The Fray
The Fray, a four-member piano rock band based out of Denver, Colorado formed in the spring of 2002 when old schoolmates Joe King and Isaac Slade bumped into each other in a guitar store. The two began having regular duo jam sessions which in turn lead to song writing. Eventually this two-man combo added on Zach Johnson on drums and Caleb Slade, Isaac’s brother, as a bass player. These two early add-ons didn’t remain with the band: Caleb was asked to leave, his departure caused the two brother’s relationship to suffer. Emotions over his troubled relationship with his brother lead Isaac to compose the song “Over My Head (Cable Car)”. Shortly after Caleb’s departure, Zach Johnson left the band as well for art school in New York.
King and Slade added Ben Wysocki and Dave Welsh to The Fray, both former band mates of Slade and former students at Ralston Valley High School in Arvada, Colorado. Caleb Slade has been the band’s only permanent bass player, but Jimmy Stofer of Hello Kavita and Dan Lavery of Tonic have toured with the band; Lavery joining in 2007 and touring presently.
A single from the band’s second EP received airtime from local Denver radio station KTCL and strong reviews from Denver’s alternative weekly news, Westword. Reader’s of the same syndicate also voted The Fray “Best New Band” in 2004. This created enough interest in the band to catch the eye of Epic records, who officially signed them on December 17, 2004.
Today, The Fray is known for its ballads of intimate lyrical dialogues accompanied by sincere, melodic choruses inviting the listener to explore complicated relationships and emotions through the medium of music.
Isaac Slade (Vocals & Piano)
Joe King (Guitar & Vocals)
Dave Welsh (Guitar)
Ben Wysocki (Drums & Percussion)
Records Released:
Movement EP (2002): The band’s first EP, a collection of four songs, was released in 2002. Few copies were made, and it is currently not for sale.
Reason EP (2003): Was released in 2003 to local acclaim. The EP received strong reviews, particularly by Denver’s Westword alternative news weekly. Despite this, the band still had difficulty getting a single on the airwaves; Denver radio station KTCL rejected eight different songs before the band submitted “Cable Car” which found airplay on a KTCL show featuring local bands. KTCL received a landslide of requests for the song after its initial radio debut, and it continued to receive regular air time.
How to Save a Life (2005) LP: The band’s first release through Epic records, featuring the singles “How to Save a Life” and the newly re-named “Over My Head (Cable Car)”. This album garnered two Grammy Award Nominations, with the single “Over My Head(Cable Car)” rising to number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, and their second single “How to Save a Life” skyrocketing to number 3. The song also became a top 5 single in Canada, Australia, Ireland, Sweden, and the UK. The single “How to Save a Life” was featured on a season two Grey’s Anatomy episode (aired on March 19, 2006) and soon after was chosen by ABC to be the promotional theme for the season three premier of Grey’s Anatomy Since, it has also been aired on a fifth season episode of Scrubs (aired on April 25, 2006) and on One Tree Hill; along with “Look After You” and “You Found Me” also from the band’s debut studio album. “How to Save a Life” peaked in the top 5 in the UK Singles chart, selling over 200,000 downloads in the UK, and over 1.2 million downloads in the US. The Fray’s sweet sounds led to sweet success, with over 2,000,000 copies of their Epic debut album selling in the United States, certifying it Double Platinum by the RIAA.
The Fray(2009) LP: Released on February 3, 2009 the band’s second album delivers the same sweeping style perfectly blending Slade’s vocals with strong piano intros. It’s first single “You Found Me” was aired as a promo advert for the upcoming season on ABC’s Lost during a commercial break on Grey’s Anatomy on November 20. The band performed this first single live at the 2008 American Music Awards; the same single climber to number one on Australian ARIA charts for three straight weeks. With 179,000 copies sold, The Fray’s self-titled second album has reached the number on spot on the Billboard charts.
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Trivia:
At Caleb’s graduation party, the band placed out a suggestion bowl to elect their name – and “The Fray” was the winning draw.
The band has made appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Good Morning America, The Tonight Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, and Rove Live in Australia.
They performed at Disney’s Magic Kingdom’s Grad Nite on April 28, 2007
In July of 2005 the band completed a ten show tour opening for Weezer, then continued on to open twelve shows for Ben Folds. In January of 2006 they embarked on their first headlining tour, with opening acts Mat Kearney and the Cary Brothers.
