AWOLNATION

AWOLNATION was the solo project of eclectic Los Angeles musician Aaron Bruno. Raised in the celebrity-heavy planned community of Westlake Village, Bruno started playing guitar as a pre-teen and was diagnosed with attention deficit disorder in high school. The name "AWOL" came from his habit of disappearing from parties without saying goodbye; he carried that nickname into his teenaged rock and rap projects. High school friend Drew Stewart would be Bruno's longtime collaborator; the two first had the formative punk band Insurgence, then moved into Home Town Hero, a Pearl Jam-styled, post-grunge band who were signed to Madonna's Maverick label. Bruno then did an about-face and formed the band Under the Influence of Giants, who did glossy, danceable pop; they too were signed to a major label (Island/Def Jam). Further restlessness led to his starting AWOLNATION as an anything-goes solo project; the 2010 debut album Megalithic Symphony included everything from spoken-word interludes to a 12-minute suite, plus an extra hour of remixes and bonus songs on the deluxe edition. The songs, he said, came from a personal bottoming-out point and a rediscovery of classic pop. But it was a hard-edged electronic rock song, "Sail," that proved Bruno's breakthrough. Originally appearing on the teaser EP Back From Earth, the song referred to Bruno's emotional issues ("Blame it on my ADD") and was sometimes compared to a more tuneful Nine Inch Nails. The song was covered by Macy Grey, appeared on numerous TV soundtracks, became a Top 20 single and led to the album's going platinum. The success of "Sail" led to Bruno focusing on a denser and darker overall sound for AWOLNATION's 2015 followup, Run. Drew Stewart left the band soon after its release, with guitarist Zach Irons taking his place. The band toured heavily over the next two years, including a high-profile double bill with Prophets of Rage in summer 2016. A third album, Here Come the Runts, was released in February 2018.