Darian Sahanaja

Darian Sahanaja (born May 20, 1963) is an Indonesian-born American[1] singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, and arranger who is best known for co-founding the Wondermints in 1992 and playing with Brian Wilson's supporting band since 1999.[2]

Darian Sahanaja
Sahanaja performing with Brian Wilson, 2019
Background information
Born (1963-05-20) May 20, 1963
Jakarta, Indonesia
OriginLos Angeles, California, U.S.
GenresRock, pop
Occupation(s)Songwriter, arranger, session musician
InstrumentsVocals, keyboards
Years active1992–present
Associated actsWondermints, the Brian Wilson Band, the Zombies, Heart

Association with Brian Wilson

According to Sahanaja, the first record he ever bought was the Beach Boys greatest hits compilation Endless Summer (1974), and that he "used to take physical beatings from neighborhood boys for being a fan."[2] In the early 1980s, he became obsessed with the band's Smile album after hearing an unreleased version of the song "Wonderful". Sahanaja stated that it "pretty much changed my life."[3] He said, "When I met Nick Walusko, who I formed the Wondermints with, one of the first things we bonded over was Smile bootlegs. We got to know [music historian] Domenic Priore and a small group of us became the Smile intelligentsia of that period."[2]

In 2003, Sahanaja worked with Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks in sequencing and arranging the fragments of the unfinished Smile album into a completed work. Wilson, Sahanaja and the rest of Wilson's band performed Brian Wilson Presents Smile both live, and in the studio.[2] Wilson's wife Melinda praised Sahanaja as "an unsung hero on the Smile project. If it weren't for him, and Brian feeling so comfortable with his assistance, I don't think it would have happened."[4]

In 2013, Sahanaja was the Supervising Music Consultant and acted as Paul Dano's musical coach for the Brian Wilson biopic Love & Mercy (2014).[5][6][2]

Other work

Sahanaja performed alongside The Zombies on the 40th anniversary tour and the 2015 tour of their 1968 album Odessey and Oracle. He later performed with Heart at the Dreamboat Annie Live concert, writing string arrangements, while also playing percussion, keyboards, and singing background vocals. In 2012, Sahanaja appeared on the Beach Boys' reunion album, That's Why God Made the Radio, and the subsequent anniversary tour, playing keyboards and providing backing vocals.

Sahanaja was the composer for the Disney XD original series Future-Worm! (2016-2018).

References
  1. Aizlewood, John (November 16, 2000). "Wondermints". The Guardian.
  2. Greene, Andy (June 30, 2015). "Meet Brian Wilson's Secret Weapon: Darian Sahanaja". Rolling Stone.
  3. Roedel, J. (October 12, 2011). "The AD Interview :: Darian Sahanaja (Behind The Smile Sessions)". Aquarium Drunkard. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  4. Leaf, David (Director) (2004). Beautiful Dreamer: Brian Wilson and the Story of Smile (Documentary). Event occurs at 1:12:00.
  5. Forman, Bill (June 5, 2015). "Inside Brian Wilson Musician Darian Sahanaja on playing with the revered Beach Boy and consulting on Love & Mercy". Colorado Springs Independent. Archived from the original on June 11, 2015.
  6. Peter, Gilstrap (June 3, 2015). "Inside Brian Wilson's room: The famed Beach Boy opens up about mental illness, medication, manipulation and the movie about his life". Salon. Archived from the original on August 4, 2015.
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