Although the band's members first began playing together in Baltimore,[1] Maryland, Alesana officially formed in October 2004 in Raleigh, North Carolina and was founded by Shawn Milke, Patrick Thompson, Dennis Lee, Steven Tomany, and Daniel Magnuson. The name of the band is inspired from Aliceanna St., which Shawn Milke and Patrick Thompson lived on when playing in Baltimore, MD. Aliceanna St. is located in Fells Point, a neighborhood in Baltimore. Alesana was the first band to join Tragic Hero Records in 2005,[2] and their three demo songs titled "Apology", "Beautiful in Blue" and "Goodbye, Goodnight for Good" were featured on the compilation All The Tragedy Money Can Buy. In May 2005 they released their debut EP, Try This With Your Eyes Closed. In the same year, founding drummer Daniel Magnuson was replaced by Will Anderson, who was soon replaced by Jeremy Bryan. Alesana then toured across the United States, including an appearance at the Cornerstone Christian music festival, despite their not being a Christian band ... See More
