Biography
The New Zealand indie electronic outfit the Naked and Famous crafts exuberantly tuneful anthems shaped by dance-driven '80s post-punk and synth pop. Their breakthrough came with the 2010 debut Passive Me, Aggressive You, driven by the track "Young Blood," and later releases have displayed growing refinement through emotionally resonant, synthesizer-focused works such as the 2016 album Simple Forms and the 2018 acoustic effort A Still Heart.
Vocalist Alisa Xayalith and instrumentalist/vocalist Thom Powers form the creative center; the group assembled in 2008, issuing two EPs before expanding the roster for live performances. Passive Me, Aggressive You arrived that same year and contained the number one single "Young Blood," prompting an extensive world tour that exceeded 200 dates.
After the touring cycle ended, the musicians settled in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, in 2012 to develop their follow-up record. Teaming with Alan Moulder and Justin Meldal-Johnson, they delivered In Rolling Waves in September 2013; propelled by the singles "Hearts Like Ours," "A Stillness," and "I Kill Giants," it reached number four in New Zealand and number 14 on Billboard's U.S. Top Alternative Albums chart.
Simple Forms surfaced in 2016 as the third studio album, following an extended hiatus during which Powers and Xayalith concluded their romantic partnership—an experience that shaped the sessions. Recorded at Powers' Echo Park home in Los Angeles, the set featured the single "Higher," after which the band toured extensively, serving as support for Wavves and blink-182.
A Still Heart, an acoustic collection drawn from earlier material, appeared in 2018, after which longtime members keyboardist Aaron Short and drummer Jesse Wood exited. Keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist Luna Shadows joined Powers and Xayalith for live dates ahead of work on a fourth album. Issued in July 2020, Recover marked the first Naked and Famous release to present Powers and Xayalith strictly as a duo; co-produced by Simon Oscroft with contributions from Shadows, it spotlighted the tracks "Bury Us," "Sunseeker," and "Come as You Are."
Vocalist Alisa Xayalith and instrumentalist/vocalist Thom Powers form the creative center; the group assembled in 2008, issuing two EPs before expanding the roster for live performances. Passive Me, Aggressive You arrived that same year and contained the number one single "Young Blood," prompting an extensive world tour that exceeded 200 dates.
After the touring cycle ended, the musicians settled in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, in 2012 to develop their follow-up record. Teaming with Alan Moulder and Justin Meldal-Johnson, they delivered In Rolling Waves in September 2013; propelled by the singles "Hearts Like Ours," "A Stillness," and "I Kill Giants," it reached number four in New Zealand and number 14 on Billboard's U.S. Top Alternative Albums chart.
Simple Forms surfaced in 2016 as the third studio album, following an extended hiatus during which Powers and Xayalith concluded their romantic partnership—an experience that shaped the sessions. Recorded at Powers' Echo Park home in Los Angeles, the set featured the single "Higher," after which the band toured extensively, serving as support for Wavves and blink-182.
A Still Heart, an acoustic collection drawn from earlier material, appeared in 2018, after which longtime members keyboardist Aaron Short and drummer Jesse Wood exited. Keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist Luna Shadows joined Powers and Xayalith for live dates ahead of work on a fourth album. Issued in July 2020, Recover marked the first Naked and Famous release to present Powers and Xayalith strictly as a duo; co-produced by Simon Oscroft with contributions from Shadows, it spotlighted the tracks "Bury Us," "Sunseeker," and "Come as You Are."
Albums
Recover
2020
Death
2020
Bury Us / Sunseeker
2020
Higher
2018
A Still Heart
2018
Simple Forms
2016
In Rolling Waves
2013
Singles
