Dragonette, The Knocks, and Aquaria

Originally from Toronto, Canada, members Martina Sorbara and Dan Kurtz first met at a local music festival before forming the group The Fuzz. What began as lo-fi bedroom recordings turned into supporting New Order on only their second live performance. With the moniker Dragonette settled on, the band issued their debut, self-titled EP in 2005. Led by the single “I Get Around”, the record did wonders for the group’s international profile and led Dragonette to sign with the UK label Mercury Records. Due to Dragonette’s UK ties, the band moved to London, UK to record their debut full-length album in 2006.

Released in August 2007, “Galore” peaked at No. 80 on the Canadian Albums Chart, aided by the charting singles “I Get Around” and “Take It Like a Man”. In support of the record the group toured alongside Basement Jaxx and the Sugarbabes, as well as a performing number of headline shows across the UK and Canada. Guitarist Simon Craig joined following the release, after which the group secured a burst publicity through their cover of the Calvin Harris track “The Girls”. In 2008 the band were nominated for New Group of the Year at the year’s Juno Awards, after which Kurtz and Sorbara collaborated with Cyndi Lauper on her 2008 album “Bring Ya to the Brink”.

After parting ways with Mercury, Dragonette signed with Universal to release their sophomore album “Fixin to Thrill” in September 2009. Outperforming their debut by rising to No. 63 on the Canadian Albums Chart, the album spawned the charting singles “Fixin to Thrill”, “Gone Too Far”, “Pick Up the Phone”, and “Easy”. Earning a far-better reception than their debut, “Fixin to Thrill” was later nominated for Dance Recording of the Year at the 2011 Juno Awards. Following the album’s release in 2009, Dragonette collaborated with French DJ Martin Solveig on the track “Boys & Girls”. The following year the band worked alongside the DJ again, which resulted in Dragonette’s most successful single to date “Hello”. Rising to No. 8 on the Canadian Singles Chart as well as charting in nine other countries, the single earned Sorbara praise for her dynamic vocal performance.

Following further collaborations with Solveig on the tracks “Can’t Stop” and “Big in Japan”, the band worked alongside Kaskade, Don Diablo, and Girls Aloud’s Nicola Roberts. Dragonette’s third studio album “Bodyparts” was subsequently released in September 2012, led by the singles “Rocket Ship” and “Live in This City”. In 2014 the band issued their highest-charting UK single “Outlines” featuring Mike Mago, before making an appearance on the Joey Stylez track “Pride of Lions” in 2015.

Originally formed in 2007 and came up with their name because in their early days their neighbors would knock on their doors to have them turn the music down. Before focusing on their own music and remixes they were producing beats and remixes for the likes of Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Marina & the Diamonds, Rihanna, Flo-Rida, Sky Ferreira, Theophilus London, and Ellie Goulding.

The Knocks released their first single “Make It Better,” with the New York based Neon Gold Records. The single was used for a nationwide commercial for Corona Beer, and the hip-hop group, Chiddy Bang, sampled another one of their singles. In 2012 they went out on their first full tour with Ellie Goulding, and then went on to be the supporting act for artists such as Diplo, Justince, Boys Noize and Holy Ship! The duo continued to produce remixes and covers of songs, as well as tour around the country; in fact, they gained a reputation for actively encouraging fans to hold after parties for after their gigs.

In 2013 their single “Modern Hearts” reached over 100,000 plays on SoundCloud, and earned them another number one spot with HypeMachine. The following year they released the single “Classic” which had a video that followed that paid homage to the computer simulation game, The Sims.