Fort Collins, CO. May 2010 Photograph by: Luca Venter

Sleeping At Last is an indie band with commercial cred. Having songs featured on ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Private Practice,” the duo Ryan O’Neal (voice, guitars, pianos) & Dan Perdue (bass, pianos) originally formed in 1998 in Wheaton, Ill., and built a following opening for bands like The Appleseed Cast and Switchfoot. They signed to Interscope Records in 2002, but returned to independent recording six years later.

Last year the group decided to do something drastically different. They announced that beginning in October 2010, they would release three songs on the first day of the month for an entire year. Dubbing the project Yearbook, the collection is released on their website and is named after each month.

We recently caught up with Ryan O’Neal to talk about this new endeavor and also to hear about how they became involved with To Write Love On Her Arms, a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide.

How do you strike a balance between being true to your art and being commercially viable?

Ryan: Anyone that says that don’t care if anyone “gets” their art, is more than likely lying. There’s a universal desire to receive positive feedback and to share things we create! So, as much as I would like to say “I don’t write with commercial viability in mind,” that’s not entirely true. I do have a very stubborn and personal set of standards and criteria that I try very hard to always adhere to, but after those things are considered and hopefully met, it’s always important to me that the words I’m choosing to sing and the music that I’m choosing to write, is somewhat accessible and with clear intention. So although I don’t sit down and set out to write something that is commercially viable, I very much want these songs, which are so personal to me, to be as articulate and understandable as possible to anyone kind enough to let these songs into their world. Another way to put it would be, if art and pop culture have anything in common, it should be quality.

You’ve said you approach songwriting like an audio journal – what do you hope people identify with in your music?
Ryan: I’ve always believed that sincerity is so critical in writing a decent song, especially songs that are personal. So, when I write, I very much hope that through my effort of being as honest as I can, someone may feel encouraged in some small way… either within the questions of the songs, or just the feeling that someone else is struggling with the same struggles. Music is super special in that we all interpret it in countless ways – I love that about it, so I hope folks can feel encouraged through our songs in ways we never even intended.

You make a distinction between using the words fan and friend. Could you explain?
Ryan: Not entirely sure why, but to refer to our listeners as “fans” always feels a little unappreciative or presumptuous in some way. I like the word “listeners” better… and often “friends” is nice replacement word too!

How do you feel about the way our culture approaches artists?
Ryan: I feel like artists as a whole probably get a lot more credit than is really deserved. Let’s be honest, to create “art” is a huge gift that we are meant to enjoy! It’s rarely some burden that we must carry, so in that way, the appreciation for artists themselves is maybe a little blown out of proportion. but at the same time, I think that adoration and excitement is the glue that binds a listener to a specific artist’s body of work, which is certainly a privilege (hopefully at both ends!)

You’re approaching recording in a different way with Yearbook. What was the inspiration for this?
Ryan: Early last year, after one of our tours, the discussions of “what’s next” began. After a little while of thinking about it, I felt like touring is great, but that at that time, we weren’t putting out new music nearly as much as we could! That’s where my heart is, in the writing process, so eventually the details of Yearbook began to take shape and when it did, we knew it was a big enough challenge and a big enough adventure that we had to do it! For months the details were sorted out – thinking through every aspect of it, we concluded that even in its worst case scenario, it would still being an incredible workout of creative muscle and would probably teach us more than any other project could. So we buckled down and committed – three songs every month for a whole year! Thirty-six new songs in total.

Have changes in the recording industry made this nontraditional model possible?
Ryan: Absolutely! Since our return to our independence a few years back, we have found ourselves in a really exciting position to really do whatever we want. Trial and error, with so much freedom to make the career exactly as we want it. It’s been an amazing experience. Yearbook is a perfect example of something that would just be too risky for a record label to fully get behind in previous years, especially for anyone that hasn’t had the extreme success of U2 or Radiohead. But thanks to how the industry has changed over the years, success as an independent feels more approachable, so projects like this aren’t as scary to us, being so hands on, as it may have appeared in past. Another aspect of it is, the music industry and technology have changed so much, and so quickly, that the traditional models of making music are completely challenged because music is so available and often free. The unfortunate side effect is that music has become slightly less special in people’s daily lives in many ways. The encouraging side of that is that those challenges are exactly what force artists to experiment with new models, with new concepts to reshape people’s consumption of music. Yearbook is our attempt at adapting to these everchanging music industry climates!

What cause are you passionate about?
Ryan: To Write Love On Her Arms is an organization that has been near and dear to my heart for a while. They offer resources and encouragement to people who struggle with addiction, self injury, depression, etc. I’ve had the privilege of performing songs at several TWLOHA events and to see so many hurting but brave people attend, in an effort to rebuild their lives; that is something very special to me. TWLOHA’s message is  ”hope is real. help is real. your story is important.” and that resonates with me a lot. Other organizations that inspire me are: Invisible Children, Discover The Journey, First Response Team … all of which are doing incredible, incredible things… addressing such important issues head on.

How were you first made aware of TWLOHA?
Ryan: Many people close to me have struggled with depression, addiction, etc. which is why TWLOHA quickly became something I wanted to support. I feel like they address issues that are seldom talked openly about. I met the founder, Jamie Tworkowski, about five years ago, at the beginning of TWLOHA’s story.

What’s next for you?
Ryan: Well, there’s about four months left in this “Yearbook” project, which means four new EPs have yet to be written, recorded and released. After Yearbook, plans of touring will be sorted, so I am excited to give these new songs a home in live performance. And after so much consistent writing, I am sure that I won’t be able to go too long before the itch of writing new songs sets in again.

For updates and news on their monthly releases, follow @sleepingatlast and Facebook, where you can also hear some of the tracks.