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Friday, July 29, 2011

Blog Update (July 29th, 2011)

      Apart from kicking down the doors for bands throughout the USA and Canada, there have been several changes on the blog that I wish to address. First off, the blog now runs Monday through Friday, I'm getting weekdays off, punks. And the new logo. Any thoughts? I think it's incredibly attractive in the way only a logo can be. Of course, my opinion is bias and doesn't matter.
      Anyway, early this morning, the blog had some work done. Let's call it a facelift because it has noticeably changed, but has not been changed too drastically. Just a simple reorganizing, nothing to worry about. You can still recognize it. I just wanted to have a quick rundown of new stuff. Including a sexy new band rating system.
      Now, as many of you might already know, the blog features a Popular Post section. Previously, it was located in the sidebar and fairly noticeable. I've made sure that not only can you not miss it, but you can get a quick peek into the contents which gives the reader more information than the previous photo and post title.
Notice the sexy post summaries.
      Also, I've included a new rating system for the band featured in each article. You can let everyone and the band know just what you think about them with a single click of the mouse. If only everything in life was this easy!   
      
The Three Different Ratings
  • Wtf Bro? - This is exactly as it sounds. This band stinks so bad, you want to smack babies. 
  • Cool - The band was decent. They weren't too bad, but they weren't orgasmic either. 
  • Excellent! - The band is what every unsigned band should hope to be! They are underground Gods!
Oh, look! Someone thought Another Step Further was Excellent!
       If you notice, on the right hand side of the blog, there is and advertisement that is ALWAYS THERE! Rawr Creations does all kinds of really neat stuff. They can design most anything for you, from T-shirts to album covers, and even a website! Of course, with all great things comes a price tag, but you'll be surprised what name dropping Joe Mayo or Uncharted Music News will do for you. Spoiler Alert: It gets you a discounted rate! Cue the cheering!
Oh baby, you know you Love a little discount!
      There are several tiny little differences now, but I won't be getting into the nitty gritty details. I would, however, like to ask everyone a small tiny favor. If you haven't noticed, the blog has small ads all over the place. I would like to encourage you all to click on any advertisements that might be of interest to you. They are all google ads so they won't contain anything awful. Every advertisement click helps the blog just a little bit! I'd Love it if you could do that for me! (Don't go on a clicking fest. Google will pistol whip me)
Don't these advertisement look clickable? AND they're content  aware! 
      Another small favor. Google now allows you to +1 things you find in google search. If you would google search Uncharted Music News and click on the itty bitty +1 button, that would help so much!
It turns such a pretty shade of Blue! I suggest playing Eiffel 65 while clicking.
       That should cover most everything I wanted to say. Thanks to everybody who is supporting the blog. Thanks to all the bands and everyone who runs over and likes the Facebook page! (Hint, hint)

P.s. This post counts as today's post. Also, don't be shy with the commenting. I Love reading your sexy words.

P.p.s. I use the word "sexy" alot. This is why I choose to write the articles in the third person.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Another Step Further


      Another Step Further, the punk rock band out of St. Charles, IL does exactly as their name implies. "We are taking music another step further, we are taking the messages of the music another step further. We don’t want to be just another typical band. We want to go past that. Every day, we become better musicians, and at the same time we're adding more meaning and passion to our songs. All of this takes us another step further towards our dreams."
      The band's agressive and distorted blend of punk rock blends in Bullet For My Valentine-inspired harmonies, metal-influenced rock/punk drum beats, a bit of double bass, and rough punk-style vocals with sprinkles of gang vocals and smooth backing vocals to create their dark, yet catchy sound, reminiscent to bands like Rise Against and Bad Religion. "Even though it’s a strong influence, we don’t just sound like another Rise Against. We have our own traits that make us different, even from our greatest influence. We're the only band of our kind in the local music scene. We aren’t defined by genre, we are only defined by the music we make. Because of this, we have a wide range of sounds, and that’s what makes us unique."
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      The band came together in the November of 2009 and was formed by bassist Andrew Stevens and guitarist/vocalist Keane O'Kelley. They found Josh Denson in the bathroom and he joined the band (He would later leave). They recruited Davis Cox on lead guitar and Grant Bonesetter on the drums to form the current line-up.
      Dystopia, the band's 7-track album was released in early 2011. The band says they have moved on from their first attempt and only play one of the songs off the album at shows. "It was basically a compilation of the first few songs our band had written in the past 10 months or so. Many of the songs were just cranked out without any significant meaning." Admits the band.
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      The band's local scene is overflowing with metal bands and numerous pop and punk bands and is home to many growing bands. The only problem is the lack of venues that are willing to let the bands play their loud music. " For a band in St. Charles, most of the bigger opportunities seem to be in other towns that are at least 20 miles away."
      The band tends to put on a loud, energetic show. "We don’t want to be another band who just stands on stage and gets the show over with. We enjoy it up there and spend every second giving it our all for the crowd. You can expect us to be playing with accuracy, but to be energetically moving around the stage as we put on the show."
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      The band has recently come out of a long show hiatus. After the band changed vocalists, they focused on practicing and writing new music for a new, full-length album and recording their single, Never Again, set to be released in August. "Every single new song we have written has been given our full time and effort; they aren’t just churned out mechanically. The band has undergone many changes in this break, and the new feel of the band is unified and clean, yet heavier while being more perfected and original. Not heavier as in metal or screamo, but more towards our original influences. If you compared our current sound to “Dystopia,” you would think it was a completely different band." Says the band.
      They hope to release the new album in early 2012 as long as scheduling and finances go smoothly. They have started booking shows in September and beyond. "We plan to have a decent show schedule with several every month until studio time."

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

City At Dawn

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      In the fall of 2010, the garage band This Hero, A Legend decided to change their name to City At Dawn. "Overtime, as members changed, the direction and overall sound of the band changed. The group came together and started to develop what we all thought of as 'our sound'.  When Jamie joined the band, (our) sound and identity changed. We decided it was time for a change in name." says the band.
      The pop-punk outfit from Yorktown Heights, NY formed in early 2009. They released a four song demo in August of that year. One of their two singers decided to depart from the band to pursue schooling in Florida and in July of 2010, their second vocalist also left. Through Craigslist, the band came across Jamie Stoffa, who would turn out to be a "perfect fit" as the band's new vocalist. That fall and winter, the band put all of it's efforts into writing new material and perfecting their new sound.
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      About 5 days before the band was to play alongside Just Surrender in April 2011, their bassist informed the rest of the group that he would be unable to play due to a very important job interview. Jamie turned to his friend, Rafael Miranda, for help. Rafael learned all of the band's song just in time to play the show. "It was probably one of our best shows as a band.  We were tight, the crowd was awesome, and it was just an overall amazing experience for all of us"
      The current line-up consists of Alex Richardson (lead guitar), Christian Ference-Gray (rhythm guitar), Bobby Brace (drums), Jamie Stoffa (vocals) and Rafael Miranda (bass).
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      The best way to describe the band's interesting style of pop/punk is to say that the band sounds like A Day to Remember with less screaming vocals plus 90's influences like Blink 182. Imagine a collision between late 90's alternative rock and moden post-hardcore. Their sound includes aggressive guitar riffs, powerful drum beats, and catchy lyrics. "While we tend to have a heavy edge to our sound, it's a style that's a sound that virtually anyone can get into."
      Every performance deserves 110%, that's the bands mindset. "We go into every show  trying to make friends and have as much fun as we possibly can each and every time we step onto the stage.  It's hard to say what to really expect from our performance, because we're constantly working to improve and enhance it in any way we can.  Just like our sound, our performance has gone through a lot of changes over the years, so the best way to describe it I suppose would be to say when you come out to expect to have a good time and be ready enjoy what we're doing almost as much as we enjoy doing it."
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      The band plays shows in Poughkeepsie, NY and Danbury, CT due to the lack of local venues. "We're surrounded by plenty of music scenes we seem to go over well in and we're always looking to expand into new areas and be heard by as many people as possible.  With that in mind we are about to leave on our first tour ever on August 4th, going down the entire east coast down to Florida then back home via the parallel states.  Fifteen days on the road with the band Shake That Bear from NJ, and we could not be more excited.  Hopefully this is the start of many more tours to come in the future."
      As far as bragging rights go, the band has already accumulated a few impressive feats. The band was interviewed and guest hosted "The Local Lockdown" radio show on WRRV 92.7/96.9 FM. "Probably the best part of the whole experience was that it was a prerecorded show, so we got to actually listen to ourselves on the radio when it aired.  From beginning to end we extremely excited and proud of what we had accomplished." 
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      The band also had a live interview on WSPC's Indie Rebellion Radio Show on July 14. "On that show we guest dj-ed and the host Garvey asked us a ton of questions that we had to answer on the spot as best we could.  We also debuted our newest single, The Message, live on the air plus we got to play an entire acoustic version of our song 'The More You Know' which was a lot of fun as well.  To help rally some attention, we brought a pair of tickets to the New Jersey show of our August tour and offered them to listeners and we actually had a few people call in which just topped off the night.  The biggest part of the show for us was the pure fact that were live on the air on a station in a different state. All of these things have made us the most motivated than ever and cannot wait to see whatever lies ahead of us."
      The band hopes to release their full-length album in December 2011. "Our upcoming album is going to be nothing like our first demo. Our sound is a lot catchier with a fuller, well-produced sound.  Our first demo had 2 singers, lots of screaming and what someone once called 'constant build-ups to nothing'.  Since then we have found the kind of sound we're going for. So far, four of the songs on the album have been finished and recorded and we all think that the album is sounding amazing thus far!  The rest of the album is written and just needs to be fine tuned and when we get back home from tour we plan on getting the rest of the songs finished off and recorded."

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Khaos Ordinance


      Khaos Ordinance, the metal band from the small town of Streator, IL got their name from the mind of band vocalist, Cory Angelico. "He had decided (on the name) years before forming, Just so happened we started a band and he threw the name out before our first practice and it stuck. The name is a double negative, chaos and order, can be taken as fear and order, Fear weapon, Or simply chaos law. Up for interpretation  whether political, psychological or military based" says the band.

      Cory and Jason Harlan (drums) had been in music projects together before. One day, Jason came across Marky Garcia jamming with a friend. Jason got on the drums and they had a small jam session together. Years later, they would cross paths agains and decided it wasn't a coincidence. Marky joined up on lead guitar. Jason basically told Cory he was the band's singer and in all the excitement of starting a band, Jason signed them up to play a Battle of the Bands. The only problem was that the band had no songs and no bassist.

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      The band kicked it into high gear and they shot out 5 songs. Cory's long time friend and martial arts instructor, Mike Rideout, decided enough was enough and used his paycheck to buy a bass and an amp. By the time it was time for the battle, the entire band had learned the songs and not only played well, but tied the victory with rival bands.

      "All of our fans have said we have a unique and odd sound as a band, we take a different approach with each song, trying to incorporate our feelings as well as something new in each song making each one unique and very different from the others in some way, Each song has the potential to appeal to several different fans with different tastes in metal." They cite friends and family as big influences in their music and claim that they all kep eachother motivated. "As far as musical influences go, it is way too much to even get on paper, but we've been inspired by several of the local acts who have given us the criticisms and feedback we needed to get where we are so far."

(Claim this photo)
      The band assures us that "the metal scene is well and alive in Streator" but that "there is a lack of metal bands recently."  "We have been trying to revive old bands and motivate people who wanna start projects in hopes to get Streator out of it's show slump. As far as venues go, it's hard to find one that is willing to support a metal act. We play in a town 20 minutes away and can pull in crowds of 80 to 100 on good nights, most from Streator. We are just at a loss for support and venues in town."

       "Explosive, powerful and energetic" is how the band describes their performances. "We like to be one with our crowd and go as far as walking into the crowd, moshing, and even allowing closer fans to sing. We like to make people feel like they are the reason we are there because that's simply the truth. We like to support other bands having played before and after us."

Monday, July 25, 2011

Terror In His Presence


      Chicago death metal/melodic thrash band, Terror in His Presence, was very much like most bands when they started. They had members and an idea, they just needed a name. "We wanted something that would stick out in your head. So after many trial and error names, we decided to sit in our old guitarist's basement and start looking through books for inspiration." Since the band's from the 708 area, they decided to look in the bible and turn to the page, in hopes of finding something interesting. Terror in His Presence stuck.

      The band has been through several line-up changes, but Ed Messina (lead guitar) and Kevin Gecan (bass) have stuck around since the beggining. They came across current singer, Zack Hnat, while searching for a new guitarist. The band's then drummer had suggested they ask Zack to play guitar. They taught him one of the songs on guitar and since they had a PA, he tried vocals as well. "When I heard his voice I knew he was our singer. " Recalls Ed.


      After the departure of their drummer, the band recruited Dan Valente, who they had known for a long time. "Originally, he was only a fill-in because he was in another band. Then after a while we asked him to play full-time and he said yes." Through a friend, Ed got into contact with former Calignosity band mate, Joe Sperlak, whom they recruited on rhythm guitar after clicking well with his attitude and abilities.

      The band tries to combine the sound of The Black Dahlia Murder with their "old school heroes" like At the Gates and Carcass. Then, the band takes the aggressive fast thrash sounds of Metallica and Anthrax and mixes it into the band's own unique leads, harmonies and vocal patterns to create Terror in His Presence.


      You can typically find the band playing death metal shows, but the band does enjoy playing for hardcore crowds because they enjoy the challenge and feel as if they can earn their spot. "We have to play harder and put on an amazing show so that we stand out from everyone else" The band's performance is fairly active. "We all do our own crazy things to get the crowd into the show, whether it be Kevin running around in the crowd and making people mosh, or Dan throwing his sticks up and doing crazy stuff on the skins, or Joe and Ed making funny gestures at each other and trying to one up each other on stage, and I definitely like to move around the stage and scream at the crowd to get moving and get into it" Says vocalist, Zack Hnat.

      The band's new EP, No Saviors was produced by Armando Terrazas and Jim Nicademus. "They have both been a huge help in making this EP sound amazing and have both been a pleasure working with" says the band. A lot has changed since the bands first EP, Quarantinatorium. "No Saviors features 2 tracks off of Quarantinatorium, No Saviors and Crucifixion, but are very different in sound (and) our writing has changed. We are a lot more technical and aggressive and have more hooks to bring the listener in and wanting more. The No Saviors EP is our current Golden Achievement and we are very proud to have had the chance to work with the people we did."


      Chicago-based heavy metal and tattoo culture magazine, Rock Scars Magazine, featured the band in an issue after the band was voted by their fans to make the magazine's cover.

Message from the band: If anyone wants to check us out, send us a hello, or set up a show with us, then go to our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/TIHP1

Uncharted Music News

      Hello everyone! Joe Mayo here! I've got quite the announcement to make. Uncharted Midwest Music News is no more. On the plus side, Uncharted Music News is here to dominate. The blog will no longer solely focus on the Midwest and is now open for all bands in the U.S. and Canada!

      Things will still work the same. So don't worry about any big changes. Articles will still be posted as often as I can finish them and I'm STILL looking for volunteer help! Photographers, writers and companies who want to help support the blog and underground music scene feel free to contact me about doing so (email below)!

      If you have a Tumblr, follow Uncharted's Tumblr! I also have a Twitter that you can follow if you'd like! Like the NEW Facebook page! Just get the word out to everyone in any way you can!

      Bands! Fill out the EXPOSURE FORM and email it to me at Joemayounchartedmusic@gmail.com!

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Steady Hands


      The post-hardcore band, Steady Hands, has quite the noble message for their listeners. "When we thought about what we wanted to express, given the passion we pour into our music, we wanted to show other people that life isn't about the drugs you use to forget, or the violence you inflict on yourself or others to cope or the thoughts of suicide you may allow to repress in order to escape. There is hope out there for every person. All we want to say to people is don't give up on hope. Find yours, it is out there. You have worth in this world, no matter what the world will tell you. There's no concrete answer, but I think the name 'Steady Hands' represents that hope. It implies that when everything is against you, steady hands will guide you to a better place. Steady hands will lead you home. I always encourage people to interpret it in their own way, but that's how I see it coming from what our message speaks."

      The Rockford, IL band formed when band, Oh So Secret's last lineup disbanded. Chris Galvez (vocals), Mike Honson (guitar) and Brent Morning (bass) had played in bands together since high school and recruited Nick Berg (formerly of Milosny) on the guitar and Sam Cambell on the drums. The band's first show consisted of playing music from an EP Chris wrote while still in Oh So Secret. Kristian Ratliff replaced Sam on the drums and Alex Gaspar replaced Nick on guitars. Krisian left the band because of differences and the band is currently using Jimmy Martinez as a fill-in drummer.

      The band's sound is very intense, yet melodic. The band has several hardcore influence, but aren't a hardcore band by proper definition. "a lot of people always pigeonhole every band into a genre/sub-genre or some type of category, but I just like to think of ourselves as a band that plays music. It's heartfelt, passionate and completely honest. There are no scrims, or lights or farfetched stage theatrics, it's just honesty. We probably get grouped into post-hardcore more than anything else because that's the genre we most accurately represent, which, honestly, is cool. But, at the end of the day, we're just a bunch of punk kids playing punk music that no one wants to hear but kids like us." Says the band.


      The band takes influence from all kinds of bands, including Verse, Modern Life is War, and The Carrier, just to name a few. "Bands like Moving Mountains, This Will Destroy You, Explosions In The Sky in the post-rock genre have a lot of influence on us because they provide the landscape for what we feel sets us apart. Incorporating one incredibly emotional genre with another really makes for what we feel is a very passionate, raw and dark sound. We're not trying to invent anything else, but to re-invent it and re-interpret it is what we try to do."

      Stage presence is an important key element for the band. "People come to a show to see a band play on stage, they don't wanna see a band copy their own record straight up with no movement. At least that's the way we see it. If I want to listen to a record, I'll stay home and listen to the record. But I go to a show to be a part of the show, with the band and the rest of the crowd. Essentially, we're punk kids, so we're going to act like it on stage. Knowing the songs back and forth is a big help so playing well and being involved can go hand in hand. But I'd hope for people to go to our shows to feel it and not just see it."

      The band hopes to release their first EP in August. They're currently focused on writing a solid amount of music. "Steady Hands is a very serious band. We don't do this just for fun on the weekends or when we have time. We believe in our band so much along with the reasons as to why we do this, we want to take it all the way. Our long term goals are to play as long as we can until some greater force stops us, which we don't foresee will happen soon at all. We never want to stop playing intimate shows and never stop moving. We just want to hop in the van, tour, hang out, play as many shows as possible, meet tons of people, maybe reach out to a few who ask for it, and just connect and hopefully along the way, someone will hear what we're trying to say and feel it just as much as we do."

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Forever The Living Dead


      Rockford, IL based band, Forever The Living Dead, is the city's own crunkcore poster child. The have the beats, the synths, the screams, and the "I don't give a f*ck" attitude. The name came about when Ricki Weber was talking to Dot Dot Curve's own Spanky. "We thought Forever the Living Dead was a catchy name and would be good for us." Says Zero.

      The band consists of Ricki Weber AKA Zero (rap vocals/scream vocals/production), Jospeh Myers AKA Green (rap vocals/scream vocals). Some of the band's influences include DIY crunkcore bands like Brokencyde, Dot Dot Curve, and Breathe Carolina.

      The band is working on their first official EP. The I'll Never Be Mainstream EP will be introducing the band's on unique crunkcore sound. They hope to change people's idea of the music genre that everyone Loves to hate. The EP will introduce 5 tracks and they plan to release it early August at the latest.


      After seeing the band on Facebook and Youtube, LoveTagLA, Baltimore-based apparel company, emailed the band about endorsement and the band respectfully accepted the offer.

      Forever The Living Dead hopes to accomplish many things. "Our plans are to get our name out to as many people as possible and to change everyone's views on music and the genre of crunkcore. Along the way, (we hope to) play a lot of shows and meet lots of people who like our style. We would like to prove to people that Crunkcore is indeed a genre and not just Brokencyde and kids that wanna be like them."

Thursday, July 14, 2011

We The Creator


      Patrick Weaver (guitar), J.R. Williams (guitar/vocals), and Dylan Deiotte spent the summer of 2010 jamming along with two fellow musicians. After several disagreements, the three musicians decided to split of from the group. Through J.R., they recruited Jake Spencer on the drums. Dylan quit the band for about 3 months before returning in December. In the time of his absense, the band looked into alternative bassists and new vocalists, and ended up recording two songs.  In January of 2011, Tyler Stockston joined on as the band's vocalist. We The Creator was born.

      The 6-piece metalcore/melodic deathcore band from Portage, IN has since recruited Mason Bryan as the second vocalist after he did guest vocals on the band's track, "Liberator." The band describes their sound as "melodic and heavy with lots of grooves, 2-step, and 'hardcore' parts, tasteful breakdowns and rhythms with ridiculous over-the-top leads". Their lyrical content focuses on breaking free from cliches while speaking their beliefs. "We believe that everyone should be their own personal and not feed off of what society tells them or deems as cool."


      According to the band, Portage is a decent place as far as support goes. The only drawback being the ratio of band members to fans. "FAR too many bands. Not a whole lot of venues. Not very many promoters. We are trying to expand our territory. We have been talking to promoters and venues in Ohio, Indy, Michigan, and Illinois. We do get quite a bit of support from the locals. We are good friends with people in bands such as Corruptor, Betrayer, and The Oppressor. Although most people support, there are lots of ignorant, trash-talking people around, that want nothing but for themselves."

      The band listens to bands like The Ghost Inside, For Today, A Plea For Purging, and many more. "On a non-musical level we all have different beliefs, but we share a common interest in being positive, and taking negative things that have been handed to us and trying to basically make the best of what we can of it. Not saying we all have had terrible lives, but some of us have had a rough background, and we all put that aside for the music that we love and play."


      The band only has two songs available on their Facebook, but they hope to get some more recording done in the summer and fall seasons. "We look to being able to have enough songs for a full-length by next summer." The band hopes to get merch soon and improving their stage pressence. "The only thing that is truly important to us is the music. We're not in this to become famous or rich, or to prove a point. We just believe in what we can write together as musicians, and what we can accomplish. We play the music we love, and we hope others will love. We just want our music to be heard by the masses."

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Eminence

(Photo Credit: Taylor Leigh Photography)

      Joliet, IL isn't exactly the most welcoming city for musical talent. Illinois fourth largest city has very few affordable options for young up-and-coming music acts, charging upwards of $1000 to rent out a venue. This doesn't stop hardcore/thrash band Eminence from putting on a show.


      The word eminence means a position of great distinction, superiority, or of a higher power. This thrash band believes in the word of God, but don't consider themselves to be a christian band.  "(The) band fully believes in God and his power. We use him in our daily life". The name has somewhat of a double meaning, as well. "Eminence is also a word that symbolizes how big something in one's life can be"


(Photo Credit: Taylor Leigh Photography)

      The band came together last year. Mark Daniel (guitar) and Mike Negus (vocals) had both played shows in their respective projects and actually weren't too fond of each other. Somehow, they ended up in Mike's garage in Joliet with a drummer who would go on to play with them once in the band's first show. The two hit it off, Mark helped Mike form a closer bond with God and they continued to jam several more times. Pretty soon, they had recruited a full band, adding Conrad Allsworth (drums) and Romel Pinnix (bass) to the line-up. "The four of us have a really good connection with music and our friendship. I couldn’t ask for more than that. At times, when I'm down they pick me right back up. That’s something you don’t find in most bands now." Says Mike.


       Eminence describes their sound as the Love child of Metallica and Terror. The band is a fan of "heavy" music, whether it be death metal, hardcore, or thrash. They incorporate slams, two-steps, fast thrash and punk beats, and basically anything else that feels right. They prefer to use positive messages over hate-filled ones, and attribute their positive vibe to the people who are actively involved and care about the music scene.


(Photo Credit: Taylor Leigh Photography)

      In the beginning, the band had a slow start as far as performing goes. "The writing process took awhile, and we put most of our effort into that. As a result, we didn't play our first show until after 5 or 6 months of jamming and preparing. We have played 4 shows since the beginning of the year and we have 3 shows booked now. We are good friends with a few booking agents and promoters, so now we're focused on playing." A few of the band's current priorities include merchandise, playing, and recording.


      The EP has been in talks for about a month now and the band hopes to set some time out for the writing process this summer. The band says to expect new things from them by the end of the year, hoping for late summer at the earliest.      

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

As Dawn Dies


      In August of 2010, Collin Sulcer (guitar) and Evan Clifford (bass) were attempting to form a new hardcore band after the break-up of their previous music venture. Around the same time, Nate McGurdy's band had also fallen apart and they quickly recruited him as the band vocalist. The three teamed up and found Danny Roach while searching around their high school looking for a drummer. As Dawn Dies had been born.

      The band, based in Portage, IN, has since departed from Nate McGurdy. Hunter Barbian joined the band as the new vocalist and the band added an additional guitarist, Nolan Clifford. "The support in Portage is very good. There is a big hardcore music scene out here and everyone in the bands are like family with each other. Everyone know everyone, so your name gets out there easily. The scene is run by Ed Roseberry, he books all the bands and likes to bring in big touring acts a lot. He puts on every show around here and does a heck of a good job at it, too. So the scene is very active." Says the band.


      The band tends to play hardcore/deathcore shows and try to put on a high energy performance. They have played over a dozen shows and counting since their formation less than a year ago and have play with such bands as Molotov Solution, Burning The Masses, Murder Death Kill and Destruction of a Rose.The band has been compared to some bands like Her Demise My Rise and Attila. They say they would consider their "brutal" sound as a mix between Demolisher, White Chapel and The Acacia Strain.

      The band has an EP that was released in March called From Ashes We Rose, a title that refers to the fact that all the members arose from disbanded music projects. The band is hoping to release their full-length album by the end of the year. "We have a lot in store for this album, we have put a lot of hardwork into the songs that we have so far for the album. We will be recording at The Alley Recording Company in Valparaiso, Indiana." Says the band. "The full-length will be drastically heavier from the EP."


      As Dawn Dies will be playing 219 Fest in South Haven, IN. Like the band on Facebook and be sure to keep your eyes peeled for information on the full-length album.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Vendetta Spoken


      After becoming fed up with the music scene, Dean Sather (vocals) and Victor Clarence (guitar) decided they were going to start a band. The final result? Vendetta Spoken. Although the duo has had their ups and downs over the years, they've managed to stay motivated through their music. Along with the two original members, the current lineup stands as Dean, Victor, Casey Graff (drums), Mark Hammerbeck (guitar), and Izzy Loveswar (bass) and the band is based in Bismarck, ND.

      After forming about 4 years ago, the band has developed a metal sound comparable to Born of Osiris and Despised Icon. Their influences range from legendary metal bands like Pantera to classical music and hip hop to electronica. As far as non-musical influences go, the band had this to say,"Books and movies are huge with all of us, Dante's Inferno, 1984, The Bahghavad Gita (which was the insperation for the schrodinger equation) and various other movies."


      The band has played hundreds of shows and plays each one as if it were their last. "Feeling is a huge thing for us," says the band. "We all feel right up there and I can speak for the guys when I say that we complete each other up on stage. It all feels very natural and just overall perfect, but having our natural chemistry really helps the live performance."

      The band has two albums, Shrieking if the Damned and Schrodinger Equation, and are working on a new full-length with no current dates set. "The new album is very angry, we never really tried angry. We like the smart approach to albums, but with this new album, we felt like, as a band, (we) have alot to (be) angry about, so thats the focus of this album. I always say "Schrodinger, but more". We don't have anything holding us back and we have a great line up, right thinking minds, and chemistry. Now we really can show people what we can do."


      The band has achieved much, they were interviewed on South Dakota radio station KLND 89.5 and even received publication in Music and Noise Magazine. The band had this to say:
"Music and Noise is an up-and-coming magazine that features metal and hardcore acts. It was our first time in a magazine. Kit is a great guy, he put is in it. He also runs Ling Chi Records. Great exposure, (We) cant thank him enough. We are very thankful for any kind of exposure we get. It was strange for (us) to be in the magazine, I never thought we'd ever be in one."
       Like the band on Facebook and keep an eye out for updates concerning the new album!

Friday, July 1, 2011

Tall Tales


      The hardcore band, Tall Tales, despite the name, is a pretty honest group of guys. Once the interview was under way, they quickly admitted several funny facts. Some facts included the original plan to use a girl vocalist, in hopes of sounding a bit like Paramore. Another, they admit that the band name is really just that, a name. No double meaning or secret messages, just Tall Tales.

      "The name actually came from lyrics from a band called Burden Of A Day.  The song title is "Battle Of Hoth".  To us, it's just a name.  Usually in the hardcore/punk/metal world, most bands have "The ______" names, or some other name that makes them appear as if they are heavy or tough.  When we started writing all our songs, being heavy just wasn't a factor." Says the band.

      The young band, only about half a year old, comes from Grand Rapids, MI. Funny enough, they've been compared to the band that inspired the name, Burden of a Day as well as The Ghost Inside. "Even though we are a young band, all our members have been playing in bands for years.  Some longer than others, but all in all this is something that we still strive to do."


      The band started as a three-piece outfit. They didn't have a vocalist or a lead guitarist. "The mindset that we had at the time was that we we're going to do something completely different than everyone else at the time.  A lot of the bands right now are going for that real heavy sound" It was at this stage in the band's life that a lot of the basic groundwork was done. "We started writing and got the blue prints down for all the songs that we play right now, including the songs we have on our new demo"

      After several conversations about joining a band, Bryan Neterer AKA Brian #2 who was known to play deathcore, grind and other heavy genres joined the band, after he proved he could bring talent (and an incredibly ridiculous laugh) to the band.

      The band consists of  Bryan Stadick (vocals), Jake McCaffrey (bass), Nick Whittle (drums), Bryan Neterer (lead guitar), and David Cygan (rhythm gutiar).

      The band admits that they wouldn't consider themselves to be too unique, but are pretty confident they're bring something different to the Midwest music scene. "We aren't trying to be something that we aren't.  (We) admit that all of us are metal heads, plain and simple.  But we do like other kinds of music.  Everything from punk to indie and rock n' roll.  So we took all our influences and mashed them into one, and with the help of a great producer and recording engineer (Brian "Bone" Thorburn from Threshold Studios in Indianapolis, Indiana) we have the sound that we have."


      The band has very few shows to their name, but that have had the privelige to play with Hawthorne Heights in Michigan and played for a decent 100+ show in Chicago. The band openly talked about their wants and the work they put into shows. They had this to say:
 "We want to tour, 10 months out of the year if possible. Never being home, always on the road.  The shows we have managed to get or that are upcoming we booked ourselves.  No agents, or management, just a true DIY attitude. 
      We promote all our shows as much as we can.  Handing out filers, putting them on cars, up at gas stations, etc.  We even are throwing our own shows now too.  West Michigan used to have a great scene but a lot of venues and promoters have died out.  And most the venues that are still around expect pre sales and sometimes even money up front just to play. 
      To us, that just isn't going fly.  So we have somewhat assembled a team of people and plan to bring back real shows.  House shows, basement shows, community centers, vfw halls, etc.  Those are real shows to us"
      The band is currently in the process of writing songs for the new EP, after the self-proclaimed success of their free single, "We Are The World". "To be honest, we had no idea what the response was going to be to "We are the world".  Seeing as all of us have always been in metal bands, we didn't even know what to make of it.  But we are more than overwhelmed by the outcome as of late. "


      The band hopes to have 12 written and ready. Then, they want to pick the best ones to put on the EP and get over to indianapolis to record. "The new record is going to take our sound to a whole new place." Says the band. "We might be adding a few new elements such as clean vocals, synth/keys, or possibly even a new member.  Everything is up in the air right now.  I wouldn't say that we are going to changing completely, but it will be different from 'We are the world'."

      With work schedules and such, the band is limited to play Saturdays, but once the cooler seasons come around, they plan to travel a lot more. As far as long term goals go, the band hopes to have the EP out by early 2012 and hope to start a small tour called the "We're In It For The Money Tour". The tour will be composed of house shows and DIY venues booked exclusively through DIYUSA. The band hopes to continue writing and play the "What would you rather do?" game.

      What would you rather do?
A. Let a girl take a dump in your mouth?
B. Toss a guys salad?

      I'd have to go with A and hope it comes out clean. What?

To Every Cynic



      45 minutes outside of St. Louis, MO, in Greenville, IL, home of Paper Route and Jars of Clay, you'll find melodic-hardcore band, To Every Cynic. The story behind the band name was simple, they felt the word "cynic" would catch people's attention. They then decided that their music could be interpretated as a message to the cynics of the world. "We have a lot of scriptural and positive influences in our content." Says band guitarist/vocalist, Stephen Lauterbach. Stephan happens to be the only remaining original member in the band.




      The band consists of  Caleb Loeppky (guitar), Nick Robertson (vocals), and Stephen Lauterbach (guitar/vocals)


      The band sounds similar to We Came As Romans, Oh, Sleeper and Of Mice & Men. And released their most recent EP, Leaving Your Burdens, on May 23rd. The most recent release is a slight change from the bands previous, more ambient, music. "First off, it's in a lower, heavier tuning." Explains Stephen, "The singing is more polished, we incorporated some programming, and the quality is the best that we have been able to produce.  It also shows our versatility and variety. It uses more riffing and breakdowns.  We also started to use some orchestral backup and a few digital influences."




      The band originally came about when several members met at the local college. "We all met at Greenville College and most of us were either in the audio engineering program or some kind of performance major.  I am from Cleveland where there is a pretty large hardcore scene.  Coming to Greenville, I was looking to start up a band in that genre.  It took me 3 months to find people who even liked that stuff." Says Stephen.

      As far as accomplishments go, To Every Cynic has a few badges of honor. The band has over 30 shows to their name and have played Agape Fest, a student-run music festival put on by Greenville College. Previous festival performancers include Skillet, Becoming The Archtype and Third Day. It happened to be the band's first festival and they really enjoyed the experience. They even had a heart-to-heart with a young kid.




      Last year in St. Louis, the band won the Battle of the Bands hosted by The Point radio station. The interesting and funny experience is best told by Stephen himself.
"We knew the radio station was hosting the event, but we had no idea they would be airing us.  We were in the middle of our set when all of a sudden the DJ came up and said, 'Play your single. You're on in 30 seconds.'  Everybody in the band looked at each other. We couldn't believe it! 
      I was super nervous.  I think the rest of the guys were, too.  As soon as they gave us the cue, we just laid into it and let it rip!  It was such a huge blessing for sure.  So many of our friends came to see us play.  It was just great!   
      What I remember most about that performance is a comment given to me after the set.  A grungy, washed-up looking guy with a mustache came up to me and said, 'I hate your pants but I love your music.'  That made me laugh, and I'll never forget it.
      We celebrated by all going out to a local trucker restaurant that we frequent, called Pokey's.  We had us some greasy breakfast food and then went home to sleep."


      The band also has their new single "Hope In Anguish" playing on MFN: Heavy Radio in Chicago and they also have a teaser for the "Silence, The Killer" music video, set to be released later this summer! Check the band out on Facebook and follow them on twitter! Also, the band doesn't have a drummer, so any drummers in the area can send them an application!




      The brand new EP, Leaving Your Burdens, is on sale for $5.00 at toeverycynic.storenvy.com get yourself a digital copy today!