Whether it was musical measures at work or the hand of Zeppelin himself, Valley was written in the chords. Rob Laska, the lead vocalist, and Alex DiMauro, the bassist, met ten years ago. Swapping songs and bands through high school, the two were musically predestined. But it wasn’t until a scheduling fault at a studio outside of Toronto that the pair would meet Mike Brandolino, guitarist, and Karah James, drummer. Just as satisfying as fitting two puzzle pieces together was the band’s formation, “Some weird universe stuff going on for sure that year, it was meant to be,” said Laska.
Fast-forward to 2019, the band has debuted their first full length album, Maybe, and has toured relentlessly. Laska said, “2019 felt like the lift we thought would happen one day but you never really prepare for it. It was the most defining year for us.”
Laska followed-up by saying that, “No artist or band we look up to has it all figured out all the time and every time. We think with finishing up our second album now, we’re feeling better and more sure of what this band can be to the world. We feel eternally grateful for each and every human who connected with us in 2019.”
For all of that knowledge and all of that experience, fans can rejoice in the prospect of a new album coming soon. Shortly after returning home from their tour with The Band Camino, “We booked an Air BnB in L.A and flew out there for a month to write, which turned into one of the most important writing trips we’ve ever done. We came back with about half the new album written, which is a huge success rate for us.”
Other than that success, one could say that Valley has refocused themselves on their craft. Quitting their part-time jobs, taking stock of their relationships, even self-induced isolation, and emotional exploration, whatever it takes for them to produce to their best quality, and with their healthiest mindsets, they’ve done. From this, Laska said, “We always want Valley to feel relatable,” and for them, that means writing or composing from points of self-doubt and grief.
“We do want people who invest in our music to know that we are no different than them and they can accomplish the same recognition or status no matter what their profession is. That’s really important to us,” said Laska.
If you are already one of their musical investors, on behalf of all of Valley, Laska wanted to say, “Hello!! We love you and thank you for believing in a band from the suburbs of Toronto. 2020 is gonna be crazy, we can feel it. It’s all because of you!! See you out there!”
Valley will be hitting the road with Lovelytheband and Tessa Violet this May. Hitting nearly every major city in the country, we’re all destined to see Valley live.
Art in Your World 