Early years and formation (2005-09) Givers was formed in 2008 in
Lafayette,
Louisiana by Tiffany Lamson, Taylor Guarisco, Kirby Campbell, Josh LeBlanc, William Henderson, and Nick Stephan. The band members knew one another from high school in Lafayette, where "there's two or three clubs that everybody plays at and supports each other." Guarisco had toured with a
zydeco band, while the other future members dabbled in
Cajun and
jazz music. Lamson grew up with
gospel music as her parents were pastors, and she sang in their church band. Guarisco and Lamson were rooming together when the storm hit, leaving them with roughly 15 feet of water in their apartment. The band recorded their debut
EP in Campbell's bedroom, and released it online for free in 2009. The group cooped up in guest rooms along the banks of the
Vermilion Bayou in Maurice, and spent 20 days recording the album. In 2011, Henderson was replaced by Nick Stephan, On June 13, they performed "Up Up Up", the first single off the album, on
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.
In Light was immensely successful for the young group. Every song from
In Light was licensed for usage in film and television, on programs such as
Glee, and on video games such as
FIFA 12. The band attracted the praise of veteran musician
Neil Young, who referred to the band in his 2012 memoir
Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream: "It sounded like they were in a complete other zone from the rest of music. They blew my mind," Young wrote. The band performed at several music festivals in 2012, including
Coachella,
Lollapalooza, and the New Orleans Jazz Fest. They also performed with New Orleans' Preservation Hall Jazz Band as part of their 50th Anniversary at
Carnegie Hall in January 2012.
Recent years (2015–present) Following three years of touring, the band took a brief break. The group suffered from an identity crisis; Guarisco admitted to "a few months of losing perspective on what we thought we were." They regrouped to work on their second album,
New Kingdom, which saw release in November 2015. It was crafted over eighteen months at various studios in New Orleans, North Carolina, and Wisconsin. Guarisco interpreted the sophomore album as more experimental, lacking traditional pop structures found on early efforts. while a reviewer for
Rolling Stone (Australia) viewed it as "overstuffed", leaving the listener "aurally exhausted." In 2018, Glassnote issued the band's latest release, the ''Movin' On
extended play. Movin' On'' compiles songs the band recorded with producer
Dave Cobb—best-known for his work with
Sturgill Simpson and
Chris Stapleton—at the famed
RCA Studio A in
Nashville. It was also co-produced by Eric Heigle, and partially tracked at his New Orleans studio space. ==Musical style and influences==