I is for Indie

Most of us automatically assume that, to be a notable artist in the music world, you have to get yourself signed to a label.

Hollywood, Columbia, take your pick.

But is that really the case?

No, as a matter of fact, it is not.

Some of the best written lyrics and tunes come from Indie bands.

For instance, Coldplay, The Killers, MGMT, Jimmy Eat World and more are all indie bands, AKA unsigned to a label.

So, no, you really do not have to be signed to a label to get noticed, especially now-a-days in a technological world where one tweet can get you thousands of followers.

So let’s pick out a couple Indie bands and go from there!

Action Item

A combination of pop, rock and a hint of blues, Action Item has created a sound all their own.

The New Jersey band formed in 2007 with a powerhouse of Brian Cag (Guitar/Vocals), Anthony Li (Guitar/Cello/Vocals), Mark Shami (Keyboard/Vocals), Dan Brozek (Drums) & David Buczkowski is the band to look out for!

Songs like the two featured off of The Stronger The Love Somewhere Out There and When Everything Falls Back Down are downright catchy and have meaningful lyrics. These boys definitely don’t do anything halfway and their work ethic and dedication is outstanding!

They’ve released a total of 3 EPs and have sold over 22,000 copies of their second EP, The Stronger The Love. They recently released their 3^rd EP Resolution and have also started project Brave, based off their song Brave. The project donates a percentage of the earnings towards STOMP OUT BULLYING, which is an organization that helps put an end to bullying.

So definitely make sure to check them and watch out for them on the Warped Tour! Definitely try to meet them, because these guys love meeting their fans!

Neon Trees

You have probably heard these guys, whether you realize it or not. You may recognize these lyrics, “It started with a whisper, it happened when I kissed her.”

It seems to be a pretty popular song entitled Everybody Talks and is done none other than the Neon Trees off their second album Picture Show.

I don’t think one word and one word only could describe this band from Provo, Utah; fun, enthusiastic. Those could definitely be used. The bands songs are definitely bouncy and catchy, a term I seem to use often.

But I guess most of the music I like to pick is mostly happy, fun and bouncy. Who doesn’t love a good dance tune?

So, once again, check this Indie band out and enjoy listening to their music!

H is for Honor Society

What comes to your mind when you think of Honor Roll? Well, what most people think of is school, studying and pristine grades.

However, for about 160,000 people, it brings to mind one thing and one thing only:

Honor Society

A three piece band consisting of Michael Bruno (Vocals/Guitar), Andrew Lee, (Bass) and Alexander Noyes, these guys are the epitome of awesome.

By this time, you probably are aware that I love bands that have a great personality to match their talent. The members of Honor Society have just that.

But let’s, for a moment, talk about their music and their start.

They were formed in 2006 (even though at that time, Alexander was not part of the band) and released their first EP “The Green Light”. In 2008, they released another EP entitled “A Tale Of Risky Business”.

Truth be told, some of my favorite Honor Society songs came from this album, like Heartache In The Subarbs and The Takeover

Now their full length album Fashionably Late is an album that I feel everyone should have in their collection.

The tracks are everything you could need for a non-stop party. From the upbeat, fun filled number Sing For You to the soft, relaxed melodies of Goodnight, My Love, there is something for everyone.

Now, remember in the beginning when I mentioned an “Honor Roll”? Well, I did that for a purpose. One of the tracks featured on Fashionably Late is See U In The Dark.

The boy of Honor Society created a dance to this song – so when you hear the chorus, you know what to do!

**Click here to learn the Honor Roll**

The guys have shifted their sound a little over the course of their musical career. Not anything crazy, but enough to make you grin and nod your head, saying, “That’s new!”

So, give these guys a shot!

Check out their newer songs as well, like Dancing By Yourself, Serendipity and Living A Lie. All amazing songs, so check them out!

Their catchy beats, pure lyrics and infectious sound will have you bouncing around all day!

G is for Gabe Kubanda VS Good Charlotte

I had so much trouble figuring out who to use today and I was stuck between two people. It was becoming a back and forth tug of war.

So, I took a page out of a fellow bloggers book and decided to do a double whammy, a Battle of the Bands if you will.

So here they are:

Both these artists deserve the attention they get tonight and I hope you think so as well!

 

Gabe Kubanda

 I first heard of/met Gabe Kubanda when I went to an Epic Proportions Tour show.The first thing you notice about this guy is his personality. He’s fun, bouncy and extremely nice!

The second thing you notice is what an amazing singer he is. When you’ve never heard someone before, you have to wonder what they sound like. Especially when it’s live. At least sometimes with a recording, there are little fixers that can be made to correct any mistakes.

Well Gabe needs none of that.
Purely raw and perfect, his voice might as well be made of gold. It’s the raspy kind of voice that you don’t mind playing over and over on your iPod as you fall asleep, it’s just that great.

Hitting the music scene as a solo artist, Gabe set out to create a humorous and personal acoustic pop sound that definitely works well with his personality.

On the Epic Proportions Tour, he played all acoustic; he had nothing but a guitar and a microphone as his props.

But that was all he needed.

Without You by Gabe Kubanda

 

Good Charlotte 

There are some bands that you just can’t get enough of. No matter the mood, they have a song that fits and brings the world down to a slow speed.

Good Charlotte is one of those bands.

A personal favorite of mine, Good Charlotte was formed in 1996 out of Waldorf, Maryland.

Laying it all out on the line and non believers in sugar coating, Good Charlotte tells the truth like it is and they wear their heart on their musical sleeve.

A five piece that is inspirational for any aspiring musician, Good Charlotte brings life, reality and true emotion back to music.

Music isn’t just about yelling out words to guitar chords.

It’s about musicians connecting with their audience and helping the audience connect with each other.Thank the stars that Good Charlotte had the good sense to bring that feeling back.

GC Song Links

Right Where I Belong

The Young & the Hopeless

Broken Hearts Parade

F is for Fourth and Coast

As you know, I post about well known and not so well known artists alike. They all deserve the attention, yeah?

So today I am introducing you to a band named Fourth and Coast. I like it. Pretty catchy, don’t you think? Consisting of four members (Stephen Ordonez (vocals and guitar), James Colla (Guitar), Justin Moreno (Bass), Jacob Gutman (drums)) and a debut EP that was released late last year, these guys are fairly new. Despite that, however, the San Diego based band definitely knows what they are doing.

Hopeless Romantic - Fourth and Coast

Their debut single "Hopeless Romantic" is a fun, bouncy and overall enjoyable song. It gets added to that playlist on every iPod of songs to listen to on road trips or when you are cruising with the windows down. This is one band you'll want to keep an eye on - with their infectious beats and catchy lyrics, we'll be hearing a lot more from these guys soon!

E is for Elvis Presley

Our topic of today is a face that is most likely familiar to many.

From iconic lyrics to catchy beats and rhythms, this man was, and still is, known by all.

Yes, dear music lovers, The King is the showcase of today’s blog!

Suspicious Minds - Elvis

Elvis appealed to males and females alike of all ages; he was one of those artists that brought everyone together.

Young boys looked up to him because the “good boys” didn’t slick their hair back and wiggle their hips like that in front of women. Girls loved him because they never saw anything like him before. He was a trendsetter.

Most parents were like, OMG about his onstage antics. But, hey, King of Rock – whatcha gonna do about it?

He was on the Ed Sullivan show a whoppin’ 3 times and was in 31 movies. The camera loved this guy!

So are you a fan of the King of Rock?

Thanks for reading todays blog! Sorry about how short it was. Kind of ran outta time!

See you tomorrow!

D is for Duet

So I really had a hard time pulling together an idea for tonight. Like, really hard. I went through so many artists in my head; there are so many artists that I could have chosen that start with “D”, but they all just felt like a no brainer. Def Leppard? Too obvious. Daughtry? Too easy? Deep Purple? The blog would be way too long.

Sooooo, instead of trying to focus in on one artist, I decided to go into a couple different duets!

The first one I chose is *drum roll please*….

Broken by Seether (Featuring Amy Lee)

This song is a powerful ballad. I’ve always been a big Evanescence fan – I love the rock sound with Amy Lees sweet and pure voice. What drew me to this song was the combination of a growly, gravely voice mixed in with Amys.

The feel of the song is very inviting as well. The emotion that pours from this song is indescribable.

It makes you feel like you’re actually listening to a conversation between two people in that situation. It’s just a really moving song and really powerful, to me anyways.

Just Give Me A Reason by Pink (Featuring Nate Ruess)

Another song that really makes your heart ache for the two people involved. The whole tone of the song, from “We’re not broken just bent, and we can learn to love again.” To “Used to lie so close to me, there’s nothing more than empty sheets between our love.” Gives the impression of, hey we’re having problems right now, but we can get through it! It makes you wonder how many people have conversations like this every day and makes you want to root for them to work through their problems.

So there you have it; two songs, one blog!

Come back tomorrow for a throwback blog!

C is for Coldplay

We all have those bands where we hear a song, roll our eyes, and change the channel. Yet, two weeks later, we hear a different song from the same band and suddenly, we’re hooked. It took time, but the sound grew on us.

That’s kind of how I came to listen to Coldplay.

The British band that was formed in 1996 has quite a few achievements under their belt, including 8 Brit Awards, winning Best British Group three times, five MTV Video Music Awards,  three World Music awards, four Billboard Music Awards, and seven Grammy Awards from twenty six nominations. Wow! Impressive!

I was originally introduced to Coldplay by (get this!) my dad!

This band is even the reason that I learned to play piano – my dad loved the song Clocks so much that he wanted me to learn to play the opening piece more than anything.

Clocks by Coldplay

After you hear Clocks, you kind of can’t help but fall in love. There’s a certain quality that you can’t deny that it is apparent in every song. It’s very specific and to this day I can’t figure out exactly what that is, but it’s there.

So what about you?

Do you go for Coldplay or give them the Cold Shoulder?

Thanks for reading!

B is for Beneath The Sun

Every band has that moment of clarity when they know exactly who they want to be and what direction they want to go with their music.

Beneath The Sun is no different.

The band has been through many a transition, perfecting their members and their sound, to give us the best of their ability. And it is indeed the best.

For those who have never heard of the boys, let’s give you a taste of their music:

Dreamin' - Beneath The Sun

The four piece band consists of bassist Joe Mauti, drummer Caleb Schultz and twins Phil Evans (vocals) & Anthony Evans (vocals and lead guitar).

The band, once known as School Boy Humor, has powerful rock anthems that release the inner rocker in everyone. Thankfully for most, not all their songs are about love and heartbreak like the majority of the music we hear on the radio today. Some of it is about the struggles of following your dreams and fighting for what you believe in. (Don't Look Back) Then you have the sentimental, soft side poking through when you listen to rock ballad Nobody.

It’s real, raw and believe it or not, these guys can legitimately sing. No auto tune involved, which is a feat in itself in the musical industry these days. In fact, a friend of mine has said that they sound even better live!

Not only do they have great music, they have personalities to match. And let’s face it, who doesn’t love a rock star with a great personality? One who actually takes the time to talk to fans, take pictures and just have a regular conversation?  Sometimes, it’s just nice to sit there and have a chat with one of your favorite artists about music. And in the end, Beneath The Sun has this category all wrapped up.

So check them out – you never know. They might become a new favorite!

Hope to see you tomorrow for another music related topic!

A is for Aerosmith

See those guys up there?

They might look familiar to most people.

They can boast a whopping 14 albums, they can tell you that they've had 21 singles hit the Billboard Top 40, an entire version of Guitar Hero has been created in their honor.

And yes, they even have a ride dedicated to their amazing chemistry as a band at Hollywood Studios in Disney World.

Yes, yes, fellow music lovers, we're talking about Aerosmith.

If you haven't listened to Aerosmith, we will fix that right now.

Walk This Way - Aerosmith

That link above will take you to one of my personal favorite songs, Walk This Way.

How about we talk why this song (and by extension, the entire band) deserves the musical recognition that they have had?

• The infectious drum beats
• The catchy guitar riff
• The amazing vocals of Steven Tyler

Now, someone tell me that they have no reason to be at the top of their game.

Let's dissect this song down to the core and see what makes it so perfect:

Infectious Drum Beats

When Walk This Way opens up, the first thing you hear when you close your eyes is a bouncy, pop, yet rock beat. The double bass between hits makes you want to get up and rock out. Simple, yet affective rhythm. 

Catchy Guitar Riffs

The C Major key played in a slightly distorted tone worked wonders for this song. i don't know about anybody else, but I can't imagine the song being played with any other effects, or a different key. The combination makes this the song to listen to while driving down the highway with windows down.

Steven Tyler and His Vocals

WOW! Not many people can sound so loud, raspy and halfway screaming while making it sound epic. Its raw, passionate and full of adrenaline. What's even more amazing, though, is how he can tap into YOUR personal emotions with the greatest of ease.

So there you have it.

Easily one of the greatest rock bands of all time. 

Come back tomorrow for another artist - who knows? You may have never even heard of them until now!

For Those About To Blog, We Salute You!

Music.

For some people, it's that noise that's used to make the car ride go faster, just to fill up a blank spot in the air.

For some people, music is noise and that's it.

But, if you're anything like me, music is so much more than that.

Music has meaning behind it.

Whether it be rock and roll, pop, blues or instrumental, there's a message and emotion for everybody.

The fun part is tuning into what the words and instruments are saying.

What do you like about music?

Maybe it's the steady beat of the drums - the fact that you can practically feel the bass pumping a rhythm through your veins.

Or perhaps you can't get enough of slick guitar riffs. There may be nothing quite like listening to those high notes.

Whatever the case may be, you have the ear for music. 

Which is exactly why this blog is the one for you.

We all have a weakness - boy bands, girl bands, metal bands, etc. SO whatever your  forte this blog is the one for you.

And I am happy to say that I've started this for the A to Z challenge, therefore, we'll be getting 26 days of non-stop music!

I hope you enjoy this as much as I will!

P.S. Bonus points for the play on words in the title? Anyone? 
No..? Okay, then.