The band Cities started in 2004, when University of North Carolina student and singer/guitarist Josh Nowlan met fellow music fans Jeremy Paschall and Robbie Mackey, a bassist and a guitarist, respectively. They got along so well that they decided to start a band. Soon after procuring help from Nowlan's high school friend Joey Ingram on the drums, the group began writing songs and performing at local venues. Their demo gained the attention of North Carolina label Yep Rock Records, who signed the band, and in the fall of 2005 Cities went into Brian Paulson's (of Beck and Superchunk fame) home studios to record their debut self-titled album, which was released the following spring, and was accompanied by a remixed collection, Variations, with work from Fog and Ladytron, among others, a few months later. ~ Marisa Brown