Phoria

In Brighton, U.K., during 2009, longtime companions Trewin Howard on vocals and guitar, Ed Sanderson on keyboards and vocals, and Jeb Hardwick on guitar assembled the post-rock ensemble Phoria. The three had first connected years earlier through school music lessons in their hometown of Salisbury. Tim Douglas on bass and synth plus Ross Crick on drums rounded out the quintet. The group issued its debut EP, Yourself Still, in 2010; the recording blended mellow, semi-acoustic textures with touches from several acts, most prominently Gravenhurst, while suggesting an emerging identity. Favorable reviews followed, and the band landed prominent opening slots alongside Dodgy, Her Name Is Calla, and Ultraista, the project led by producer Nigel Godrich. Crick departed after the release and was succeeded by Seryn Burden. In 2012 Phoria performed at the Cultural Olympiad tied to the London Olympic Games, accompanied by expansive video projections designed by Hardwick.

Following three years of composition and live work, the musicians had refined a distinctive approach, recording and setting aside dozens of pieces in pursuit of an ideal statement. Their 2013 follow-up EP, Bloodworks, displayed a clearer profile and heightened electronic emphasis, merging the expansive sweep of post-Brit-pop indie with strains of epic post-rock and trip-hop to shape an individual sonic realm that evoked Radiohead and Sigur Rós yet never fully mirrored either. The restrained, minimalist single “Red,” paired with its enigmatic video, achieved widespread online traction, accumulating 100,000 Soundcloud plays within a month.