SAINTS OF VALORY

Alternative band, Saints Of Valory are known for their rhythmically charged songs. Their lead single "Neon Eyes" is from the band's third EP Possibilities. The Austin, TX-based newcomers gear up for the release of Into The Deep, their debut album for F Stop/Atlantic Records.

The album's title, taken from a phrase in "Neon Eyes," is symbolic of Saints Of Valory's imminent takeoff. "It's about us launching ourselves into the future and everything that's in store for us," says guitarist Godfrey Thomson. "Like, 'here we go, into the deep.' And for the listener, they're being launched into the depth of the album, into the journey of the songs."

Saints Of Valory's journey to this moment has been one of numerous twists and turns, with the four band members hailing from three different continents - South America, Europe, and the U.S. - though they now call Austin their home. Their origins are rooted in a childhood friendship between lead vocalist-bassist Gavin Jasper and Thomson, who met in Jasper's native Rio de Janeiro while their parents were working abroad. Both Jasper and Thomson received guitars at a young age and bonded over learning to play. As the story goes, the boys stayed in touch after their families went their separate ways. Jasper learned to play bass and joined a country-rock band, while Thomson launched his own band.

In 2008, many years after their childhood friendship began, Jasper and Thomson reunited in Brazil, with Thomson bringing along his friend Gerard Labou, a young drummer from France. The trio decided to form a band and took to MySpace to post their own tracks, which attracted initial interest from independent labels. Needing a space to rehearse for a showcase, they contacted their friend Stephen Buckle, who had a small studio in his ranch-style home in Boerne, TX. Buckle was born in Greece to an American mother and Canadian father and spent most of his childhood in Thailand and Southeast Asia. In April 2010, he joined the band full-time as a keyboardist.

"When we all got together, that's when I first felt this could work," Jasper says. "We played 'Providence' and there was this feeling in the room. It was the same feeling I had when I first heard 'Where The Streets Have No Name,' where things just click chemistry-wise and it lifts you up. You feel happier. And I thought, 'If I can feel this in this room, then we can actually offer this to people and they will feel it, too.'"

In November, Saints Of Valory self-released their first EP The Bright Lights, featuring an early version of "Providence," which entered the Top 50 at Triple A radio, making them the only unsigned band in the upper reaches of the chart. In March 2012, they were chosen as one of Billboard's top six unsigned bands nationwide. In May, they self-released their second EP, Kids, which broke into iTunes' Top Rock Albums chart, selling 1,700 copies its first week. It changed everything for them.

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