Following in the footsteps of Cut Copy and Empire of the Sun, Gypsy & the Cat is a self-described "semi-acoustic chillwave" duo who further cemented Australia's reputation as the ultimate hotbed of synth-pop talent. Named after a children's book, guitarist/drummer Xavier Bacash and classically trained pianist Lionel Towers both attended the same high school, but due to their three-year age difference, only struck up a friendship when they met while DJ'ing in Melbourne. Quickly bonding over a shared love of French house and artists such as the Beatles and the Bee Gees, the pair decided to record music as a duo under the guise of Gypsy & the Cat. After uploading material on MySpace, they attracted the attention of influential Australian radio station Triple J and Mark Ronson, who played their track, "Time to Wander," on his East Village radio show. After signing to RCA, they relocated to London, where they opened for the Strokes, Foals and Kylie Minogue, performed at the Splendour in the Grass, and NME Weekender Festivals, and worked on material with mixing engineers Rich Costey (Franz Ferdinand) and Dave Fridmann (the Flaming Lips). Described as the 21st-century answer to Simon & Garfunkel, their debut album, Gilgamesh, which featured the singles "Jona Vark" and "Time to Wander," was released in 2010. Xavier's project Sonny Ism released a debut album Union: Integration of the Shadow in 2020. Lionel releases stripped-back piano music as Lionel Towers. ~ Jon O'Brien, Rovi