Motopony

The origins of Motopony trace back to “the warehouse,” a downtown Tacoma, Washington loft that songwriter Daniel Blue occupied with other area artists and musicians. Once he had stockpiled a set of quirky folk songs, Blue began performing them solo across the Tacoma and Seattle region. Buddy Ross later entered the picture, initially serving as producer before becoming a permanent member and steering the project toward a stronger pop focus. Guitarist Brantley Cady and drummer Forrest Mauvais rounded out the early roster, enabling the resulting folksy electro-pop quartet—which could deliver both acoustic ballads and fractured dance songs—to issue its self-titled studio debut in May 2011. During a stretch of frequent personnel shifts, the group tracked its relaxed follow-up EP, Idle Beauty, which eOne Music released in 2014. The band eventually stabilized as a six-piece and leaned into a more psychedelic, grittier synth-pop aesthetic on its second full-length, 2015’s Welcome You. That album was recorded at Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, Washington with Blue joined by guitarists Nate Daley and Mike Notter, keyboardist Andrew Butler, bass player Terry Mattson, and Mauvais on drums.