Music Scouting

I love when I find a band whose’s music constantly makes me smile and go, “OMFG” with how awesome and catchy the songs are! Makes it well worth any amount of money I may spend supporting that band to continue being awesome and sharing their music with the local and/or national rock scene. 

I may not update this blog as much as I was hoping I would update but you can bet your bottom dollar (Oh Annie the orphan!) that when I DO update it with a new featured band, then you KNOW that band is going to really be damn awesome!

I mean, hell, after being introduced to Cobalt & the Hired Guns a year and a half ago in January 2011, I was so amazed with their talent, creativity and outgoing nature both on and off the stage, that I willingly dropped 100 bones to make sure that their new album will be heard by many. I have THAT much faith in the band!

Or how about when The Crash Moderns (before they transformed into Waking Heroes) were left stranded in St. Louis when their van crapped out on them in the middle of the highway when they were on a Spring tour?! I had no second thoughts about spending 30 bones to contribute to their new van fund, via Kickstarter!

and just spreading the word about these bands is a great FREE way to give a truly deserving band the recognition they deserve from the country/world. 

Sometimes you have to sit through all the bland bands so you can find the awesome ones and you will never find the hidden jems of the underground scene if you don’t get out there and GO to a show from time to time! Money is not an issue since these local shows will only set you back about 4 to 10 dollars! NOT BAD AT ALL!!

This summer, be on the look out for a write up featuring an AWESOME band from Brooklyn that I got turned onto called, The Shondes….to describe them in one word…. WOW!

REJOICE, Chicago Rockers! We have Alternative Rock back on the airwaves!!! After almost a full year since Q101 went off the air to make way for boring newstalk radio, Q101 IS BACK in the form of Q87.7!!! The station debuted last night, May 6, 2012 with non-stop rock and no commercials, today there already is a DJ and some commercials They are back and not quite stronger than ever since the frequency is not that strong. Not everyone will be able to pick up the new station which is why it’s tentatively named Q87.7 Alternative Underground. If you are able to pick it up, then it will be pretty hard to wipe that smile off your face, if you can’t, Find Um’ on Facebook and they can show you where to stream it online! Just be careful who you tell, there are already corporate asshats trying to shut them down….AFTER NOT EVEN 24 HOURS ON AIR!!! I don’t know about you all, but if this station gets shut down, I’m starting a internet movement! Chicago NEEDS some Rock on the radio! For the love of all the amazing local bands, we NEED this!!! I’m stoked to see this new station grow…and I am crossing my fingers that They’ll hire back Chris Payne to do Local 101….er Local 87, it would be have to be called! So I will leave you all with this word of advice….SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC!!!!! You don’t know how quick we could loose it!!! SUPPORT LOCAL RADIO and even more importantly SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC VENUES!!! Need I remind Chicago that we almost lost The Metro and Schubas?! That was a scary moment!

Woahhh, long time no post! Been meaning to post a entry on this next band for some time now since I first experienced their utter awesomeness back in January 2011. Again, I must say thanks to the hyper-pop/rock band, Dot Dot Dot for helping me find out this band existed, and within the Chicago city limits, no less! Of course, the band I’m talking about is Cobalt and the Hired Guns. But Cobalt isn’t just any rock band, oh no! They are a new breed of rock n’ roll, combining Indie rock with Blues, some Punk and even pop styles! There’s something for everyone to enjoy when listening to some Cobalt! Hell! Even someone whose musical taste is mostly hard rock/heavy metal, finds Cobalt one of their new favorites!!! 

Part of their unique music style is not the typical instruments of a rock band, i.e. guitar, bass, drums, but it’s those extra instruments such as saxophone, trumpet, tambourine! Yup! A rock band with brass instruments, so you know they are legit awesome!

Just the energy the band members give off at their live shows are enough to make you fall in love with everything about them. On stage, they successfully  draw the crowd in for a straight up headbanging dance party with catchy as fuck songs that are guaranteed to make you be humming the songs long after the last song ends!

And then we  come to their energetic and overall friendly nature off the stage. These “Hired Guns” are so much fun to talk to and hang out with after the show, which is how hyper, energetic, and random people should be! There’s never a dull moment with Cobalt and the Hired Guns!!!  I remember seeing them for the first time at the Metro, in Chicago with Dot Dot Dot in January 2011, running into lead singer/guitarist, Tomlinson after the show, after we introduced each other and I said my, “You guys Rocked!” compliment, a friend of the band playfully adds, “Oh now, he’s gonna remember you every time!” And she couldn’t have been more right, Tom, as well as all members of Cobalt (Mike on bass/guitar/vox, Jesse on drums/vox) are all super friendly and super energetic with everyone they meet.

I don’t know about you, but that alone is enough to be a fan!!!

Only negative I have about this band is that they are not more popular than they are! Proof that the music scene/industry has SERIOUS problems if such an overall Amazing band, like Cobalt and the Hired Guns is still underground, for the most part and not getting nearly enough recognition as they deserve(which is a buttload….they should be blowing up!!! Which is what led me to create a Facebook group called, “Operation: Cobalt Who? to COBALT…YEAHHH!!!” which pretty much is bringing together everyone who agrees that enough is enough and this band needs to get ridiculously famous/popular…AND FAST!!!

Currently, Cobalt is working on a new album, which should be released fairly soon (last I heard, they have 4 more songs left). Their first album, 2008’s Jump The Fence is available on Amazon MP3, Itunes and all those good places, as well as on their website, if you want the physical cd in your greedy hands. :)

I recommend you go on Spotify and stream “Boston and Alone” right now (it’s the only song that comes up for Cobalt). It is HI-LARIOUS!!! Easily my favorite song yet.

They also have a Double Single EP that includes their recent hits, “Last August”, “You Left Your Sweater” and “Of Summer” —- remember that Snowpocalypse of February 2011? Yeah, that was how the video for “Of Summer” came to be!!!

LINKS:

OFFICIAL: www.cobaltandthehiredguns.com

FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/#!/cobaltandthehiredguns?sk=info

TWITTER: Lead singer, Tomlinson and Bass guitar, Mike both dabble in the Tweety Tweets:

@cobaltandthehgs

@mikecobalthgs

Tom tweets more often.

YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/user/cobaltandtheHGs#p/a/u/0/WnkpLFfGURo

oh yeah…one more thing….You left your sweater in my room, come pick it up!

I just came across this badass band, called The Last Vegas, and they are from Chicago, WOOHOO!!! I have yet to see this band live, but just cruising their various inter-webbing websites was enough to turn me into a fan!

Seriously, this band is hardcore rock.

They are influenced by Aerosmith, AC/DC, Cheap Trick, KISS, Motely Crue, Sex Pistols,… So you know they stay true to the classic hard rock style, something the music scene has been lacking in lately (seriously, enough of the whiney overproduced pop punk annoyances)!

And more proof of their badass ability to Rock, they have done some work with Nikki Sixx *Raises celebratory devil horns in the air*

I am quite determained to get another chance to see these guys play live  but now that the weather is getting nice and hot and Festival season is starting up in Chicago, I’m sure there will be more chances to see the awesome, AWESOME….did I say awesome?…. THE LAST VEGAS in concert in the great city of CHITOWNN.

So seriously happy rockin’ and I am off to go bask in badass rock&roll status via The Last Vegas videos/mp3’s

LINK YOURSELVES TO AWESOMENESS:

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/THELASTVEGAS

Band website: http://www.thelastvegas.com/

YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/thelastvegasvideos

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thelastvegas

Alrighty, so this next band is evidence of what happens when you know the right people. Shout out to Dot Dot Dot’s new drummer, Marty Kane for plugging this next band to the Dot Dot Dot masses via the Facebook and Twitter. That dude is badass!

Without further adu, I introduce you to a band that will no doubt make you dance your ass off, THE DANCE PARTY (http://www.myspace.com/thedanceparty) is a Washington D.C/LA band that has very catchy rock/pop/dance songs that are very well suited to get some spin time in some hot nightclubs and bars.

Upon first listen, I was rockin’ to the beats and dancing in my seat. No doubt a band that will put on a pretty fun show! Once I started listening to the songs on their MySpace(remember MySpace?….yeah, me either!) I started to hear a resemblance to Dot Dot Dot —-very fitting that I got turned onto The Dance Party by a Dot member!

The Dance Party has that same sound and energy in their songs as Dot Dot Dot, a great match, touring wise. Which, by the way, the two bands are playing a show together in Libertyville, Illinois on September 10 at Austin’s, so looks like I’m not the only one who sees the similarity between the two bands…now if only The Dance Party were a Chicago band and their drummer was named Marty as well, then things would be getting Freaky to which I would respond with, HOLY SIMILAR!

The Dance Party has a new album coming out in stores and online September 28th, entitled, “TOUCH” 

Myspace : http://www.myspace.com/thedanceparty

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/thedanceparty?v=wall

Twitter: http://twitter.com/thedanceparty

and go tell Marty from Dot Dot Dot how badass his music taste is: http://twitter.com/martykane :) 

So this band is not exactly unknown, for the most part. This band has gotten it’s fair share of publicity from 2005-2009 and I guarentee you have found yourself humming one of their tunes or blasting the volume when one of their songs came on the radio.

The band is Cute Is What We Aim For:

I’ve always considered Cute one of my few absolute favorite bands going back to Warped Tour 2006 when I first heard “There’s a Class For This” on a demo mix CD someone was handing out during that Chicago Warped Tour day. After that, I have slowly been becoming more and more a fan of Cute Is What We Aim For, meaning to pick up their first album, Same Old Blood Rush With A New Touch(2006) with hits like, “There’s a Class For This”, “Newport Living”, and “The Curse of Curves” to name a few.I would have finally gotten myself to get said CD after Alternative Press featured a story on them for the first (and only decent) AP Tour w/ Cute as headliners. 

Just goes to show you, Don’t throw away those Free CDs you get at Warped Tourrr! You’re new favorite band could have one of their songs on one of um’!!!

Now, Cute Is What We Aim For has gotten a lot of shit over the years for god knows what negative publicity or garbage people make up, It tears me up to hear so much hate on a band that is so effin’ brilliant! Lead Singer/founder of the band, Shaant Hacikyan has got a way with words. His songs are so catchy, so fun and his lyrics, when you actually take the time to decipher them, are pretty sexual which makes listening (and in turn, singing along with) all the more enjoyable!!! :P

Cute Is What We Aim For was signed onto Fueled By Ramen from 2005 until just this past April/May 2009 when the band announced a hiatus. Prior to the break, Cute has gone through numerous band members because of inter-band dramas. Shaant has had problems with alcohol in those days and fans have insulted him and spoken ill on his attitudes with fans after shows be it, a huge slap of “OMG, I’m A Rockstar”-itis’. Jeff Czum and Dave Minnillo left CIWWAF to start a new band, “Nocturnal Me”, which led to the hiatus and thereby allowed Shaant to re evaluate his life and get help with alcohol addiction (he just recently announced that he is  now 10 months sober).

Just this past May 2010, after a year and a half of mums the word from Shaant, he announces that he is starting Cute Is What We Aim For up again!

Basically, thus far, Cute Is what We Aim For was reincarnated into a “The Rocket Summer” or “Never Shout Never” or “Young Love” type band. The type of band that has touring members but only one guy is in press photos and featured in interviews and whatnot.

Currently Cute Is What We Aim For just finished his first cross country tour back from the hiatus. I was lucky enough to hit up the Chicago date at Reggies Rock Club. I was pleasantly surprised, after seeing Cute 3 times b/f the hiatus, this return to the stage was the best. Shaant is so much happier, friendlier, and more down to earth then he ever used to be. It’s amazing and makes for such a great show! I am still smiling wide whenever I reminisce in the events of that night. If you ever had a sour impression of him in the past, don’t hate, he’s a phoenix reborn, give him a second chance. 

If you ever have the opportunity to see Cute in concert….GO! 

********

Before Cute’s hiatus, the original band lineup(or somewhat original lineup), released their second and most current album, ROTATION (2008) with hits like, “Practice Makes Perfect”, and “Doctor” to name a few.

While “Same Old Blood Rush…..” was the best, in my opinion, with more summer anthems and danceable songs, “Rotation” didn’t steer too fair away from that feel of the first album. Rotation is a little more reserved from the first album, more sobering but amazing, none the less (with an amazingly random bonus song at the end that consists of just Shaant singing a few lines while you hear scissors cutting in the background…I call it the Scissors song b/c there is no name).

A band is only as good as it’s lead singer, you can take away the bassist, the guitarist, and the drummer but if you get rid of the lead singer…that band is fucked. As long as it’s still the same guy singing for the band, Why stop calling yourself a fan?!  It’s about the music, not about the looks of the band…somewhere down the line, music fans forgot that. Don’t Hate, Cute Is What We Aim For is still awesome, embrace the band’s higher level of awesome in this, the year of the tiger(2010).

LINK CUTE:

myspace: www.myspace.com/cuteiswhatweaimfor

twitter: www.twitter.com/shaantastic

facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/cuteiswhatweaimfor

www.cuteiswhatweaimfor.com