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In the summer of 1998 ? brought together by a slew of disparate-yet-alluring musical reference points ? high school friends Eddie Baranek (vocals/guitar), Mike Trombley (drums), and Mark Leahey (bass/vocals) formed The Sights. The trio began playing around their hometown of Detroit shortly thereafter, around which time Trombley, founding drummer, headed to California for what would come to be a three-year respite from the band and also the impetus for a revolving door of drummers, bassist and keyboard players. Undaunted , The Sights took to the studio and began recording their debut album, Are You Green?, at Jim Diamond?s Ghetto Recorders in Detroit . Originally released in June of 1999, Are You Green? was picked up by L.A.-based Fall of Rome Records and re-released the following year. Never big on rest, The Sights went to work on their sophomore album, Got What We Want (released in 2002). With this, the band?s freakishly precocious ability to blend frenetic garage rock, Motown and 60?s pop into something equal parts classic and catchy got them noticed. Got What We Want was released in the U.K. a year later, garnering them some very nice words from both the British press ("Got What We Want is a revelation - a treasure trove of sparky and wildly immediate songwriting." --NME) and the not-so British press ("At last - a new Detroit-garage band that comes in colors." --Rolling Stone). The Sights hit the road for a year of touring both countries, including a 10-week stint sleeping inside the group?s 1991 Ford Econoline van and stealing bagels for sustenance. In the spring of 2004, The Sights - now including relative newbie Bobby Emmett as organist/bassist and Keith Fox as drummer- caught the ear of ex-Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha, who signed them to his own Scratchie Records ( an imprint of New Line Records). And with that, the band headed back to Ghetto Recorders to record their self-titled third LP, The Sights, due out in April 2005. No small feat, the album combines the unobtrusive honesty of The Band with slivers of influence from The Sights? own personal record collections: Ike & Tina, Solomon Burke, Everly Brothers , Bob Seger, Tim Hardin and all manner of raucous songwriting. The end result is an album that?s classic, not derivative?filled with swagger and deference?and ridiculously catchy. Really.
A new classic from these well-pierced pop punk giants. MxPx is a Punk/Rock band that was formed in 1992 in Bremerton, Washington. The band originally consisted of Bassist/Singer Mike Herrera, Yuri Ruley on drums, and their friend Andy Husted on guitar. This trio grew up playing garage shows and shows at their friends' houses until their popularity prospered. Andy Husted was later replaced by Tom Wisniewski on guitar to form what we all know now as MxPx. Originally the band went by the name of Magnified Plaid. The name was changed to M.P., an abbreviated form of the original, and was on posters for an early concert. Yuri, the drummer, made the posters; in his handwriting, periods become X's. The nickname caught on and the band has been going by MxPx ever since. Each letter of the name is pronounced individually. They played on Warped Tour in the 1990s. As part of a deal, MxPx was simultaneously signed to Tooth & Nail Records and A&M Records. After A&M was bought by Interscope, MxPx was dropped, leaving them unsigned. In 2004, MxPx signed to Side One Dummy Records, and released a new DVD and Acoustic EP under that label. In the past couple of years, MxPx has been accumulating fame. Their hit single "I'm Okay, You're Okay" received much radio time during the late nineties, as well as their second radio hit "Responsibility" from the album "The Ever Passing Moment". They appeared on MTV in 2002 and can still be heard on many rock radio stations. Their song "Play It Loud" is also in the huge movie production "Lords of Dogtown" and can be heard during its commercial. MxPx continues to work hard and rock stages all over the country. In October 2005, there were some rumours saying that a follow-up to Panic will be recorded in 2006 and released in early 2007.
Formed in Burlingame, CA in the late nineties, the genesis of Aphasia got its start when then-seventh graders Harber and bassist buddy Jayce Basques began jamming together. After several sessions, it became immediately apparent to these two friends that collaborating with each other was like second nature. Their musical partnership cemented for life, Harber and Basques, along with their band mates, stopped playing covers -- ?We were pretty horrible for the first couple of years,? Jeff laughs, ?playing Lynyrd Skynyrd and Green Day songs?-- and began writing songs of their own. Jeff and Jayce?s collaborations, along with drummer Will Peng, yielded a crop of new songs that demonstrated a remarkable creative leap and the group found writing together to be an effortless process. As for the key to their musical kinship, Basques sees it as a comprehensive, almost instinctive understanding of each other?s complexities. "We know how we work," he says, "and what each other?s strengths are. Jeff is more about the ideas and the big picture, Will is a phenomenal multi-instrumentalist, Aaron Prim (our guitarist) gives us an edge, while I?m more about details and organization. We all have a feel for each other?s styles." Comprised of eleven original tracks, the band?s debut release, Fact & Fiction (produced by Chris Brown of Trapt), is a searing yet heartfelt song cycle. From the thought provoking "Away From You," to the straightforward "Then Again," Aphasia come across as a band with tremendous range. Elsewhere, "Push For New" arrives with a soaring chorus, while the poundingly melodic "House Of Cards" boasts a slowed down bridge that reveals a more intimate layer of the band. "?House of Cards? is really a departure from what we were used to," Jeff says. "It really required us to step away from what was comfortable and take some risks. We especially enjoy how stripped down and personal the bridge turned out." Conversely, Harber says, "?Away From You? came to us the most naturally. The song was completed in about two hours. It?s very raw and blunt." Citing bands like Foo Fighters, Deftones, Refused, Incubus, Blindside, (?And Yanni," Jeff jokes) as main influences, Aphasia?s aggressive aural attack may have its roots in the aforementioned bands, but their sound is truly unique. Or, as Jayce puts it, their sound is, "Music to throw ninja stars to." The first single, the heavy and catchy "Flatline" is also the album?s first track and fittingly so because the members of Aphasia have come to view it as the impetus not only for the album itself, but for the band?s motivation to move confidently towards realizing their own goals. "?Flatline? is a great place to start, considering it's about making your move," Harber says. ?Flatline? was the first song we wrote for the record. It became Aphasia's mission statement like ?It's go time, there's no turning back.? It was motivation to write the rest of the album so putting it first seemed natural." Although the band hails from Burlingame, a city situated just outside of San Francisco not normally regarded as fecund ground from which bands spring forth, the members of Aphasia see not being from a legendary musical city as a distinct advantage. "It actually helped out a lot not fitting into a prevalent scene or music community," Harber says. "Not that it?s bad to have a scene but a lot of time when that happens, unsigned and smaller bands start sounding a lot alike. It allowed us to do our own thing without much pressure to fit a certain mold. The local scene in our town was always very elitist. We have always written the music we want to hear." The members of Aphasia are all relatively young --19-23 years -- but the band has demonstrated a tireless dedication to their craft. And while most of their peers are now rounding out their college careers, the bandmembers are poised to begin a career of their own. "It?s always been the plan," Harber says of his band?s recent signing with DRT/Joint Venture Recordings. "We?re pretty modest about it, but we?re dedicated people." That dedication will soon find the band embarking on a tireless touring schedule, but Harber, Basques, Peng and Prim are more than up to the task after honing their live show for years "I?m excited to tour and see things and experience things," Harber says. "There are so many kids my age that haven?t been outside their state." Thematically, the band?s debut covers the terrain of strained relationships, the struggles between friends and the isolation that comes when one feels like an outsider, to name a few, and what?s so refreshing about each song is that the band seems personally invested in its subject matter. "We cover a broad spectrum," Harber says, "of interpersonal issues highlighting the role of basic human emotion. Sometimes a single event affects us so deeply and pulls us in so many directions that it might take two or three songs to cover it completely." As for what they hope fans will take from their music, Basques offers: "If someone can relate to what specifically we?re saying?because I think a lot of our subject matter is universal?and maybe see another side of it or a different aspect of something they?re going through, that would be amazing. That?s more than we?ve ever hoped for. That would be absolutely flattering."
Raging Speedhorn: "How Much Can a Man Take"
Raging Speedhorn first came to be in August of 1998. The forming of the band was a result of the combination of the bands 'Soulcellar' and 'Box'. Guitarist Gareth Smith, drummer Frank Regan and bassist Darren Smith from 'Soulcellar' met up with guitarist Tony Loughlin, vocalist Jon Loughlin and drummer Gordon Morison from 'Box' to form Raging speedhorn. Frank Regan, formerly a drummer then changed to vocals along with Jon Loughlin to make an outstanding team. As the songs began to flow, Speedhorn recorded demos, and got a few good giggs, getting strong reviews in important magazines like Kerrang! and Metal Hammer.Their first big break came when they supported the legindary 'Ministry' at the London Astoria. From then on they never looked back, and have got stronger and stronger. Speedhorn have now recorded about 20 songs in just over a year together, and they play live regularly, with some great acts. Easily their biggest gig so far was at the Ozzfest UK, along with the likes of the mighty SlipKnoT and Amen.They have also been touring regularly, sponsored by Kerrang! and Metal Hammer. Their first demo song [selling over 800 coppies], Thumper, has since been released on Metal Hammer's December 1999 cover mount CD. Ian Camfield has also given Speedhorn plenty of airplay on his Xfm show. All this has built up to the release of their debut album, entitled 'Raging Speedhorn', which was released in the spring of 2001. After the success of their debut album, Raging Speedhorn kept up the tough schedule and started working towards a new album. Touring the country regularly, as well as trying to maintain part-time jobs meant that time to write was limmited. However, two years on from when we were first greeted by the din of Speedhorn, 'We'll Be Dead by Tomorrow' is set for release in the summer this year. 'The Hate Song' is the first single from this album, and was released on June 24, 2002. Appearing on the main stage at the Reading Festival this summer, as well as having more than one headline tour is sure to give them the publicity they deserve. And so, my friends, the story comes to an end... for now, anyway.
LG Aloha - LX140 (Virgin Mobile)
The Virgin Mobile Aloha is a functional, basic phone, but there are better handsets that are comparable in Virgin Mobile's lineup.
Loaded: eBay nixes negative feedback
eBay abandons negative feedback, AT&T says "Aloha" to the 700 MHz spectrum and we go out for some sushi.
Sunday's Best: "Don't Let It Fade"
"There?s a fine line between stick-to-it-tiveness and self-delusion," quips Sunday?s Best drummer/producer Tom Ackerman, "and right now I think we?re happily confused as to where we stand." Seated next to lead singer/guitarist Ed Reyes, who smiles, Ackerman continues in the tone usually reserved for the telling of embarrassing childhood anecdotes, "we have endured a seriously tough winter: a horrible fall tour, the departure of a founding member and primary songwriter, the changing of booking agents, the quitting of our manager/lawyer, as well as my personal troubles of divorce and rehab. Most bands probably would have quit." A great deal of "Behind the Music" style antics have transpired in the last nine months for the Los Angeles-based quartet, despite their somewhat typical beginnings. Sunday?s Best formed in 1997 when Reyes met guitarist (and then drummer) Ian Moreno while working at KXLU, Los Angeles? seminal college radio station. Sunday?s Best first signed with crank! records and released the Where You Are Now EP, and hit the road. Then they signed to Polyvinyl Records and released their first full length, Poised to Break, in October of 2000. After a great run at college radio and some key high profile shows in New York, the band limped home from their 6 week Fall tour and then seemed to implode. Shortly after arriving home from tour, the booking agent and the band parted ways, the manager stopped calling, and Ackerman checked into rehab and his wife filed for divorce. To top everything off, before Ackerman could complete his rehab stay, Pedro Benito, a primary songwriter and founding member, resigned. The days ahead seemed pretty dark. "I thought I was going to be arrested any minute for forging prescriptions," explained Ackerman, "between that and the dissolve of my five year relationship/marriage, band matters seemed relatively distant in my overall perspective." And yet, in the months that followed, when things seemed the bleakest, the true character of the band was revealed. Reyes took over the business aspects of the band and switched to guitar, James Tweedy was added to play bass, and the band got back to doing what all good bands do: writing music. And with the help of a new booking agent Mike Kelly, the band has been playing West Coast dates since late February (with Dashboard Confessional, the Weakerthans, Cursive, the Juliana Theory). The band is about halfway through writing songs for the follow-up to Poised to Break, and has plans to record in the winter and tour in the fall. Reyes caps off the interview with his own thoughts of the bands resolve, "we just kind of stripped everything down and started having fun again. It?s not really all that epic if you consider we just did what friends usually do when the shit hits the fan: we stuck together.
From First To Last: "The Latest Plague"
?It?s one thing to play a certain type of music,? says singer Sonny Moore dismissively, ?but it?s another thing to have no originality.? This is not just another brash quote from a member of one of the only truly punk bands left, From First To Last. It?s actually more of a mantra. Because when the members of From First To Last?Moore, drummer Derek Bloom and guitarists Travis Richter and Matt Good?began recording their highly anticipated second album Heroine, the pursuit, above all things, was originality. Which, as one spin of Heroine attests, is what they?ve achieved. ?We are so pleased,? Moore says. ?Before we started, we all said, ?We?re not going to make this record unless it?s a record we truly love.? And we did. This is the first time I?ve ever been so proud of a piece of art in my life.? This didn?t happen overnight. Formed in 2002 by Richter and Good in their hometown of Orlando, Florida, it wasn?t until FFTL began recording their Epitaph debut Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Body Count that the band?s line-up began to congeal. Living in Los Angeles and half-heartedly playing in another band, the then 15-year-old Moore decided to spend a few weeks with the band in Georgia, where they were recording their debut. His timing couldn?t have been better. Moore arrived just as Good and Richter parted with their original singer and they were in the process of filling in the vocal gap on their own. After hearing Moore singing backups in the studio one day, a decision was made: Moore was in. Perhaps unsurprisingly the remainder of Dear Diary came together almost as quickly. Good and Richter had written the album in two weeks; Moore completed his vocals in the same space. They were barely a band in some senses, but FFTL?s music caught on nonetheless. Due in large part to their constant touring schedule, including three consecutive Warped Tour runs, Dear Diary went onto sell over 100,000 copies. But beyond the album?s success was an often-unnoticed subtext. As Moore puts it on the album?s opening track, with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek, ?I?m glad you?ve graced me with your presence/You?re just in time to see me wrestle with my conscience.? Nevermind your broken heart. This was ?screamo? with wit.
From First To Last: "Note To Self"
?It?s one thing to play a certain type of music,? says singer Sonny Moore dismissively, ?but it?s another thing to have no originality.? This is not just another brash quote from a member of one of the only truly punk bands left, From First To Last. It?s actually more of a mantra. Because when the members of From First To Last?Moore, drummer Derek Bloom and guitarists Travis Richter and Matt Good?began recording their highly anticipated second album Heroine, the pursuit, above all things, was originality. Which, as one spin of Heroine attests, is what they?ve achieved. ?We are so pleased,? Moore says. ?Before we started, we all said, ?We?re not going to make this record unless it?s a record we truly love.? And we did. This is the first time I?ve ever been so proud of a piece of art in my life.? This didn?t happen overnight. Formed in 2002 by Richter and Good in their hometown of Orlando, Florida, it wasn?t until FFTL began recording their Epitaph debut Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Body Count that the band?s line-up began to congeal. Living in Los Angeles and half-heartedly playing in another band, the then 15-year-old Moore decided to spend a few weeks with the band in Georgia, where they were recording their debut. His timing couldn?t have been better. Moore arrived just as Good and Richter parted with their original singer and they were in the process of filling in the vocal gap on their own. After hearing Moore singing backups in the studio one day, a decision was made: Moore was in. Perhaps unsurprisingly the remainder of Dear Diary came together almost as quickly. Good and Richter had written the album in two weeks; Moore completed his vocals in the same space. They were barely a band in some senses, but FFTL?s music caught on nonetheless. Due in large part to their constant touring schedule, including three consecutive Warped Tour runs, Dear Diary went onto sell over 100,000 copies. But beyond the album?s success was an often-unnoticed subtext. As Moore puts it on the album?s opening track, with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek, ?I?m glad you?ve graced me with your presence/You?re just in time to see me wrestle with my conscience.? Nevermind your broken heart. This was ?screamo? with wit.
"Drummer Needed," written and directed by John Dole, follows the plight of an alien who plays drums in a rock and roll band.
