We have a very special band for you on our Tuesdays Travels feature. How about an all female hard rock band from Brazil that kicks ass? Check out Girlie Hell as they make a name for themselves across the globe. Girlie Hell started in 2007 and gained a lot of attention for their first album, Get Hard. They have since been melting faces and rocking the world with their music.
Girlie Hell is:
Bullas Attekita – Vocals & Guitar
Kaju Stoppa – Vocals & Guitar
Carol Pasquali – Drums
Fernanda Simmonds – Bass
They had a very successful tour last year with another one of our favorite female bands, Crucified Barbara. They have also worked with and performed with with some bands/producers like Sepultura, Ted Jensen, Krisium, Bad Religion. They are currently planning on releasing a vinyl later this year and are ready for you to know more about Girlie Hell. Check out their song, Gunpowder here:
The song highlights their sound as they deliver searing riffs, gritty edgy vocals, fierce distortion and intense build up. We really look forward to what their new album has in store for us. We will see if we can bring you an interview with these amazing musicians, so stay tuned.
Make sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their latest news.
Tonight Alive debut their new song, The Edge which is set to be featured on the soundtrack for The Amazing Spider-Man 2: The Rise of Electro which is set to open in the US on May 2nd. “The Edge” is available to pre-order now ahead of its global release on April 1st, which will coincide with the premiere of their music video. They have released a teaser video that you can check out here:
Tonight Alive will be performing their new song on their current tour with Taking Back Sunday and The Used. Tonight Alive explain their excitement for this new project, they prepare to be launched further into the international spotlight. ““The Edge”is a song we’re really proud of and as a band we are very flattered to be a part of such a huge legacy that is The Amazing Spider-Man 2: The Rise Of Electro. It is our hope that not only Tonight Alive fans, but all fans of the comic and movies will enjoy the track too!” You can check out Tonight Alive out on tour on the following dates:
Mar 22 – Salt Lake City, UT – In The Venue
Mar 23 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory
Mar 25 – San Francisco, CA – The Warfield
Mar 27 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium
Mar 28 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues
Mar 29 – Las Vegas, NV – Extreme Thing
Apr 1 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
Apr 2 – Omaha, NE – Sokol Auditorium
Apr 4 – Milwaukee, WI – Eagles Ballroom
Apr 5 – Chicago, IL – Concord Music Hall
Apr 6 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore
Apr 8 – Toronto, ON – Kool Haus
Apr 9 – Rochester, NY – Main Street Armory
Apr 11 – Hartford, CT – Webster Theatre
Apr 12 – Boston, MA – House of Blues
Apr 13 – Philadelphia, PA – Tower Theater
Apr 15 – New York, NY – Best Buy Theatre
Apr 19 – Bethlehem, PA – Sands Bethlehem Events Center
Apr 22 – Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore
Apr 24 – Atlanta, GA – The Tabernacle
Apr 26 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL – Revolution Live
Apr 27 – Orlando, FL – House of Blues
I hope you catch them out on tour. One thing is for sure, they put on a stellar performance that is filled with high energy and created a crowd camaraderie that cannot be rivaled. Tonight Alive‘s music is filled with empowering and uplifting lyrics as well as songs that people can emotionally connect to. Jenna McDougall, frontwoman, has been quoted before as saying, ““A lot of people have said that we saved their lives and that our music got them through really difficult times. To be that band for people is amazing because it was music that got us through difficult times ourselves. The band’s message is about not living in the fear of other people’s judgement, not being held back by other people’s opinions, about having self-worth. That’s something that’s carried over to our latest album too from a different perspective; there’s truly a silver lining to everything”
We had a great time covering their show when they came to San Francisco last year. Here is a tribute video that Rockin Ryan made to Lonely Girl which includes footage and photos from their San Francisco performance:
Meanwhile, make sure to pick up their album on iTunes , “The Other Side” which is filled with great songs and a couple of my favorites are “Lonely Girl” and “The Ocean”. Stay tuned for the release of their new song, The Edge.
Our Tuesdays Travels Pick of the Week Band is DNR from Italy. I am so excited to tell you about this great band, DNR who are ready to break the norm with their new fresh take on rock and roll infused with alternative and electro. DNR started as a project from Italy by the bassist Kira who had a dream, “To fuse the Asian and Western Music as well as Visual styles into one.” Although there might have been a couple line-up changes over the years, one thing rings true, the dream is still very well alive and their new sound will reel you in and captivate you. DNR is AxiA on Vocals, Kira on Bass, Yu (founder of German band Cinema Bizzare) on Guitar and Ash on Drums. Together, these four have fused their individual styles and crafted their own unique sound.
They have recently released their new music video for their single, Another World Falls Down and check it out here:
The new track is currently available on ITunes and is definitely one to pick up. It is energetic song encapsulated in a catchy beat with emotionally powered vocals blended with some fierce ballad style guitars. Definitely one to have on repeat for your playlist.
DNR is also in the running to compete to play at the Welcome Rockville Festival in Jackson, Florida. Head over here: http://rockville.battleofthebands.com/u/D_N_R and cast your vote for them to win. Make sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their latest news.
We are back with our Tuesdays Travels Pick of the week. We travel the world to bring you fresh new music that will have you hooked and ready to rock! Today our pick is Kill Shott from Melbourne, Australia. To quote their Facebook page, “KILL SHOTT, For those times when you need a shot of whiskey, a dirty woman and an even dirtier Rock’n’Roll band”. They definitely are ready to have you rockin out in no time.
Kill Shott is Ted Dempsey on Vocals, Chris Gunslinger on Lead and Rhythm Guitar, Tommy Sunset on Bass Guitar and Nick Caligula on Drums. Together these four deliver an intensely addictive dirty rock sound that will have you moving within seconds. Don’t believe me? Well then, check it out for yourself with their video for 50 Sold which is off of their self-titled EP that was released last year.
I am excited to announce that Kill Shott is working on some new tracks and will have some new music for us soon. I will keep you updated on the details and also make sure to visit their social media sites.
For our Tuesdays Travels Pick of the Week, I am excited to bring you CURRAN from the UK. They have an awesome rock n roll sound that will have you hooked from the first listen. CURRAN is Mark Curran on Vocals, Mat Anthony on Guitar, Dean Roberts on Rhythm Guitar, Enrico Terella on Bass and Kris Rich on Drums. Check out their video for their song, “Run Back to You“
I just love that song. It has such a bluesy rock vibe and the vocals remind me of one of my all-time favorite vocalists, Tom Keifer. It has a great build up on the intro that is perfect for a stadium show. I love the gritty guitars and the solos are bad ass. I bet you want more? NO!! I KNOW YOU WANT MORE!! So check out their other video for their song, “My Love Won’t Let You Down“
They are just incredible and I can only imagine how awesome they would be to see live. If only I could travel to the UK because they recently announced their tour as the Special Guest for the Quireboys! As most of you all know, the Quireboys aka London Quireboys is one of my top 5 all-time favorite BANDS!!! I can only wish and pray they take this tour over here to the States and make sure to bring CURRAN too!
For now, visit CURRAN social media sites and get to know more about our Tuesdays Travels Pick of the Week!
Australian rockers, Tonight Alive returned to San Francisco last night for their “The Other Side” tour show at Slim’s. They were here last year as they opened for Pierce the Veil but this time the show was all theirs as part of their U.S. headlining tour in support of their new album, “The Other Side”.
One thing is for sure, they put on a stellar performance that is filled with high energy and created a crowd camaraderie that cannot be rivaled. Tonight Alive‘s music is filled with empowering and uplifting lyrics as well as songs that people can emotionally connect to. Jenna McDougall, frontwoman, has been quoted before as saying, ““A lot of people have said that we saved their lives and that our music got them through really difficult times. To be that band for people is amazing because it was music that got us through difficult times ourselves. The band’s message is about not living in the fear of other people’s judgement, not being held back by other people’s opinions, about having self-worth. That’s something that’s carried over to our latest album too from a different perspective; there’s truly a silver lining to everything”
Their show last night proved that and much more as we watched men and women of all ages sing along to the songs and many even had tears in their eyes as Jenna gave advice to the crowd about being proud of who you are and to not let being judged take you down. It was truly magical and I definitely wished I had someone like her to listen to when I was a young teen.
Then you have the amazing Cam, Jake and Whakaio on guitars and bass. They just have some fierce energy and excellent stage presence that captivates the crowd. Matt on drums brings it all home with his solid drumming. What an amazing band and I am already looking forward to the next time we see them. They mentioned they will be returning in Spring and we will see if we can bring you an interview at that time. Here is a tribute video that Rockin Ryan made to Lonely Girl which includes footage and photos from their San Francisco performance:
You can take a look at some of the photos that were taken by our photographer, Rockin Ryan from last night’s set here:
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Meanwhile, make sure to pick up their album on iTunes , “The Other Side” which is filled with great songs and a couple of my favorites are “Lonely Girl” and “The Ocean”. Check out their video for another one of my faves, “Coming Home” here:
This week our Tuesdays Travels pick takes us to Malmo, Sweden. Sweden; the home of IKEA, ABBA and Absolut Vodka. Now we have one more thing to thank Sweden for, the incredible new wave infused rock by The Sounds. Their music is described as indie rock/new wave but I think they can’t be categorized since they have a sound all on their own. The female fronted vocalist, Maja Ivarsson reminds me of a mix of Terri Nunn and Debbie Harry. Their songs are energetic and fun and will have you moving and enjoying life within seconds of listening.
The Sounds is Maja Ivarsson on Vocals, Felix Rodriguez on Guitars/Vocals, Johan Bengtsson on Bass,
Jesper Anderberg on Keys/Guitar/Vocals and Fredrik Blond on Drums.
The Sounds recently released their album, “Weekend” on October 29th, 2013 and it is spectacular. They have described this album as a bit of a rebirth of the band. Jesper Anderberg, keyboardist/guitarist explains, “Weekend is more of a back to basics album, I was primarily looking for a groove when I started writing this album – a groove based on five members who have been playing music together for a long time. We weren’t looking to over think the song writing, and especially wanted to make it sound like we just hit the switch on the amps and just started playing the songs.” The album is great, a couple of my favorites are Take it the Wrong Way, Weekend, Outlaw, and the very fun Young and Wild reminds me of my love for the 90’s music. They have succeeded in taking ’90s inspired music and breathed a fresh new life to it and I am hooked! You can pick up your copy of “Weekend” on Itunes or Amazon.
You can check out their lyric video for their single, Weekend here:
The Sounds are busy touring in Europe and we hope they return back here to the States soon. Make sure to visit their social media sites and stay up to date on their tour info, details and latest news.
This week our Tuesdays Travels pick takes us over to Copenhagen, Denmark to introduce you to a very familiar voice, Mike Tramp. You may know Mike, (honestly… you better know!) from his years with White Lion and Freak of Nature. I loved and still love White Lion. They are definitely one of those ’80s bands that I continue to keep on my regular playlist.
Mike Tramp has an extensive and successful career with his solo work as well. He most recently released Cobblestone Street earlier this year and it is amazing! This album truly takes you on a soulful journey with music through Mike’s life. He has mentioned that all of his songs have come from just playing the old faithful acoustic guitar and singing.
Mike mentions that this album is what like coming home after a long journey. Mike says, “I am not lost, I am not confused, I am not taking a break. This is the album I have waited a long long time to record, because I didn’t have the guts to do it earlier on. Still, it’s not just a matter of doing an album like this and then returning to the screaming Marshall amplifiers, thundering bass and drums like canons. This is where I am, and this is where I am going to stay as a solo artist, and anytime the urge to play loud rock’n’roll awakes in me, it will be some kind of band project where I am just the singer and part of the package.”
If you take a listen you will completely understand and fall in love with this album. You can pick your copy up on Itunes here. I am hoping Mike comes back soon to do some more shows here since we missed him at his recent Hollywood performance. Also Mike will be heading out on the Monsters of Rock Cruise “Escape to Monster Island” on March 29, 2014 to Aprl 2, 2014. You can get more details at www.MonstersofRockCruise.com.
Make sure to visit his social media sites. I will leave you with Mike performing “Broken Heart”, the White Lion classic earlier this year.
So you think I forgot about telling you our Tuesdays Travels pick of the week? Hell no! It was a busy music day but tonight I want to introduce you to our Tuesdays Travels Band from Melbourne, Australia. MYSTERY is a kick ass band of four young talented rockers. At first look, you may think they are just another School of Rock band or some kids playing their dad’s instruments. Well, after you take one listen to them, you will know these four young artists mean business with their rock.
They have a great rock metal sound that blends everything from AC/DC to Skid Row to Bon Jovi to Iron Maiden. Check out their video for “Raise Your Fist”
It is so awesome to see such a young group dedicated to bringing rock n roll to the world! Especially now and days when you see the younger generation looking to 1Direction and Justin Bieber for musical inspiration…. they need to be introduced to REAL MUSIC….. ROCK! METAL! Need I say more? So check them out and watch this special update video they put together about their album and tour.
We will see if we can bring you an interview with this band. They are definitely one to keep your eyes on.
Just over a month ago, we featured the very talented Ben Draiman for our Tuesdays Travels pick. He had mentioned he was working on a cover he was soon to release. Well, the time has come and the cover is out and is AMAZING! Ben has released his new interpretation of Disturbed’s “Stricken“. As you might know, Ben is the younger brother of David Draiman from Disturbed/Device. He has taken a great metal song and transformed it into a spectacular ballad. We had the opportunity to interview Ben to discuss more about this remarkable cover. First check out the cover:
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Music Junkie Press:Thank you Ben for taking the time to talk with us about your recent cover. I know that in the past you have covered another Disturbed song, “Darkness” as you paid tribute to your brother David while he was visiting you at one of your shows. Can you tell us what made you choose “Stricken” for your next cover?
Ben: It’s a good thing you mentioned “Darkness”! That wasn’t exactly my best work but it became so popular I didn’t have the heart to take it down. This was my opportunity to redeem myself and I’m hoping it will exceed “Darkness” in popularity. The idea first came about when I was discussing successful covers with my friend and producer, Raz Klinghoffer, who had just released a cover of his own with his project “Earlyrise”. He had said that some of the best covers are ones that change the song 180 degrees and that if I was going to do a slow cover best to choose a fast paced song. I honestly didn’t think it would work. “Stricken” has long been one of my favorites and that very night I went to the piano and tried it. I play by ear so it didn’t take me long to come up with a basic arrangement. It became instantly clear that the lyrics and the melody lent themselves well to a ballad and I was immediately hooked.
Music Junkie Press:That is so true what Raz Klinghoffer said about changing it to that level. That has definitely been what drew me in with all of my favorite covers. You have taken one of the most popular hard rock/metal songs and have transformed it into a symphonic ballad. You literally gave us chills when we listened to it for the first time. Your interpretation really allows the listener to completely envelope themselves into the lyrics. It has to be one of the top break-up/heartbreaker songs out. I can only imagine the emotional process/journey that this cover created for you. Can you tell me more about the making of “Stricken”?
Ben: First of all thank you so much! I’m glad it had an impact on you! Truth be told when I played it for the first couple of times it was intensely emotional and I connected to the lyrics as well as the melody very deeply. I found myself playing it alot and some of the parts were challenging at first for my voice so I worked on it together with my vocal coach, Grace Woolfe, and with her help I was able to master it. I tried it out a few times at live shows and the feedback was so great that I eventually incorporated it in my set list on a regular basis. Later on, I approached my good friends Yuval Kramer and Nina Vouraki, both of which are outstanding musicians, and we decided to record the project together at Yuval’s studio which is not too far from Jerusalem.
Music Junkie Press: Where did you record it at and who else performs with you on the cover?
Ben: As I mentioned previously it was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Yuval Kramer at his studio just outside of Jerusalem. His finacee, Nina Vouraki plays piano on the track, and eventually we brought in a good friend and an exceptional violin player Ariella Zeitlin-Hoffman to add some genuine violin parts to the mix. Both Nina and Yuval are part of a symphonic metal group called “Reign of the Architect” and I really wanted to incorporate some of the elements from their music as well so it would be a full-on collaboration. Yuval is a master at layering orchestra parts and bringing out the epic elements of a song, while Nina is a classically trained pianist, originally from Greece, who could come up with far more complex and interesting arrangements than I ever could. We brought in my vocal coach, Grace Woolfe, when we recorded the vocals in order to insure that we could get the maximum out of the session. Yuval strongly believed and encouraged the best emotional performance one could do, over pitch quality and making mistakes from time to time. His words were “you need to commit suicide on the microphone”. To achieve that I recorded the track in perfect darkness and we were able to get what we wanted in only a few takes. Capturing that sort of intensity in the studio is not an easy accomplishment and I owe a great deal of debt to Yuval, Nina, and Grace for helping me get there.
Music Junkie Press: That is amazing. I can only imagine the recording process and it must have been intense and what you gave us was pure bliss. You have had at last count over 17,000 views in less than a week’s time and all the positive and heartfelt comments/reactions, how do you feel about it?
Ben: The current count is a bit over 19,000 and we’re getting about 1000 – 2000 views a day. The response has blown me away! I was hoping that it would be warmly received but it’s without question the most explosive thing I’ve done to date, getting so far in such a short amount of time. I don’t even have to ask people to share, they seem to be doing it on their own. I took a huge risk by changing such a popular song by such devoted fans such as Disturbed so I’m relieved that they reacted as they did. But I think overall you know in your heart, you get a certain buzzing excitement when something works so I was fairly optimistic. I’m hoping that it will continue and spread further on the internet.
Music Junkie Press: The reactions and comments have been coming in from long time Disturbed fans, to artists from a variety of genres, to fans who have never heard of Disturbed and they are just amazing to read how deeply your version has touched them. You have comments coming in daily and some include from Zach Myers (Shinedown) Lzzy Hale (Halestorm) and so many more. Have you heard from your brother David on the cover and did he get a preview of it before release?
Ben:Of course. I sent it to him after we had mastered it and was extremely nervous to hear his response. I know myself that my art and my music is very sacred and it’s not easy to accept a reinterpretation of it. And while I had already done “Darkness”, which was performed in honor of his coming to one of my shows, that was still MUCH closer to the original than this was. I still remember when I got the e-mail back from him. I nearly had a heart attack fearing he may not like it and won’t want us to release it. But much to my relief he liked it a lot so once we had his approval we moved forward. Since then the other guys from Disturbed have heard it as well and expressed how much they liked it as well.
Music Junkie Press:It is amazing to see so much talent come from your family and awesome for you two to share in that with this special song. What is most important to me with this cover is to see people listening to you and then to see them asking about your album, own work, etc. I can’t wait for more people to hear and pick up your last EP “The Past is Not Far Behind” which is a true musical gem. Can they continue to pick up that EP through your site?
Ben:Well thank you for that! It’s certainly important to me as well. They can definitely order the album. In fact some might even get a special surprise when they order. This week alone I sold more copies than I’ve ever sold, and I still haven’t gotten the reports back from itunes and amazon.
Music Junkie Press: I am sure many more orders will be coming in. We received such great feedback on our initial write up to you where we talked about your album. Are you currently working on a new album?
Ben: I actually have a few things that I’m currently working on. Nina, Yuval, and I will be doing another single together, this time one of mine. Our chemistry was really so magical that it was an obvious move on our part. I will be doing a video for and officially releasing “Taken for Granted” at some point in the future together with the editor for “Avalanche”, Roy Kanevsky, who will be directing this one in its entirety. In addition, I will be doing a project with my friend and producer Raz Klinghoffer in the form of a band under a different name. We have begun work on a full-length album that will be far more rock and a little heavier than what I’ve done till now which I hope will satisfy the growing number of rock and metal fans I’ve accumulated over the years. But it will not be metal. That I can assure you! It will take at least a year before that is even close to ready, so please be patient.
Music Junkie Press: We will all be waiting and excited for what your next endeavors will bring. Lastly, is there anything else you would like to share with our audience?
Ben: I just want to thank everyone for continuing to be supportive and constantly giving me the incentive to keep doing what I’m doing. I read every word that you send me and it means the world to me! Thank you for sharing and helping get the word out and please continue to do so!
And thank you Marisol for taking the time to feature me here and allow me a space to tell my story!
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It was an honor to feature Ben and his music. If you haven’t already, please do check out Ben’s music at his website of www.bendraiman.com and you can read a review of his EP The Past is Not Far Behindhere. I will leave you with the video for “Avalanche” which is from his new EP.
Music Junkie Press 