Tennis (band)

American indie pop band

Tennis

Tennis performing in August 2012

Background information
Origin| Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Genres|

* Indie pop
* dream pop
* surf pop
* lo-fi

Years active| 2010–2025 (hiatus)
Labels|

* Fat Possum
* Communion
* Mutually Detrimental

Members|

* Patrick Riley
* Alaina Moore

Website| tennis-music.com

Tennis is an American indie pop band from Denver which is made up of husband-and-wife duo Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley. The duo formed in 2010, and released their debut album, Cape Dory, in 2011. A second album, Young & Old, was released the next year. Their third album, Ritual in Repeat (2014) was released on Communion Records.

The band's fourth album, Yours Conditionally, was released in 2017, and their fifth album, Swimmer, followed in 2020. Swimmer was named one of the best albums of 2020 by USA Today.[1] Their sixth studio album, Pollen, was released on February 10, 2023. In 2025, after announcing an indefinite hiatus, they released their final studio album, Face Down in the Garden, on April 25, 2025.

## Background

[edit]

Alaina Moore (born May 9, 1985)[2] and Patrick Riley (born September 9, 1986)[3] met in a philosophy class while both were students at the University of Colorado Denver in 2008.[4][5] The couple started the band after they returned from an eight-month sailing expedition on the Eastern Atlantic Seaboard after their graduation.[6] Moore initially had intended to go to law school.[4] The songs on the band's first album later documented their experiences sailing.[7] Prior to forming Tennis, Moore's earliest singing experience was in church choirs during her youth.[8]

## Career

[edit]

### 2010–2013: Cape Dory and Young & Old

[edit]

Their first releases, both in July 2010, were the "Baltimore" EP on the Underwater Peoples label and the "South Carolina" single on Fire Talk. Tennis released their first studio album, Cape Dory on Fat Possum Records in January 2011. The album, featured on NPR,[9] was based on the couple's experiences during their sailing trip. During their first tour, James Barone joined the band on drums.[6]

The second Tennis album, Young & Old,[10] was released on Fat Possum Records on February 14, 2012, produced by Patrick Carney of The Black Keys, preceded by the single "Origins",[11] which was issued on Forest Family Records on December 6, 2011. Tennis released a number of covers as self-released (digital) singles during 2011-2012, including versions of "Tell Her No"[12] by the Zombies, "Is It True?"[13] by Brenda Lee, "Tears in the Typing Pool"[14] by Broadcast and "Guiding Light" [15] by Television. American Songwriter named Tennis their Writer of the Week for the week of April 23, 2012.[16] The band made several television appearances during 2012, performing "Origins" on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on March 21,[17] "It All Feels the Same" on Late Night with David Letterman on April 9,[18] and "My Better Self" and "High Road" on Conan on July 25.[19]

### 2014–2015: Small Sound and Ritual in Repeat

[edit]

In November 2013, Tennis released a 5-song EP titled Small Sound on Communion Records. It was previewed in Pitchfork Advance on October 29, 2013. In May 2014, the band supported sister-act Haim on their North American spring tour.[20]

Their third album, Ritual in Repeat, was released on Communion in September 2014 to critical acclaim. In a feature on the album, NPR Fresh Air's Terry Gross said, "Can you re-invent lively pop from the distant past?...songwriting team Tennis does just that with their new third album, Ritual in Repeat", while NPR's critic Milo Miles said, "On Ritual in Repeat, it's like Moore and Riley discover just how much ancient Latin, or in this case extinct pop styles, is their natural language".[21] Barone left the group in 2015.

On March 29, 2015, Tennis performed at Burger Records' Burgerama 4 festival in Santa Ana south of Fullerton, California. Two songs from the set, "I'm Callin" and "Never Work for Free", were later aired on the May 7 episode of Last Call with Carson Daly.[22][23] Tennis was also selected to perform on April 1, 2015 at the United Artists Theater at the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles for "The Music of David Lynch" event, hosted by the David Lynch Foundation.[24]

### 2016–2018: Yours Conditionally and We Can Die Happy

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Alaina Moore (left) and Patrick Riley (right) performing at Grandoozy in Denver, September 2018

In early 2016, Moore and Riley again took a sailboat journey in the Pacific Ocean, intended to provide inspiration for their next album with their sailing experience being blogged by Urban Outfitters.[25]

The band's fourth and first self-produced album, Yours Conditionally, was released March 5, 2017 on the band's own label Mutually Detrimental.[26][27][28] Record club Vinyl Me, Please chose Yours Conditionally as its "album-of-the-month",[29] and the album debuted at No. 3 on Billboard's Alternative Albums chart and No. 2 on the Vinyl Albums chart.[30]

Tennis appeared at the 2017 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival,[31] and toured supporting Spoon and the Shins.[32] On November 9, 2017, Tennis released the EP We Can Die Happy, preceded by the singles "No Exit" and "I Miss That Feeling". The band toured North America from November 2017 to February 2018 in support of the project.[33]

### 2019–2022: Swimmer

[edit]

On November 8, 2019, Tennis released a new single, "Runner,"[34] followed by "Need Your Love" on January 20, 2020,[35] and "How to Forgive" four days later.[36] The three songs appeared as tracks 4, 2, and 3 (respectively) on Tennis's fifth album, titled Swimmer, released February 14, 2020,[37]

Alaina Moore at Pier 17 in New York

Swimmer was again self-produced on Moore and Riley's Mutually Detrimental label.[38][39] On October 9, 2020, Tennis released a cover of the song "Superstar."[40]

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the band postponed[41] its 2020 tour for Swimmer, with plans to tour the United States with Molly Burch from June 3 to November 17, 2021.[42] In 2021 Tennis collaborated with the cartoon show Rick and Morty to produce the song “Borrowed Time”, which aired on episode 9 of Season 5, “Forgetting Sarick Mortshall”. The song was credited to “Rick and Morty and Tennis”.

### 2022–Present: Pollen, Face Down in the Garden, and hiatus

[edit]

On November 15, 2022, Tennis released the single "One Night with the Valet" and announced their sixth studio album Pollen, which was released on February 10, 2023 by Mutually Detrimental, Moore and Riley's label.[43] A video for the song was released on December 13.[44] The band released the second single "Let's Make a Mistake Tonight" alongside a music video for the track on January 10, 2023.[45] The duo went on a month long sailing trip to record the demos for this album. They often go on extended sailing trips for creative inspiration. [46] On April 11, 2025, Tennis made an announcement via their newsletter that they would be releasing their studio album, Face Down in the Garden, which would be their final album.[47] Tennis will perform a farewell tour from May through September 2025.[48]

## Band members

[edit]

Current members

* Alaina Moore – vocals, keyboards, guitar (2010–present)
* Patrick Riley – guitar, bass guitar (2010–present)

Current touring musicians

* Steve Voss – drums (2015–present)
* Ryan Tullock – bass (2017–present)

Former touring musicians

* James Barone – drums (2011–2015)

## Discography

[edit]

### Studio albums

[edit]

* Cape Dory (Fat Possum, January 2011)
* Young & Old (Fat Possum, February 2012)
* Ritual in Repeat (Communion, September 2014)
* Yours Conditionally (Mutually Detrimental, March 2017)
* Swimmer (Mutually Detrimental, February 2020)
* Pollen (Mutually Detrimental, February 2023)[49]
* Face Down in the Garden (Mutually Detrimental, April 2025)[50]

### EPs

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* Small Sound (Communion, November 2013)
* We Can Die Happy (Mutually Detrimental, November 2017)

### Singles

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* "Baltimore" (Underwater Peoples, July 2010)
* "South Carolina" (Fire Talk, July 2010)
* "Is It True?" (self-released, June 2011)
* "Tell Her No" (self-released, October 2011)
* "Tears in the Typing Pool" (self-released, December 2011)
* "Origins" (Forest Family, December 2011)
* "My Better Self" / "Petition" (ATP, May 2012)
* "Guiding Light" (self-released, September 2012)
* "I'm Callin'" (Communion Records, August 2014)
* "Easter Island" (Universale Music Group North America, May 2015)
* "Ladies Don't Play Guitar" (Mutually Detrimental, August 2016)
* "In the Morning I'll Be Better" (Mutually Detrimental, December 2016)
* "Modern Woman" (Mutually Detrimental, January 2017)
* "My Emotions Are Blinding" (Mutually Detrimental, February 2017)
* "No Exit" (Mutually Detrimental, August 2017)
* "I Miss That Feeling" (Mutually Detrimental, October 2017)
* "Runner" (Mutually Detrimental, November 2019)
* "Need Your Love" (Mutually Detrimental, January 2020)
* "How to Forgive" (Mutually Detrimental, January 2020)
* "Superstar" (Mutually Detrimental, October 2020)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "The 10 best albums of 2020, including Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers and Chloe x Halle". www.usatoday.com. December 14, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
2. ^ "United States Public Records, 1970–2009", database, FamilySearch (May 16, 2014), Alaina J Moore, Aurora, Colorado, United States; a third party aggregator of publicly available information.
3. ^ "United States Public Records, 1970-2009," database, FamilySearch (May 23, 2014), Patrick J Riley, Evergreen, Colorado, United States; a third party aggregator of publicly available information.
4. ^ a b "Tennis: Philosophy Grads Find Success in Music". Pinnacle. The University of Colorado, Denver. June 19, 2011. Archived from the original on January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
5. ^ Ferner, Matt (April 13, 2012). "Tennis, Husband And Wife Indie Rock Band, Talk Marriage, Music In Mile High City". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on April 3, 2017. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
6. ^ a b "Artists » Tennis | Fat Possum Records". Fatpossum.com. Archived from the original on September 19, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2012.
7. ^ ""Marathon" | Forkcast Archive". Pitchfork. June 16, 2010. Archived from the original on October 10, 2015. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
8. ^ "Tennis – "Live review: Tennis @ the Meadowlark"". Heyreverb.com. Archived from the original on February 5, 2011. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
9. ^ "Tennis: The Band Retraces A Route, And A Relationship". National Public Radio. January 22, 2011. Archived from the original on January 11, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2012.
10. ^ "Tennis Announce New Album Produced By The Black Keys' Patrick Carney - News". Pitchfork. November 9, 2011. Archived from the original on April 20, 2012. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
11. ^ "Tennis: "Origins - Tracks". Pitchfork.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2015. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
12. ^ "Tennis - Tell Her No (The Zombies Cover)". Indieshuffle..com. Archived from the original on April 5, 2012. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
13. ^ "Tennis – "Is It True?"". Gorillavsbear.net. Archived from the original on May 13, 2012. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
14. ^ "Tennis: "Tears in the Typing Pool" (Broadcast cover) - Tracks". Pitchfork.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2012. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
15. ^ "Tennis: "Guiding Light" (Television cover) - Tracks". Pitchfork.com. Archived from the original on October 10, 2015. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
16. ^ Schlansky, Evan (April 23, 2012). "Tennis". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved June 13, 2012.
17. ^ "Tennis – "Origins" 3/21 Leno | The Audio Perv". theaudioperv.com. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
18. ^ "Tennis – It All Feels The Same 4/9 Letterman | The Audio Perv". theaudioperv.com. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
19. ^ "Tennis – "High Road" and "My Better Self" 7/25 Conan | The Audio Perv". theaudioperv.com. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
20. ^ "Tennis Tours with HAIM, New Album Out this Spring on Communion Records". Broadwayworld.com. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
21. ^ "For Duo Tennis, Pop Is A Natural Language". NPR.org. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
22. ^ TV.com. "Last Call with Carson Daly - Season 14, Episode 83: Tennis, Im Callin'". TV.com. Archived from the original on August 18, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
23. ^ "Tennis Music - Tennis Music's performance from this year's..." May 6, 2015. Retrieved April 12, 2017 - via Facebook.
24. ^ Phillips, Lior (February 10, 2015). "All your favorite musicians are playing a tribute concert to David Lynch". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
25. ^ "UO Music: Tennis at Sea Day 90 - Urban Outfitters - Blog". Blog.urbanoutfitters.com. Archived from the original on April 19, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
26. ^ "Tennis - Yours Conditionally / Mutually Detrimental from". Piccadilly Records. March 10, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
27. ^ "Tennis Announce Their Fourth LP, 'Yours Conditionally,' Plus Here's "In the Morning I'll Be Better" - Noisey". Noisey.vice.com. December 2, 2016. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
28. ^ "Tennis Prep for Tour and Release of New Album, Yours Conditionally [Stream". The Wild Honey Pie. January 19, 2017. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
29. ^ "Tennis' 'Yours Conditionally' named VMP album-of-month ‹ Modern Vinyl". Modern-vinyl.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
30. ^ "Vinyl Albums : Apr 08, 2017 | Billboard Chart Archive". Billboard.com. April 8, 2017. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
31. ^ Campbell, Ana (January 9, 2017). "Tennis Is Playing Coachella 2017, but Don't Expect T-shirt Cannons or Fireworks". Westword.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
32. ^ Roffman, Michael (March 20, 2017). "Spoon expand North American tour in support of new album Hot Thoughts". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
33. ^ Nazim, Hafeezah (November 10, 2017). "How Alaina Moore Of Tennis Got Over Her Anxiety". Nylon. Archived from the original on November 12, 2017. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
34. ^ "Tennis - Runner". Album of The Year. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
35. ^ "Tennis - Need Your Love". Album of The Year. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
36. ^ "Tennis - How to Forgive". Album of The Year. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
37. ^ "Tennis - Runner". Album of The Year. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
38. ^ "Tennis: Swimmer". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
39. ^ "Mutually Detrimental". mutuallydetrimental.com. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
40. ^ "Tennis - Superstar". Album of The Year. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
41. ^ "RESCHEDULED: TENNIS with Molly Burch". The Cedar Cultural Center. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
42. ^ "Tour Dates". TENNIS MUSIC. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
43. ^ Farrell, Margaret (November 15, 2022). "Tennis Announce Sixth Studio Album with New Track "One Night with the Valet"". Flood Magazine. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
44. ^ Arnone, Joey (December 13, 2022). "Tennis Share Video For "One Night With the Valet"". Under the Radar. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
45. ^ Phillips, Lucy (January 10, 2023). "Tennis have shared a new single, 'Let's Make a Mistake Tonight' | Dork". readdork.com. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
46. ^ "Tennis - Full performance (Live on KEXP)". YouTube. KEXP. June 1, 2023.
47. ^ Breihan, Tom (April 11, 2025). "Tennis Announce Breakup Following Farewell Tour, Share Final Single "12 Blown Tires": Listen". Stereogum. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
48. ^ Green, Walden (April 11, 2025). "Tennis to Go on Indefinite Hiatus, Share New Song From Final Album". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 25, 2025.
49. ^ Russell, Scott (November 15, 2022). "Tennis Announce New Album Pollen, Share Dreamy Lead Single 'One Night with the Valet'". Paste. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
50. ^ "🕊️𝔱𝔥𝔯𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔡 and 𝖊𝖈𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖈 to announce our 7th album, 𝓕𝓪𝓬𝓮 𝓓𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝓘𝓷 𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓖𝓪𝓻𝓭𝓮𝓷 ~ out 4.25.25 ~ We wrote ourselves off the map with this one, right into the abyss. We are very excited for you to hear the songs that we poured ourselves into. pre-save, pre-order, preempt 🗝️🐌 link in bio artwork by @bllossom and @dannygray.info cover photo by @darrenvargas.jpeg". Retrieved February 15, 2025 - via Instagram.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tennis (band).

* Official site
* Tennis on Twitter

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI

Artists|

* MusicBrainz