Cardiknox

Both Lonnie Angle and Thomas Dutton grew up in the suburbs of Seattle. They were introduced through a mutual friend.[3] Angle was a theater major and singer, while Dutton was a musician and the lead singer of Forgive Durden. Dutton had written a concept album called Razia's Shadow, and the duo started working together to adapt it into an off-Broadway theater production with The Public Theater. The musical was a success, but the duo made the decision to leave it behind and form a band in 2013.[4][1][5] The band name is a play on Dutton's mother's maiden name of Cardinaux.[6][7]

Two of the band's singles made the Hype Machine Top 10 in 2013. "Technicolor Dreaming" became an "under-the-radar" hit,[8] with its video premiering on The A.V. Club.[9] With "Technicolor Dreaming", the band moved in the direction of synth and 1980s sound.[6]

Throughout 2015, Cardiknox played at big festivals in the United States, Canada, and Europe, including Lollapalooza, Firefly, Sasquatch, Reading, Leeds, and Pukkelpop. The band signed with Warner Bros. Records.[1] In November, Cardiknox released "On My Way", a "dance-y pop banger". Its video, a mash-up of vintage fashion runway footage, was premiered by Vogue.[10]

Before releasing their debut album, Cardiknox published four singles from the album: "Doors", "On My Way", "Wild Child", and "Into the Night".[11] "Wild Child" reached number 13 on the Spotify Viral 50 chart.[2] After six months spent at Henson Recording Studios in Hollywood,[1] the album Portrait was released on March 11, 2016.[12] It was produced by Grammy-winning producer John Shanks[6] and the cover was designed by street artist Tristan Eaton.[13]

The band went on tour in early 2016, first touring with The Knocks and then joining Carly Rae Jepsen on her Gimmie Love Tour.[6] They also toured with Bleachers.[11]

On December 7, 2018, the band released "Back in L.A." and announced on social media that it was the end of their work together.[14] The band's website, cardiknox.com, ceased to exist during the summer of 2019.[15]

The music of Cardiknox has been described as dance-pop. The duo cites Peter Gabriel, Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, and Drake as influences.[1] Vogue commented that they "give the impression of having one foot in the indie world and one in the pop world. But they are leaning pop."[10] Angle herself described their sound as "indie, electronic, epic, cinematic, nostalgic, and even a little eighties-inspired."[16]

Portrait mixed 1980s beats with modern pop elements. The album has been described as "edgy and innovative", with "inventive and experimental" tracks.[3] The songs' subject matters include relationship breakup ("Souvenirs"), youthful rebellion ("Wild Child"), rejection ("Doors"), and family breakup ("Shadowboxing").[16]

Reviewing the appearance of Cardiknox at CMJ Music Marathon, The Guardian described their sound as "glittering, skittering electro-pop (...) with songs in the vein of bands like Chvrches and The Naked and Famous."[17] Commenting their single Wasted Youth, MTV said Angle sounded "like a mix between Icona Pop and Sky Ferreira with an electro-pop/dub jones."[18]

The duo has very different musical backgrounds: Angle had classical piano training, while Dutton's first musical education was punk rock.[3]