Rilo Kiley was an American indie rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1998 around Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett, and one of the defining indie acts of the early 2000s. More Adventurous (2004) and The Execution of All Things (2002) are the ones to reach for first; Lewis's solo run picks up from there. Explore Rilo Kiley vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Rilo Kiley formed in Los Angeles in 1998 around Jenny Lewis (former child actress) and Blake Sennett (former child actor; in Boy Meets World and Salute Your Shorts). They are widely cited as one of the most important indie rock bands of the early 2000s alongside contemporaries like Death Cab for Cutie, Bright Eyes, the Postal Service, and the Decemberists. Their varied compositional approach across their catalog - from folk-influenced early material to polished pop on Under the Blacklight (2007) - established their range. The band dissolved by 2014 amid creative and personal tensions between Lewis and Sennett. Jenny Lewis has had solo career since 2006 (Rabbit Fur Coat 2006, Acid Tongue 2008, The Voyager 2014, On the Line 2019, Joy'All 2023). Blake Sennett has pursued parallel work as the Elected and various solo projects.
Rilo Kiley's sound combines indie rock, indie pop, alt-country, indie folk, alternative rock, and chamber pop with Jenny Lewis's distinctive vocal delivery, intricate dual guitar arrangements, and lyrical content addressing relationships, mortality, and personal experience drawing on confessional songwriting traditions alongside contemporary indie rock influences.
Barsuk Records, Saddle Creek Records, Brute/Beaute, and Warner Bros. pressings of the Rilo Kiley catalog have been issued in color variant editions and limited deluxe pressings.
Listeners new to Rilo Kiley typically start with More Adventurous (2004) or The Execution of All Things (2002).
