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Sunday, August 25, 2013

People Skills

I discovered a few nights ago what it is about indie music that I truly love. For the past few years, I thought it was just the break from the mainstream that I'd been taking, allowing myself to be moved by the last of the real artists in the world of music. Friday night affirmed that for me.

What I want for you, my faithful followers and lovers of all things indie, to do is buckle up, crank up the volume, and get ready to discover with me the offerings of People Skills!


So, the way this went down this past Friday night was this... My buddy and I were sitting in Slainte Wine Bar and Lounge in downtown Portland, Maine, waiting for When Particle Collide to start their set. First up was a band who I apologize to for forgetting their name, then up comes People Skills. I'm not going to lie to you. I had seen these three lingering around the place leading up to their set, and I'm sure this won't be the last time this happens- I mistook them for just random folks there to hear some local bands playing. Next thing I know, I see them setting up for their set, and 10 minutes later I was completely floored by what I was hearing!

Exeter, New Hampshire is responsible for giving us Chelsea Paolini, guitar/vocals, Greg Baldi, bass and Andrew Paolini, drums. I now love Exeter, New Hampshire. Call this rock. Call this some form of psychedelia. You can even throw in some vague pop reference to their sound. Whatever you want to call them, People Skills will gladly take it, wrap it up in nice rock n roll package, and slap you right up side the head with one of the most original sounds your earholes have ever heard. Once you recover, you'll be begging for more!




The indie music scene in the New England states is jumping these days. People Skills prove they have the chops to carry a large portion of it on their backs. I'm looking forward to seeing more of them down the road and looking even more forward to what they bring to the table next! And I'm sure all of the tree huggers out there will be glad to hear that I'll be putting more miles on my gas hog of an SUV traveling to and fro to see more People Skills shows!



Like People Skills on Facebook

Download the debut album by People Skills on BandCamp

People Skills on ReverbNation

Subscribe to the People Skills YouTube channel

Support unsigned artists... give indie music a chance.

Monday, August 19, 2013

Dungaree Dogs NYC

Gooood evening! How is everyone out there? Excellent I hope... and ready to hear some cool ass tunes, otherwise you wouldn't be here! I've got a doozy for you tonight, so I hope you're ready for this one.

Tonight, I give to you, my faithful fans, friends and lovers of all things indie, Dungaree Dogs NYC!


This is a post that I have waited patiently for nearly a year and half to bring to you. Mainly because it took poor Bobby "Slacks" a while to catch up with technology and get their music on the world wide web. But we're not mad at ya Bob... we love ya brother!

Dungaree Dogs NYC hail from, you guessed it, Howard Beach, New York. This is the ultimate rock n roll garage band who can hit you with some of the coolest cover tunes around, then turn around and hit your earholes with some of the best original tunes this side of your father's 60's garage band. Dungaree Dogs NYC are Bobby "Slacks" on guitar/bass/vocals, Joey "Bones" on drums and Bobby "Wheels" on bass/vocals/guitar. These guys are so old school they don't need last names. And that's just the way I love it!













What you've just been introduced to is a sampling of what these guys have to offer. Best of all, you find originality in their rough demos, which is exactly what these are. Rough demos. But you know what, there is more passion in these demos than almost anything you get out of the mainstream today. You feel their heart in every note sung and their soul in every note played.

Dungaree Dogs NYC were brought into my life just about the time that I embarked on my journey of indie music discovery. There isn't a day that goes by that I'm not thankful for that. Bobby "Slacks", you're the coolest of the cool of my friend. Here's to you!

Follow Dungaree Dogs NYC on Twitter

Like Dungaree Dogs NYC on Facebook

Follow Dungaree Dogs NYC on SoundCloud

Support unsigned artists... give indie music a chance.

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Song of the day: Still Not Coming Back to You by Poor Yorick

I'm bringing Poor Yorick back to MY Indie Music Blog (http://supportunsignedartists.blogspot.com/2013/04/poor-yorick.html) for today's installment of Song of the Day!





This song has always reminded me of a bunch of friends having a good old fashioned backyard jam session. It's fun, it's rocking and it's addictive as hell! I dare you to try to get this one out of your head after watching.

PoorYorickMusic.com 

Download music by Poor Yorick on iTunes

Follow Poor Yorick on Twitter 

Like Poor Yorick on Facebook 

Subscribe to the Poor Yorick YouTube channel 

Support unsigned artists... give indie music a chance.


Monday, August 12, 2013

Song of the day: Broken Man by Broken Romeo

It's time to bring the song of the day back to MY Indie Music Blog...

Without further ado, I give to you, my faithful readers and lovers of all things indie, the latest single by Tuscon, Arizona's own Broken Romeo!




Long a favorite of mine, Broken Romeo is set to turn the world of indie rock on its ear with their upcoming EP, Side One. With a lead single like Broken Man, it looks like the guys are picking up right where they left off with their debut album Desperation Daze... straight forward, in you face, no apologies for being loud as hell rock n roll. Just like we like it!

Head over to the band's BandCamp page and download the single now. While they have made it free for a limited time, make sure you give back to the band and throw a few dollars their way, would you? After all, they did record this for our listening pleasure on their dime!

Official Broken Romeo website

Download Broken Man on BandCamp 

Follow Broken Romeo on Twitter 

Like Broken Romeo on Facebook

Broken Romeo on ReverbNation

Follow Broken Romeo on SoundCloud

Support unsigned artists... give indie music a chance.

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

The Como Brothers Band, Indie Music Bus™ August Act of the Month

Several months ago, I was presented with a once in a lifetime opportunity by the fine folks over at The Indie Music Bus™. I was named to a panel of judges for their act of the month/year. This panel is made up of music industry professionals... and me! While I'm no expert when it comes to music, I am a fan. And as any of my regular readers of this blog are aware, I give you an honest fan based review of all of the artists that I feature. As part of the judges panel, I have thrown my hat into the ring for rewards for the artists named act of the month with a feature post. So welcome to the first of (hopefully) many posts in support of The Indie Music Bus™ and their act of the month contest!



Long Island, New York natives Andrew and Matt Como grew up in a musical family and were encouraged at an early age to pursue their passion for music, and we get to reap the benefits! Forming the Como Brothers Band in 2010, they have played shows extensively throughout the New York City area and have had their music featured on MTV's The Real World, as well as Keeping Up With the Kardashians on the E! network. I'm sure an even bigger highlight for the band would have to be opening for the Wallflowers!

Their latest EP, Still Waters, was released in March of this year and is primed to catapult this band into a musical stratosphere not seen by many others. A personal favorite from the EP, Bad Karma, has a bluesy, rock funk that gets you out of your seat in a hurry.





The six songs on this EP run the gamut from rock to blues to pop, but it's their latest single, Straight Face, that should make the music industry stand up and take notice of this band.



Make sure you follow this band on their rise up the music ranks. Just yesterday, the band started to put out on social media sites that 10 of their songs were recently crowd reviewed on ReverbNation for an opportunity with CBS radio and were deemed radio worthy! This is a huge opportunity for any indie artist, so congrats are in order for the band. Congrats guys!

But most importantly, congratulations on being named the August 2013 Act of the Month on the Indie Music Bus™. I feel honored to have a seat on the bus alongside such a talented band and look forward to following your rise to the top!

Official Como Brothers Band website

Follow the Como Brothers Band on Twitter

Like the Como Brothers Band on Facebook

Download the Como Brothers Band on iTunes

The Como Brothers Band on ReverbNation

Follow the Como Brothers Band on SoundCloud

Subscribe to the Como Brothers Band YouTube channel

Ride the Indie Music Bus™ (official website) 

Follow the Indie Music Bus™ on Twitter 

Like the Indie Music Bus™ on Facebook 

Support unsigned artists... give indie music a chance.

Monday, August 5, 2013

Ryan Star - Animals EP

It's not often that I do this. Come to think of it, this is only the second time in the brief history of this blog that I've featured a "mainstream" artist. Well, when that artist happens to be Ryan Star (Ryan Star: From 11:59 to Stay Awhile), you can see why I choose to break from the "norm"!

My love for Ryan Star's music goes back to his stint on the reality television show Rockstar: Supernova back in 2006... has it really been over seven years now? It was the release of his 2006 album Darkhorse - A Live Collection that led me to his 2005 album Songs From the Eye of an Elephant that led me to discover his band Stage, which he started at the age of 14, which carried me forward to his 2010 major label debut 11:59 recorded with Atlantic Records and his 2012 self-released Orphans EP. All the while, I patiently waited for a chance to get to see him live in concert. I finally got my chance in 2012 when I had the pleasure of seeing him not once, but twice at the Brighton Music Hall just outside of Boston. It's a small venue like BMH that allowed me to meet Ryan after his sets and have the opportunity to talk to him one on one for a few minutes at each show. It's that interaction that Ryan gives of himself to his fans that endears him to us in a way no other artist can. 

I'm going to put this out there to give you an example of what I mean. I'm also a fan of Chris Daughtry... yes, that Chris Daughtry from American Idol fame. My wife and daughters are also big fans of Daughtry, and we've had the pleasure of seeing them in concert three times. One of those times, we decided to give our daughters a "treat" and splurge for the VIP experience. While it was nice to get a preview of the show and get to sit on on their sound check and stand in line with 96 other people who all paid a premium, the only interaction we got one on one was a brief handshake and roughly 20 seconds with the band to snap a photo... then off we went and in came the next person. My two show experience with Ryan Star? Two of the most intense performances I've ever seen followed by nearly 10 minutes of talk time with one of the most humble artists in the world. He took the time to thank me for coming to his show. He snapped multiple photos with me and my wife and even autographed my copy of his Stage cd that has been a long-standing favorite of mine. There wasn't a rush to move me along so the next person could have a turn. He was genuinely interested in my opinion of his music and his show. He was even more humbled by the fact that I was enough of a fan to bring that Stage cd in hopes that he might sign it for me.

So this brings us to today. Today marks the release of Ryan's new EP Animals and the video for the first single Impossible


Yes, I pre-ordered the EP, and even missed out on sleep so I could listen to it at 12:02 this morning when it downloaded to my iPod. It's been on repeat all day, and I can't get enough of it. Clocking in at just five songs, Animals is what happens when an artist is able to release their music the way they want to without the constraints of a record label. I'm not sure of his status with Island records, who he recently signed with and was able to release his single Stay Awhile with in August of last year. What I am sure of is the passion that he put into Animals. For me, it takes him back to his days as a non-stop touring indie artist. Animals is raw emotion and 100% heart and soul from an artist who knows what he's good at doing.

If you're not already, now's as good a time as any to become a member of the #RStarArmy. Go out and download your copy of Animals on iTunes or Amazon. Check out the official video for Impossible on FuseTV. But most important, spread the word. Remember, this is yet another self-release, so Ryan fits right in on this blog with the other indie artists I've featured.

And for those of you fortunate to live in and around New York City, you have to make it a point to join in the RStar New York City Takeover. Starting tomorrow, August 6th, he returns to play at some of the venues where it all started for him.

For the complete list of NYC shows, click here: RStar New York City Takeover show schedule

And check out the official video for Impossible here: Ryan Star- Impossible official video

The official Ryan Star website

Download Animals and all of Ryan's music on iTunes

Download Animals on Amazon.com

Follow Ryan Star on Twitter

"My name is Ryan Star. My whole life I have been getting ready for a moment that might never come. I never slowed down to understand who I really am or what life means to me beyond music and beyond performance. The lyrics I have written since I was a kid have all been trying to tell me what I am just realizing. Life is RIGHT NOW. We are in it already. Make every moment count." - Ryan Star

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Rediscover Desperation Daze by Broken Romeo

Everyone of you who follow this blog and have so from day one know my sole purpose for doing this. I always relish the chance to take a stab at mainstream radio for the absolute mess they've helped to make out of the music industry over the past few years.



It wasn't long before I started this blog that the music of Broken Romeo was brought into my life. It was one of those rare occasions early on that an artist made as big an impact on me as this Tuscon, AZ rock band did. While I was researching the band to first introduce them to you (MY Indie Music Blog Broken Romeo Sunday, July 15, 2012), I came across a less than favorable review of their album Desperation Daze by a so-called critic who to this day I still have never heard of. It was at that point that I knew what direction MY blog would take. I would introduce you to the indie artists whose music was making the biggest impact on me, and it would be written from a fan's perspective. I'm the farthest I can get from being an "industry" professional. My musical background is limited to piano lessons in the sixth grade and guitar lessons in the seventh grade. I can't break down a track technically and explain the nuances of the singers delivery to you. What I can do is give you some of the best music being made today. And the artists that I give to you to discover along with me come from all over the world. From right here in the great state of Maine, to all across the USA. To our neighbors to the north in Canada to those across the pond in the United Kingdom and all the way down under in Australia. I've made this my mission in life, and it has become a never ending passion of mine for going on five years now.

So come along with me as we rediscover one of the all-time greatest indie rock albums by one of the all-time greatest indie rock bands. Period. Come with me as we rediscover Desperation Daze.

Editor's note: I assume no responsibility for blown speakers and/or eardrums. I can merely suggest that you brace yourself for some of the baddest ass and loudest rock n roll you'll find anywhere. Now CRANK IT UP AND HIT PLAY!!!






James Turpin,  Steve Turpin,  Ari Sloane & Matt Ringnel, what you guys give your fans is no less than 120% of your rock n roll hearts and souls. I only know of one other fan of yours who's more excited about the new music you've been teasing us with over the course of the past few months. All I can say is, bring it on. I've got an unlimited amount of blog space with your names written all over it!

Offical Broken Romeo website 

Follow Broken Romeo on Twitter 

Like Broken Romeo on Facebook 

Follow Broken Romeo on SoundCloud 

Become a fan of Broken Romeo on ReverbNation 

Subscribe to the Broken Romeo YouTube channel 

Download your copy of Desperation Daze on iTunes 

Support unsigned artists... give indie music a chance.