Switching to Tumblr, Keeping This Blog Posted

I decided to make the switch to Tumblr with this blog so I am able to post videos and such easier.  I know this might be kind of confusing, but this will be better for me in the long run.  I am going to transfer my blog posts from here to my Tumblr as well.

So here is the link to the Tumblr blog account, please check it out! CLICK HERE!

Concert Review: Blessthefall, Chiodos, and more

I think it would incorrect for me to call this a Congregation of the Damned Tour review, which features Atreyu because I did not see Atreyu.  I think honestly is the best policy in all situations, so here we go: I have been waiting three years to see Blessthefall and it was the only reason I went to the this show.  Why I had not seen Blessthefall before I do not know, because the guys have been to Minnesota multiple times since 2007 when I began listening to the band.  Now that being said, when I found out that Chiodos was playing I was pretty excited to those guys as well.

Anyway, I went to this show on Nov. 19, 2010 at the Cabooze in Minneapolis, Minn.  I have been to this club three times now in the past month.  Back in October I saw the AP Fall Tour 2010, which had five bands on the bill, this tour also had five bands set to play.  Just thought I would mention that for reference to the reviews.

The first band to play was Endless Hallway who is from Los Angeles, Calif.  The band started about ten minutes before the show was suppose to begin, which was suppose to be 5:30p.m.  That being said, there was still a lot going on at the bar, on the floor, and the entrance as people were still filing into the building.  The band put on an energetic show, with the limited stage space that was given and despite the uninterested crowd.  I felt rather bad for the guys because they did do a good job with their performance, but it just seemed like the crowd was not entertained.

The next band was the Architects who is from Brighton, United Kingdom.  Though it is not music that I would listen to on a regular basis, the vocals were quite amazing. If I had to describe the bands sound, I would say it sounds almost like metalcore and punk combined.  A little strange, but nonetheless the performance they put on was energetic and entertaining.  After a few songs, the vocalist Sam Carter went into a story of the bands adventures the night before and basically told the crowd that to make him and guys feel better that they were going to do better than what they were doing (which was no movement at all).  The crowd must have been stimulated because from that point on the crowd did not stop moving.  For the band's final song Beau Bokan, Blessthefall's vocalist, joined the stage for some guest vocas.

Now the moment of true judgment for Chiodos.  As many people know, Chiodos had a distinct vocalist change, but they also had a drumming change, creating a very new lineup.  This was going to be my fifth time seeing Chiodos, yes fifth, so there was a lot riding on the guys shoulders to impress me.  While I very much enjoy the new lineup and believe that the new vocalist Brandon Bolmer is very good, it is unfortunate to say that the live performance was not what I thought it was going to be.  This could be in part because all I could see was Bradley Bell's keyboards the entire time, which was very distracting.  Bell is the most interesting person I have ever seen on stage, with the way his feet and legs move in all directions constantly.  I did do my best to listen to Bolmer and watch his performance.  By the way the crowd was lacking energy, I can assume that most everyone was doing the same as I was.  I think the band has the potential to create just as energetic performance as they have in the past with a bit more touring with the new lineup.  That being said, Chiodos is one of those bands that I listened to throughout high school and I did enjoy hearing the music live once again.

Finally, the last band that I saw perform was Blessthefall.  The guys did all their own set up, which took some time.  Once ready, with no hesitation the guys threw all their energy on stage.  I went into a rather nostalgic moment during the song "Rise Up" before bringing myself back to reality.  This was a band, that also, has gone through a vocalist change.  While I loved Blessthefall with the band's previous vocalist I think Bokan does an extremely good job with what he is doing in the band.  He is also very energetic running up and down the stage, jumping into the crowd, and at one point in the night hung upside from the piping in the Cabooze.  It is a good thing he does not weigh much because the piping did not look like it was going to make it.  Bassist Jared Wrath also put a good memory in my head spinning across the stage and hitting Matt Traynor's symbol with his hand mid-set.  His screams were also spot on.  Unfortunately, for some unknown time restraint, the band's set was cut by three songs, but that did not get them down as they finished the set with "Hey Baby, Here's That Song You Wanted".  The crowd loved the guys, and Bokan I may add, very much and jumped high when told to jump.  Overall, I was very impressed with them, which takes a lot at this point in my concert attending career.

As you may notice from the lack adjectives, I did not enjoy this show as much as the ones in the past month, my main let down being Chiodos.  The opening band did not seem to fit the crowd and the crowd was not very receptive to their energy.  As I said I did not stay to see Atreyu so I cannot judge the entire tour, but for the four bands as a whole that I did see I would have to give it a three out of five.

Interview: Skyline For Tomorrow

Skyline For Tomorrow comes from Nashville, Tenn., the bands hometown being Bowling Green, Ky.  The guys have EP available called Parallels and plan on recording more music and doing planning a lot of touring for next year.  The band consists of Justin Webb, Trevor Drish, Seth Webb, Brandon Hesson, and Kyle Vincent.  I had some questions answered by the band's vocalist Justin Webb.

How did Skyline For Tomorrow get started?

Three of us were in a band before Skyline for Tomorrow.  Me [Justin Webb] and Seth Webb [guitars] are brothers, so we have a great chemistry when writing music together. We really understand what the other wants. The biggest part of having a band is finding members that get along, as well as having good chemistry between them. Trevor, Brandon, and Kyle fit that perfectly. We're all like brothers now. 

Describe your sound.
Our sound is a unique one! We have such a wide variety of influences, so when you throw them all together and add your own personality to it, it comes out sounding very refreshing. We've spent years listening to Underoath, Chiodos, Blessthefall, Scary Kids, Scaring Kids, and bands in that genre. Some could call it metalcore, we prefer post-hardcore if we absolutely have to call it something.

What label are you guys on right now?

We are with Soundcloud Records right now. It's indie, which is definitely the way to go in this day and age of making music. If you want to continue as a band, finances always play a big factor. Without that major label overhead, we are able to focus on the music 100 percent and not have to worry about someone taking money from us they never earned.

What are the band’s influences?

For me personally, my range of favorite bands is pretty bizarre. I love Oasis. I love old Tell All Your Friends era Taking Back Sunday. At the same time, I love listening to Sky Eats Airplane, Of Mice & Men, Chiodos, Underoath and heavier bands.  We are all very much like that. Seth is into All Time Low and Elliot Smith, yet does quite a bit of screaming in the band. Trevor loves Old Crow Medicine Show, but loves Jason Hale of Chiodos' guitar work. Brandon definitely loves the heaviest genre of us all. He was telling me how stoked he was to see Bring Me the Horizon. Kyle can dig anything from All Time Low, to Iron Maiden, to Chiodos. We're all very broad in the musical spectrum for the most part.

I noticed you guys are working on an EP, how is that coming along?

Great! We have an album title, album art, album, and shooting for a release date of mid-December. There have been so many hold ups with this thing, but it is well worth it. Parallels is the most rewarding and proudest achievement of my musical life. I think the other guys would say the same because we have worked so hard on it.

What plans do you have for upcoming tours?

We are heading out in December to support Parallels and will probably continue support throughout January and February. We will probably take a short break to record another EP, and then we already have plans to tour May, June, July, and August. We'll be posting dates really soon when we re-launch the MySpace and everything.

What’s something funny or random your fans may not know about you guys?

For me, it might be that I am a total, complete fan of the song Wicked Heart by Diana Vickers. Such a guilty pleasure. And that I am a massive Manchester United soccer fan.

Anything else you want fans to know about you guys?

That we have the best support system in the entire world. We've had some really bad times, as every band does, but our fans single handedly get us through it all. We couldn't ask for more. Come to our shows, buy our music, buy our merch and help keep supporting us. Hope to see you all on the road. Thank you!

You can check out the guys on all of the popular social networking sites. So check it:
http://www.myspace.com/skylinefortomorrow
http://www.twitter.com/skylineft
http://www.facebook.com/skylinefortomorrow

Concert Review: This Is A Family//Attack Attack!, Pierce The Veil, Of Mice & Men, In Fear and Faith

Once again, another show I went to in order to promote for the Alternative Press Street Team.  I attended the tour on Nov. 14, 2010 at the Cabooze in Minneapolis, MN.  I had listened to Attack Attack! for a short period of time which is why I wanted to go to the show in the first place, but my excitement went a little down hill over the past few weeks.  Then after the departure of Johnny Franck, I really had lost a lot of excitement to see Attack Attack!.  I have been listening to a little of Of Mice & Men over the past two weeks so there was some excitement to go to the show.

The show that I attended did not feature Emmure, who will be a on few dates later on the tour.  I also was late for the show as I had other reporting that had to be done earlier that afternoon for an article I am writing; life as a journalist.  Because I was late I missed In Fear and Faith, but I was told that the band was missing their vocalist for personal reasons.

The first band I saw was Of Mice & Men, who I mentioned I have been listening to.  The guys were very energetic.  Shayley Bourget, the singer/guitarist had an amazing voice live that closely resembled what it is like on the album, which I was pleasantly surprised by.  After the first song, Bourget had to change a string on his guitar and the touring bass player Dane Poppin of A Static Lullaby and drummer, Valentino Arteaga, kept the crowd entertained with a few solos.  Also in the middle of their set, the guys randomly, simultaneously fell onto the stage and kept performing (I will have a video posted on the APMinneapolis YouTube page later this week).  It was different and made for good entertainment.  Overall, they were a good band live.

The co-headliner was Pierce The Veil.  While I am not a fan of Pierce The Veil I have seen them before and they do create good music.  Their set was all that I thought it would and then some.  Their drummer, Mike Fuentes, played a tambourine and then threw off the stage.  It flew right in front of me and I briefly had it in my hands, but their tour manager or road crew quickly took it away from me, but it made for a good effect.  The singer/guitarist, Vic Fuentes, has amazing vocals as well and the girls in the crowd seemed to float toward him.  He also used a blow horn during the last song which I liked very much.  Plus their guitarist, Tony Perry, is extremely energetic, and at one point I thought he was going to hit the security guard in the head with his guitar.  They were very good live and if you are a fan of the band then they will certainly not disappoint.

Finally Attack Attack! came out for their performance.  It began quietly, with a lot of smoke, with their guitarist playing soft riffs before the rest of the guys coming out on stage and beginning with loud and heavy breakdowns.  Shortly into the set, Caleb Shomo, the bands vocalists, requested that the crowd have chicken fight during the song Dr. Shavargo Pt. 3; one girl remained on someone's shoulder's at the end of the song (this will also be posted on YouTube).  Eventually, Shomo did address Franck's departure from the band in a short speech.  He also mentioned that Sean Mackowski from My Ticket Home, who I interviewed last weekend, was filling in for Franck for the tour.  That gave me a little giggle.  Overall, the guys said they were happy with no hard feelings to Franck and they would continue making music, but their stage presence did have a lack of energy.  That is to be expected, however, when you lose a band member and friend.

While it is too bad that Attack Attack! lost Johnny Franck I give them major credit for continuing with their headling tour with pride.  I give the tour a 4 out of 5.  The crowd seemed to be having an awesome time and for not being a huge fan of any of the bands, I was greatly entertained.

Before the Band Was Famous: August Burns Red-Thrill Seeker

I already admitted in a previous post that I am big fan of August Burns Red, but it is ironic that only began listening to them a few months ago.  In May 2010 I decided to give August Burns Red another chance after trying to listening to them about three years previous.  One of the best decisions I have made in a while.  I will admit that it took me a while to get into their album Messengers after living off of Constellations for weeks.  Messengers had been such a breakthrough for August Burns Red that I felt it was almost an obligation to like it, but I do find it to be hard to listen to at times.  After finally learning all the songs off Messengers I decided to listen to their debut full-length Thrill Seeker.  In all honesty, I was not looking forward to it.  I was not expecting it to be anything special, just another first for a band that became so much more.

I was proven wrong.  I could not believe what I was hearing.

The album resembles a lot of the sound of Constellations, released in 2009. Amazingly, before listening to Thrill Seeker I had never heard anything about it.  Sure, I knew it existed, but I have never put it in my priority to listening to it because I never heard anything about it; good or bad.  Now I find myself listening to it more often than Constellations and much more than Messengers.

Thrill Seeker was released in 2005, and as I mentioned is August Burns Red's first full-length album from Solid State Records.  If you have heard their material off Looks Fragile After All, it is pretty amazing that the band turned out the way it is today (with all do respect of course).  Even the jump that was made from their EP to Thrill Seeker is greatly apparent, which could be a quality of production issue.  The biggest difference between Thrill Seeker and Constellations, I believe, is how the songs are arranged.  Each song has its noticeable riffs, guitar-like-solos, and Matt Greiner's particular drumming.  The tracks on the Thrill Seeker follow the odd time signatures that many August Burns Red fans are used to, but sometimes it sounds like there are two songs in one.  It is almost as if the guys have learned that you do not need to put so much into a song for it to sound good.  That being said, they are not simple in the least with what they write, even today, and it is apparent in this album that the guys knew from the beginning what direction they wanted their band to move towards.

I greatly encourage people to look into this album, which I believe is greatly underrated.  Whether you are a fan of the band today or not, if you are a fan of metalcore this is an album you can appreciate.  To me, Thrill Seeker is an album that was ahead of its time by about two years and therefore did not gain the recognition it deserved.  I also could have just missed its recognition because as I said I only recently began listening to August Burns Red. Either way, this album needs more credibility within the metalcore community.


If there are any albums that you believe are underrated and need to be known about to listeners, leave a comment and I will look into the band and their albums.  I would love to hear about albums I may not otherwise give the time of day, so please do not be shy.

Interview: My Ticket Home

My Ticket Home, including vocalist Nick Giumenti, bassist Luke Fletcher, guitarists Sean Mackowski and Eli Ford and drummer Marshal Giumenti formed out of Columbus, OH about two years ago.  The guys are excited to say that their debut EP The Opportunity To Be will be available this Tuesday Nov. 9, 2010 through Rise Records.  The guys are looking to keep touring and work hard to create a full-length album in the near future.  I got to exchange some questions with vocalist Nick Giumenti and find out more about My Ticket Home and their future plans.


Angela: How did My Ticket Home get started?
Our band got started because about two years ago when [guitarist/vocals] Sean and myself [vocalist] Nick, we taking bass and guitar lessons from the same teacher. My brother [drummer] Marshal was taking drum lessons at the same shop and one day our teacher suggested that we have Marshal learn a song with us. So we did that and continued learning to cover other songs and then eventually one night we tried writing our own. We started getting more serious about it, found additional members and then recorded our first song.

Angela: How did you sign to Rise Records?
Well we grew up watching our friends in Attack Attack! as their band progressed and got signed and we had heard nothing but good things about Rise from them so naturally Rise was definitely the label we were most aware of. We played Attack Attacks! CD release show and at the show [Attack Attack!] introduced us to a lot of important people at Rise that had shown up to support the show. Since the show, we remained in contact with them and they started expressing interest in us as a band. We were in communication with a few other labels but no one showed us the same amount of attention as Rise. So we discusses numbers etc., and we feel very fortunate to have such a solid label supporting our band. 

Angela: Describe your sound.

Nowadays hardcore music is a genre that is grossly over populated and filled with too many bands all doing the same thing. Now I'm not going to claim that our band is some breakthrough new band that is amazingly unique or something. We just want to create music that we like to listen to, music that we are proud of. Our goal as a band is to create straightforward hardcore music that is tasteful and passionate, whether we accomplish that goal, as always, is for the listener to decide.

Angela: Who are your influences, as band?
That's a tough question. For me my influences are constantly changing depending on what I'm most excited about at the time. Right now my current ones would be, Underoath, The Chariot, Anberlin, and Stick To Your Guns

Angela: What plans do you have for touring this upcoming fall and spring?

Well unfortunately we kinda missed the train for the fall/winter tours because they are all booked so unless a band drops off a tour or something like that we might be looking at waiting until spring to get chance to tour. Which sucks because that's our bands main goal at the moment, so if anyone there can help us out let us know!

Angela: Will your EP be available in stores?

The Opportunity To Be is going to be released digitally on iTunes on Nov. 9th (which is in 2 days!), but the only way to get a physical copy will be to buy them from us on tour.

Angela: What has been your biggest highlight as a band thus far?

Well my personal highlight was playing shows and driving around with my friends in the van, but I suppose the highlight for our band would be getting signed and releasing our debut CD.

Angela: What do you see in My Ticket Home's future?

Well our goal would be to start touring a ton, release our first full length, which we have already started writing for, continue to tour, see the country, meet friends and fans, and continue to earn our success as a band.

Angela: Any crazy tour stories yet?

Well we weren't on tour, but we were at a venue in West Virginia, and Marshal and our friend Will Hash were messing around behind the stage, and they found a ladder that lead up to the top of the stage ceiling which was made of dry-wall. And Marshal being the sharp explorer that he is, managed to climb about five feet out on the ceiling before falling completely through it into the stage. There was debris everywhere it was really, really funny.

Angela: Anything else you want fans to know about you guys?
Not particularly, we are just a group of friends who love writing and performing music and we are very excited about the opportunities we've been given. So thanks for your interest and for reading this!


Make sure you check My Ticket Home out at http://www.myspace.com/mytickethome. Also make sure you get their EP The Opportunity To Be on Nov. 9 available through iTunes for $5.99 or if you catch them at a show you can buy a hard copy.
My Ticket Home's Twitter

Album Review: Punk Goes Pop 3

The Punk Goes... collection has brought many amazing covers of some very distinct songs (Say Anything "Got Your Money", The Maine "I Wanna Love You", A Static Lullaby "Toxic"), but Punk Goes Pop 3 has not met its previous standards.  While some of the performances are well done and even surprising for the artist that covered the song, some of the songs are downright awkward.

The songs I find to be the best on the album are "Bad Romance" covered by Artist vs. Poet, "Right Now" covered by Asking Alexandria, Miss May I's cover of "Run This Town", Sparks The Rescue's "Need You Now" and "My Love" covered by We Came As Romans.  I thought that having Miss May I cover "Run This Town" would have been awkward, but the five men made it work.  Also We Came As Romans cover I found to be almost better than a lot of their previous work, which could be natural and I hope it is reflected on their future albums.  By far the song that is most cheerful is Of Mice & Men's cover of "Blame It."  The guys did a very good job making the song their own, but keeping it recognizable.

The choice of the songs were for the most part good, but I believe there could have been better songs chosen.  Such as the song "Airplanes" by The Ready Set, originally recorded by B.o.B featuring Hayley Williams.  I find it to be rather strange that this song was covered because Paramore, the band Williams fronts, could have been one of the bands covering a song on this album.  Also, the fact that there are two songs by T.I. and Justin Timberlake featuring one another on the album ("Dead and Gone" covered by Cute Is What We Aim For and "My Love" covered by We Came As Romans.  Also there are two songs on the album which Kayne West appeared in on the album.  The final thing I found to be strange is that Mayday Parade make an appearance on this volume while the band was also on Punk Goes Pop 2 covering "When I Grow Up".

This album was not the best of the Punk Goes... collections, but it is still something that fans of previous covers will enjoy.  I hope that in the future, if the collection continues, that the Fearless Records works more to find different artists that have not done previous work on their collections.  Also taking into consideration of the songs chosen to cover can help the album's credibility.  I give it 3 out of 5.

Goals of this Blog

The main goal of this blog is to better my writing style.  I am a journalist and practicing my writing is a key to my future.  The other goal of this blog will be to talk about what I love most in life: music.

I hope to continue doing concert reviews, but also album reviews and even band interviews!