Here is the rundown of what we had:
INTERVIEW WITH ARI FROM DESTROPHY:I have known Ari the entire time I have been with ROCK 108. I remember of the first events that I attended as a member of the staff was the ROCK 108 Battle Of The Bands at the old Shag's in Cedar Falls. Destrophy won that night and I spoke with Ari about his future. Ari said that he was shooting for the ultimate dream, which was to tour nationally.
Fast forward to the present. Ari, Phil, Bruce and Joe as DESTROPHY have been signed to Victory Records. They have started a schedule of dates as direct support for their label-mates, Otep. The closest shows are all a 4+ hour drive away from the listening area, but I encourage you to go see them.
The interview itself covered where Destrophy had been, what it feels like to be signed and the work that is ahead for the band. We followed the interview up with "Way Of Your World."
"COMMON REGRET" by ILLEGAL SMILE
This band submitted their material just before the deadline of the debut of UNSIGNED & ONLINE. Some of the members were originally from Parkersburg. The opening month of UNSIGNED & ONLINE (July 2008), they played at a benefit for the town at The Hub in Cedar Falls.
Since then, they have shared the stage with Hurt, Caroline's Spine, Royal Bliss and Future Leaders Of The World, to name a few.
Check them out on their Myspace page.
"MILES AWAY" by MARCATO
MARCATO was the winner of the last Battle Of The Bands that ROCK 108 promoted. I hope it will remain the last because I don't like what B.O.T.B. do to the relationships between bands, radio stations, promoters, club owners, fans and the like. (But that is a story for another blog.)
MARCATO has recently moved their home base from Cedar Falls to Des Moines and has seen added success.
They just released "The World Is Drowning." This CD is an evolution of MARCATO's sound. I am impressed with the quality and composition of this album.
Check them on their main webpage or their Myspace page.
"EVERY DAY'S THE SAME" by COLD STEEL
The sheer tenacity of this entire project, from the band itself, to the manager is refreshing from a group that is not signed. Several members of this band are still in high school. Tell me you knew that by listening to them.
The video for their song "Stuck" was featured on Fuse-On-Demand.
They are in the process of recording their new EP with Tom Tatman at Catamount Studios in Cedar Falls. I heard a demo of one of their new songs and it sounded finished to me. It shows the talent of all involved in this project. We should get a preview of some of the new stuff in a week or two.
Check them out on their Myspace page.
"IT HAPPENS AGAIN" by HAZER
This is the first track to their Peach Fuzz EP. I was immediately grabbed by the way this sounded like the stuff I used to listen to in high school. They kind of proved me right when they said in their UNSIGNED & ONLINE interview that they really dug some of the grunge-era acts.
HAZER opened for Local H during Cornstock at Spicolis and has a date on 8/15 with 8Foundead, Illegal Smile, The Goodyear Pimps and more at Spicolis.
Check them out on their Myspace page.
