B I O G R A P H Y   /   O V E R V I E W : 

 

Enation is an anthemic American rock band from Washington State with a Euro/Rock flare fronted by Jonathan Jackson. Since their first album release in 2004 their music has been featured on MTV.com, ‘One Tree Hill’, ‘General Hospital’, and more. Enation are becoming known as 'one of indie's premier rock bands'  (- CDBaby). 

Jonathan Jackson can be seen in the new hit primetime drama 'Nashville' on ABC, co-starring Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere. Jackson plays Avery Barkley, an up-and-coming singer/songwriter trying to make it in Music City. USA TODAY and Entertainment Weekly named 'Nashville' the #1 Best New show of the Fall Season.

 

 

 

 

ENATION:

Jonathan Jackson - vocals, guitars, piano

Richard Lee Jackson - drums & percussion

Daniel Sweatt - bass guitar

 

 

 

"Contagious and fascinating…
Enation is becoming one of the most elegant formations of American Rock.” 
~ ROCKTOTAL.com

 

 

Q U I C K S T A T S :

 

• ENATION ~ ESTABLISHED  2004
   
• HEARD ON 'ONE TREE HILL', 'GENERAL HOSPITAL', 'STEPHEN KING'S RIDING THE BULLET', 'DOG THE BOUNTY HUNTER' & MORE
   
• SOLD OVER 200,000 SONGS
   
• WINNERS AOL/ABOUT.ME NATIONAL AD CAMPAIGN + BILLBOARD IN NYC TIMES SQUARE
   
• TOP 10 (#8) NATIONAL ITUNES ROCK SINGLE ('FEEL THIS' FEAT. ENATION)
   
• TOP 200 (#113) NATIONAL ITUNES ALTERNATIVE ALBUM, 'MY ANCIENT REBELLION' 
  
  :: MORE
   
• #1 SONG ON CDBABY (THE LARGEST ONLINE DIST. OF INDIE MUSIC) FOR 4 + WEEKS
• 4-TIME GRAND PRIZE WINNER MTV SPONSORED OUR STAGE INDIE SONG COMPETITION 
• NATIONAL RUNNER-UP 'FAN FAVORITE' FOR MTV SPONSORED INDIE SONG COMPETITION WEB TV SERIES 'OUR STAGE PANEL'
• YOUTUBE CHANNEL OVER 340K VIEWS
• FEAT. ON NATIONAL ABC MUSIC LOUNGE WEBSITE
• NOMINATED TO THE TOP 100 'ARTISTS ON THE VERGE' READY TO BREAK BY NEW MUSIC SEMINAR
   

:: REVIEWS

“Emotional Rock, enveloped by a captivating voice...
could be a mix between Radiohead and U2. Contagious and fascinating…
Enation is becoming one of the most elegant formations of American Rock, with European-style...”  
~ ROCKTOTAL.com
 

"Their music's getting placed everywhere. I think of The Fray when they
were on 'Gray's Anatomy', it kind of helped break them... and I think that's how these guys will break." 
~ BRUCE TYLER / FORMER EXECUTIVE VP, SONY MUSIC
 

"Fast becoming recognized as one of the best epic rock bands around."
~ CD BABY / Notable Artist Reviews

 

 

Video: 'WE'RE LISTENING'

 

WHAT ENATION HAS ACCOMPLISHED AS AN INDEPENDENT BAND   {Back to top}

Having released their first album in 2004, Enation is now positioned as 'One of indie's premier rock bands' (- CDBABY). In addition to selling over 200,000 songs and having their music heard on a host of soundtracks (details below) 2012 has brought more good news for the band; frontman Jonathan Jackson has landed a starring role on the ABC primetime drama 'Nashville'. Jonathan plays Avery Barkley, an up and coming singer-songwriter trying to make it in Music City. The drama has already received critical and fan buzz around the country -- USA Today named 'Nashville' the #1 must watch new show of the Fall Season. Since it's premier seen by nearly 10 million viewers, 'Nashville' has become one of the most talked about new shows, and has been picked up by ABC for a full complete season. 

Jonathan has released three singles from 'Nashville' -- 'Twist of Barbwire', 'Kiss' and his original anthem, 'The Morning of the Rain' -- each one produced by Grammy and Oscar winning producer T-Bone Burnett. After Jonathan performed 'Kiss' on 'Nashville' the song burst onto the charts, climbing all the way to #49 on the national iTunes country charts. 

 

   

2012 has brought about Enation live performances on the East and West Coasts of America, three album releases (two live albums and a soundtrack release) as well as their growing online fan community (known as 'Enation Army'). 

Enation came onto the music scene late 2004, the year they released their first album, “Identity Theft”. The band immediately had their music featured on MTV.com and the film ‘Stephen King’s Riding The Bullet’. Since that time Enation have sold over 200,000 songs, and have been featured on 'One Tree Hill', ‘General Hospital’, A&E’s ‘Dog The Bounty Hunter’ and a host of other soundtracks. Enation’s song ‘Feel This (feat. Enation)’ went Top 10 on the iTunes Rock Charts (#8). Their EP, ‘The Madness Of Love’ held 5 of the Top 10 songs on the National CDBaby Rock Charts––and their recent single ‘Glorious’ was the #1 song for 4 + weeks across all genres on CDBaby, the largest distributor of independent music in the world. They were nominated to the prestigious New Music Seminar’s Top 100 ‘Artists on the Verge’ list which noted, “These are the artists in America most ready to break for 2011.” Enation also won the Grand Prize four times on the MTV sponsored international song competition, OurStage, a website that boasts over 4 million registered fans.

In October, 2011, Enation won a national competition sponsored by AOL.com from the new social media splash page web company About.Me. Over 50,000 entries were voted on by the national public to choose the Top 20 pages. Next, a panel from About.Me/AOL chose the top 10, and then finally awarded their top three pages as the grand prize winners.

Enation won the grand prize––including being featured on a NY Times Square billboard for a month in downtown Manhattan, an invitation to attend About.Me’s special event in New York City and free national exposure as one of the three ‘faces’ of the About.Me campaign throughout the year.

Their new album, ‘My Ancient Rebellion’ was released October, 11th, 2011, just three days after their About.Me NY Times Billboard went up. The album debuted #113 on the national iTunes Alternative charts, next to bands such as Coldplay, Kings of Leon, Muse, Radiohead, and the Black Keys -- quite a feat for an indie rock band who up until now has done everything on their own.

Enation also partner with the anti-human trafficking organization NOT FOR SALE to help bring awareness to combat the growing global atrocity of modern-day slavery.

They have been compared in reviews to the likes of Coldplay, Radiohead, U2, and Snow Patrol. Enation describes their music as Indie-Euro-Alternative-Folk-Rock. 

CDBaby, the largest distributor of independent music online in the world, took notice that Enation is "Fast becoming known as one of the best epic rock bands around," and recently also declared that Enation is 'one indie's premier rock bands.'

 

 

ABOUT their NEW ALBUM 'MY ANCIENT REBELLION’

"The title is taken from the first line in song three, 'Prodigal', which says, "Well my ancient rebellion has been laid, it was buried in a tomb where all my debts were paid." The way we see it in Enation, there are two kinds of rebellion, really. The first is the rebellion towards the light. The second is the rebellion toward darkness. ‘My Ancient Rebellion’ is about the choice that we get to make between what kind of rebel we want to be. We tend to think that if you look at the world, what you see is; it's a lot easier to live in apathy than compassion. It is a lot easier to live in bitterness than in joy. It's a lot easier to live in hate than love. Therefore, to be the most rebellious we can be, we rebel against the darkness. To live in love and compassion is the greatest rebellion of all. That's what this album in large part is about. The album has a sort of non-linear, cinematic feel to it, with lots of musical landscapes and deep places of the heart.

We are partnering with the global non-profit organization Not For Sale (www.notforsalecampaign.org), an organization which is dedicated to ending the atrocity of modern-day slavery and human-trafficking. It's amazing to think that in our world we still have to combat this, but in truth it's more an epidemic now than it ever has been. That's why we are proud to support Not For Sale in all of their work to abolish modern-day slavery. Portions of 'My Ancient Rebellion' sales will literally go towards freeing human beings from slavery.” ~ Jonathan Jackson
 

ENATION:
W H A T ' S  H A P P E N I N G  R I G H T  N O W :
 

ENATION FRONTMAN JONATHAN JACKSON ON ABC'S PRIMETIME DRAMA, 'NASHVILLE'

Jonathan Jackson (Enation frontman - lead singer, songwriter, gtrs., piano) will be seen on one of the most talked about new shows of the Fall TV Season. Jonathan will play Avery Barkley, an up and coming singer/songwriter trying to make it in Music City, on the ABC primetime drama 'Nashville' (set to air Wednesday, October 10th, 2012). Go to our NASHVILLE PAGE to learn more about the show. 

 

 

ENATION GETS RADIO PLAY, WINS POWER 94.1FM 'CRANK IT OR YANK IT'

Enation's new anthemic rock single 'The Rushing Wind' was picked up by Bend, OR radio station Power 94.1FM. The song then competed in and won a caller-driven song competition on the station called 'Crank It or Yank It!'. 

ANOTHER RADIO STATION PICKS UP ENATION IN CENTRAL OREGON

After the success on Power 94.1FM another large Central Oregon radio station, Clear 101.7FM, picked up Enation's single, 'Tears of Hope' and played it for their large audience. The station seemed impressed with the Enation's showing on their rival station and spoke highly of Enation's Co-Manager, Chris Bergstrom, whom they had worked with before. That makes two stations in one week picking up singles from the band known as one of the premier indie rock bands in America.  

 

NEW ALBUM DEBUTS #113 NATIONAL ITUNES ALTERNATIVE CHARTS 

Enation's new album 'My Ancient Rebellion' cracked the Top 200 iTunes National Alternative Charts upon it's release, quite a feat for a completely independent band. 'We were a bit shocked,' drummer Richard Lee said. 'It's a big accomplishment for us to be up there with other bands we respect like Coldplay, Muse and Radiohead. They all have much bigger budgets than we do, but our fans passion really came through.' 
 

Enation runner-up in mtv sponsored ourstage PANEL fan favorite 

The MTV sponsored independent music competition website OurStage hosted a web-series called 'The OurStage Panel' with the goal of discovering the best in independent music in the world. Enation was one of only 16 artists to be chosen to compete. They received high praise on the show, including the following: 

"Their music's getting placed everywhere. I think of The Fray when they were on 'Gray's Anatomy', it kind of helped break them... and I think that's how these guys will break." - Bruce Tyler, former Executive Vice President, Sony Music

"This hook is just stuck in my head right now... it won't get out of there... like The Script and The Fray, I can definitely see them breaking through with this kind of sound." - Shannon Dastur, Program Director, Z100, New York

Although Enation didn't win the Grand Prize from the judges, the fans watching the show made it clear that to them Enation is indeed one of the premiere indie bands in the world by voting them Runner-Up as the 'OurStage Panel Fan Favorite' Band. Enation lost the close national contest by only 101 votes to Nashville singer-songwriter Austin Renfroe, who has become friends with the band.  

ENATION WINNERS OF NATIONAL AOL/ABOUT.ME CAMPAIGN 

Recently the AOL owned splash web page company About.Me created a national competition to find the new ‘face’ of their company. Over 50,000 pages were entrants into the competition. About.Me has garnered over a million users in their first 250 days of existence; that’s faster growth than Facebook or Twitter and puts them at the cutting edge of social media innovation.

The competition was promoted heavily through AOL.com to the entire United States. After thousands of votes and messages from fans, Enation was voted one of the top 20 pages. Next, a panel from About.Me/AOL chose the top 10, and then finally awarded their top three pages as the grand prize winners.

Enation won the grand prize––including being featured on a NY Times Square billboard for a month in downtown Manhattan, complimentary flights, hotel, and an invitation to attend About.Me’s special event in New York City and enjoy seeing their billboard in person. They will also get free national exposure as one of the three ‘faces’ of the About.Me campaign throughout the year.

The NY Times Billboard from About.Me featuring Enation was unveiled just three days before Enation’s new album, ‘My Ancient Rebellion’ was released on October 11th, 2011. 

BIO:

B I O G R A P H Y   /   B E H I N D   T H E   M U S I C :
 

THE STORY

The foundations of Enation started with brothers Jonathan and Richard Lee Jackson. Having been raised in Battle Ground, WA (just north of Portland, OR) they gave up the verdant fields and continuous rainfall of the Pacific Northwest for the concrete jungle and blazing sun of Hollywood, CA to pursue careers as actors at the ripe ages of 10 and 13. Richard had played drums since he was in elementary school and Jonathan took up playing guitar a few years after him, being the younger brother. Sibling rivalry (at a young age) turned into a synergy of complimentary gifting as the brothers began to play music together over the ensuing years. It was as if Providence had smiled on them––they discovered that drums and guitar sound rather nice together. Jonathan as the guitarist naturally began to write songs and sing, with Richard laying down the beat with splashes of backing vocals. The first inklings of Enation were in the works.

Over the next several years the brothers migrated up and down the West Coast, flying from California to Washington, with frequent stops in Portland and visits to Seattle. At the age of just 14 Jonathan was fronting at the famous Whisky A Go-Go with Richard on the drums under the name ‘Scarlet Road’. Club gigs continued, although they were both too young to enjoy the complimentary alcohol offered to them.

Their in-depth exposure to the film and television industry as actors from a young age gave the brothers a keen sense of cinematic expression, the importance of spontaneity, genuine emotion, and vulnerability as artists––an influence they carry with them in their matured music today.

Coinciding with these inspirations came U2’s ‘Zoo TV’ tour. With its radical, outrageous, mind-blowingly anthemic songs and charades, Jonathan and Richard’s imagination took flight to a whole new level. That concert and tour was a pivotal moment for their creative canvas––for the first time they saw what limitless possibilities in music looked like. Add to the mix Peter Gabriel’s ‘Secret World Live’ and ‘Growing Up’ tours and the bar for musical, emotional, and spiritual expression through music had officially been raised for the aspiring musicians. A new vision was beginning to form, one that set its sights on music as calling, as much as vocation.

 

THE MEMBERS

Enation formed through friendship and playing gigs together over the course of a couple years. Jonathan, as the songwriter, guitar player, piano player and lead vocalist, has been influenced by a number of artists; most prevalently, Bono and the Edge from U2, Bob Dylan, Billy Corgan from Smashing Pumpkins, and Leonard Cohen. An odd blend, some might say. But the restlessness and searching in each of his mentors, give insight into Jonathan’s own hunger for purpose and a Higher Calling. Jonathan brings a rare combination to Enation––the ability to convey an array of emotions vocally that could make Bono proud, while at the same time play guitar riffs that reach for the heights of The Edge. Lyricists the likes of Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, and Leonard Cohen round out the influences that give singer/songwriter Jackson, and consequently Enation, the cocktail that seamlessly blends sonic anthems with insightful, lyrically driven emotional anthems. 

 

 

Drummer Richard Lee’s influences began when he was young with the love-drenched, insanely reverb laden snare back beats of Chicago. As he grew older, his musical tastes developed into a love for the heart-pounding war-like pulsing of Larry Mullen, Jr. of U2, the anthemic inspirations of Stewart Smith from the British band, Delirious?, as well as the formidable passion of Marcus Dahlstrøm from the Swedish-Metal band Blindside. The combination gives Enation a fresh energy and anthemic backbeat that holds the songs together.

In the earliest formation, bassist Daniel Sweatt played guitar, while Amber Sweeney (now of Everly fame) played bass. After about a year Amber decided to pursue her own music career (Enation and Everly have since played  shows together). With the band in need of a bass player, Daniel Sweatt moved from rhythm guitar to bass. Daniel’s instincts as a guitar player were a benefit for the band; he brings a musical quality to his bass playing that is as much based on melody as it is low end punches. 

For several years the band also included Michael and Luke Galeotti as members (keys and rhythm guitar, respectively), but after several years the band parted ways with them, citing creative differences. 

The founding members of the band, the brothers Jackson and Daniel Sweatt, inhabit Enation as a tour-de-force three piece. They continue to create music that has given them the reviews and reputation as being one of the premier indie bands in America.  

 

THE MUSICAL ROOTS

The roots of Enation’s musical influences stem from each band member’s own history and preferences; Jonathan and Richard gravitated early to the anthemic, emotional, and spiritual qualities heard in the likes of U2, Peter Gabriel, and Radiohead. Both the Jackson brothers and Daniel Sweatt formed much of their musical skeleton from the largely alternative rock landscape of the early-to-late 90’s as well, from such bands as Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, as well as later influences ranging from anthem-rockers Switchfoot to metal icons POD. Currently, Enation lists a handful of other key influences, citing many European bands such as Coldplay, The Frames, and Snow Patrol.

 

THE IMPACT

Enation’s desire is to impact culture by creating artistic expressions that are good, true, and beautiful. The best art challenges us. It digs for the deeper questions of the heart. Enation view their songs much in those terms––to challenge themselves, and their listeners as well. Enation have also wanted to show that, more than words, ‘Love is an Action’. In that Spirit they have partnered with amazing charitable organizations such as Water For Life, Compassion, OxFam America, Just Yell Fire, and Not For Sale. As stated ages ago, Plato wrote: “Give me the songs of a nation, and it does not matter who writes its laws.” If that is true, then Enation, as one of the leading independent rock bands in America, is part of that tapestry in the US and abroad.

With a beautifully complex and emotional catalogue of music that has earned them the reputation as one of the premier independent rock bands in America, Enation continues to stake new ground in a world that holds endless possibilities for them.

 

 

REVIEWS::

"Fast becoming recognized as ONE OF THE BEST EPIC ROCK BANDS AROUND, the group combines expensive jams with honest, soulful lyricism." ~ CD BABY / Notable Artist, Newsletter

"These are the artists in America most ready to break for 2011. The New Music Seminar recognizes these 100 Artists On the Verge as the strongest among the hundreds of thousands of artists in the field."
~ New Music Seminar / Top 100 "Artists On The Verge" 2011

“Emotional Rock, enveloped by a sensible and captivating voice... could be a mix between Radiohead and U2. Contagious and fascinating, able to touch anyone… Enation is becoming one of the most elegant formations of American Rock, with European-style...” 
~ ROCKTOTAL.com

“Much of (the album) is driven by echo-laden guitars... splashes of piano... and an arena-rock backbeat that holds it all together. The heartthrob’s rock star skills borrow from the book of Bono, with vocals that range from breathy whispers to an overdriven falsetto that hits with all the impact of a raw nerve. The group’s lyrics suggest a tantalizing spirituality, hinting at a deeper faith that’s never made explicit. Much like U2, there’s a scriptural tone to many of Enation’s lyrics—but it never gets heavy enough to turn off secular fans.”
~ SCOPEMAG.com

"Contains masterfully written songs. Frontman Jonathan has an exceptional quality in his soft vocals... whispering Fatherly advice like a lullaby. Beautiful piano accompaniment...”
~ RADIOINDY / Enation won a GrIndie Award for their album "Soul & Story: Volume One", an indie artist awards coinciding with the Grammy’s

“Enation… have burst on the scene... The vocals sound like a cross between David Gray and Augustana which is a perfect soothing blend... The songs are rich in symbolism... I highly recommend this album to anyone who enjoys Augustana... or Snow Patrol.” 
~ ROCK&REVIEW.com

"...their footprint as an independent band has a national, if not international, imprint... The band has been compared to the likes of Radiohead, Coldplay, Snow Patrol, and U2. Much like the bands they are compared to, Enation audiences seem to be left breathless by the passion and power of their live concert experience." 
~ CLARKCOUNTYLIVE.com

“Enation work magic… that lets all the raw-nerve intensity of frontman Jonathan Jackson's songwriting bleed out… he'll make you a believer.” ~ SOAPCASTS.com

“Earnest, U2-inspired rock…”
~ THE COLUMBIAN NEWSPAPER

“Compared to the likes of Radiohead and U2…”
~ CBS affiliate station / KATU BROADCAST

“Enation is quickly becoming known as one of the best independent bands on the music scene today.”
~ JITZUL.com

"Enation is a rock band with a bright future... (Listen to the) strong vocals and thoughtful lyrics... and you’ll understand why it’s always at the top of the charts."
~ OurStage.com / Enation is a four-time Grand Prize Winner on this MTV Sponsored International Indie Song Competition

"Jonathan creates a glimmer of positivity that bursts through the darkest days and elegantly screams, ‘You’re not alone. You can do anything to which you set your mind. You will not only survive your struggles, you’re going to emerge a better person.’

Legions of fans have latched onto and propelled Jonathan and his Enation bandmates to the forefront of the independent rock world.
~ PLANETVERGE.com