Young The Giant

Young the Giant is an American indie rock band that formed in Irvine, California, in 2004. The band's line-up is Sameer Gadhia (lead vocals, auxiliary percussion), Jacob Tilley (guitars), Eric Cannata (guitars), Payam Doostzadeh (bass guitar), and François Comtois (drums). Formerly known as The Jakes, Young the Giant was signed by Roadrunner Records in 2009 and released its eponymous debut album in 2010.

The Jakes were formed in 2004 in Irvine, California. After a number of lineup changes over the next few years due to various reasons, the groups permanent lineup was formed in 2008 consisting of Sameer Gadhia, Jacob Tilley, Ehson Hashemian, Eric Cannata, and François Comtois (though Hashemian would soon leave the group). That same year, with one member still in high school and others attending different colleges, the group decided to put their schooling on hold to focus on music. That winter, the band won an online contest on Sonicbids to open for Kings of Leon during a January 2009 show at the House of Blues in Chicago. Two months later, the band played four shows at the South by Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas. The band's song "Texas Tea" was played during an episode of MTV's The Real World: Brooklyn, and "Paid the Piper" was featured on A&E's The Beast. Another song, "Cough Syrup", received airplay on the Los Angeles radio station KROQ. After signing to Roadrunner Records in August, keyboardist Ehson Hashemian departed the band. In December, the band announced it had changed its name to Young the Giant.

Young the Giant spent 2010 touring with Minus the Bear and Steel Train while working on its debut album with producer Joe Chicarelli. After the band finished recording in early June, they played additional shows with Marina and the Diamonds, The Futureheads, Neon Trees and New Politics. Several songs—including "My Body", "I Got", and "Strings"—were leaked online in advance of the album's release. On October 26, Roadrunner Records digitally released the eponymous Young the Giant album, which received a physical U.S. release on January 25, 2011. The album is scheduled to be released May 2 in the UK. Young the Giant performed on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Fuel TV's The Daily Habit in January. First single "My Body" was released to U.S. radio that month, and went on to peak at number eight on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart. The song was on iTunes as free single of the week beginning January 9, 2011, and was featured on an episode of American Idol. The band is scheduled to perform at South by Southwest in March and the Sasquatch! Music Festival in May.