Awolnation

Lore & Background

Aaron Bruno was approached by Red Bull Records in 2009 and offered free use of their Los Angeles recording studio. He recorded several songs there and signed with the label, describing the arrangement as more of a 'partnership.' Bruno writes all of his songs himself, though he consults close friends, family, or respected artists for guidance. The band's name comes from Bruno's high school nickname, AWOL, derived from the military acronym for Absent Without Leave, because he would leave without saying goodbye. The first EP, Back from Earth, was released on May 18, 2010.

The debut album Megalithic Symphony was released digitally on March 15, 2011, through Red Bull Records.

Reader's Guide

Awolnation's significance lies primarily in the massive commercial success of their debut single 'Sail,' which achieved diamond certification and became one of the best-selling songs in the United States. The track's ubiquity in media—from television dramas to Olympic broadcasts—helped the band reach audiences beyond typical rock listeners. Their debut album Megalithic Symphony established a foundation for a career that has spanned multiple studio albums and a covers project. The band's longevity, with original material released as recently as 2024, demonstrates their continued relevance in the rock landscape. Their history of lineup changes and touring with major acts like Fall Out Boy and Prophets of Rage reflects their integration into the broader rock and alternative music scene. The band's legacy is tied to the enduring popularity of 'Sail' and their ability to maintain a recording and touring career over more than a decade.

Did You Know?

• The band's name comes from Aaron Bruno's high school nickname, AWOL, because he would leave without saying goodbye.
• 'Sail' became the 57th song to be certified diamond by the RIAA on June 14, 2021, with 10,000,000 copies sold in the United States.
• The band's debut album Megalithic Symphony was certified platinum as of February 29, 2016.
• Awolnation played 306 shows between 2011 and 2014, including 113 shows in 2012 alone.

Origins & the Birth of a Name

Aaron Bruno had been cycling through several projects—Insurgence, Home Town Hero alongside Drew Stewart, and Under the Influence of Giants with Dave Amezcua—before the act that would become Awolnation crystallized. In 2009, Red Bull Records reached out to him, offering free access to their Los Angeles recording studio. What started as a casual invitation grew into what Bruno characterized as a "partnership" rather than a conventional label arrangement, granting him the latitude to record whatever he felt compelled to make. The band's name is deeply personal: it was simply Bruno's high school nickname. In a conversation with Kristin Houser of the LA Music Blog, he explained that he had a habit of slipping out without saying goodbye because it was just easier, and that tendency gave rise to the AWOL moniker—a nod to the military acronym for Absent Without Leave. After cutting a handful of tracks in that studio, Bruno signed with the label and put out the EP Back from Earth on iTunes on May 18, 2010, laying the groundwork for everything that followed.

Megalithic Symphony and the "Sail" Phenomenon

When Awolnation released Megalithic Symphony on March 15, 2011, through Red Bull Records, few could have foreseen the cultural tremor one track would generate. "Sail" climbed to number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 4 on Rock Songs, and number 5 on Alternative Songs, yet its reach stretched far beyond chart positions. The song underscored BMW's Olympic Opening Ceremony, appeared in commercials for Nokia, PT, and Under Armour, and threaded through episodes of The Good Wife, House, Pretty Little Liars, Covert Affairs, and Rookie Blue. It scored the 2012 thriller Playback and ran throughout the 2013 film Disconnect. In Canada it opened CBC Hockey Night in February 2012, and in the UK it peaked at number 17. Wingsuit flyer Jeb Corliss paired it with his YouTube film "Grinding the Crack," which surpassed 34 million views by October 2021. Macy Gray and DevilDriver each covered the track, and a Sonya Tayeh routine on So You Think You Can Dance brought it to yet another audience. The album itself earned a platinum certification by February 2016.

Sustained Output and Creative Evolution

Rather than coasting on debut-album momentum, Awolnation kept a steady cadence of new material stretching well past a decade. Their second studio album, Run, arrived on March 17, 2015, followed by Here Come the Runts on February 2, 2018, and Angel Miners & the Lightning Riders on April 24, 2020. The band also explored adjacent territory: a covers album titled My Echo, My Shadow, My Covers, and Me dropped on May 6, 2022, and their fifth studio album of original material, The Phantom Five, landed on August 30, 2024. Along the way they expanded the Megalithic Symphony catalog with a Deluxe Edition in November 2013 that added new songs like "Thiskidsnotalright" and "Some Kind of Joke," the latter appearing on the Iron Man 3 soundtrack. Bruno continued writing all of his songs himself while confiding in close friends, family, and respected artists for guidance. The band also shifted labels, moving from Red Bull Records to Better Noise Music, signaling a fresh chapter in their ongoing creative journey.

Diamond Legacy and Lasting Cultural Footprint

The true measure of "Sail"'s endurance arrived on June 14, 2021, when the RIAA certified the track diamond—the 57th song in history to reach that milestone, representing ten million units sold in the United States alone. That single distinction eclipsed the album's own platinum certification, which had come earlier in February 2016. The song's international footprint was equally striking, charting at number 27 in Australia and number 33 in New Zealand. Its cultural penetration spanned an extraordinary range: from a History Channel commercial for Vikings in 2013 to a Sonya Tayeh dance routine, from the soundtrack of the 2012 thriller Playback to the 2013 film Disconnect, from an Under Armour ad featuring Derrick Williams to the opening tease of a Vancouver Canucks versus Toronto Maple Leafs broadcast. The track was even remixed with Innerpartysystem for a Rookie Blue episode. For a band whose name originated as a high school nickname about leaving without saying goodbye, "Sail" ensured that Awolnation's departure from obscurity was anything but quiet.