Originally from a mid-sized suburb of Ontario, Canada, power pop/punk foursome Hawk Nelson calls itself "diehard believers in the transformative power of dreams, planning a course in musical expression underwritten by Biblical rooting at a young age and following through with vivaciousness each inch of the way."
Since 2004, music lovers have enjoyed a real camaraderie with Hawk Nelson, helping the quartet sell nearly half a million albums, land personal appearances on major television and motion picture projects, and gain high-profile song placement (“Bring ‘Em Out”) with NBC’s NFL Sunday Night Football campaign.
The band played independently in Peterborough, Ontario under the name SWISH for a few years before they signed with Tooth & Nail Records largely on the recommendation of Trevor McNevan, the lead singer of fellow Tooth & Nail band Thousand Foot Krutch. In July 2004, Hawk Nelson released their major label debut Letters to the President. It was produced by Aaron Sprinkle and McNevan, who also co-wrote the album's fourteen songs. He has also appeared on some of the band's songs, as well as in their video for the song " California ".
In October 2005, the band re-released Letters to the President, with new material including their cover of The Who's "My Generation", three acoustic versions of some of their hits, and a limited edition cover.
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The band released their second studio album, Smile, It's the End of the World, on April 4, 2006. The album was also co-written by Trevor McNevan of Thousand Foot Krutch. The album won a GMA Canada Covenant Award for "Modern Rock/Alternative Album of the Year" in 2006. The album's first single, "Everything You Ever Wanted", went on to hit #1 for 9 weeks on the R&R Christian CHR chart, and was the fourth most played song of 2006. |
The band spent the summer of 2006 touring the major Christian music festivals, and also took part in Jeremy Camp's Beyond Measure tour. Hawk Nelson released a three-track Christmas EP titled Gloria on November 21, 2006, and in winter of that year they toured with TobyMac's Winter Wonder Slam tour along with The Afters, Family Force 5, and Ayiesha Woods.
Hawk Nelson's newest album, Hawk Nelson Is My Friend was released on April 1, 2008, and was co-written by Trevor McNevan.
“Going into this record, we sat down and thought about how we’ve always had this mentality of not so much winning fans as making friends,” says born frontman Jason Dunn. “We want to be clear that we’re all about being on the same level as the audience.”
“We don’t want to be that band whose record sounds just like the last one,” bass player Daniel Biro explains. “
Frontman Jason Dunn explains, “So many people are struggling today. Most of all they need a friend, and we believe everyone has a friend in God.”
“We seek to create anthems to get you thinking about what it is that you want to do with your life and then give you a jump start to go all out for it,” concludes drummer Matt Paige. “No matter what the ambition, get out there and go do it. We are and we’re having the time of our lives!”
