Tragic Orange-Grey Light-New York
vproject-Somebody Like You-boston,mass
Echo Screen-This Letter Bomb-Brick,New Jersey
Conducting From The Grave-Improper Burial-Sacremento Clifornia-Manchester,CT
All Fear Aside-Decor-wasau-wisconsin
Godspeed-Chaotic Theory-manasses,va
Jimmies Chicken Shack-Caught Down-Annapolis, MD
Career Club-Old Fashioned-Brooklyn, NY
Mark Williams-Airwaves-Stroudsburg, PA
Spin-Not In Love-Philadelphia,PA
Jeremy Rowe-Northern Star-Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan
Charlie Wheeler Band-Highway Run-Ridgway, PA
About Vproject
Gasoline, Only .35 cents a gallon! Ages ago in some other galaxy you say? Actually, it was the 70’s and 80’s, and for guitarist David Vaccaro the galaxy was ”The Hub of The Universe” which, (as anyone from the area knows) is the city of Boston.
The Cars, The J Geils Band, Aerosmith, Till Tuesday, The Jon Butcher Axis, The Neighborhoods, Beaver Brown, The WBCN Rock’n Roll Rumble/Battle of the Bands …to say it was a good time to be in a band and playing live around Boston simply does not paint the picture of just how exciting the Boston music scene was.
Blues-fueled Melodic Rock for the 21st Century featuring Platinum Recording Artist Robin McAuley.
About Spin
Already one of the hardest working indie rock bands on the East Coast, the Philadelphia based SPiN is quickly expanding beyond its regional home base of Philly, Jersey, New York and Delaware and taking its edgy, high energy modern pop/rock to the next level.
Nationally sponsored by Jagermeister, lead singer Eric Rothenheber, keyboardist and vocalist Jim Vacca, guitarist Hank Cieplinski and
drummer Lou Chudnofsky like to imply that they are contractually bound to drink in excess at their 100-plus shows a year. Their unique vibe— complete with SPiN’s powerful three part harmonies–strikes fans in different ways. Some say there’s a flavor of My Chemical Romance or The All-American Rejects, while others make favorable comparisons to bands like The Killers and Muse.
After completing a 16 state tour that brought the band through cities like Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Louisville and Washington, D.C.,
SPiN began work on its long awaited debut album, which was released in November 2007 and is currently available on Apple’s iTunes,
AmazonMP3.com, eMusic, Napster, and Rhapsody. The record was produced by Grammy-winner David Ivory, whose many gold and platinum credits include his recordings with The Roots, Patti Labelle, Molly Hatchett, and was mastered at Warner Bros Records by Michael Hateley (Green Day, My Chemical Romance, Eric Clapton).
Ivory became interested in the band after hearing the original demo of the hard-driving rocker “Playing Dead,” whose prominent throbbing
bassline is created solely by Vacca’s bass synth; intriguingly, SPiN is rare in that the band does not have a bassist, another unique
element that sets them apart. Most of the band’s set, like the incisive “Bleed,” are fiery melodic rockers; however, they are nicely
balanced by the band’s first single, “Home”. This haunting, anthemic ballad was inspired by the things that matter most when a band is on
the road and seems to have struck a cord at mainstream radio as well. In November of 2007, the song debuted on FMQB Magazine’s charts as the second most added song in the country for two weeks straight. It went on to reach 7 and continues to be in rotation on over 60 commercial radio stations worldwide.
In early 2008 SPiN came to even more national attention (though perhaps not the type they had in mind) as the band was served with a
cease and desist letter from spin magazine to stop the use of the word spin (as reported in Philadelphia’s Daily News and Inquirer
newspapers). Currently the band is exploring it’s legal options to fight this “ridiculous” claim while maintaining an active regional
touring schedule. A cross-country tour will start in May with a string of radio station events in WY and AZ and continue through cities like
Denver, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Cleveland. Following the tour, SPiN will begin work on their next release.
About Careeer Club
CAREER CLUB combines the buoyant melodies of power-pop, the visceral thrills of rock, and the slyness and wit of indie, creating a sound that meshes well with the Brooklyn music scene, yet stands on its own.
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The breadth and scope of Career Club’s classic left of center influences hits as novel—their innovative touches and twists on indie rock, post-punk, and power pop found on their new album, “Pure Hearing” injects a freshness to the scene.
Featuring Hans Gutknecht on guitar and lead vocals and Philipp Gutbrod on drums, the band was originally formed in 2005 by Hans with Jens Carstensen on bass. Drummer Lisa Klimkiewicz joined the band shortly after. The band has now found strength as a duo, with Hans’ dynamic strumming paired with Philipp Gutbrod on drums. Hans, who had worked as an engineer at R&B producer Dallas Austin’s studio in Atlanta, has been a successful songwriter, licensing music for film and TV. And Gutbrod’s technically innovative and imaginative style complements him perfectly, bringing a new force to the band’s already potent songs. Raised in Germany, Gutbrod has been a lifelong student of percussion with experience playing in clubs and festivals all over Europe. His fluency in both rock and jazz has given Career Club a rhythmic sensibility that distinguishes them from other indie acts.
Career Club expertly evokes the slash and burn tone of Sonic Youth’s “Sister,” the pop sensibility of Big Star’s “#1 Record,” and the driving attack of bands like Husker Dü and Mission of Burma. But the excellence found within is all their own.
The band has spent a couple of years on the NYC circuit, playing clubs like Cake Shop, Mercury Lounge, Southpaw, and The Delancey, and in November of 2007, went into the studio with producer Jay Braun (Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Fiery Furnaces) to record their second album. Braun’s partnership with the band was an enormous contribution. Hans says, “We came in with a heap of new songs, but thought we were only going to record five and instead, we ended up doing nine songs. Jay’s view of us as a rock band helped us realize what we’re capable of.”
And from the opening riff of “Old Fashioned,” it’s clear that Career Club is a rock band. Philipp’s galloping and careening drums and the drive of Hans’ rhythm guitar, combined with the innate melodic sensibility of Hans’ vocals creates a song that results in an irresistible modern slice of hard-edged power pop. “Hold A Candle” displays the band’s ability to have dark-hued rock live happily with Big Star-influenced catchiness. With a nod to Thurston Moore in his vocal, Hans sings with an undeniable cool and passion, and with Philipp’s propulsive drums behind him, it’s a song impossible not to be swept up in. Also immensely catchy, “Jenny’s On The Stereo” boasts unforgettable guitar hooks with a richly textured sheen, while Philipp’s jazz-inspired drums further etches the song into the listener’s mind.
The band is currently readying itself to hit the road. The music has already inspired enough of a clamor in Germany that they may soon be touring there. With “Pure Hearing,” it’s clear that Career Club has all the tools necessary to make it work to an enormous degree.
About Jimmies Chicken Shack
No question Jimmie’s Chicken Shack is one of the hardest working bands in the business having toured constantly since 1995. Between headlining their own tours in the US and Europe they’ve been out with bands such as Live, 311, Creed, Fuel and Everclear. They’ve shared festival stages with nearly every major alternative rock band and Fail On Cue is ‘The Shack’s’ eighth album. The singles High, from the album Pushing the Salmanilla Envelope and Do Right, from the second Rocket album, Bring Your Own Stereo were both crowned, buzz clips, by MTV and spent more than a year in the active rock and alternative rock charts respectively resulting top ten hits This latest and most powerful lineup has been pulled from the cream of mid-Atlantic bands. Still front and center is Jimi Haha with his dynamic stage presence, eccentric yet hooky melodies, riffs and chord changes and his biting, often ironic lyrical take on life. It’s all about the music for Jimmie’s Chicken Shack who, despite selling millions of albums will never bend to fit.
About Mark Williams
Mark Williams, at a young age, is already an accomplished musician/songwriter. Hailing from the Pocono Mtns. of Eastern PA, he has played with with jazz great Phil Woods, Uber-Rocker Will Lee, guitar innovator Les Paul, and blues legend B.B. King. He has performed in concert in New York City, Los Angeles, Nashville, Honolulu, and Sarasota. In addition to singing and playing all guitars, bass, and keyboards, Mark composed all the songs on his 2006 release on Pacific St Records, RECKLESS. The Mark Williams Band recently finished writing and recording new songs for a soon to be released EP. Mark also performs as the lead guitarist for Steven Baggs.
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At the age of sixteen, Mark Williams has already lived several musical lifetimes. From playing with B.B. King to becoming a virtuoso guitarist and budding singer and songwriter in his own right, the Pennsylvania native is one of those special musicians that emerges only once in a great while. Equally at home and expert in rock, jazz, and punk, he may be the only teenager in the world who can expertly play Hendrix, Coltrane, and Taking Back Sunday. His new EP, Shallow Eyes is the next compelling step in a career that incredibly, is only just getting started.
When seeing Williams play, what comes across first are his incredible skills as a guitarist. That shouldn’t be a surprise, given that he’s been playing since he was four years old. Originally inspired by, of all things, seeing the Lawrence Welk band on TV, and then by his parents Elvis and Beatles’ albums, Mark yelled, “Mommy, I want a
guitar,” continuously until he parents relented and started him with lessons at the age of five. Williams took to the instrument like a savant – and hasn’t let up since.
At ten, he enrolled at the Manhattan School of Music, which faced a special challenge for him. He recounts, “I was with a bunch of kids who were seventeen and eighteen and I had to really push myself to play at their level. It really made me step up.” By the age of twelve, he had enough jazz expertise to begin playing at the Deer Head Inn, the longest running jazz club in the world. And during the summers, his father, a big country music lover, took Mark down to Nashville, and guitar in tow, began sitting in at various clubs. “B.B. King’s Blues Club really embraced me,” says Mark. “The summer after seventh grade I played there three to five nights a week, and even got to play
with B.B. himself!” B.B. was not the only legend that Mark earned the right to play with – others included Les Paul, Phil Woods, and Will Lee.
At fourteen, with years of playing jazz and blues under his belt, Mark rekindled his love of rock, taking to the progressive, alternative-rock music of artists like Taking Back Sunday, Thursday, and Alkaline Trio. Newly inspired, he formed a band with friends that he had known for years, and they began doing shows, opening up for
such artists as John McLaughlin, Michael McDonald and Little River Band. Entering the studio, Mark released his first CD, Reckless, co-producing it himself and playing all of the guitars, keyboards and bass. The album was well received and as Williams says now, “It was my first real recording experience. I learned a lot about music as a
whole, and having been playing jazz for years, I realized that while I love rock, my background in other kinds of music is there too. Reckless was the first step in developing my own musical style.”
Now Mark has released Shallow Eyes, an EP that reflects his enormous leap forward in his skills as a songwriter, producer and player. Mark may call the music “radio friendly progressive indie rock,” but with its nods to modern rock, Hendrix, jazz and progressive metal, what it really is is Mark Williams music. You can hear it in the opening
track, “Giving Up” – incorporating a catchy and punchy riff, the song explodes into an unforgettable chorus – and then Mark brings an immense solo that only he can. There’s nothing self indulgent – it’s just three minutes of rock heaven and the sound of someone coming into his own. “Secrets,” dealing with a friend who got into heavy drug use, displays a level of insight and maturity that is both incisive and compassionate – and the passion with which the song is played and sung is overwhelming. And “Airwaves,” featuring Mark’s favorite guitar playing on the album, is immense in the variety of styles it successfully weaves. Taking in all of Mark’s influences, it portends
to his development as not just a virtuoso, but an innovator.
Mark spent this summer playing on the Warped Tour and the experience left him with the desire to “get on a bus and play all the time.” As he says, “Whatever it takes for me to be a lifetime musician, that’s what I’m going to do.” But even at the age of sixteen, a time that many teenagers are just picking up a guitar, Mark Williams has proven that he is in it for the long haul. What music lovers are about to witness is the unfolding of a story that is sure to be a thrilling one – the Mark Williams story.
About Jeremy Rowe
About The Jeremy Rowe Band
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Michigan native Jeremy Rowe has taken a wide variety of styles and molded them into a style that is truly his own. With his influences varying he shows on this album that he is a versatile songwriter and musician alike. The tracks vary from in your face rock to tranquil relaxing songs that will soothe your mind. Rowe’s title track “Where the Truth Lies” extrapolates from a true story of a jet fighter sent to pursue a UFO in 1953 never returning. The jet was recently found by the Great Lakes Dive Company 70 miles off of the Keweenaw Peninsula. They also found a strange tear-drop shaped item on the bottom. Jeremy takes this true story and puts it in the event that beings from another planet really did come here. “I hope it really happened.”, says Rowe. The song does an amazing job at creating the feel of different parts in the story such as the aliens leaving there home planet, the jet chase, and both jet and UFO sinking to the bottom of the icy lake. You really have to hear it in order to see what he means. It is truly great work. Click here or paste to read the full story. http://www.ufodigest.com/news/0906/kinrossobject.html Jeremy and his band are out supporting the new CD and hope to possibly play some festivals this summer. Jeremy recently recorded a theme song for The Jersey Todd Show, which airs on Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 102 Mondays at 3:30 am. You can hear the theme song at the start of every show at www.jerseytoddshow.com
About Charlie Wheeler Band
Fate works in strange ways. Sometimes, when the stars line up just at the right angle, and luck is in one’s favor, amazing things can happen. This might be the best way to describe the conception of the Charlie Wheeler Band. When songwriter and guitarist Charlie Wheeler decided it was “time to make a proper recording,” he enlisted the help of Anthony Brown, the very talented Keyboardist, Engineer and Producer at All Sound Studios.
“Anthony helped me assemble the right mix of guys to get this project going.” says Wheeler. Brown started by immediately calling his long time collaborator and close friend, Greek Cheronis (vocals/harmonicas). During his phone conversation with Brown, it took Cheronis about three sentences to be convinced that he needed to be part of this recording project. He arrived at the studio about 15 minutes later, unannounced and all fired up. Thus began the Charlie Wheeler Band.
A combination of some of the hottest and most talented musicians between Jamestown (NY), Warren (PA) and Ridgway (PA), the Charlie Wheeler Band was created in 2007. Assembled as a studio band, the group became energized as the recording of their debut CD “Highway Run” progressed. With the addition of Chuck Jaques on Bass and Darren Payne on the Drums, all of the pieces seemed to fit together. Collectively, the decision was made; a high energy, powerful live show needed to be shared. “What happened to the guitar solo, the keyboard solo, the attempt by the musician to get the most out of one’s instrument? Where did it go? Isn’t playing your instrument to your fullest potential one of the bedrock principles that rock n’ roll music was founded upon?” Wheeler asks, directing the question at today’s popular music. Wheeler enjoys writing songs in a variety of styles, from riff based blues-rock to roadhouse-rockabilly to monster power ballads. He always tries to include a musical break so that the individual band members can express themselves through their instruments. During live performance the band is never shy about expansive improvisation.
Maybe it took twenty years in the music business for things to fall into place. Maybe it was just where life took this group of talented players. Maybe the stars lined up just right. Maybe it was just fate.
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