Rüfüs Du Sol (stylized in all caps) is an Australian alternative dance group from Sydney, that consists of Tyrone Lindqvist, Jon George and James Hunt.[1]
The band was known simply as Rüfüs (stylised in all caps) from their inception until January 2014, before changing their name to Rüfüs Du Sol – exclusively in the United States – to avoid confusion with existing funk band Rufus.[2] In May 2018, the band adopted the name change worldwide for the sake of consistency.[3]
Their debut album Atlas peaked at number one in Australia in 2013, and their three subsequent albums have all reached either number one or number two in their home country. while their second album Bloom debuted atop the Australian albums chart in early 2016. Their single "You Were Right" won the ARIA Award for Best Dance Release in 2015.
The band formed consisting of Jon George, Tyrone Lindqvist and James Hunt in November 2010. On 1 January 2011, they released their debut EP Rüfüs.[4] "We Left", their debut single was released on 25 July 2011.[5] Two tracks from the EP, "Paris Collides" and "We Left" reached numbers 8 and 13 on the Hype Machine charts simultaneously, while the video for "We Left" was nominated as one of 12 finalists internationally in the 2012 Vimeo Awards for Best Music Video.[6]
In April 2012, Rüfüs released their second EP, Blue.[7] The double A-sided single "This Summer"/"Selena" was released on 16 July 2012.[8]
The band's debut studio album, Atlas, was released on 9 August 2013.[9] It debuted at number one on the Australian Albums Chart on 25 August 2013.[10] It was preceded by "Take Me" as the lead single on 8 March 2013,[11] and "Desert Night" as the second single on 2 August 2013.[12] "Tonight" was released as the third single 22 November 2013,[13] followed by "Sundream" as the fourth single on 21 March 2014.[14]
In June 2015, Rüfüs released "You Were Right", the lead single from their forthcoming second album. It peaked at number 22 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart and was certified double platinum. The album Bloom was released in January 2016 and become the band's second number-one album. In 2016, they performed at both Coachella and Electric Forest.[15][16]
In May 2018, the band changed its name worldwide to Rüfüs Du Sol, having already made the change in the United States four years prior. Lead singer Tyrone Lindqvist explained the name change: "I guess we don't really know any other bands that have two names throughout the entire world so it just seemed fitting."[3] Soon after, Rüfüs Du Sol released their single "No Place" on 25 May 2018. They later released the singles "Underwater" and "Lost in My Mind", along with announcing their third album Solace.[17] In 2018, they again played at Electric Forest,[18] while in 2019 the band's performances included Field Day, Coachella and a sold out show at Lollapalooza, Chicago.[19][20][21] A Solaceremix album was released in September 2019. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2019, Solace was nominated for three ARIA Music Awards.[22] In 2020, the band headlined CRSSD Fest in San Diego.[23]
In 2020, the band recorded a live album from Joshua Tree, California entitled Rüfüs Du Sol: Live from Joshua Tree. The 45-minute album and accompanying feature film, shot in Joshua Tree National Park, included music from the band's three albums to date: Bloom, Atlas and Solace. The film was directed by Alexander George, and was presented by Mixmag and the band's label Rose Avenue Records. It premiered at the Vista Theatre in Los Angeles in February 2020, before being digitally released in March 2020.[24][25]
On 13 July 2021, the band released "Alive"; their first song in three years. In a press statement, Lindqvist said, "It's a heavier song in some ways, but at its core it's hopeful."[26] The follow-up single "Next to Me" was released on 11 August 2021. Jon George said it "is a song of devotion, caring compassion and pure love."[27] On 24 September 2021, they released the single "On My Knees".[28] On the same day, they also announced their fourth studio album, Surrender, which was released on 21 October 2021.[29] They embarked on a two-year global tour of Surrender in 2021, completing it in 2023.[30] In 2021, they played three sold out stadium shows at Banc of California Stadium,[31] as well as performing at the Hollywood Bowl, Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado,[32]The Gorge Amphitheatre,[33] and Gunnersbury Park in London. In 2022, after two prior nominations, the band won their first Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Recording, for their song "Alive".[34]
In October 2022, the band launched Mate Maker Co., a line of hard kombucha drinks, with the help of Justin Medcraft, ex-global senior brand manager at Diageo and brand director at Pabst Brewing Company, their artist manager Danny Robson, and drinks trade expert Tom Appleton.[35]
Rüfüs Du Sol have won an AIR Award: Best Independent Dance, Electronica Album, for Atlas (2014), two Electronic Music Awards: Record of the Year, for Innerbloom (Sasha remix, 2017), and Live Act of the Year (2017), and four ARIA Awards: Best Dance Release, for You Were Right (2015), Best Dance Release, for Solace (2019), Best Group (2021), Best Dance Release, for Alive (2021), with a fifth ARIA won by their mix engineer Cassian, Best Mixed Album, for Surrender (2022).
The band has also won a Grammy Award: Best Dance Recording, for Alive (2022), an APRA Award: Most Performed Dance/ Electronic Work of the Year, for On My Knees (2023), and a National Live Music Award: Best DJ/ Electronic Act (2023).
AIR Awards
The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector.
The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. Rüfüs Du Sol has been nominated for one award.
The Electronic Music Awards is an annual award show with an emphasis on the electronic music genre. It commenced in 2017. Rüfüs Du Sol have won two awards from three nominations.
"Next to Me": "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 23 August 2021". The ARIA Report. No. 1642. Australian Recording Industry Association. 23 August 2021. p. 4.
"I Don't Wanna Leave": "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 1 November 2021". The ARIA Report. No. 1652. Australian Recording Industry Association. 1 November 2021. p. 4.
2020 winners and nominations: "And the 2020 ARIA Awards Go To…". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 26 November 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
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