Farewell, My Love have just posted a teaser. It is awesome and just from the short video, it will have you excited for December 9th! Check it out here:
The snippet features a stripped down acoustic track with emotionally driven heartfelt lyrics and passionate vocals. We really look forward to the new music from Farewell, My Love which features Chad Kowal on vocals, Robby Creasey on guitar and Charlee Conley on bass.
Make sure to visit their social media sites to stay up to date on their latest news. Mark your calendars for December 9th!
SomeKindaWonderful just finishedy entertaining crowds across the country with their genre-bending music that injects energy into every listener and brings them to life. The 34 date US Fall tour opening for New Politics and Bad Suns wrapped up this past Sunday in Hartford, CT. We brought you our coverage of their amazing set in San Francisco and performed at the legendary Fillmore. You can check out that coverage here. It was amazing to see finally catch this band live. SomeKindaWonderful is:
Jordy Towers – Vocals/lyrics
Matt Gibson – Guitar
Ben Schigel – Drums
Justin Andres – Bass/Keys
Sarah Dryer – Vocals/Percussion
Check out our interview with SomeKindaWonderful here:
These five are pure entertainment when they hit the stage. You cannot categorize them simply by placing them in a genre checkbox, they bring so many great elements of alternative, rock, hip hop, soul, grunge and so much more. Their refreshing sound will become true music to your ears as they jump start your love of all music. Check out the photos from our Rockin Ryan of their set:
Now that you are hooked on them, how about a chance at winning a hand written personalized note from the band? Visit https://somekindawonderful.jammer.fm/posts/6084 for details about winning and how you can get their latest song, Rhinestone Melodies for free!
Pick up their self titled album which was released earlier this year. It is available on iTunes here. Make sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their latest news. ~ Marisol
We have been telling you a lot about The Killing Lights, the new music project by Michael Vampire, widely known for his work as frontman in Vampires Everywhere. The day has finally arrived for the release of their self titled EP and it was definitely worth the wait. The five-song release was produced & engineered by DJ Black & Michael Vampire, mixed by Erik Ron (Motionless In White, Escape The Fate) and mastered by Sterling Sound NYC.
The EP starts right off with Until I Bleed which delivers a straight up dose of rock n roll, complete with some old school style rock guitar solos and wrapped in a modern hard rock edge. As Michael says about the song, “Writing this song was liberating for me,I was reminiscing about all the fucked up shit that happened to me over the last five years. Everyone has their breaking point and this was mine. I just started scribbling words down on paper that eventually became the intro and I knew that this song would make an impact and hopefully help people in the same situation.”
The next track takes it even a bit heavier with Barely Breathing and has you swirling in a frenzy of double bass, powerful vocals dancing with harmonies and backing chants. It brings out a strong anthemic feel that will awaken your senses and invigorate you.
Crashing Down is absolutely my favorite track off the EP and I have already found myself compelled to put it on replay for most of the afternoon. It bleeds out passion in a dark haunting way as if your emotions and feelings are being felt captive, a very emotive song for me.
Next up is, Lies Spreading Like Fire which was the first single released off the EP and really made a strong impression on the listeners. It immediately had everyone excited for this new chapter of Music for Michael. They also released an epic video for it. “I am beyond excited to finally release the ‘Lies Spread Like Fire’ video,” said Michael. “We all fight our own demons from time to time, and this is about standing up after the fight. We wanted to keep it as raw as possible, which I feel we achieved using L.A. street culture as the main storyline and aesthetic. This video is for all the fans and people that have stuck with me this past year. Together we will change everything.”
Check out the new video, Lies Spread Like Fire:
The EP ends with Conversations and is another musical gem. This track starts off with an ethereal style intro amid backing vocals/screams. The song transcends through a celestial journey that will leave you in anticipation of more new music from The Killing Lights.
Make sure to head over to iTunes here and pick up the new EP. In case you missed our interview with Michael Vampire, you can check it out here:
Be sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their latest news.
Going through concert announcements a few weeks ago, I spotted William Control playing in Munich. Unfortunately not a headliner tour, but some acts you just need to see live any opportunity you can get. It was William Control’s first time in Germany with this project. Last time was seven years ago with Aiden.
That evening he opened for Combichrist. As it is common in Munich and probably some others places too, the room’s not really crowded, when the opening act gets on stage. I couldn’t say how many people really heard of William Control before. If they’d known more about him, there definitely would’ve been more people at the beginning of his show.
He started the set with ‘All due restraint’ from the 2010 released album ‘Noir’. Throughout the show he played songs from all his albums ‘Novus Ordo seclorum’, ‘Hate culture’ and ‘Neuromancer’. William was constantly moving around on stage, throwing and catching his mic or circling it around his neck. No standstill whatsoever. It’s fun to watch and the songs he chose invited the audience to sing along, which they even did at some point (not really loud, but I saw them singing) and believe me, the audience of this city is really hard to get that far, esp. when they’re just introduced to someone that night. I’d have loved to hear much more, but you always meet twice in life, so there I’m hoping for a 2nd time. Hopefully in 2015! I missed the song ‘Illuminator’ that evening, in fact one of my fave songs of the current record ‘Neuromancer’. All in due time I guess.
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William was at the merch table after the show to talk to fans, autograph stuff and take pictures. Chances to meet bands after the shows are rare these days, so it was really nice he took some time to hang out.
European tour ends December 20th after an almost two-month period.
2014 is definitely the year for The Relapse Symphony! They not only put out what I believe is one of the top albums of the year, did some extensive non-stop touring but now are going to be releasing what could be another top album! They are going to be releasing an acoustic version of their album, Shadows titled Shadows The Acoustic Sessions. The LP is set for release on December 16th through Standby Records and they have just launched the pre-order. Head over to http://standbyrecords.net/ and get your order in. Make sure to pick up extra copies so you can give them to your friends for the holidays!
I listened to the album and I have to tell you….. WOW, It is just as amazing as their original and with the acoustic atmosphere, it brings to life so much emotion. Bret’s vocals are spot on spectacular and the backing vocals from the band is superb. Unbelievable and what a great group of talented young musicians. I can’t wait for you to hear it, so get your orders in!
Guitarist J.C. Charles says, “After releasing SHADOWS in July and touring it all Summer, we really began to appreciate the songs in a raw, live setting. We wanted to challenge ourselves to strip the album down completely and go in and do the whole thing acoustic. We are so used to recording in fancy studios with producers and a lot of complicated arrangements, and it felt good to do away with all of that and just do these songs live and acoustic. This acoustic album feels like a good transition from SHADOWS to our next record, which is sure to be much less produced and more raw and aggressive.”
I will leave you with a couple of their videos, “One More Yesterday” & “Savage Eyes” These are easily two of our favorite songs from the album Shadows. The video for Savage Eyes has a mysterious old time horror film vibe, which really fits the song well. One More Yesterday delivers a cinematic portrayal of a funeral for Bret and was inspired by J.C.’s concept. It includes cameo appearances from members of Burn Halo, Dead Rabbitts and more. Check them both out below
“One More Yesterday” :
“Savage Eyes” :
If you don’t already have it, make sure to also pick up the original album, Shadows on iTunes here. Make sure to check our full album review here. Need more of The Relapse Symphony? Check out the photos from their set in San Francisco on the Shapeshiftour.
Make sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their latest news and tour updates. I will leave you with an interview we did when The Relapse Symphony made there stop in San Francisco for the Shapeshiftour.
We recently told you about the amazing concert this past Sunday night as Steel Panther and Judas Priest gave San Jose a heavy dose of metal. In case you missed it, you can check out article here: Sunday night with Judas Priest and Steel Panther. They once again delivered a top notch in your face set that satisfied all the rockers and heavy metal heads.
As promised, we wanted to bring you our interview with Michael Starr and Lexxi Foxx shortly before them hitting the stage at the San Jose National City Civic. Sit back and enjoy:
These guys are definitely proof that Rock n Roll is alive and kicking. They bring the rock music alive the second they take the stage. If you have never been to a Steel Panther concert, then you are MISSING OUT! I swear, they have top honors as the most enjoyable fun concert ever. Need more of a Steel Panther fix? Well then, here you go…. Check out these photos from their set in San Jose:
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You can also check out the following dates where you can see them live and don’t forget they will be returning foe their residencies at the House of Blues Sunset Strip and House of Blues Las Vegas in February! Then right back on the road for more non-stop touring!
NOVEMBER
21 Boise, ID CenturyLink Arena*
22 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome*
*supporting Judas Priest
DECEMBER
3 Tokyo, Japan O-East
4 Osaka, Japan Akaso
10 Charlotte, NC The Fillmore
12 Cincinnati, OH Bogart’s
13 Cleveland, OH Hard Rock
14 Royal Oak, MI Royal Oak Music Theatre
16 Chicago, IL House Of Blues
17 Nashville, TN Marathon Music Works
19 St. Paul, MN Myth
20 Des Moines, IA 7 Flags Event Center
21 Madison, WI Orpheum Theatre
29 New York, NY Gramercy Theatre
30 Philadelphia, PA Theatre of Living Arts
31 Silver Springs, MD The Fillmore
JANUARY, 2015
15 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
16 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
FEBRUARY, 2015
11 West Hollywood, CA House Of Blues
13 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues
18 West Hollywood, CA House Of Blues
20 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues
25 West Hollywood, CA House Of Blues
27 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues
I hope you already have your copy of All You Can Eatand if not, pick it up and grab some extra to give at the Holidays. Nothing says Merry Christmas more, than getting some Steel Panther in your stocking! Make sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their latest news.
Fresh off their Fall run with You Me At Six, L.A’s STARS IN STEREO join Alien Ant Farm on the remainder of the ANTarchy tour. In anticipation, the band has released an uncensored version of their most talked about music video ‘Leave Your Mark’. This NSFW video is so hot, even VEVO and Suicide Girls couldn’t handle it! See for your self by searching for the secret door at http://www.starsinstereo.com/.
11/30 Amityville, NY – Revolution Bar & Music Hall
12/02 Syracuse, NY – Lost Horizon
12/04 Sauget, IL – Pop’s
12/05 Merriam, KS – Aftershock
12/06 Colorado Springs, CO – Sunshine Studios Live
12/07 Denver, CO – Casselman’s Bar & Venue
12/09 Grand Junction, CO – Mesa Theatre
JANUARY (w/Bush & Theory of a Deadman)
30 San Francisco, CA – Nob Hill Masonic Center
31 Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern
FEBRUARY
02 Riverside, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
03 Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
05 Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
07 Kansas City, MO – Harvest Bank Theatre
08 Cedar Rapids, IA – The Paramount Theatre
10 St. Paul, MN – The Myth
11 Milwaukee, WI – Eagles Ballroom
14 Indianapolis, IN – Murat Theatre
15 Columbus, OH – LC Pavillion
17 Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE
18 Toronto,ON – Sound Academy
20 Wallingford, CT – The Dome at Toyota Presents Oakdale
21 Lewiston, ME – Androscoggin Bank Colisee
23 Boston, MA – House Of Blues
24 New York, NY – Best Buy Theatre
27 Rochester, NY – Main Street Armory
28 Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
MARCH
01 Upper Darby, PA – Tower Theatre
03 Silver Springs, MD – Filmore
04 Raleigh, NC – The Ritz
06 Myrtle Beach, SC – House Of Blues
10 Oklahoma City, OK – Diamond Ballroom
11 Dallas, TX – South Side Ballroom
13 Houston, TX – Bayou Music Center
14 San Antonio, TX – Majestic Theatre
In case you missed it, check out our interview from last year with Stars In Stereohere. We are so excited to see a San Francisco date on the tour and we look forward to bringing you complete coverage of their show. We will see if we can bring you another interview as well. Stay up to date on what they are doing by visiting and following their social media sites.
The guitarist/vocalist Sean Danielsen from Smile Empty Soul has just released another solo EP, Food Chain which features five full band songs recorded at Babylon Studios in Van Nuys, California. “I’m really excited to be releasing my own solo music and doing my own shows,” said Danielsen. “It’s a nice change of pace for me, and a challenge that I’m looking forward to.”
Sean truly takes you on a musical journey through emotion and his passion shines through each song. He really captures so much in his songwriting that creates an immediate connection to the listener and opens the door to their soul as demonstrated in Rescue Me and Beautiful Things. Food Chain highlights the versatility of Sean as it brings out a heavier rock edge with some amazing powerful and aggressive vocals that really stand out. The guitars have a punkier edge feel and you get amped with the fast pasted drums, definitely a new Go To track to start my day off!
Sean is finishing up a round of acoustic shows and we had a chance to catch up with him. Check it out here:
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Music Junkie Press: HI Sean, Thank you for taking the time out to talk with us here at Music Junkie Press. We are excited to hear about your new solo release, Food Chain. Can you tell us more about the EP?
Sean: My new EP is just me doing up some of my songs without a band. I’m playing all the instruments, and working with good friend/producer Eddie Wohl, and we just take the song wherever it needs to go.
Music Junkie Press: From your new EP, which song is the most personal for you and why?
Sean:They’re all personal in a way, but the song I’m most happy with at the moment is “Waves”. It’s a song about going through the motions without any real hope for anything positive.
Music Junkie Press: You have always delivered emotionally driven songs, do you have a particular songwriting process?
Sean:I don’t have any one process that all my songs go through. I just make sure that each tune affects me emotionally in a way that might hit others as well.
Music Junkie Press:I understand you are setting out on a tour in support of the new EP. Will it be full band shows like the EP or acoustic sets?
Sean:Yeah, I’m doing 22 shows starting on Halloween in Houston, TX and going through late November. I’ll just be playing acoustic sets by myself.
Music Junkie Press:With the music industry experience so many dramatic changes in the last 15 to 20 years, what is something that you would like to see changed?
Sean: We’ll of course, I would like to see people supporting music again like they used to. Everyone out there talks about how important music is in their lives, yet they won’t pay for music they like, or support the musicians live. It’s not going to change because it’s just too easy to download for free with zero consequence. But what’s going to happen in the long-term, is that no one will be able to afford to be an artist for a living and you’ll have millions of part-time hacks making music of low quality, while all the musicians that have been dedicating their lives to music will have to turn to other things to make ends meet. Overall…… Music is getting worse, and will only continue on this path as long as there’s no money in being an artist.
Music Junkie Press: Sean, if you could go back to your 14 year old self, what advice would you give to yourself at 14?
Sean: Go to culinary school.
Music Junkie Press:We at Music Junkie Press are firm believers that music can heal, help, inspire, do you have a particular time in your life that you can share about where music helped you through something?
Sean:Music has helped me so much throughout my whole life. I’m passionate about music above anything else and always have been. There’s an emotional release that occurs when you hear a track that connects with your soul, and the lyrics relate to your life somehow. Music has always been there for me and always will be, and that’s comforting.
Music Junkie Press:What do you have planned after your upcoming solo tour?
Sean:I’m gonna do another run in Feb. in support of this EP as well, but I’m not sure after that.
Music Junkie Press:Lastly, is there anything else you would like to share with our audience and your fans?
Sean:Just the music on my new EP!!!! Please go check it out!!!
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It is definitely an EP to pick up and fall in love with. Check the dates below and see if you will be able to catch one of his shows:
11/19 – Louisville, KY @ Diamonds Pub
11/20 – St. Louis, MO @ Mad Magician
11/21 – Joplin, MO @ Rock 3405
11/22 – Cape Girardeau, MO @ Pitter’s
Make sure to visit his social media sites and stay up to date on the latest news.
The best way to describe The Kin is wild men from Australia and the New York subway. There is nothing like them: two lead singers/guitarists who are brothers, a didgeridoo, a drummer who doesn’t use sticks, and a habit of invading restaurants and airports to steal ears, fill them with music, and then return them. And along the way, these three artists create high energy, high melody, high fun alt. rock that is completely unique. They have worked with legendary producers Nic Hard and Tony Visconti and toured down under with PINK playing to arenas full of thousands of people. They recently launched a grueling USA tour, kicking it off at the Bootleg Theater in los Angeles. Isaac “Hijack” Koren and Mark “Shakerleg” Nicosia stopped by Music FridayLive! for a chat before setting up for their gig.
Patrick. Welcome guys. I love your band.
Shakerleg. Let’s be sure we understand who this band is. There is a drummer who plays without sticks, that’s me, and the other two guys are hacks. Seriously, we have two lead singers who are harmonizing like you wouldn’t believe. I am a New Yorker, not from Australia – we need to stop this Australia thing now…let me out! Let me out!
Patrick. I can see this interview is going to go downhill fast. So, moving right along, you were on a tour with PINK in Australia and now you are starting a new tour in the US. What gives – going back to work so soon?
Isaac. We actually just got back from our tour in Australia – we toured with PINK last year. This is the “Thick as Thieves” tour which started in Australia – we toured rural Australia. We thought we were going to be in the Outback, but they’ve got some pretty big cities there. Now we are about to take on the US with this crazy New York City drummer. It’s amazing — this guy on the drums with his hands. He is actually hurting himself on stage playing music.
Patrick. We are going to talk about him. Isaac. I understand your mom was a musician and played with Colin Hay of Men at Work.
Isaac. Yeah, we would come home from school and she would blasting all the greats and singing the top notes and “gassing it up” as she would say. We were always listening to music through our parents and this was the sense of our thoughts while we were making rash musical decisions.
Patrick. I know you have told the story of meeting in the subway many times, so I won’t ask you to repeat it, but I do want to know, Shakerleg, does it really hurt to play.
Shakerleg. Oh yes it does. The whole point was to make people in the subway in New York, where I was making a living, to just turn their head and throw some money at me. Obviously my drumming skills with sticks were not up to par, especially in comparison to other New York drummers, I thought well, maybe I can just hit these things with my hands and see what happens. I had to injure myself in front of them to show them I was desperate and had nothing else, and it backfired – I started to like it.
Patrick. Did you leave blood on the drum skins?
Shakerleg. Occasionally. There is calcification of the bone under the skin of my hands – like a MMA fighter or a martial artist who is hitting wood all the time. At least I like to kid myself that that is what is happening and not think about the future lack of use of lack of use of these two hands. I have a feeling it is coming. I wake up in the morning with my hands so swollen I can barely close them. I have to hold my hand up because they are so swollen. But it is too good – I can’t stop it right now. I am not going with sticks because I am so far beyond that with this hand drumming that I would be trying to play catch up. I will break my hands until people stop coming to the show.
Patrick. Isaac, did you have any reservations about hiring a drummer who didn’t use sticks?
Isaac. We have played with many a drummer and we love them all, but there is just a chemistry with him that we have never before. There was no question – it was can we all get along? . Shakerleg interjects: and we finally do get along, this is the first time I have felt this comfortable.
Patrick. You worked with Tony Visconti, who produced for David Bowie T-Rex, among others. How did that happen?
Isaac and Skakerleg. That was through one of our managers at Innerscope. He asked us who we wanted to work with and we listened to the rawness of T-Rex albums and Bowie’s melodic bass lines and grooves. We believe that what we do in the studio has to be raw and has the kinetic energy of a live show, as well as solidifies a groove that you can put on anytime and dance to. Tony did that for Bowie and T-Rex and we figured he could do it for us.
Patrick. Did he?
Isaac. I am not sure we got there with him, but I am not sure we are there yet except for our live recordings. We are in an interesting place – we pretty much know what songs we want to put on the album and we pretty much have an idea of how to get that sound, but we are still questioning a bit.
Patrick. What was it like to open for PINK?
Shakerleg. I can speak personally as being a NY street performer, thinking that this is big as I am going to go and then standing in an arena in Australia looking at the rig set up for her flying around, it was overwhelming and…yeah. Ten years in a subway stations and then I am in an arena with PINK.
Isaac. I have never seen anyone so dedicated to her craft. She is inspiring and top of the mountain. We met her at a benefit concert at someone’s home in LA and she saw us play and several months her people called us and here we are. I still have the recording of us screaming in the background. I should make it my ringtone.
Patrick. Was it terrifying being on a big arena stage?
Shakerleg. No, we felt alive. This is what we came for.
Isaac It is like a drug. Once you do that, you are hooked. Your biggest problem is that in 2015 when the music business is so tough, you have to get back to the arena.
Patrick. Thank you guys, have a great tour and don’t wear yourself – or your hands – out.
Our friends in New Politics have just released their new music video for their song, Everywhere I Go, (Kings and Queens). You will even catch Thanks to The Walking Dead’s Christian Serratos, pro skater Ben Hatchell, and LOLO in it. So check it out here:
New Politics are currently out on their headlining tour with Bad Suns and SomeKindaWonderful. In case you missed it, check out a repost of our coverage from their San Francisco show:
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New Politics are out on another headlining tour which will take them across the country. Sunday night they made a stop in San Francisco and performed at the legendary Fillmore. It was great to see them headline at the Fillmore when only a few years ago, they were there opening for The Dirty Heads. From the first time, we saw New Politics open for The Spill Canvas at Slim’s in 2010. They blew us away as we dubbed them “Energizer Bunny Meets Nirvana”.
They put on one of the most energetic, engaging sets that you don’t ever want to miss. Once again at the Fillmore, they exceeded all of our expectations and delivered a top notch set. Check out a sneak peek of photos from our Rockin Ryan of their set:
Their set included old and new songs which had the crowd brimming with excitement. It was great to hear the crowd singing along to their new song, Everywhere I Go (Kings and Queens) which will be featured on their upcoming new album, VIkings set for a release in February 2015 on DCD2/Warner Bros records. They even brought the house down as they performed a cover of Beastie Boys Sabotage. What a night it was and I truly am proud to see how far these young men have come. They are definitely one of the hardest working bands out there and it is no surprise to see their fast rise to the top. They deserve it!
The tour included their special guests of Bad Suns and SomeKindaWonderful. Check out the dates below and see if they will be coming to a venue near you:
11/12 St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant ( Tickets )
11/13 Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater ( Tickets )
11/14 Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave / Eagles Club ( Tickets )
11/15 Indianapolis, IN @ Deluxe at Old National Centre ( Tickets )
11/16 Chicago, IL @ House of Blues ( Tickets )
11/18 Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s ( Tickets )
11/19 Louisville, KY @ Mercury Ballroom ( Tickets )
11/20 Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues ( Tickets )
11/21 Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall ( Tickets )
11/22 Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall ( Tickets )
11/23 Toronto, ON @ The Opera House ( Tickets )
11/25 New York, NY @ Irving Plaza ( Tickets )
11/26 Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club ( Tickets )
11/28 Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom ( Tickets )
11/29 Philadelphia, PA @ Theater of Living Arts ( Tickets )
11/30 Hartford, CT @ Webster Theater ( Tickets )
Make sure to catch them out on tour. I know I always tell you to make sure to get out to shows, but SERIOUSLY this is one show you WANT to BE AT! New Politics are amazing with their live performances and their stage presence I think is one that can be matched. You can’t help but leave their show in a better mood, better place, or just full of energy and excitement, regardless of what you may be going through. Their music is like instant adrenaline and bliss.
Have you ever seen our interview with them at last year’s Uproar Festival? If not, check it out h ere:
Also make sure you have their latest CD, “A Bad Girl in Harlem” which will have your energy flowing within seconds! You can get it here on Itunes. Definitely on replay at our house.
Music Junkie Press 