Биография

The Rent began as a collaborative project between Chicago singer-songwriter Rylee Griffin and his longtime best friend, vocalist Jake Sargent. In the summer of 2019, the duo approached producer Joey Miller (of Tiger Skywave) with the idea of recording their material. The three convened in October 2020 in Bloomington, Indiana to record six songs. The ability of the songs to hold their own became apparent over the initial tracking sessions. Miller had assembled a team of session musicians that included Luc Charlier on keys, Isaac Scheller and Jordan Burger on bass, and Max DiBella (of Treefoil) on drums. Griffin played acoustic guitar and sang lead vocals, while Sargent contributed additional vocals. Miller later enlisted the help of close friend and keyboard player Garrett Spoelhof (of Secret Mezzanine), blues guitarist Alona Meek, and backing vocalists Anna Fagin (later of Fleeter) and Maya Toffler. Five of the six songs were completed and released on July 1, 2021, as a self-titled EP. Griffin, Sargent, and Miller came together shortly afterward in August 2021 to track what became their 2022 full-length album, "Watching the Sand". The album showcased more developed and introspective songwriting from Griffin, with Sargent on lead vocals for two tracks and Miller on drums. They were joined by Sharif Ibrahim on bass, Spoelhof on keys, Peter "Pickin' Pete" Doyle on steel guitar, Michael Wimer on percussion, and an extended lineup of additional musicians on various instruments.