A Nashville-based musician with a Midwestern upbringing, Griffin House spikes his pop/rock songwriting with a dose of rootsy, atmospheric Americana. House was born and raised in Ohio, where he eventually discovered his musical gifts while attending Miami University in Oxford. Inspired by Bruce Springsteen, Woody Guthrie, and the Mermaid Avenue albums by Wilco and Billy Bragg, House embraced the craft of songwriting and issued several albums as an independent artist. His mix of sentimental melodies, ambient guitars, and sparse arrangements attracted attention from Nettwerk, a Vancouver-based record label, and House soon partnered with the label's American branch to issue Lost & Found in 2004. Several self-released albums followed, and House signed with RCA before issuing Flying Upside Down, a folk-rock album recorded with members of Tom Petty's Heartbreakers. Although originally available digitally in 2007, the record was released in stores early the following year, followed in 2010 by his second album for the Nettwerk label, The Learner. ~ Andrew Leahey