Shiny Toy Guns

Shiny Toy Guns are part of the 2000s wave of bands that melded indie rock and dancefloor-friendly electronica. The band was founded in 2002 by Oklahoma natives Jeremy Dawson and Chad Petree, albeit far from Oklahoma in sunny California. The pair had worked together on Cloud2Ground and Slyder and, seeking to extend their collaboration, began experimenting and ultimately recruited singer Carah Faye Charnow to join Petree on vocals and Mikey Martin on drums.

As Shiny Toy Guns the band began to build a following both locally and, through MySpace, online. In January 2005 the band put out the first version of its debut album, 'We Are Pilots', before re-recording and reissuing it later that same year with a tweaked tracklist. The album release, combined with the band's intensive touring schedule, resulted in a contract with Universal Records in 2006, along with yet another release of 'We Are Pilots'. The added support of a major label brought it to wide critical and commercial success, including a Grammy Award nomination for Best Electronic/Dance Album in 2008.

Later in 2008 Charnow left the group, claiming that she had been pushed out by her fellow band members. She was replaced by former Cooler Kids member Sisely Treasure and in November the newly configured band released its second album, 'Season of Poison'. A remix album, 'Girls Le Disko: The Remixes', bridged the gap between studio albums in 2010 and soon after it was announced that Sisely Treasure was parting ways with the band. Carah Faye Charnow rejoined and in 2012 Shiny Toy Guns put out 'III'.