"Vocalist Jon Pierce always had an obsession with Britpop and synth pop, even when it was out of style in the ‘90s, and the musician's fascination with this type of music has paved the way for Elkland, a new wave-sounding alternative pop band out of Horseheads, New York. The young quartet has already made the Billboard charts for tracks off their debut album, and hopes are high for the future of these stylish rockers.Brothers Jon Pierce (vocals) and Jesse Pierce (drums) formed Elkland in their upstate New York hometown of Horseheads, along with Joel Tarpin (keyboards) and Adam Kessler (guitar). The band was named after the ideals of a small town nearby Horseheads called Elkland, Pennsylvania, which they decided to name their band after when thinking about the small town's consistency and purity, two things Elkland members value equally in their music and in their band. The idea for Elkland sprouted from Jon Pierce, who grew up alongside Jesse in a highly religious household limited by music restrictions. After Jon heard the West Coast band Joy Electric's album Melody at age 12, the shutters were removed from his musical eyes, helping propel his synth pop career. The Pierce brothers set out with an old synthesizer and Tarpin, a school mate and friend, soon joined forces with the boys to form Goat Explosion, the precursor to Elkland. Goat Explosion was the boys' first taste at professional music, and the trio traveled the country coast to coast before 2002, when the addition of Kessler and high school graduation led to the changing of the band's name to the freshly established Elkland.Elkland is still an up-and-coming band, though they were signed with Columbia Records and released their debut album Golden in 2005. The album put Elkland on the map, and a mix of its single ""Apart"" made the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart in '05, as well."