SYML is the solo venture of Brian Leseney Fennell, who was previously part of the indie band

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

. SYML released his eponymous debut album on May 3, 2019, through Nettwerk Records.

Life and career

Brian Fennell was born on January 16, 1983, in

Issaquah, Washington Issaquah ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 40,051 at the 2020 census. Located in a valley and bisected by Interstate 90, the city is bordered by the Sammamish Plateau to the north and the "Issaquah Alp ...

, to his adopted parents. From a young age, he began studying classical piano, often playing in his grandmother's retirement home. He began writing his own music when he was 18 years old, his first song being used as a coping mechanism after the death of a schoolmate. After high school, he attended

Seattle Pacific University Seattle Pacific University (SPU) is a private Christian university in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1891 in conjunction with the Oregon and Washington Conference of the Free Methodist Church as the Seattle Seminary. It became the Seat ...

and graduated with a degree in music education with an emphasis in percussion. After years of living in and around Seattle, he returned to his hometown and resides there where he writes and produces out of a home studio. In 2005, Fennell finished his first solo album “Safety Songs.” By the end of that year, he formed the band

with Brian Eichelberger, Chris Bristol, and Rhett Stonelake. Their debut album ''Absolutes'' was released in 2007. Universal Records signed Barcelona in 2008 and re-released ''Absolutes'' with four new songs in 2009. Fennell currently performs under the solo project SYML, Welsh for "simple" and pronounced "sim-muhl", inspired by his own personal heritage from his biological parents, who are Welsh. His experience grappling with his adoption and heritage are influences in his songwriting. He shared his self-titled debut album in 2019 with the now Platinum-certified single "Where's My Love" and the wordless EP ''You Knew It Was Me'' in November 2020. In 2021, SYML released his third body of work, titled ''DIM'' inspired by his late father's cancer diagnosis. Fennell believes the word 'dim' perfectly describes mourning, a theme he continues to visit throughout his work. After his song "Where's My Love" was used on the drama TV show ''

Teen Wolf ''Teen Wolf'' is a 1985 American coming-of-age romantic fantasy comedy film directed by Rod Daniel and written by Jeph Loeb and Matthew Weisman. Michael J. Fox stars as the title character, a high school student whose ordinary life is chang ...

'', the song charted for 20 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot Rock Songs chart. In 2018, the song received Gold certification in Canada and Belgium, and held the #1 spot on Canada's CBC Top 20 charts twice. SYML's "Wildfire" appeared in the Belgian teen drama web series ''wtFOCK'', an adaption of the Norwegian series ''SKAM''. "Where's My Love" was featured prominently in the trailer for the 2018 film '' Adrift''. SYML's singles "Where's My Love", "Fear of Water" and "Body" were featured in the American supernatural drama television series ''Shadowhunters''. In 2020, "Where's My Love" appeared in the movie '' Chemical Hearts''. SYML collaborated with

Lana Del Rey Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Her music is noted for its cinematic quality and exploration of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, with frequent ...

on the song “Paris, Texas” which was released on March 24, 2023 on the album ''

Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd ''Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd'' is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey, released on March 24, 2023, by Interscope and Polydor Records. The album features production by Del Rey, Mike Hermos ...

''. The song samples SYML’s instrumental track “I Wanted to Leave” from his EP ''You Knew It Was Me''. On February 3, 2023, SYML released his sophomore album titled ''The Day My Father Died'', which consists of 15 tracks. The album was produced by

Phil Ek Phil Ek is an American record producer, engineer and mixer. Ek began his career in Seattle, Washington in the early 1990s recording live sound in clubs. He then moved into studio recording, recording small projects and demos for local bands. Aroun ...

and includes collaborations with

Lucius Lucius ( el, Λούκιος ''Loukios''; ett, Luvcie) is a male given name derived from ''Lucius'' (abbreviated ''L.''), one of the small group of common Latin forenames (''praenomina'') found in the culture of ancient Rome. Lucius derives from L ...

, Guy Garvey,

Sara Watkins Sara Ullrika Watkins (born June 8, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and fiddler. Watkins debuted in 1989 as the fiddler of Nickel Creek, the progressive bluegrass group she formed with her brother Sean and mandolinist Chris Thile. In addi ...

, and

Charlotte Lawrence Charlotte Sarah Lawrence (born June 8, 2000) is an American singer-songwriter and model. Early life Lawrence was born and raised in Los Angeles. She is the daughter of actress Christa Miller and television producer Bill Lawrence (TV producer ...

. Expanding on themes from his previous EP ''DIM'', the album focuses on “what happens after we have lost.”

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

EPs

Singles

Guest appearances

References

{{Authority control 1983 births Living people Whitworth University alumni American indie rock musicians People from Issaquah, Washington Musicians from Washington (state)