On A Different Note

2*Sweet Review.

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 04:12:50 GMT

For the past four years, the band 2*Sweet, native from Chicago, has been an on and off project. Originally started in 2003, has finally picked up speed in the year 2005 by going on tour full time. The band consists of Justin Pence, vocals, Andy Nelson and Pete Grossman on guitar, Dave Cronin, bass, and lastly Dan Polak on drums. The members met each other by playing in different bands earlier in their lifetime. Most of the members are vegan/vegetarian, which makes eating slightly more difficult. This leads to constant fast food such as Mighty Taco.
In 2006, the band self produced/recorded their first EP (extended play), and just recently finished their full length album, which should be released in early spring. Their album was produced by famous produced, Mike Watts at Vudu Studios in Long Island. The major difference between the EP and CD is that the CD has more creativity, such as more riffs, solos, and hooks. Their music is heavily influenced by Morrissey, Peter Steele, Cory Feldman, Dick Wolf, and Glenn Danzig.
2*Sweet is currently on an east coast tour with good friend and published author Christopher Gutierrez, which will last up until January 22nd. Shortly after that, the band will go back out on tour do play at cities in the Midwest. For current dates and tickets you can check out their myspace page, www.myspace.com/2sweet . The best part of constantly being on tour for the past couple of years is seeing new cities/people every night. The absolute worst part is that the band usually gets homesick, and misses their family and friends.

-Cassie

OADN interviews Oh, Hush!

Tue, 01 Jan 2008 19:38:35 GMT

On A Different Note scored an interview with the oh-so-elusive and mysterious band Oh, Hush! of Myspace fame!

Where did the idea for Oh, Hush! come from?

I've known for quite some time that I wanted to do some kind of side project away from my regular band but it wasn't until this past summer that a few of us got together and started working on the songs that would become Oh, Hush! We knew we wanted to create a project that was focused on two things: 1) the MUSIC and 2) the FANS! We didn't have much of a plan other than that. So we threw up a song, a contest and a logo and went from there. We knew we wanted people to form their opinions of the band on the MUSIC alone. We didn't want people to focus on who was or was not in the band, or what we looked like, just the music. Love us or hate us, but do it based on the music.

How did the band end up coming together?

We're still fully trying to detemine who's actually "in" the band... but everyone who has participated in Oh, Hush! so far are just people we know, talented musicians, friends. Being a part of Oh, Hush! isn't a huge time commitment right now.. it mostly involves just being free to write a song or perform on a song here or there. We're still trying to figure out who's in this band tho.

Do you think you'll ever have a fixed line-up or will it be ever-changing?

That's a good and interesting question. Something we've given a little bit of thought to as of late when we start the beginning stage thought processes of tours and things like that. As of right now though, I'm not at liberty to talk about this. :-)

It's known that the band is made up of people from other bands that may or may not be well-known. Did the celebrity and fame that came from the other bands play any kind of role in the concept of keeping who you are from people?

Well first of all, "celebrity" and "fame" are all very relative. Justin Timerblake is a celebrity and famous in the entire world. Just like the high school varsity quarterback is a celebrity and famous in his own high school. It's all relative. That being said, I do think that the whole idea of fame may have played a role in the whole "secret" aspect of the band. It certainly wasn't on the forefront of our minds, but think about someone like Britney Spears. She's a celebrity, she's famous. But who wants to be her?!?! I think it's safe to say that we don't want to be famous. We don't want to be celebrities. We just want people to enjoy our music!

Do you think that if your fans knew who you were it would influence how they perceive your music?

Absolutely. Which is why we wanted people to form their opinions of us entirely based on the music without being biased one way or the other based on who we are.

Are you noticing that the fans you have for Oh, Hush! are the same fans from your other bands?
If yes, do you think that jeopardizes keeping your secret at all?

I think it's actually a great mix of people. Some people from our other bands have come over to check us out. There's also a whole crop of new people as well. I don't think it really jeopardizes the "secret" though. I mean for every theory out there about who we are, I think every musician in the world has been "accused" of being a part of Oh, Hush! Until we confirm who's in this band, the secret is safe.

How long do you hope you can keep your identities unknown? If it could go on forever would you let it?

Interesting question. I think in some respects it's been a breath of fresh air being a part of a band where the identities of the bandmembers are unknown, because we can be normal people and have normal lives. Not that our band is "huge" by any means. But again, it's all relative. It's nice to also be able to interact with our fans like we do and that may not be as easy or possible once people know who we are.

But I also think it might be unfair to the fans if we never told them who was in this band. We're all big fans of the show LOST and I remember Damon Lindelof (the exec producer and chief writer of LOST) saying that it was important to him that they announce an end-time for the show now so that fans knew they weren't just pulling these stories out of their a$$es and dragging it on forever. He said he felt that would ripoff the viewers. I think I feel the same way about Oh, Hush! - fans might feel ripped off if they never find out who's in Oh, Hush! And the last thing we want is for our fans to feel like that because this project is all about them in the first place!!! That being said, that doesn't mean we have to reveal who's in the band anytime soon. But honestly, we haven't given a "reveal date" much thought. We're just focused on finishing our record and moving into the next phase of Oh, Hush! right now.

Is it true that even your band mates from your other bands don't know you're in this one?

True story. It's possible the word has gotten out a bit within our other bands, but everyone has been instructed to not say a single word to anyone.

What do you think of the many theories that have been spun about the band?

I try not to read about too many of the theories. But the ones I have read are pretty interesting! I'm just really flattered that people take the time to actually do all of this internet research to find out who we are. Like I saw someone probably pulled together 10 pages of information about what we've said in various blogs and posts and everything else and developed theories about who could possibly be in the band. That's awesome!! Bottom line is we're here to entertain people and we're just flattered that people care enough about us to create the theories!!

What's the craziest thing you've heard about yourselves or the band?

Hmmm... I think the one about Justin Timberlake being in the band. While I can neither confirm nor deny that JT is a card carrying member of Oh, Hush!, I can confirm that that would be pretty crazy indeed!!

By your standards of success, how successful do you think you guys will be?

Most people define "success" as dollars in their pocket. I suppose that is one measure of success, but I like to define success by the number of lives that are touched by music, and the amount of fun that I have being involved in music. By those standards, this project is already so much more successful than I ever thought it would be. We officially launched Oh, Hush! on July 27, 2007 - that's 5 months ago and here we are answering interviews, getting radio play on Sirius, selling out t-shirts, getting thousands of plays a day on myspace - who would have ever thought we'd get her so quickly?? I sure didn't. That being said, only God knows how successful this will become. But even if it all ended today, I can say it's been a great ride and a lot of fun and we've been blessed mightily already! But I think our best is yet to come!

Do you think that if people knew who you were your expectations would be different?

Our expecations or do you mean people's expectations of us?? Either way, I think that's one of the benefits of no one knowing who we are. There's no expectations. We've got a clean slate. We're able to start fresh and do whatever we want. We're truly able to make it up as we go without any boundaries or expecations that have to be met.

Do you think the band would succeed in the mainstream world (MTV, Radio, Magazines etc...), considering that in the industry lately a lot of emphasis has been placed on looks and with you there are no faces or names to put with the music?

I think the answer has to be YES and I have proof. The fact that I'm answering questions for an interview right now proves that magazines care about us. There's another 25 interviews I have to get through later today. Sirius Radio called us 2 months ago and started spinning our song "Going Down In Style." So for whatever reason, people seem to be into this thing and the fact that no one knows who we are doesn't seem to be hurting us at all.

Do you believe video truly killed the radio star (that looks and image are now more important to people than the music)?

I dunno if it quite killed the radio star but image is every bit as important these days as music. How many ugly pop stars do you see?? How many overweight singers are out there? I read industry sheets all the time looking for "good looking female, age 18-22, good voice a plus." Meaning, the LOOK is more important than if the girl can actually sing. What the hell is that all about?!?!?

How do you feel about the state of the music industry--or entertainment industry in general?

Music is actually more popular than ever before. There's opportunities for musicians all over the place these days!! TV shows, films, advertising, etc are all using music more than ever before. Kids have more songs in their music collections than ever before. That being said, all you ever read about is how the music industry keeps losing all of this money and that no one buys records anymore and that everyone is illegally downloading and all of that. Sure, that's happening. Is it right? I'm not really here to judge anyone. Bottom line is that I think now is a very exciting time in the music industry! It's time for someone to come out and do something new. It's time for new ways of marketing and selling music. It's time to think about music differently. I'm excited because I think Oh, Hush! fits into this new musical economy really well and I think the sky is the limit for us!!

Do you think it will change?

Yes, and it will take very forward thinking risk takers to really make some serious change. We'll see who those people are in the next few years I think!

How do you hope Oh, Hush! will influence those who listen to your music?

Well I think as a songwriter you always want to influence your listeners. Our hope is that people will enjoy our songs, that our music will bring a positivity to people's lives. We've had a lot lot LOT of fun creating these songs and we hope that spills over to the listeners that they get the same enjoyment out of listening as we did from creating the songs.

What are your thoughts on the double edged-sword that is illegal music downloading? Because if it wasn't possible to download for free, a lot of bands out there right now probably never would have been discovered, but at the same time, the downloading is hurting the industry.
You nailed it. It really is a double-edged sword and again, we're not here to make any judgments about downloading. If someone wants to steal one of our songs, then awesome! That means our songs must have been good enough to steal! We just hope that people who have downloaded our music (both legally and illegally), that if they LIKE it we hope they will come back and buy our record when we release it to support the band!

Any plans in the works for an album?

Yes! Working on another 5-6 songs right now and hope to have something for people very very soon!! Stay tuned to our myspace page for upcoming details!!

How does the recording process work for you guys? Do you all get together at once or don't your schedules allow it?

Thanks goodness for technology!! Every song is really different but the beauty of technology allows us to be able to work over computers and files and not actually have to be in the same room, or even city, or even state!!?!? In some cases we've been able to get together and work in the same room, but in other cases people just do little demos of their ideas and we send em around and work on things. I think all of us have usually worked on songs by sitting in a rehearsal space with our bands and jamming through songs. That's great and all, but with Oh, Hush! these songs have NEVER been played by a full band ever and it's been a refreshing and fun way to write and record songs!

Do you all have an equal part in writing the music or is it all mainly one person?

There's definitely one main writer for this project. But there's also input from the other people involved in this as well. And when it comes time to actually record parts for the tracks there's usually at least a few people involved in that.

Top Ten of EVERYTHING in 2007.

Sun, 16 Dec 2007 16:46:47 GMT

As this year comes to a close, I have to say that too many awesome things happened for me to make a list of each of them. So, here I offer you the top ten compilation for the year. As if '07 wasn't already set to be amazing for me because I graduated high school [SCORE!], I got to have the following 10 things to make everything that much better.

10. Cobra Starship Joins The Academy Is.. on The Sleeping With Giants Tour
I got tickets to this concert in the middle of the summer, and was completely thrilled when I got onto MySpace and found my dear Gabriel announcing that Cobra Starship was going to be playing the Sleeping With Giants tour. HELLO GECKETT! Although I didn't get to attend the concert, I can easily say that finding out about it that day was probably one I will remember, due to the number of phone calls I made immediately afterward.

9. The Fall Out Dogs Dominate MySpace.
Hemingway takes after his father and gets technologically in-synch with the world. Hemingway Wentz now has a MySpace and Facebook account. He's busy telling all his friends to "keep [their] pimp paw strong" and helping daddy Peter promote things such as "There's a Light On In Burma" through the world of bulletins and blogs. Just this week, Succah Trohman, guitarist Joe Trohman's pup, joined the trend and created herself a MySpace too.

8. The Academy Is... "SANTI"
I could leave the title and be satisfied with this top ten entry. I can't lie, the release of this album was one of the best moments of the first part of the year. TAI really didn't mess around with this album, and I enjoyed ever minute of it. This band is going places, further than it has so far, and this album is serious proof of that.

7. The Honda Civic Tour
"Patrick drives one man! Patrick drives one!" This years Honda Civic Tour left nothing to be desired when it closed. Cobra Starship, The Academy is..., Paul Wall, +44, and Fall Out Boy made the '07 summer concert scene one that would not be forgotten. This show was filled with energy and excitement, and left us all with too many hilarious backstage YouTube videos to count. Not too mention, the abundance of talented musicians on one tour led to the writing and producing of some pretty killer albums.

6. Fall Out Boy "Infinity On High"
HELLO INTERNET SCANDAL! No, Pete was not sidekick-ing again. The highly anticipated release leaked almost a month before its Februrary release date, but was no lack of an amazing album. Fall Out Boy had it's fanbase and the music scene nervously waiting becuase they were describing the sound as "new, "expermiental," and "different," amoung other things. FOB upped their street cred by getting to work with music big-wigs such as Babyface and Jay-Z on this album. The sound was different, the chords were darker, but the music was still Fall Out Boy

5. TAI TV and Guy Ripley
Never have I been excited on a Sunday night as much as I am waiting for TAI TV each week. The bloopers and made up story lines documenting The Academy Is... and their year on the road with the Honda Civic Tour and the Sleeping With Giants tour gave us all better insight into who these crazy guys were. We all can't deny the love we have of watching Sisky Business toss a taco costume at William Bekcett and Michael Guy Chizzlet and telling them to "EAT TACO, YOU BASTARDS. " [I laughed as I wrote that, honestly.] The spectacle of Guy Ripley on TAI TV could be another number on this list in itself. Watching Guy Ripley of the BBC World News Team introduce his "True Things" by getting made fun of at the Leeds fesival and constantly chasing after TAI made my year worth living.

4. Pete Speaks Out On The Grammy's
This event happened pretty recently, but it made my top ten, top five becuase Pete said what I have been wanting to say since I got into the music scene. Which is basically, why do fifty year old guys get to tell me what is good in music this year? Pete got a lot of crap from media circuts because he spoke out in his blog on Fall Out Boy's website. The band has enough of a following of dedicated and loyal fans to know that the Grammy nomination isn't what's important, but speaking up against a system that has our grandparents choosing who was good in music this year.

3. Patrick Stump, SuperMusician
Alternative Press said that Patrick Stump made "a hulk-like transformation" when he got into the studio, but I never would have though I would be coupling the diminutive FOB front man with with faces like Lupe Fiasco and hearing him all over the new Cobra Starship record. Patrick is showing the world that he can do more than sing and play guitar by producing everything from his labelmates albums, The Hush Sound, Cobra Starship, Gym Class Heroes...to the aforementioned hip-hop superstar Lupe Fiasco. His performance at the MTVU woodies with Lupe and Matthew Santos got a standing ovation not only from bandmate Pete Wentz, but the entire crowd at the award show. Patrick is going to be dominating the entertaiment industry in '08, not only in music, but he is already set for an appearance on "Law and Order" that I can't even pretend not to be excited about.

2. The Young Wild Things Tour
This concert was worth every second of the four hour drive I had to endure to get to it. Cute Is What We Aim For, The Plain White T's, Gym Class Heroes and Fall Out Boy rounded out the year with a concer series that was too good to be true. Despite liscencing issues about the use of the stage setup and its correlation with Maurice Sendak's book Where The Wild Things Are and Pete Wentz breaking his foot mid-tour, the concert was another heart stopper and was full of excited moments from each band that was showcased. My FAVORITE tour to date.

1. Cobra Starship "Viva La Cobra!"
Cobra Starship followed up "While The City Sleeps, We Rule The Streets" with their sophomore album "Viva La Cobra!" This album is my absolute favorite this year. While Cobra was on the Honda Civic Tour they enlisted the help of Patrick Stump from Fall Out Boy to produce and add some vocals to the album. Cobra achieved their mission of making fans dance with this album, that's for sure. This album has been on repeat for a good month now and I have yet to get sick of it. Fangs Up! for my favorite thing of this year.

xox-Ashley

The Changing Face of the Music Industry

Wed, 12 Dec 2007 05:48:31 GMT

It cannot be denied that the dawn of the digital age has impacted the
music and recording industry in both good and bad ways. Though
statistics have shown the dramatic decrease of music sales over the
last ten years or so, the truth is, without the internet, half of
today's musicians would never have been discovered. Blogging and
networking sites like Myspace, Pure Volume, Live Journal and Facebook
began to provide a new platform for artists to deliver their music to
their audiences. These bands began their rise to fame thanks to these
sites, and many who are now on top still pay homage to their roots by
keeping journals and blogs online so they can keep their fans updated.
Though along with a boost to stardom, the internet can pose problems
for these artists as well.

One such case is with Chicago natives, Fall Out Boy. The band began
playing clubs and small venues while gathering a concrete fan base
fueled by the internet blogs and websites they set up. Their music
began to spread like wildfire and everyday they gained more fans.
There is no way to argue that Fall Out Boy would be where they are
without the aid of cyberspace and the ability fans had to download and
share their music with each other. However the internet was not always
their best friend as they learned when a set of nude photos bassist
Pete Wentz had taken with his phone leaked onto the web. They were
struck with another blow later that year when their third album
"Infinity On High" was leaked onto their official website's message
boards almost an entire month before its set release date. Both
instances devastated the band and even though Wentz, the band's
self-proclaimed internet junkie, admits to blogging "pretty hard" he
still says that he has a "love/hate relationship with the Internet.
It's constantly screaming in my ear, 'I made you, I can break you.'"

With the new technology available to the average person, it is not
uncommon for anybody to be able to record demos on their computer and
send them out to the world for critique, as with four teenage boys
from Las Vegas, Nevada who sent out two demos to Wentz via Livejournal
back in 2003. They had yet to play a live show, and yet Wentz like
what he heard so much that he signed them to his label, Decaydance
which is an imprint of the wildly successful Independent label Fueled
By Ramen. The band was rushed into the studio to record their debut
album, the sent out on the road for nearly two years straight. It did
not take long for Panic! at the Disco to take over the airwaves.
Likewise, the cycle of internet discovery continued when Panic! at the
Disco's guitarist and lyricist Ryan Ross stumbled upon the music of
The Hush Sound, a band from Chicago who was also just starting out.
Ross wasted no time in emailing Wentz with a few of their demos, and
The Hush Sound was signed to Decaydance very soon thereafter. Cobra
Starship, Gym Class Heroes and Lifetime were soon to join them and
while bands such as these may not garner much mainstream notice
(except in the cases of Panic! at the Disco and Gym Class Heroes) they
have found themselves with a massive underground following, thanks in
great part to the internet.

The availability of free downloads and lack of enforcement of laws
preventing the illegal file-sharing has helped some artists who
otherwise never could have broken into the industry, but at the same
time the recording industry has seen a loss of profits, prompting the
question of whether it has done more harm than good. Record companies
make most of their money from the sales of CDs, and with the steady
and frightening decline of sales, it should not come as a surprise
that they've been losing quite a bit of money since the coming of MP3s
and file-sharing. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
statistics show that while digital downloads were up nearly 75%
between 2005 and 2006, the sale of the compact disc went down by
almost 14%. So with the recording industry in such dire straights, is
there any possible way they can compete with downloads, free or
otherwise? Apparently, the answer is yes and can be found with the
common everyday cellphone.

The impact of cellphones and ringtones on the music industry has been
astounding in the recent past. In 2005, United States' ringtone sales
totaled $500 million. Globally they grew to $4.4 billion. Billboard
music charts has even dedicated a chart to top ringtones. Some tones,
like master tones which feature actual clips from a studio version of
a song, cost upwards of $3.50 to download, depending on the service
provider, and while some people find the idea of paying a dollar for a
song on iTunes rediculous, these are the same people who shell out
money for these tones. The service providers like Verizon and Sprint
give a cut of these sales to record labels. The new source of revenue
has been a welcomed sight for many in the industry, and the ringtone
could even be considered a new kind of marketing ploy. The idea that
phones ringing in malls and schools across the country can help drive
sales, much as getting airplay on the radio. Some bands (such as The
Spill Canvas) have even been discovered through the magic of
ringtones.

The ringtone trend may be becoming a key source of income for the
recording industry, but is it just a trend? Some bring up the
emergence of new cellular phones that also function as MP3 players,
saying that people will not want to spend money on ringtones when they
can have the entire song on their phone. Others have a more optimistic
look, such as the senior vice president of digital strategy and
business development for Warner Music Group, Michael Nash, who says
"The ringtone is not just a thirty-second snippet. It's like a digital
T-shirt." He also argues that teenagers and young adults see the
ringtone as a way to be an individual and to show who they are to the
world. He added that while phones are quickly starting to become more
than just a phone, the increased multimedia capabilities presents an
opportunity for record companies to work with service providers to
offer singles, full length albums and even music videos to the
consumer.

Just as ringtones act as an advertisement, the placement of music in
television, commercials, movies and video games does the same. When
someone watching television or a movie hears a song that they like, it
does not take long before they are trying to find out what it's called
and who it's by. Thanks to websites like adtunes.com, a user can find
the name of a song just by looking up the commercial they saw. The
placement of music in commercials is merely an advertisement within an
advertisement, really. Not only does the music set a tone for the
product being advertised, but the commercial, show, movie or game can
also serve as a launching pad for an artist's career, getting them
just the exposure they need to get off the ground.

Oh, Hush!: The Mysterious Band of Myspace

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:37:45 GMT

Recently on myspace a new phenomenon has occurred. This phenomenon is Oh, Hush! Now, I know what you're thinking "How do they differ from every other band that adds me?". The answer is they are a band who has concealed their identity, and makes everything up as they go. All that is known is that everyone in Oh, Hush! is involved in another band. Surprises are given for certain milestones (for instance, for 75k total plays 3 songs could be downloaded.) Many people have a notion that the band is involved with Fueled By Ramen, because their top 4 friends are Butch Walker, Cobra Starship, The Academy Is..., and The Hush Sound. In addition, Oh, Hush!'s merch consists of two shirts made by fans, Oh, Hush! are great with keeping in touch with fans. They comment almost everyone who adds them, and message fans back. Not much is known about Oh, Hush!, but their ingenious idea of being 'secret' has earned them many fans, and curious spectators. So if you haven't listened to the dance-pop this band produces go check them out at http://www.myspace.com/ohhushmusic.

-Hannah

Patrick Stump reminds us of something very important

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 14:26:09 GMT

The lead singer and anti-frontman of Fall Out Boy posted a rare entry on absolutepunk.net, reflecting on love, loss and friendship;

"Hi everybody. I remember some English class that focused on how to start your writings and I more distinctly remember that I was never too keen on that bit. Plus I have a near infamous penchant for being long-winded. So here I am at a loss for how to jump in and say what I'm thinking. I guess one must really start at the top.

I love the people around me. I do. I'm a space cadet and sometimes I don't say it enough or in the right way but I desperately love the people I surround myself with which extends not just to my friends and family, or people that come to our shows and such, but to other bands. To other musicians with whom I share the common bond of "Hey, I dropped out of/didn't go to college so I could be in some silly band that was likely going to put me in crazy debt and get me dumped by every girlfriend I've ever had..." It's a common language, the way we all start in tiny rooms playing to next to no one (sometimes no one). Or playing to only the other band we're on tour with (I'm looking at you Spitalfield/Fall Out Boy tour 2002). It is because of this common bond that I share with everyone in music that I have to say it's been a bad couple months.

First we were hit with the news of the passing of Donda West whom I never met. Obviously Kanye is a friend of the band's but I don't even know him that well. I do however know him well enough to know he loves his mother dearly. As dearly as anyone's ever loved their mother. And so it was with the weight of that knowledge that her passing hit me hard. Not to mention the shock of her young age. I called my mom that night. I'd advise anyone reading this to do the same.

Next came the truly horrible news of a tragedy I will keep quiet that happened on my own tour. I will respect the effected family by keeping the details private but it hurt some of my closest friends and near brothers profoundly. In turn I am near tears as I write this thinking about precisely what happened.

And now Casey. You know, to be frank I didn't know Casey very well. I have far reaching memories of him in the early days when we played a comic book shop together. We talked hardcore and laughed about Kiss makeup. Then on that tour we did together I remember him being simply genuine, always pleasant, always kind. Now, I'm sure no one needs another arrogant rock star prattling on about how the world done him wrong and all, but I'm pissed that Casey's not here anymore. I'm pissed because I think I took him for granted a little. Pissed at myself. Cause every band we've had the luxury of touring with I'd say with maybe one or two exceptions, are all people I've really liked and if you don't ever tell those people it can be too late.

It's the same way I felt when the late John Holohan passed away. It's horrible. I remember the phone call. I remember calling Jack to ask if it were true and I needn't have on account of his voice. We were at a photo shoot and every time I see one of those photos and have to autograph it or some such blasphemous thing I feel horrible just thinking about the sound in Jack's voice.

Then last night another friend of mine came to me with the news that his father had had a stroke. I did not press to learn if he is expected to make it. That was really irrelevant to how I should feel...my friend was in obviously pain and that was all I needed to know.

Anyway, I'm still rambling. This is why I've never had any kind of blog...I'd never have time to write what I was thinking and I wasn't gifted with conciseness. I guess I'm just trying to say that all the people I've talked about will be horribly missed. And that I want to let everyone know, even the people that hate my band and say mean things every time someone leaks some ridiculously fake scandal and slaps my best friend's name on it, we are all doing this little thing called music. That makes us family, however dysfunctional. Don't take your friends for granted and hug your loved ones every chance you get.

-Patrick Stump"

Your New Favorite Band: First Edition

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 07:04:39 GMT

After befriending several extremely talented musicians in my short time in the beautiful city of Chicago, I've realized just how many up-and-coming artists and bands this city has - artists just waiting to break out, some already with their own following. This prompted me to find a way to help get their names out there.

And so, here I am. "Your New Favorite Band" will probably be a weekly thing, posted on Friday nights by either me or someone else on the crew.

My pick for this week is a hardcore band a la Thrice, Silverstein and Scary Kids Scaring Kids originating in Chicago called Let's Scare Jessica To Death, whose lead singer and lyricist Chris Butera, guitarist Dave Ramirez, bassist Ryan Smith, drummer Matt Harris and keyboardist Ian Montgomery reign from the Chicago suburbs. The band recently played the Next Big Thing show at the Congress Theater, along with other aspiring bands from the area in an attempt to snag the prize of 16 hours in the recording studio or $1,000 cash. "It was extremely cool to be able to be on the same stage that a lot of [our] favorite bands and influences played," says Chris of playing the Congress.

Let's Scare Jessica To Death started two summers ago when Dave and Matt started playing guitar and drums together. The two wrote a song and enlisted Chris to put some lyrics to it. "I remember we were sitting in Dave's garage," Butera says, "and Dave and Harris were loud as hell and I only had this little amp, so you couldn't hear me until I started screaming."

And thus, the band was born.

They frequent venues such as JT Music in Midlothian and Mojoes in Tinley Park, and play shows out of state once in a while as well. They have shared the stage with the likes of Inept and Rookie of the Year and have plans for an upcoming show at JT Music on December 15th. The band also has other plans in the works.

"We're actually ironing out the details to record soon," says Butera. "It's huge on our priority list."

There's still no release date in sight for the upcoming EP but until then, head over to Their Myspace for more information on upcoming shows and make sure to check them out at JT Music in Midlothian on December 15th if you're in the Chicago area.

Butch Walker loses home in fire

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 04:13:51 GMT

According to a story on absolutepunk.net, Butch Walker's house recently burned down in the fires that have recently been threatening the Malibu area. He had recently moved into a house being rented from Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Walker says that "I had just consolidated my entire recording studio and house from Atlanta into the one house In Malibu. I lost everything I've ever owned. Every master of every song I've ever recorded, every piece of recording equipment, guitars, drums and things I've collected over the years, cars, motorcycles, every family memorial, heirloom, picture, and document we ever had.... Gone. I feel like I finally know the difference between 'going back' and 'going home'."

http://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=280451

Review: Say Anything - In Defense Of The Genre

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 03:47:11 GMT

Alrighty, since we're just getting started here, we are running a little behind on some current releases, so please bear with us while we get these reviews out. First, I'll be tackling Say Anything's new album, In Defense Of The Genre.

So, having Satan open your album is a bit of an attention getter. Say Anything's major label debut, In Defense Of The Genre, gets your attention from the start and doesn't let go. That's saying something for a CD that is 27 songs long.

Even from the first several tracks, it's evident that this CD will have a variety of styles and sounds on it. "Skinny, Mean Man", a song about saving someone from an abusive relationship, kicks off the album with an aggresive and catchy sound."No Soul" shows a slightly more electronic sound with a touch of hip-hop. From there, "That Is Why" and "Surgically Removing the Tracking Device" continue to show this band's range, going from a Christmas-y sound (with lyrics that are anything but...) to one that is much more heated with guest vocals from Adam Lazzara and Fred Mascherino. The electronic sound is expanded on even more in the album's first single, "Baby Girl, I'm A Blur". This song is almost entirely electronic, and it's obvious why this is the first single to go out. From there, the first disk continues to gain momentum, closing with "Sorry, Dudes. My Bad", a song that deals with touring and the problems that can arise. It also contains a hilarious part from Chris Conley (Saves The Day). On whole, the first disk is upbeat lyrically and musically, fitting the concept of falling in love. The songs go back and forth between influences, but it feels cohesive.

If the first disk deals with how "Love is grand!", the second disk deals with what happens when it all goes to hell. The first song, "Spay Me" shows an instant change of tone, getting a darker sound and lyrics to match. Even though the sounds aren't as upbeat as the first disk, the CD never loses its momentum. Songs like "Vexed" and "Spores" both take the approach of a slower tempo song, but they do it in totally differnent ways. This change of tone matches perfectly with lyrics that detail the turmoil after ending a relationship and trying to figure out who you are. On top of that, Max Bemis' vocals help this, becoming more raw and passionate. The album ends on the powerful song, "Plea", wrapping up the concept of the album. Aided with guest vocals from Hayley Williams (Paramore) and Kenny Vasoli (The Starting Line), the song becomes even more moving.

Overall, this is an amazing CD. The music is totally diverse and exciting, which is no easy task with 27 songs. Each song is continually pleasurable and innovative. The lyrics are blunt and passionate. Together, this makes for a moving sound. With 23 guests, the album also has a range of voices that adds excitement. While I think the CD lags slightly in the beginning of the second disk, it bounces back quickly. This CD definitely made me a fan of this band. The title of this CD delivers on its promise and even more: it just doesn't defend the genre, it innovates it.

Say Anything is:
Max Bemis - vocals
Coby Linder - drums, vocals
Alex Kent - bass
Jake Turner - guitar, vocals
Jeff Turner - guitar, vocals
Parker Case - guitar, keyboards, vocals

www.sayanythingmusic.com

In Memory...

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 02:36:42 GMT

We would just like to take a moment to remember Casey Calvert. According a statement on the band's website, www.hawthorneheights.com, Casey died in his sleep on Friday night. At this time, it is not known what led to his death, but the band asks that their fans not to "contribute or succumb to any gossip you may hear."

To lose such a talented person at such a young age is a real tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Casey's friends and family.

The Really Really Ridiculously Good Looking Tour

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 02:03:01 GMT

The Alternative-Pop-Punk-Techno quintet, Cobra Starship, announced the "Really Really Ridiculously Good Looking Tour" last week with supporting bands We The Kings, Metro Station, and the newest addition to the Decaydance family, The Cab. Tickets for the tour, which will be the band's first headliner, went on presale today, and within minutes most of the dates were sold out, to the surprise of astonished fans everywhere. Regular sales start Saturday, December 1st. Check ticketmaster for times for your area.

Cobra Starship's sophomore album, "Viva La Cobra" hit shelves on October 23rd, and the band joined labelmates The Academy Is... on the "Sleeping With Giants" tour the same day. The band has a busy year ahead of them, bassist Alex Suarez told us. "We're kinda just like, riding on a train that can hardly stay on the tracks things are going so crazy, you know? We're just trying to work as hard as we can. It's a lot of work. We just had another record come out within the first year of our first record coming out and it's about to get pretty crazy I think, after the new year. We have the headliner and the new CD. We're gonna start doing videos and dropping singles and trying to get radio and things like that so it's gonna be pretty intense."

A list of tourdates are under the cut:

01.16 Poughkeepsie, NY
The Chance
01.17 Troy, NY @Revolution
01.18 New York, NY @Highline Ballroom
01.19 Wilton, CT @ Trackside Teen Center
01.20 Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Downstairs
01.22 Montreal, QC @ Studio JPR
01.23 Toronto, ON @ The Mod Club Theatre
01.24 Buffalo, NY @ Mohawk Place
01.25 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
01.26 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
01.27 Columbus, OH @ The Basement
01.29 Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
01.30 Milwaukee, WI @ The Eagles Club
01.31 Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater
02.01 St. Louis, MO @ Creepy Crawl
02.03 Kansas City, MO @ Grand Emporium
02.05 Denver, CO @ The Marquis Theatre
02.06 Salt Lake City, UT @ Club Sound
02.07 Boise, ID @ The Big Easy
02.08 Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
02.09 Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
02.10 Vancouver, BC @ Richards On Richrds
02.12 Orangevale, CA @ The Boardwalk
02.13 San Francisco, CA @ Slim's
02.15 Pomona, CA @ Glass House
02.16 West Hollywood, CA @ Troubadour
02.17 Las Vegas, NV @ Jillian's
02.18 Tucson, AZ @ The Rock
02.19 Tempe, AZ @ The Clubhouse
02.20 Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
02.21 Dallas, TX @ House Of Blues
02.22 Austin, TX @ Emo's
02.23 Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live
02.24 New Orleans, LA @ House Of Blues
02.26 St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre
02.27 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room
02.28 Orlando, FL @ The Social
02.29 Atlanta, GA @The Masquerade
03.01 Charlotte, NC @Tremont Music Hall
03.02 Norfolk, VA @ The Norva
03.04 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
03.05 Pittsburgh, PA @ Diesel
03.06 Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore
03.07 Lancaster, PA @ Chameleon
03.08 Farmingdale, NY @ Crazy Donkey

On A Different Note Interviews Cobra Starship

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 01:34:20 GMT

On Saturday, November 24th, The Sleeping With Giants tour featuring headliners The Academy Is... and supporting bands Sherwood, The Rocket Summer, Armor for Sleep and Cobra Starship finished up in Chicago at the Riviera Theater. While they were there, I got a chance to meet up with Alex Suarez, the bassist for the up-and-coming techno-pop-punk-alternative band Cobra Starship, who's sophomore album "Viva La Cobra" came out in October. Cobra Starship reigns from New York and also includes vocalist Gabe Saporta, formerly of the band Midtown, Ryland Blackinton on guitar, Nate Novarro on drums and Victoria "Vicky-T" Asher on keytar. Suarez talked to OADN about life on the road, the changes facing the music industry today, Cobra's plans for 2008 and the perks of working with people like Blink 182's Mark Hoppus.

OADN: Is there a moment that you could pinpoint as the moment you knew this is what you wanted to do for the rest of your life?

ALEX SUAREZ (bassist, Cobra Starship): Yes. When I was about probably eleven years old and my brother was really into metal, like eighties metal, you know. I was born in like '81 so I was really into that kinda stuff which I guess would have been 1992. Anyways, I used to sing Slaughter songs I don't know if you ever heard that band Slaughter, they're like a hair-metal band. I used to grab the remote for my stereo and like pretend I was at a huge concert like at an arena show singing the song and I'd go to the wall and be like 'yeah!' like there was fans and everything. And I always knew I wanted to do that. I never thought I'd actually get to do it though. I used to do that like all the time. I used to rock out with my guitar like, not plugged in, just pretending I was in the band and my mom went up there and would be like "What the hell are you doing?" and I'd be like "Shut up! I'm practicing!" It was really embarrassing. I didn't even know what else to say I was so embarrassed, just rocking out in my bedroom by myself with my guitar listening to like Manowar.

You know what's funny is, one of my roommates after I moved out I was probably I think I was like nineteen or twenty and my friend was like, eighteen, he used to do that like all the time in his bedroom but he was older. We were like "What the fuck are you doing dude?" Like he put on Engine Down and you could hear it like blaring in his room and he'd be just jumping around like 'yeah! yeah!' Walk in and he's like rolling all around the floor and shit. We're like "What the hell dude, I can't believe this." It's crazy. He's a really good musician, too. Yeah, it's awesome, I love that kinda stuff.

OADN: What is the worst part about being in the music business?

AS: Man, the worst part about, you know, it is probably like, the industry itself. You know, being in bands like you know--I thought I had a lot of it figured out and now that we're really into the industry and like mainstream scene and stuff like it's sweet, but like having to do with all the real stuff behind it like paperwork and like figures and stuff like that--splits and everything--it's crazy. And I was a little letdown, but whatever I'm still having a good time.

OADN: What do you think is the best part?

AS: This, dude. Touring, like the fact that we have fans that have been out since three AM waiting outside is insane to me, which is incredible. We're totally flattered like kids who are like "Oh we flew from California just to see you guys. We already saw The Academy {Is...} when they came." It's like jeeze, like what do you say to that? That's amazing! Somebody bought plane tickets to fly over here just to see us play twenty-five minutes? Yeah, it's really incredible, like you know, once people start to recognize you and stuff like it's just--it's not overwhelming it's just really sweet. It's amazing, it's like I can't believe this is happening.

OADN: How do you deal with that? Do people just walk up to on the street like "Hey!"

AS: Yeah, I got mobbed outside for like thirty-five minutes. Like, it was freezing but I don't care, you know? Where would we be if we didn't have these kids that wanted to meet us and see us play, you know? So, I'll just hang out with them just talk and take pictures and whatever, sign stuff. Sign their shoes.

OADN: That seems to be a popular thing lately.

AS: Yeah it's really popular. It's crazy. There's this older dude who was probably like twenty-one, twenty-two and he was like "Can you sign my shoe?" I was like "Yeah... you sure? Alright dude."

OADN: Who would you consider the most influential person in your life, whether it's musically or just in general?

AS: The most influential person in my life, umm...

VICTORIA ASHER (keytarist, Cobra Starship): Victoria.

AS: Definitely not Victoria. Let's see... That's a tough one. Umm, like, I mean I was always really inspired by my family, you know? Like, my brother who was always into music, both my brothers are into music, we're all musicians. Um, I was always really into business because my dad's into business too, like uh, I don't know, man. I just--my friends and my family, you know? Those are the people who I'm surrounded by and like, influenced by and stuff. They support me and stuff like that, so...

OADN: What's your opinion on how the music industry's going today? Do you think the availability of free music and downloading is going to affect it negatively and be its downfall or do you think it can turn itself around?

AS: Alright, so I hear stuff all the time, like the record industry is going down, nobody's buying CDs anymore when you can download music for free which shouldn't stop bands from touring because, you know, it's a totally different world, touring and CDs. You make a CD so people can hear music and you tour so people can see you play. You know, those are two separate entities. So it's like, you know, maybe if it's smart, if it's put out right-- I heard a couple things like, they're going to start to re-release vinyl and then send like a little USB drive--what are those things? Flashdrive or something like that with the music on it so you can put it on your computer and then you also have like, because some people still like the layout and appreciate that kind of stuff, you know? So, I think that would be really sweet because I love records, so if they start making vinyl again that'd be insane because I have a pretty big vinyl collection.

OADN: Yeah, I know I need the artwork with it.

AS: Yeah! Artwork's like, massive so that's one thing you lose with digital download but a lot of people don't care you know? They don't want the space they don't want like a million CDs stacked up when you can just have {an iPod} and have like, a thousand records on there. How many songs is that, you know? I think It's alright that like, people download music and stuff, I mean, that helps out a lot of bands you know. My old band, we did alright, and then we started doing really well because of Napster when that was free in like 1999, 2000. MP3.com was free then too and we had like 20,000 plays which, back then wasn't a lot. Like, Thrice had 30,000 plays you know? Those kind of bands. But, I mean, I think it's a good thing. I mean, it might stop CD sales, it's gonna hurt record labels, but I think record labels can continue to keep going releasing stuff, they're just gonna have to think up something really clever.

OADN: At what point did you say to yourself "We're successful" or haven't you reached that point yet?

AS: Define successful.

OADN: By your standards. By how you would define successful.

AS: I mean, am I rolling around in money-successful? Definitely not. Am I successful in that fact that you know, I get recognized walking down the street somewhere? I guess you could say that. Sometimes, you know? But, I'm having a good time. I'm pretty successful, I mean, look what we do. I don't have to go home and work, which is pretty sweet. So like, I just travel the country, travel the world with The Academy Is... you know? I'd say I'm doing pretty alright.

OADN: Are you guys planning on doing any headlining outside the US?

AS: Outside? I'm not sure yet. I know we're trying to figure out what our year's gonna be looking like. We're doing our headliner in January, then we're gonna see what happens after that. I'm sure we're gonna go back to the UK eventually. And then, I don't know, maybe Warped Tour? That'd be really cool. I think the lineup's gonna be really good this year.

OADN: Is there anything you wish you could change about your career up until this point?

AS: Anything I could change... uhh I don't know. Well, Ryland and I did a coin toss to see who would play guitar and who would play bass.

OADN: Would you change it?

AS: Not really. I kinda like playing bass. It's just been really difficult after thirteen years of playing guitar to become a bass player, you know? It's a little harder than it looks, I guess. It's just--crappy you know? But it's kinda sweet, I kinda like it. Maybe I take it for granted a little, but I kinda don't mind it so much these days.

OADN: So do you prefer playing more large scale tours--like Honda Civic Tour was huge this year-- or do you prefer playing smaller, more intimate sets like the Sleeping With Giants tour has been?

AS: Uh, okay so the tour we're doing headlining is gonna be really sweet because it's gonna be really small. Those are really fun. Arenas and stuff like that are cool they're pretty neat. I don't like outdoor venues. Like Honda Civic Tour was mostly outdoor shows, like if you have to play during the daytime like we did it's not so fun for a band like us because we need lights and stuff like that. It really helps with our show. So those are kinda like 'eh'. Arenas--we did arenas with Panic! at the Disco like seven shows or something, that was really cool. I like the arenas. Arenas are fun, but they're really, like, impersonal. You look ten feet out and you can't see anybody it just looks like little tiny--like someone just threw, I don't know, glitter and there's sparks going off, flashes and you're just like 'are those even people?' It's crazy. I really love theaters. Theaters are so fun to me because it's like, it feels like such an event. You've got your name on the kiosk--not that we've ever headlined at a theater--but like, you get to play this really sweet place, there's like a balcony and it looks cool and they're usually like really old and have a lot of history behind them and like overseas we played a bunch of theaters with Fall Out Boy, we did the Decaydance Fest and that was just like--we played venues that The Beatles played. It was amazing. Those are my favorites because they're just really neat and really sweet. Theaters always have really cool backstages that have little trick doors and shit like that so yeah. The really small, intimate venues are really cool but I'm gonna have to go with theaters as my favorite. And that couldn't have been a longer answer.

OADN: What's the most difficult thing about touring?

AS: I mean, I guess everybody being away from home. Living on a bus with nine people, you know? It kind of sucks but we've managed to get along pretty alright. There's definitely a point of the tour where everybody gets into each others' hair .

OADN: How do your families and significant others deal with you being away all the time?

AS: Oh, dude. My girlfriend is not happy with me right now. She just saw the dates for the headliner, I'm gonna be like all the way like in Texas or something. I'm missing her birthday, Valentine's Day, and our second year anniversary all in like a month's span so she's not too stoked. She wishes that I was around more and my family, like, they're really excited for me but like, I missed Thanksgiving again this year and I get to go home for Christmas which is good, although I went and visited them before this tour, which is nice. I live in Brooklyn, but my parents live in Florida.

OADN: What has been your biggest challenge as a band?

AS: Our biggest challenge as a band is--I don't know. We're kinda just like riding on a train that can hardly stay on the tracks things are going so crazy, you know? We're just trying to work as hard as we can. It's a lot of work, we just had another record come out within the first year of our first record coming out and it's about to get pretty crazy I think , after the new year. We have the headliner and the new CD. We're gonna start doing videos and dropping singles and trying to get radio and things like that so it's gonna be pretty intense. That's probably our biggest challenge. We all get along.

OADN: What's the hardest sacrifice you've had to make?

VA: Relationships.
AS: Yeah, definitely relationships. We all take a toll on that one. That's probably the one thing that we all have in common. I mean, it's hard to be in a relationship and be out on tour eight months out of the year.

OADN: What are some of the perks of working with people like--you had Patrick Stump from Fall Out Boy produce your album and you toured with Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker from Blink 182 this summer, that's got to be insane.

AS: Oh dude that was so sweet. It was pretty crazy I mean, I wasn't ever like a huge Blink 182 fan, so like--Mark Hoppus is one of the nicest guys I've ever met. I mean, I'm sure I'd be stoked too if I had as much money as he does but he's just like really awesome, really positive all the time, like I never saw that guy upset or slightly upset or not smiling once, so that was really nice to know. It was like, man, here's this guy, he's probably one of the most famous dudes in the music industry for that kind of scene and I'm on tour with him and he's really happy all the time. That's awesome, it gives me something to look forward to. Working with Patrick was so awesome. We got along with him really well. He's insanely talented and just really creative and funny and we just like hung out like friends doing a record.

Alex and Victoria also took time to answer some questions that their fans sent in:

Welcome!

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 00:38:45 GMT

Welcome to the newest webzine, "On A Different Note". Here you'll find CD reviews, concert reviews, a news feed, interviews and more with all your favorite alternative bands like Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco, Cobra Starship, The Academy Is..., Plain White T's, Powerspace, 1997, Armor For Sleep and more!

We are now taking applications for writers!
The position will be flexible, and you'll usually be able to write about anything you want (that has to do with the alt/indie music scene) but once in awhile you may be assigned a topic or a story to write on.

If you're interested, please send

~At least three samples of your work.
~Which column you'd like to write for (CD reviews, concert reviews, etc...)
~A short biography (what do you like to do, what do you listen to, what do you like, what don't you like?)
~A list of the bands you are into and would be willing to cover.

To pyraterose@hotmail.com or mn_girl08@hotmail.com
If everything seems like a good fit, we'll email you and let you know!

Thank you!