam followed by Warp (record label), Warp Records in the 1990s, they received recognition following th ...

, among others. He released his first full-length album, ''Just Movement'', on

on 5 February 2013. His sound has been described by ''Wired'' Magazine as a merger of "electronic dance music, alt rock, and vocals into tracks that are poppy enough to make you move but dissonant enough to be interesting." At live performances, facepaint is offered to fans; volunteer local artists organized and led by DeLong's longtime partner, visual artist Heidi Callaway, do the actual facepainting. Facepaint is a regular fixture of DeLong's performances and creates a sense of community amongst fans. His equipment and clothing feature an orange "X" logo; this same logo, or a variant of it, is often painted on his face and those in attendance. His 2018 single "My Favorite Color is Blue", featuring K. Flay, is included in the videogame soundtrack of NHL 19.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

References

External links

Official Robert DeLong website
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Robert DeLong on Glassnote Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:DeLong, Robert 1986 births Living people American dance musicians American electronic musicians American male singer-songwriters Azusa Pacific University alumni Singer-songwriters from Washington (state) People from Bothell, Washington 21st-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American male singers Glassnote Records artists