Introducing… Moura
“I’ve played in bands up until a few years back when my last project finally disbanded. I then had to decide just play “for fun” or to start fresh with a new singer. I didn’t want the new venture to be an extension of the last one, so long story short, I ended up being that singer AND the music behind it” says Evan Donaldson, the sole member of Moura.
Based in California, Evan’s taken quite a D.I.Y approach to the music he makes. Just one look on his Facebook or Bandcamp page and you can see a hardworking guy who just really believes in the music he makes, with the help of some others along the way. With a steadily growing fanbase online, Evan is no less than appreciative of the support he receives – “The reaction has been overwhelming positive. I cannot think of a more satisfying project I have been a part of.”
It’srefreshing in a scene saturated with bands desperate to sign on the dotted line of that all too important record deal, to see projects like Moura making honest, true to heart music come hell or high water. Under his Moura moniker, Evan has just released the ‘Sink’ EP in both the US and abroad. We recently caught up with Evan to talk about how Moura came about, and a ton more questions about this rising act from CA.
Introducing… The Summer Switch
The Summer Switch are a quintet straight out of Albany, New York. With Tony Pitkin as vocalist, Eric Rosen on bass, Ryan Wager on drums and Ian Dorset and Ethan Rose on guitars, The Summer Switch are definitely making a name for themselves. They’ve opened for acts like Breathe Carolina and The Ready Set, and have played a ton of house shows around New York to get their name out there. It’s clear The Summer Switch are a band who breathe, eat and sleep music - something slightly rare these days. Rachel caught up with Tony Pitkin to talk plans for 2012, how The Summer Switch came to be The Summer Switch and a ton more!
What inspired you to start up a career in music?
Well if we go all the way back to the beginning back in 5th grade me and my buddies did an air-band (fake guitars and blow up microphones) to “American Idiot” and we had so much fog on stage that we set off the smoke alarm. That was when I had first realized how awesome music was. My first time performing music came after I decided to play a talent show in 8th grade in my middle school. I sang “Hey There Delilah” with my friend Mike on guitar and I forgot basically all of the words, it was great. But from that point forward I just continued to pursue it through the help of my friends and family I’ve gotten to where I am now. I know Ryan started at a very young age playing in a hardcore band with Eric. I know Ethan played Jazz mostly through his high school and grew up addicted to bands like A Day To Remember and Four Year Strong. Ian was really the only one who came out of nowhere. It was sort of like one day he opened his mouth when we were both in our old band and everyone had the same reaction, “You can sing!?!?”
Introducing… Dear Luna,
For fans of :: The Maine, This Century, NeverShoutNever
Hailing from Poughkeepsie, what seems like the hub of music in New York in recent years, Dear Luna, are a band that are breaking out and making a name for themselves. Founded in 2010 by lead vocalist/songwriter Frankie Emme, the band quickly developed into a full band with the addition of Kyle Hulett, Joey Fasolino and Justin Fryer.
As of December of 2011, the band have released 3 EP’s, opened for Nickelodeon boyband Big Time Rush infront of a crowd of 7,000 people and featured in AP Magazine. With the release of their most recent EP, Green Like Envy | Red Like Love, in December, it’s clear that Dear Luna are going to make something of themselves in 2012.
We caught up with the band recently to talk about Dear Luna, being a band in the recession and a ton more.
Introducing… The Glass Child
When you hear “The Glass Child”, you automatically conjure images of something fragile, innocent and pure. Charlotte Eriksson, also known as The Glass Child, has a voice that matches her stage persona. She’ a 19 year old musician hailing from Gothenburg in Sweden, who moved to the birght lights of London to pursue her music caree. The gutsy Swede has also set up her own label, Broken Glass Records, to release her own music. Not bad for a 19 year old girl!
Charlotte cites acts like Brand New, Counting Crows and Ani DeFranco has her inspirations, and this really comes through in her music. While her voice is fragile and pure, there’s also a raw, earthy element to it, resembling that of Hayley Williams. The kind of voice that plays with your emotions and the type of lyrics that seem so similar to you, it’s almost scary. With brilliant music to match her voice and character, The Glass Child is an artist to look out for.
She’ll be releasing her second EP on her own label in December, which will include a track she worked on with Jason Wilcock (You Me At Six, We Are The Ocean)! We caught up with the talented solo artist to talk about her music, her inspirations, and of course, her Snapshot perfect moment. Charlotte’s fantastic first five-track EP is currently streaming on her website, www.charlotteeriksson.com!
Hi Charlotte! What inspired you to start up a career in music?
I got into music very late, like around 15-16. It wasn’t really something I decided to do, it just sort of happened. I had so many thoughts spinning around and I didn’t really know how to explain myself, and I’ve never been really good at talking. But then I discovered how music and some songs could explain everything I felt, and even make everything feel better by combining the right words and melodies. I started to write a lot in the beginning, not lyrics or poetry or anything, just writings and I could suddenly put words on all these things I felt that I couldn’t talk about. Then it just sort of happened quite naturally that I picked up a guitar and started to write songs about things instead.
Where did the name for your project come from?
When I was younger I had a really hard time with trusting people, and everyone told me that I was very hard to reach. Like I was always around, but I was inside my own world, like behind glass - you could see me but never really reach me. That’s what I wrote my first song about, which was called “the Glass Child”, and it’s been sticking with me every since. Now, I feel kind of safe behind it, like it reminds me of where I’m from and who I am.
INTRODUCING… THE SEASON PREMIERE
Hailing from Pheonix, Arizona, seemingly the home of Pop-Punk in the USA recently, The Season Premiere are a band that have started to make huge waves across the United States. Made up of Justin Garza on lead vocals, Travis Wilson on lead guitar, Terrence Wilson on bass and Riley Knapp on drums, the band’s own brand of pop-punk is getting them recognised in both at home and internationally.
Hailing from a state where some of the best pop-punk bands have come from in the past few years (The Summer Set, The Maine, Jimmy Eat World), TSP have a lot to live up to – but the 4 guys are becoming known in their own right for their high energy live set, and their unique, smart way of song writing.
The band has built up a pretty big fan base online too, with over 3,500 ‘likes’ on their Facebook and nearly 7,000 followers on their Twitter. They’ve already charted in iTunes Top 100 with their debut EP, and have had an impressive 500,000 plays and more on their MySpace. Currently in the studio working on their new EP ‘For All The Lovers’, we caught up with the guys for a quick interview which you can check out below!
For fans of – The Maine, This Century, Third Eye Blind
Check out – Streets of Gold, Winter Doubt
Hey guys, so let’s start off with what inspired you to start up the band?
We all feel that were playing music not just because we love it, but because we were meant to do it and that were apart of a bigger plan than we can even explain. We are inspired by everything and everyone. We are inspired and driven to influence our audience in a positive way and hope to express all the simple and amazing joys of life through our songs and lyrics.
Where did the name come from?
It was super random, Justin was watching some TV and on the commercials it said “Get ready for The Season Premiere of “Lost”. He thought it was catchy, refreshing and something that would never get dated…so we just went with it!
What has it been like being a band on your local scene?
There definitely is quite an amazing music scene here in Arizona. Though the competition is a plenty, every band that has done well, and is doing well at the moment we are all extremely good friends with. In a sense, the music community here is extremely united and we value our friendships and relationships with all the amazing bands and musicians that we are lucky to call our close friends. Overall, we all help each other and want to see each other succeed. We’ve even recently discussed how awesome an Arizona tour would be. Consisting of The Maine, Anarbor, This Century, Austin Gibbs, The Summer Set, My Girl Friday and our band. It would be like touring with family, hopefully one day this idea can be put into action.
Has it been difficult being a band during the recession with touring and other costs?
Its definitely hard, but were making the smartest decisions we can to keep this band alive as long as possible. As of right now we aren’t trying to tour prematurely and lose money. At the end of the day our band is a business and we have to be realistic with our capabilities for touring. As of now we will be headed out on some west coast dates this July. As for a full US tour we are certainly going to wait until we have the proper funding and backing in order to do that. But you can definitely guarantee that you will see TSP in a city near you very soon!
Are you a band that believes the internet is a huge part of building up a fanbase?
The internet is solely responsible for where we are today. It’s given us an opportunity to get to know our listeners on a more personal level then we ever thought possible. The internet has endless possibilities, and we are excited to see how much our social networks will grow in the near future.
What do you aim to do with the band and your music?
To play the music we love and hope that listeners find it as joyful and motivating as we do! We want to promote living a positive lifestyle and want to encourage our listeners to always stay true to themselves. That is the sole reason why are playing music, because its exactly what we feel we are meant to do.
What band would you want to match the success of, that you feel you’re similar to?
Third Eye Blind. They have stood the test of time and are an extremely organic and straight foward band. If we ever get to their level we will be truly satisfied. Until then, we wont stop until we achieve that success.
And finally guys, what has been your snapshot perfect moment in your time as a band so far?
Probably the moment when one of our fans tattooed our lyrics on their body. It truly solitified that our lyrics arent just meaningful to us. They are significant enough in someones life to get them permanently placed on their body. It was truly such a highlight in our career and we are so glad that we can touch are listeners in such an amazing way.
Introducing… Struck
These pop-rockers hail from Castlebar, Co.Mayo, and like Kate’s Party are relatively new to the Irish scene. Having formed in 2009, the band have shared the stage with the likes of The Coronas, Jody Has a Hitlist and Director, these boys from the west are making a name for themselves. They’ve some awesome tunes and some of them can be downloaded for free from their Facebook. We recently caught up with the band’s vocalist Sean Walsh to ask him a few questions about the band and Struck’s career so far:
What inspired you to start a band?
”I think being in a band is always something I’ve wanted to do. We sort of formed from other projects. We all had different influences I guess. I can really remember being into metal at one point. That was pretty strange! I played in a band before I met these two and then we just jammed and it all sort of glued together from there! Or you know, fell apart. The cup is half full!”
What do you feel you bring to the irish music scene?
“I think we bring a different sort of sound. We grew up listening to bands like Home Star Runner and Scuba Dice. I guess we tried to include their sound with ours. Its probably cliché but we love meeting people at shows and stuff. We’ve always tried to include as many people as possible in what we do. If your listening to our music then we want to know who you are and want to talk to you! I think a lot of, well the bigger bands anyway, distance themselves from their fan base a little bit. No matter how big of a band we become I think we’ll always be that band that will stay in contact and involve people as much as possible.”
What do you aim to do with your music?
“Well we released our first record in April last year and I think when we hit like 1,000 downloads we were just like what?…How? We knew that we wanted to do this now more than ever. So we settled down and wrote this EP which we plan to release later this year. And with this I think were just gonna hit the road and play anywhere and everywhere. We’ve been talking to a few bands and promoters across Ireland and the UK so were hoping that summer 2011 is going to be our best. What do we aim to do with our music? A whole fuckin’ lot.”
Who would you like to play with during your musical career?
“That’s a tough one. We’ve played with a lot of our favourite bands like The Shower Scene, Downhill or basically any of the Irish pop punk bands. I’d love to play with Green Day or Paramore or something? They’ve got a pretty sweet live set! Sum 41 would be pretty cool!”
What has been your snapshot perfect moment been since the band has started?
“I think hands down the highlight of being in a band would be walking out in front of 2,000 or so people when we played with The Coronas. We got a really great reception which was weird as we played awful that night. But yeah thats gotta be my favourite ever thing we’ve done. And I mean we’ve done some crazy stuff, they can be described in 3 words: Kebab, Iron, Hazard. Use your imagination with that one!”
Struck will be playing alongside Out Of NoWhere in The Pint in Dublin on the 26th of February, and then with East Island City on March 12nd, so be sure to head along to these shows if you like what you’ve heard!
Introducing… Kate’s Party
Something new to the Irish pop-punk scene, Kate’s Party is an acoustic duo hailing from Dublin and Cavan. The band features Sarah on guitar and vocals and Niamh on lead guitar. The girls have been together as Kate’s Party since the summer of 2010, and both girls claim to be avid pop punk fans with their influences stretching from Tegan and Sara to Blink 182. In the short space of time that the girls have been playing together, they’ve shared a stage with a number of local Irish bands including East Island City, Young Wolves and Last Second Magic. They released their debut self titled EP back in November, which we’ll have a review of up later. It seems that the band are near constantly playing shows, with their next one coming up in The Vault Bar in Cavan on February 25th. These girls are a breath of fresh air to the Irish music scene, and have the potential to become Ireland’s equivalent to Tegan and Sara. Their EP is available for free download from their Bandcamp page, and if you like what you hear you can follow/like the girls on their Tumblr and Facebook.
Introducing…
Arizonian pop-rockers Anarbor formed 8 years ago in drummer Greg Garrity’s garage when the band started playing music together. Having become popular on their local scene, and around the country, the guys were signed to Hopeless Records in 2008. In the bands 8 years together they’ve released 4 EP’s and 1 studio album, which have been regularly featured on the billboard charts and playlists of pop/alt rock fans across the globe. You think you may have never heard the band’s music before, but if you’re a Jersey Shore fan, the band’s song, ‘Always Dirty, Never Clean’, was featured on the hit MTV show at the beginning of the second series, getting them a new legion of fans and exposing them to a wider audience. The guys, Slade Echeverria, who’s Lead Vocals and Bass, Mike Kitlas, who plays rhythm guitar and Adam Juwig who’s the band’s lead guitarist, as well as drummer Greg Garrity, have had a slightly unconventional success in their time as a band with their music being featured in a variety of TV shows, and people knowing about them without, well, knowing about them. The band have yet to singlehandedly headline a tour, but they’re becoming one of the biggest bands to come out of the states in the last while. These guys are going to get even bigger over the next 12 months, just watch this space.
Listen to - Passion For Publication, Gypsy Woman and You and I
Formerly known as The In Crowd, these Poughkeepsie Pop-punks only formed in 2009 but have made a huge splash on their scene, both locally and internationally. Fronted by Taylor Jardine, many people will have their opinions on the band before listening. However, when listing to We Are The In Crowd, all of these thoughts fly out the door. With the band’s unique style of lyrics, which mimic conversation between Jardine and guitarist Jordan Eckes, Jardine’s unedited, imperfectly perfect vocals and the bands ability to make every song they write extremely catchy, they’re making a name for themselves. The band are signed to Hopeless Records, who reached out to the band after AbsolutePunk.net posted about the band’s Myspace page being hacked in April ’09. The band’s first release, EP Guaranteed To Disagree, was released in the US on June 8th 2010 and got an amazing reception from fans and critics alike. The band is also becoming bigger internationally, especially in Ireland and the UK after being featured in Kerrang! And Rocksound magazines earlier this year. Although the band have only played 2 tours, they have 2 huge gigs coming up this year already, playing the Glamour Kills tour alongside The Ready Set this spring, then they have a slot at Bamboozle 2011 as well as the Never Say Never, and it’s being heavily rumoured the band will be playing a string of UK dates later this year. If things keep going for the band the way they have over the last 12 months, they’ll be one of the biggest bands on the planet in years to come.
Listen To - Never Be What You Want, Both Sides Of The Story and For The Win
Formed in early 2010 by vocalist Adam and drummer Eric, Dear Christie have accustomed quite a following through the power of the internet. Recently crowned one of AP’s top Hometown Heroes of 2011, the band’s fanbase is ever expanding thanks to their catchy pop-rock tunes and hardcore fans, as well as the band’s regular updates, again through the internet. The Ohio based band have so far only recorded 1 4 track EP, with their follow up EP to be recorded this July, but it seems those 4 tracks alone have been enough to gather them a huge fanbase. The band have taken their local music scene by storm, playing alongside other Ohio natives and favourites City Lights. While the band have only been around a short space of time and haven’t yet been signed, there’s a special something about this band that you won’t be able to resist listening to as often as possible.
Listen To - Sweet Victory, Sing It Loud and Dreamers
