Biography
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Born In
Lawrence, Douglas County, Kansas, United States
A lot of things have changed for Lawrence, KS native Sam Billen recently. He just released his first solo record in 5 years with indie label The Record Machine. It is his first since leaving Northern Records who also released his decade-long band, The Billions, that called it quits last year. After the break up of the Billions, Sam took some time to focus on making his own music and starting a family (Sam just recently became a father).
His new record Headphones & Cellphones is a departure from the quirky indie pop that The Billions were known for. This new approach finds Sam without a band giving him the opportunity to write, record, and produce all of the songs on his own. The Billions were influenced by 90’s bands like Built to Spill, Pavement, and more recent bands like Pinback. In Sam’s solo music, The Postal Service and Sufjan Stevens have since found their way into the list of influences. Headphones & Cellphones finds him meshing those with more classic sounds like Hall and Oats, Todd Rundgren, and Stevie Wonder, causing him to take a soulful, more mature, smooth, and electronic texture to the endearing pop songs he has always written.
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