The White Tie Affair

The White Tie Affair(also known asTWTA) is an Americanpopband fromChicago,Illinois,made up of vocalistChris Wallace,guitarist Sean-P, drummer Tim McLaughlin and keyboardist Ryan McLain. In early 2007, the band signed withEpic Records/Slightly Dangerous and released their debut album,Walk This Way,in April 2008. The album contains the band's two singles, "Allow Me to Introduce Myself...Mr. Right" and "Candle (Sick and Tired)",which have been featured onMTV'sTRLandThe Hills

The White Tie Affair
The White Tie Affair performing duringThe Fame Ball TourinMinneapolis,Minnesota,In 2009
Background information
Origin	Chicago,Illinois,United States
Genres	Pop rock neon pop dance-rock electronic
Years active	2006–2012, 2020–present
Labels	Epic Sony BMG Slightly Dangerous
Members	Chris Wallace Sean Patwell
Past members	Tim McLaughlin Ryan McLain Ryan Cook
Website	https://www.facebook.com/thewhitetieaffair/

History

The band signed withEpic/Slightly Dangerous in 2007 and began touring with artists such asSecondhand Serenade,Making April,Innerpartysystem,Metro Station,The Medic Droid,andKill Hannah.In June and July 2007, the band went on a cross-country US tour alongsideFireworks.In the fall of 2007, the band recorded their debut album,Walk This Way,at Annetenna Studios inBurbank, California.In January 2008, bass player Jeremy Johnson left the band and was replaced by Ryan Cook, who left the band in February 2009.

In March 2008, the band was invited to perform at the annual "Pajama Party" at the Playboy Mansion. That summer, TWTA joined the 2nd AnnualTrue Colors Tourfor the show's Midwestern leg, sharing the stage withCyndi Lauper,The B-52'sandRosie O'Donnell.TWTA also headlined several dates of Kill Hannah'sHope for the Hopelesstour during this time, along withThe Medic Droid.That fall, the band was part ofPlayboy's Girls of the Big 10 Tour and was featured in a fashion spread in the magazine's November issue. TWTA was also featured on episode six of the fourth season ofMTV'sThe Hills.In December 2008, the band's remix of "All Black" was included inGood Charlotte'sGreatest Remixesrelease.

In March 2009, the White Tie Affair toured withSecondhand Serenadeand were the opening act forLady Gagaon her first solo North American tour,The Fame Ball Tour.Following The Fame Ball tour, the band would take part in Van's 2009Warped Tour.The White Tie Affair would join bands such asThrice,NOFX,3OH!3,All Time Low,Cash Cash,andAlexisonfireat the summer-long music festival.

In October 2009, The White Tie Affair began their headlining tour along withEvery Avenue,Stereo SkylineandRunner Runner.

In 2010, shortly after their headlining tour—The Traveling Talent Show—drummer Tim McLaughlin left the band. There was never any permanent replacement for the band's drummer. The band later recorded their second album which remains unreleased despite being set to release in the fall of 2010. On April 13, 2010 the single "You Look Better When I'm Drunk" was released.

In an online interview,which took place on June 8, 2012, it was revealed that the White Tie Affair had broken up.

In August 2012, vocalist Chris Wallace posted onFacebookthat he would release his debut solo album,Push Rewind,in September 2012.

In October 2020, the band began posting cryptic photos on their social mediaaccounts, eventually releasing a finished version of the previously unreleased demo, "Seasons", which was a fan favorite from their headliner tour.

Commercial debut

On April 22, 2008, the White Tie Affair released its major label debut,Walk This Way.The album contains the singles "Allow Me to Introduce Myself...Mr. Right" and "Candle (Sick and Tired)".Produced byMatt MahaffeyandJeff TurzoofWired All Wrong,the album was recorded at Annetenna Studios in Burbank, CA. in the fall of 2007. The music videos for "Allow Me to Introduce Myself...Mr. Right" and "Candle (Sick and Tired)" debuted on No Good TV in the spring of 2008 and were also featured on MTV'sTRL.The uncut director's version of the two videos reached 400,000 views onYouTube,and was the most watched YouTube video on March 29, 2008. In December 2008, director Jon Watts filmed a new video for "Candle (Sick and Tired)" which featuredJessica Lee Rose,as well as cameos by Joel and Benji Madden ofGood Charlottein the tour bus scene. Watts had previously filmed videos for numerous bands such asDeath Cab for Cutieand the artistFatboy Slim.

Live show/style

The band has been critically acclaimed for their dynamic live shows. Many of TWTA's songs are dance songs that thrive off of audience interaction. An article from theChicago Sun-Timesdescribes the sound:

There’s a chance the White Tie Affair is on the cutting edge by adopting that “has a beat and can be danced to” mentality. “In my opinion, it seems like music is leaning toward that,” Wallace says. “Hellogoodbye and Justin Timberlake kind of let us know that it was OK to do that. That took the pressure off and paved the way for us to do what we love without falling in line with a scene. The White Tie Affair sounds like a fusion of Timberlake and AFI working together to create pop for the PlayStation generation. –Kyle Koster,Staff Reporter,Chicago Sun-Times.

In an October 31, 2008New York Timesreview, music critic Jon Pareles wrote that The White Tie Affair's style was "leaning toward new-wave guitar and mixing apologies with come-ons."

In early 2009, "The Price of Company" was used in advertisements for the movieMiss March.That March, they were featured in the Verizon Wireless's Rhapsody commercial with their song "Candle (Sick and Tired)". In April 2009, the band was also featured in Soundcheck Riders.

Discography

Albums

Year	Album	Chart peak positions	Singles
		US 200
2008	Walk This Way Released on April 22, 2008 Label:Sony	168	"Allow Me to Introduce Myself... Mr. Right" "Candle (Sick and Tired)" "The Letdown" "Take It Home"
"—" denotes a release that did not chart.

EP

Year	Album details
2007	Scene Change Released: Label:Epic Format:CD
2008	Scene Change Released: Label: Epic Format: CD

Singles

Year	Song	Chart positions		Album
		US	US Club
2008	"Candle (Sick and Tired)"	57	3	Walk This Way
	"Allow Me to Introduce Myself... Mr. Right"	—	—
	"The Letdown"	—	—
2010	"You Look Better When I'm Drunk"	—	27	Non-album single
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.