 Yet another group with four talented musicians, each bringing their uniqueness to every song: The Stiff Dylans. After being introduced and cast to play a band called The Stiff Dylans in the film adaptation of Louise Rennison’s novel: Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, the four realized the chemistry of each sound they brought, and formed The Stiff Dylans- this time, off-screen. The movie was released in the UK in 2008, and premiered in the US earlier in January 2010.
James Flannigan provides the band’s vocals and guitar, while Charlie Wride rocks the lead guitar, Matt Harris the bass, and Tom Slaytor the drums. The sounds that each of these individuals brings meshes together in such a perfect manner that their first single sounds like they’ve been a band for much longer than they actually have.
Though they haven’t become too popular, they are definitely gaining a wide fan base- especially after being released in the US; their song has become more well-known in this country. Their single Ultraviolet was released in July 2008, and is featured in the movie they appeared in. Definitely a band to keep an eye on, because they have an incredible future awaiting them: as individuals and together as a band. The only way to go from here is up.
 With 5 members, Between the Trees is not only an amazing band with a great sound, but has incredibly inspirational lyrics. The quintet was formed in early 2005 in Orlando, Florida, but didn’t start out with 5 members. Ryan Kirkland and Josh Butler first started playing together when Josh revealed that he was a drummer, of which his friend Ryan was unaware. When Josh’s brother Jeremy wanted in, Ryan taught him the basics and Jeremy began providing the band’s bass. Next to enter the band was Wes Anderson, who became the keyboardist for Between the Trees. Fifth and finally, but certainly not the least, was Brad Kriebel, their second guitarist.
Their debut album, titled The Story and the Song was released in September of 2006, courtesy of Bonded Records. Their sophomore album was released in 2009, titled Spain. They have been continuously touring with similar bands, as well as Renee Yohe, who is the inspiration for To Write Love on Her Arms, a nonprofit organization “dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire, and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.”
Between the Trees has two songs inspired by Renee Yohe, titled The Way She Feels, and A Time for Yohe. For more information on TWLOHA, visit http://www.twloha.com/vision/. You can follow them on Facebook and Twitter, and vote for them in the Chase Community Giving on Facebook, where they are currently in the lead for 1 million dollars to help their organizations.
 This 90s band is a quartet who attended the University of North Texas, and after graduation, formed the band now known as Deep Blue Something. Brothers Todd and Toby pipes provided the bands vocals/bass, and vocals/guitar, respectively. Kirk Tatom brought forth the guitar, and John Kirtland was on the drums. In 1993, they began selling their disc titled 11th Song at shows they played. October of 1994 saw the release of their second recording, titled Home. In June of 1995, they were signed by Interscope and saw the modified release of their album Home.
Though the band saw themselves as an alternative rock band with more of a gothic element, the release of their single Breakfast at Tiffany’s, it became a pop hit, reaching high on the charts. Home was also a big hit, but the band took a hiatus for several years until they released their next album in 2001, titled Deep Blue Something, after signing with the Aezra label.
You’ll find some of their lyrics featured as this week’s Lyric of the Week.
 If you’re a fan of alternative rock/punk music and you’re not listening to Mayday Parade, start. With some of the most meaningful lyrics and unique sound, Mayday Parade is one of my favorites. Made up of 5 guys, the sound comes together in a way that it couldn’t if they weren’t all present: Derek Sanders is the lead vocalist and keyboardist, Jeremy Lenzo on bass and backup vocals, Alex Garcia on lead guitar, Brooks Betts provides the rhythm guitar, and Jake Bundrick brings forth the drums, percussion, and more backup vocals. Their first EP Tales Told by Dead Friends saw its release in 2006, and their debut album A Lesson in Romantics appeared in 2007. In October of 2009, their second studio album Anywhere but Here was released, and their fan base is continuously growing.
Although I only own A Lesson in Romantics, I can’t get enough of it. Some of the songs are the kind you could dance all day to, some are sad, and some are just plain fun, with everything in between. The lyrics are easy to relate to in one way or another, and can probably be interpreted in one way or another for every person. If you’ve never listened to their music, there’s always time to start.
 Another great band with just as unique of sound as the next is Augustana. Now made up of 5 members, Augustana’s fan base has grown immensely since their debut album. Dan Layus provides vocals, piano, and guitar; Jared Palomar brings the bass and vocals; Chris Sachtleben plays the guitar and mandolin; Justin South is on the drums; and John Vincent offers more vocals and the sound of a keyboardist.
Originally the band was founded within the campus of the college that 4 boys were attending in Illinois, with Dan Layus the only remaining original member. While still in Illinois in 2003, they released Midwest Skies and Sleepless Mondays, which only sold 1000 copies. When Layus returned to California with ex-member Josiah Rosen, the band released their hit album All the Stars and Boulevards with now-drummer,Justin South in 2005.
The band’s third album Can’t Love, Can’t Hurt was released in spring of 2008 and has had hit songs appear on shows such as Scrubs, Smallville, One Tree Hill, and was sung by one of the characters on The Big Bang Theory.
This band has not only a very original sound, but amazing and inspirational lyrics. You may have heard their song Boston on the radio, the band singing of a girl who wants to go to Boston and start a new life; and their song Sweet and Low has also been popular on the radio. This band is definitely one that deserves much more recognition, and their fan base has already been growing, with over 300,000 copies of their second album already sold, and over a million copies of the single Boston. Check ’em out if you haven’t yet.
|
RSS Feed