Pnau (/pɪnˈjaʊ/), stylised as PNAU, are an Australian dance music trio originating from Sydney, Australia. The trio, a duo before 2016, consists of musicians Nick Littlemore (vocals, production), Peter Mayes (guitar, production)[1] and Sam Littlemore (production), with Sam joining in 2016. Pnau have achieved multiple successes throughout their career with their award-winning debut album Sambanova[2][3] and their widely acclaimed 2007 release Pnau.[4] They are also recognised for their heavily publicised apprenticeship under musician Elton John, who signed the duo after listening to their record Pnau.[5] Several of Pnau's recent projects have featured John's involvement, such as Pnau's album Soft Universe[6] and an album featuring Pnau recreations of Elton John's hits called Good Morning to the Night.[7]

Apart from being a member of Pnau, Nick Littlemore also appears as one half of the band Empire of the Sun,[8][9][10] which has had multiple chart-topping singles. In November 2016, the new line-up released "Chameleon", the first single from their album Changa.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 1990s: Beginnings 1.2 1999-2002: Sambanova 1.3 2003-2007: Again 1.4 2007-2009: Pnau and Empire of the Sun 1.5 2010-2011: Soft Universe 1.6 2012-2015: Good Morning to the Night 1.7 2016-2018: Changa 1.8 2018–Present 2 Pronunciations 3 Awards 3.1 ARIA Awards 3.2 APRA Awards 4 Discography 4.1 Studio albums 4.2 Remix albums 4.3 Singles 4.3.1 Promotional singles 5 References 6 External links Biography 1990s: Beginnings

Pnau formed in Sydney, New South Wales by Nick Littlemore and Peter Mayes. The two met at secondary school and began performing together in the mid-1990s, initially playing acid, house music, and trance music.[1] Littlemore recalled meeting Mayes when he was 10; "He tripped me over. We hated each other for a couple years and then we started sneaking out and going to raves when we were about 13 and we formed a bond over intense music." Littlemore and Mayes created their first album when they were in their mid-teens. "It was called Fractal Geometric Spaces Made of Light," Littlemore remembers, "Which is probably why it was never picked up."[11]

1999-2002: Sambanova Main article: Sambanova

In July 1999, Pnau officially released their debut album Sambanova under the independent label Peking Duck. It was recorded in a bedroom studio and they state they only expected it to sell "a few thousand copies".[12] The album was pulled from record stores for using uncleared samples, but re-released in June 2000 and peaked inside the ARIA top 40. In October 2000, at the ARIA Music Awards of 2000, the album won Best Dance Release. In a 2003 interview with The Age, Mayes said that they had no understanding of sample clearances due to their naïveté in the music business.[13] Mayes claimed that the album's recall did seriously affect their commercial sales.[13] Littlemore later contested "They screwed us over for $300,000. Warners didn't; another third party did. But that happens. We're still here, we're still doing it."[14]

Pnau went on to make many live appearances at music festivals like Big Day Out in 2001 and Homebake in 2002. During this time, they garnered a reputation for their lively performances.[15]

2003-2007: Again Main article: Again (Pnau album)

In October 2003, Pnau released their second studio album, Again.[16] The album was not a commercial success and Littlemore was later quoted as Again being "the worst record I've ever done".[17] Littlemore has since retracted the statement. When asked if he still considered Again to be his worst record, Littlemore responded, "Well next to Soft Universe. They're sort of on par." Littlemore further explained that his opinions are influenced by the albums' commercial success, which is an easy headspace for him to get into since "everyone loves Empire of the Sun, it's sold 1.1 million records."[14] Despite the seemingly unfavorable album response, several tracks received considerable acclaim - the most noteworthy being We Love The Fresh Kills which was a significantly popular single for the duo at the time.[4] However, because of Again's lackluster success the pair parted ways for some time to work with other artists such as Robbie Williams,[17] Van She,[18] and Lost Valentinos.[19]

2007-2009: Pnau and Empire of the Sun Main articles: Pnau (album) and Empire of the Sun (band)

In 2007, the duo reunited and wrote over two-hundred songs together and started to lay down an entire album with Nick Littlemore's brother Sam Littlemore as producer. They sent a work-in-progress track to long-time friend and collaborator Luke Steele, who sent back the track with his own vocals. After receiving the track, the Littlemore brothers and Mayes agreed to scrap almost everything they had laid down to focus on a more vocally centered album.[20] The track became known as "With You Forever" and the finalised album was released under the self-titled name Pnau. The album not only featured vocal work from Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore himself, but also had many guest appearances such as Ladyhawke, Feadz, Nik Yannika from Lost Valentinos and Michael DeFrancesco from Van She.[21] The album was released to high critical acclaim[4] and gained unexpected favorable attention from Elton John,[5][22][23][24] declaring it to be the greatest record he'd heard in ten years.[25][26]

Inspired by their track "With You Forever", Pnau began work on a collaboration with Luke Steele, which would call themselves Empire of the Sun.[27] Originally titled Steelemore,[24] Empire of the Sun released it debut single in August 2008 titled "Walking on a Dream" and its debut album in October 2008 with Walking on a Dream. Nick Littlemore and Luke Steele took the roles of bandmates, while Peter Mayes assumed the role of producer. Some critics were quick to note that the band sounded more like a work of Pnau than Luke Steele's band The Sleepy Jackson.[28] Empire of the Sun has achieved international success having been certified 2× Platinum in Australia[8] and gold in the United Kingdom,[9] as well as winning eleven ARIA awards.[10] Pnau makes it clear on their Myspace numerous times that not only is Empire of the Sun a side project of theirs, but that they are also the producers.[29] Regarding Empire of the Sun, in early 2009 news began appearing that Nick Littlemore had disappeared.[30][31] The reality had been that Nick Littlemore had left Empire of the Sun to begin work on the fourth Pnau album along with Elton John.[6]

2010-2011: Soft Universe Main article: Soft Universe

In 2010, Pnau's track "Baby" (Remixed by Breakbot) appeared in the release of Sony Computer Entertainment's "Gran Turismo 5", in the Background Music (BGM) playlist.

Pnau – Nick Littlemore (left), Peter Mayes (right) – performing at Sir Stewart Bovell Park, Busselton, January 2012.

In February 2011, Pnau released "The Trush", the lead single from their forthcoming fourth studio album, Soft Universe. Soft Universe was released in June 2011 and peaked at number 13 on the ARIA Charts. Littlemore has described it as a very "emotional" album, inspired by the breakup with his long-time girlfriend.[32] With input from Elton John, the album features Littlemore singing all the vocals on the album along with tracks co-written with fellow Aussie artist Martin Craft and producer Mark Saunders.[33] The album was positively received, although mainly critics expressed discontent with the lack of the "endearing weirdness of previous Pnau and Empire releases."[34] The Soft Universe album received the Australian Independent Record (AIR) Award for Best Independent Dance/Electronica Album.[35]

2012-2015: Good Morning to the Night Main article: Good Morning to the Night

On 10 March 2012, the first remix track from the anticipated, upcoming Elton John rework album commissioned for Pnau was leaked, initially airing on Pete Tong's BBC Radio 1 broadcast.[36] In July 2012 two singles were released from the album, "Good Morning to the Night" and Sad" while the album Good Morning to the Night was released and reaching number 1 on the UK Albums Chart.[37]

In November 2013 French duo Faul & Wad Ad released "Changes" credited to vs. Pnau. The song samples Pnau's "Baby" and reached the top ten in numerous country across Europe.

2016-2018: Changa Main article: Changa (album)

In November 2016, Pnau released "Chameleon" as the lead single from the upcoming fifth studio album. The song peaked at number 4 on the ARIA Charts and was certified 4x platinum. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2017, the song won the groups their second ARIA Award for Best Dance Release. Changa was released in November 2017 and peaked at number 11 on the ARIA Charts. The album spawned two more singles "Go Bang" and "Changa".

2018–Present

The band released the single "Solid Gold" on 2nd May 2019. This marks the first taste of new material from the band. The song continues Pnau's collaboration with Kira Devine on vocals, and also features additional vocals by Marques Toliver. The band hosted a live chat on its Facebook page to support the release.

Pronunciations

One accepted pronunciation of Pnau is "pah-now".[38] The name is commonly accented to simulate the sound of a gunshot. Nick Littlemore explained the name was the result of an instance when he was speaking in tongues. After shouting gibberish for half an hour, Littlemore decided Pnau would be an appropriate band name.[39]

Another theory on the pronunciation, according to one interview with the pair, is "pah-nyeow". The group has on other occasions explained that the name "rhymes with meow".

Awards ARIA Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987. Pnau have won 3 awards from 13 nominations.[40]

Year Nominee / work Award Result 2000 Sambanova Best Dance Release Won 2008 Pnau Best Dance Release Nominated "Baby" (James Littlemore) Best Video Nominated 2011 Soft Universe Best Dance Release Nominated 2017 "Chameleon" Best Dance Release Won Song of the Year Nominated 2018 Changa Album of the Year Nominated "Go Bang" Best Group Nominated Best Dance Release Won Best Independent Release Nominated Song of the Year Nominated Toby Pike and Nick Littlemore - Pnau "Go Bang" Best Video Nominated Pnau Changa Australian Tour Best Australian Live Act Nominated