Recorded in nature, ‘In the Wind,’ from Magic Giant

Los Angeles acoustic rock trio Magic Giant returns to Grass Valley for a concert at The Center for the Arts on Tuesday, Nov. 14. The band was a main stage headliner at the 2017 California WorldFest.

Magic Giant represents the union of three distinct, dynamic and diverse artistic voices. Since his childhood in Washington, D.C., Austin Bisnow obsessively pursued his love of songwriting.

He studied classical composition and then went on to write songs with artists ranging from John Legend to David Guetta.

New Jersey native Zambricki Li got hit by a car in junior high, fell into a coma and once he woke, miraculously learned violin in four days through a rare brain trauma reorganization now known as Acquired Savant Syndrome: “If I could go back, I’d throw myself in front of the car,” Li said with a laugh.

Later on he began writing and one of his first songs was featured in the Sundance-awarded film “Paper Heart.”

Born and raised in Los Angeles to Persian immigrants, Zang learned upright bass in grade school before picking up guitar and studying dance.

He caught the attention of Bisnow and Li when they came across online videos of him salsa dancing and were instantly hooked.

Inside a Redwood tree off the coast of California; within a tunnel by Snoqualmie Pass; on an airstrip in Marble, Colorado; in a wild daisy field near Crested Butte — these are just a few of the places Los Angeles trio, Magic Giant, recorded its debut album, aptly titled, “In the Wind.”

Magic Giant welcomed nature into the fold as their unofficial fourth member.

“It was fate,” said Li. “We were scheduled to play all these festivals — Electric Forest, Wanderlust, Lightning in a Bottle — that just so happened to be in really beautiful parts of the country.”

During Spring 2016, the boys bought a shuttle bus, converted it into a solar-powered mobile recording studio, added a California King on hydraulics and fondly named her Queen Elizabeth.

“There were spaces of time between shows where we could get creative,” Zang said. “Using the bus to power microphones, we recorded outside — literally ‘In the Wind’ — across North America.”

“Living in the city, it’s easy to forget how enchanting the road can be,” Zang said. “We recorded anywhere and everywhere. There were no ceilings or limits to what we could capture.”

Just before Magic Giant hit the road, their single “Set on Fire” began heating up.

Independently released, it went from their studio to #4 on Spotify’s US Viral 50, eventually amassing nearly 4 million streams in less than a year. It became a favorite on Los Angeles radio, hitting #1 on KROQ’s Locals Only.

It was after this success that the three-piece landed a deal with Washington Square.

Billboard claimed, “With a joyful live show the band is inspiring mass dance-alongs,” while NPR wrote, “Magic Giant captures the energy and spirit of the past few waves of upbeat, passionate indie-folk.”