Ra Ra Riot

Combining indie rock songwriting with chamber pop flourishes (courtesy of a small string section), Ra Ra Riot formed while the band's six members were attending college in Syracuse, NY. Members Milo Bonacci (guitar), Alexandra Lawn (cello), Wesley Miles (keyboard/vocals), John Pike (drums), Mathieu Santos (bass), and Rebecca Zeller (violin) first came together in January 2006, creating an eclectic sound that allowed them to play alongside the Horrors, Bow Wow Wow, and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin within a year of the band's formation. After pulling up stakes and relocating to New York City, the band recorded a self-titled EP and prepared to release it during the summer of 2007. That June, however, Pike died after disappearing one night from a party following a show in Providence, RI. His body was later found in nearby Buzzard's Bay. Several weeks later, the mourning bandmates issued a statement confirming their continuation as a band. Ra Ra Riot joined the roster at V2 Records later that year before switching their American operations to Barsuk Records, which signed the group in May 2008. Released by V2 in Europe and Barsuk in the U.S., The Rhumb Line marked the band's full-length debut in August 2008. ~ Andrew Leahey & Kenyon Hopkin, All Music Guide