Seven Lions
Seven Lions | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jeff Montalvo |
| Born | March 31, 1987 (age 37) Santa Barbara, California, United States |
| Genres | Dubstep, Chillstep,[1] electro house, progressive house, trance |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, DJ, music producer |
| Instrument(s) | Drums, D.A.W. (FL Studio), turntables, synthesizer, guitar |
| Years active | 2010–present |
| Labels | Casablanca Records, OWSLA |
Jeff Montalvo (born March 31, 1987), known professionally as Seven Lions, is an American record producer, remixer, instrumentalist and DJ from Santa Barbara, California.[2] Seven Lions' first significant track was his remix of Above & Beyond’s "You Got To Go."[3] He has also released three EPs which have charted on Beatport, and his track "Don't Leave" entered the UK Singles Chart in 2014. His 2014 EP Worlds Apart charted at No. 76 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.
Early life
Jeff Montalvo was born on March 31, 1987 in Santa Barbara, California. His interest in music production began at the age of 7, when his father came home with a Macintosh and keyboard.[2] He grew up as a metal and punk-inclined drummer, but he eventually segued into electronic music production.[4] Montalvo explains,
"For me, it was the most accessible thing, to start picking up something like drums as opposed to something like electronic music. My transition out of playing with a band was because I got tired of waiting for my band all the time - I wanted to just start making music so I started composing electronic music by myself."[4]
After a friend gave him the program Fruity Loops, he started learning production.[5] Around 2011, he began releasing music under the moniker Seven Lions. The name Seven Lions comes from a fantasy book called Latro in the Mist by Gene Wolfe. Seven Lions is a character in the book.[6]
Musical career
2011-12: First remixes and EPs
In 2011, Seven Lions' first significant track was his remix of Above & Beyond’s "You Got To Go."[3] The track sat at #2 on Beatport’s Dubstep chart for over 6 weeks, largely underneath Skrillex’s remix of Avicii's "Levels."[7]
In 2012, after releasing his debut Polarize EP in April, Seven Lions had several Beatport #1s (four in the dubstep chart)[8] with remixes for artists such as Above & Beyond, Matrix & Futurebound, Paul Van Dyk and Delirium. His song, "Below Us" feat. Shaz Sparks, was also featured as Zane Lowe’s ‘Hottest Record In The World.’[9]
After Seven Lions' management[10] team passed some of his demos to the DJ Skrillex, Skrillex signed him to release his next EP on his personal OWSLA imprint.[6] In October 2012, Montalvo released his Days to Come EP. The EP landed at #2 on the US iTunes Dance Charts and #1 on Beatport.[11] By this time, Seven Lions was receiving play by DJs such as Above & Beyond, Armin van Buuren, and Gareth Emery, among others.[citation needed]
2014: Worlds Apart, The Throes of Winter
Seven Lions' Worlds Apart EP was released on April 29, 2014 on Casablanca Records. The EP contains five tracks: "Don't Leave" with Ellie Goulding, "Worlds Apart" with Kerli, "Nepenthe", an alternate version of "Strangers", and "Keep it Close" with Kerli. Seven Lions has stated that "It's more experimental than the last EP and the focus is on songwriting instead of pure dance-floor aggression."[12] The EP combines diverse genes, with progressive house-style vocals and elements of trance, dubstep, bass music, and electro.[citation needed] "Don't Leave" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 141 on August 16, 2014.[citation needed]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 "World's Apart" Music Video feat. Kerli (Youtube, Aug 16, 2014) | |
| Worlds Apart EP Official Stream (Youtube, April 29, 2014) |
Seven Lions was the main support for Porter Robinson’s Circle Assembly tour, and since 2013 he has performed at festivals such as SXSW, Ultra Music Festival, Electric Daisy Carnival New York, and Camp Bisco, as well as headlining the Avalon Hollywood, Webster Hall New York City, and several other venues in the United States.
In the summer of 2014 he announced future projects, including an upcoming single for OWSLA, and an official remix of Röyksopp’s "Running to the Sea."[13] A collaboration with Myon & Shane 54 and Tove Lo, titled "Strangers", made its debut on the Mortal Instruments: City of Bones soundtrack. He had a North American tour with Krewella and Candyland set in the fall.[citation needed]. Later that year, DJ Mag also revealed that he had placed #144th in voting for their annual Top 100 DJs poll, despite not campaigning.[14] He also collaborated on a track with Polish producer Xilent via OWSLA entitled "The Fall" which was released as a single.
He released a new EP, titled "The Throes of Winter" on March 3, 2015 via Casablanca Records. The EP features more guest appearances from singers than his previous releases, and features more tracks that are musically similar to his "Days To Come" EP, compared to the "Worlds Apart" EP which was a departure from his previous effort.
Style and influences
Seven Lions produces primarily dubstep with heavy trance influences.
Montalvo states that he is a long-time metal and fantasy fan, and inspired by Viking metal as well as his favorite band Opeth. Although he produces electronic music, he doesn't always listen to it. "I don’t listen to electronic music regularly, I still listen to metal honestly. I mean I only really listen to electronic music when I’m looking for songs, actively, to put in my set. I’m always into Viking Metal, I like folky stuff. I like stuff that really takes you out of somewhere you are and puts you somewhere else."[15] His recommendations and favorite metal bands: "Ensiferum, Månegarm, obviously Opeth, Storm Corrosion, their side project with Steve Wilson, stuff like that."[15]
Notable appearances
- Tours
- Porter Robinson Circle Assembly Tour
- KOAN Sound & Gemini Westcoast Tour USA
- OWSLA Tour 2012 (with Kill The Noise, Birdy Nam Nam, and Monsta)
- Insomniac Events: Porter Robinson's 2013 Circle Assembly tour
- Festivals
- Sound Wave Music Festival
- InStereo (with Mat Zo,)
- Zoolu Festival (with Krewella and Tritonal)
- Mansion Miami
- Matador Music Festival
- Ultra Music Festival 2013
- Camp Bisco 2013
- Global Dance Festival 2013
- Veld Music Festival 2013
- TomorrowWorld 2013
- Electric Daisy Carnival 2014
- Paradiso Music Festival 2014
- Electric Zoo 2014
- Electric Forest Festival 2014
- Hard Day of the Dead 2014
- Lights All Night 2014
- Imagine Music Festival 2014
- Electric Daisy Carnival 2015
Discography
Extended plays
| Year | Album title | Release details | Chart peaks[16][17] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 200 |
US Dance |
US Heat |
iTunes Dance |
Beat Port |
— | |||
| 2012 | Polarize |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — |
| Days to Come | — | 10 | 13 | 2 | 1 | — | ||
| 2014 | Worlds Apart |
|
76 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| 2015 | The Throes of Winter |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — |
| Summer of the Occult |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart peaks | Album | Release details | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | — | |||||
| 2011 | "Luna" | — | — | Single only | Viper Recordings | |
| 2013 | "Days to Come (Au5 & I.Y.F.F.E. Remix)" | — | — | Single only | OWSLA (Jan 22, 2013) | |
| "Fevers" (featuring Minnesota & Mimi Page) | — | — | Single only | OWSLA/NEST (May 20, 2013) | ||
| "Strangers" (with Myon & Shane 54) | — | — | The Mortal Instruments:City of Bones Soundtrack | Republic Records (2013) | ||
| "Serpent of Old" (featuring Ciscandra Nostalghia) | — | — | Single only | OWSLA (Nov 18, 2013) | ||
| 2014 | "Worlds Apart" (featuring Kerli) | 141 | — | Promo single/Worlds Apart | Ultra Records (Jun 3, 2014) | |
| "Lucy" | — | — | Single | Ultra Records (Oct 28, 2014) | ||
| "The Fall" (with Xilent) | — | — | Single | OWSLA (Dec 2, 2014) | ||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||
| 2015 | ||||||
| "December" (with Davey Havok) | — | — | Single/The Throes of Winter | Casablanca Records (Mar 3, 2015) | ||
| "The End" (with HALIENE) | — | — | Single/The Throes of Winter | Casablanca Records (Mar 3, 2015) | ||
| "Lose Myself" (with Lynn Gunn) | — | — | Single/The Throes of Winter | Casablanca Records (Mar 3, 2015) | ||
| "A Way To Say Goodbye" (with Sombear) | — | — | Single/The Throes of Winter | Casablanca Records (Mar 3, 2015) | ||
| "Falling Away" (with LIGHTS) | — | — | Single/Summer of the Occult | Casablanca Records (Aug 14, 2015) | ||
Other appearances
| Year | Song | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | "Strangers" (with Myon & Shane 54 ft. Tove Lo) |
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Soundtrack |
Republic Records |
|-
Remixes
| Year | Song | Artist | Release details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Cosmic Love" | Florence and the Machine | Moshi Moshi (Jul 5, 2010) |
| 2011 | "You Got to Go" | Above & Beyond (ft. Zoe Johnston) | Anjunabeats |
| "Satellite" | Oceanlab | Anjunabeats | |
| 2012 | "All I Know" | Matrix & Futurebound (ft. Luke Bingham) | Viper (May 6, 2012) |
| "On My Way to Heaven" | Above & Beyond (ft. Richard Bedford) | Anjunabeats | |
| "Still With Me" | Tritonal (ft. Cristina Soto) | ||
| "The Great Divide" | Velvetine | Anjunabeats | |
| "Days Turn Into Nights" | Delerium (ft. Michael Logan) | Nettwerk (Dec 18, 2012) | |
| "All Alone" | Superbus | ||
| "I Don't Deserve You" | Paul Van Dyk (ft. Plumb) | ||
| 2013 | "Running to the Sea" | Röyksopp (ft. Susanne Sundfør) | |
| 2015 | tbd | tbd |
Compilations
The following is an incomplete list of compilation albums with Seven Lions tracks:
- 2014: Now That's What I Call Music! 51 (Sony, Aug 5, 2014) - track "Strangers"
Further reading
- Seven Lions discography at Discogs
- "Hear Seven Lions' 'More Experimental' New EP 'Worlds Apart' - Premiere". Rolling Stone. April 28, 2014.
See also
References
- ^ "Top 20(ish) Recommended Chillstep Artists". reddit. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Seven Lions Bio". The Untz. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ a b "Above & Beyond feat. Zoë Johnston "You Got To Go" (Seven Lions Remix) Winner of the Beatport Remix Competition". AboveandBeyond.nu. Retrieved 17 April 2013.[dead link]
- ^ a b "Seven Lions Biography". Last.fm. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ "Seven Lions Radio". TheFuture.fm. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ a b "Seven Lions - Days To Come [EP Review + Interview]". Earmilk. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
- ^ "Seven Lions Polarize EP Released on Viper Recordings". Drop Beats Not Bombs. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ "Seven Lions - Days to Come EP". Fast Forward and Rewind. Retrieved 17 April 2013.[dead link]
- ^ "Hottest Record - Seven Lions Feat. Shaz Sparks - Below Us". BBC. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ Golden Ratio Management
- ^ "Seven Lions Drops His Massive Days To Come EP on OWSLA". Sound Logik. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
- ^ Murray, Nick (April 28, 2014). "Hear Seven Lions' 'More Experimental' New EP 'Worlds Apart' - Premiere". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-09-27.
- ^ "Hello: Seven Lions". Mixmag. Retrieved 7 August 2013.
- ^ "DJ Mag Top 150". Beatport. Retrieved 2014-11-21.
- ^ a b "Ten Questions with Terry Gotham: Seven Lions". TerryGotham.com. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ "Seven Lions". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-09-27.
- ^ Lymangrover, Jason (2013). "Seven Lions". Allmusic. Retrieved 2014-09-27.
External links
- Video and audio