Fitz & The Tantrums

American indie pop sextet from Los Angeles, Fitz & The Tantrums will be releasing their second album, More Than Just A Dream on May 7th via Elektra/Atlantic. They have ramped up the timeless songcraft and soul sonic force that made them a worldwide sensation to fashion a kaleidoscopic milestone that delivers on the promise of their 2010 breakthrough, Pickin' Up The Pieces. Songs like the impossibly catchy first single, "Out Of My League" are positively brazen with verve and vivacity, demonstrating all the drama and passion of the band's famed live shows. From the charged back-and-forth between co-lead vocalists Fitz and Noelle Scaggs to the incontrovertible power of The Tantrums in full flight, More Than Just A Dream is the sound of a great band taking it right to the edge.

"The only rule in making this record was that there were no rules," says lead singer, Fitz. "Nobody was allowed to say, 'We can't do that.' We didn't limit ourselves."

A longtime studio engineer and aspiring musician, Michael "Fitz" Fitzpatrick founded Fitz & The Tantrums in 2008, driven simply by "a need to be creative and not lose my mind over a breakup." The band consists of Michael Fitzpatrick (lead vocals and keyboards), Noelle Scaggs (vocals and percussion), James King (saxophone, flute, trumpet, and harmonica), Joseph Karnes (bass guitar), Jeremy Ruzumna (keyboards) and John Wicks (drums and percussion). They are produced by Chris Seefried, who is also a co-writer. Their debut studio album, Pickin' Up the Pieces, released in August 2010, has received critical acclaim and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. Things soon began to break their way as irresistible singles like "MoneyGrabber" and "Don't Gotta Work It Out" began drawing national radio airplay. The band embarked on an unrelenting schedule that included high profile TV performances, sold-out headline shows, and so many festival appearances that Vogue declared them to be the "Hardest Working Band" of Summer 2011.

While their first record was conceived as a homage to 60's pop soul music, More Than Just A Dream sees Fitz & The Tantrums propelling their sound towards their own distinctive, utterly contemporary vision. Nothing was off the table as the band sought to "create these interesting hybrids of styles and influences that embrace and repel each other all at the same time," synthesizing everything from soul to pop, from indie to electronic with a dose of hip-hop. Songs like "Spark" and the anthemic "Break The Walls" celebrate "pushing through, personally and artistically," while "The End" and "6AM" find Fitz continuing to grapple with questions of the heart. To record the latter song - a much-loved staple of The Tantrums' live set - Hoffer suggested Fitz and Scaggs sing together at the same time for the recording, much like they do on stage. The result is a stunningly soulful dialogue that defines the two lead singers' special chemistry. From the studio to the stage, Fitz & The Tantrums give everything they have to anything they do, leaving it all on the floor night in and night out. With its artistic audaciousness and pure pop punch, More Than Just A Dream fully confirms Fitz & The Tantrums are here to stay.

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