San Diego quartet AS I LAY DYING is celebrating its anniversary as a band with the “Two Decades Of Destruction Tour”. Today, the band announced the U.S. leg of the tour will kick off on June 10th in Las Vegas. Joining the band for the 30 dates are WHITECHAPEL, SHADOW OF INTENT, BRAND OF SACRIFICE (June 24-July 17), and OV SULFUR (June 10-23) The tour will conclude on July 17 in Oklahoma.
BOYS LIKE GIRLS ignite this new era with “Blood and Sugar.” On the track, neon synths wrap around a stomping guitar as the chorus cleverly reminds, “Even though the girl’s a look-er, we’re only blood and sugar, right?” With a swaggering bridge punctuated by warbling synths and howls straight-the-heart, it’s classic Boys Like Girls with an infusion of experience and wisdom. “I think of it as a relationship with a bunch of empty calories,” Johnson reveals. “You’re talking about how human beings are just blood and sugar. You might fear this girl, but we’re all just skin and bones, so why can’t you move on? Sonically and dynamically, I hope it’s like getting shot out of a cannon ten times. It’s something we can’t wait to go out and play.”
Details to follow
Jacquees has already recorded songs with T.I., Travis Porter, Lil’Chuckee (Cash Money/Young Money artist), Quincy Brown and will work with more artists on his next project. He toured with Atlanta’s Hot 107.9 during the 2011 Spring semester to several high schools for a Stop The Bullying campaign hosted by comedian and Hot 107.9 radio personality, Rickey Smiley. In August 2011, he released his first mixtape ‘Round of Applause‘ hosted by DJ Spinz on Livemixtapes.com. He dreams of working with artists such as Lil Wayne, Drake, Justin Bieber, Bow Wow, R. Kelly, Chris Brown and many more.
Over the course of nine studio albums and numerous EPs, Cold War Kids have become a major part of
the modern musical landscape thanks to deeply personal songcraft and a commitment to forward motion.
“First,” their platinum-selling 2015 single, named as the most played track at alternative radio outlets
nationwide in the last decade, and 2007’s “Hang Me Up To Dry” remaining a festival staple. Their current
lineup – Willett (vocals, piano, guitar), Matt Maust (bass guitar), David Quon (guitar, backing vocals),
Matthew Schwartz (keyboards, backing vocals, guitar, percussion), and Joe Plummer (drums, percussion)
– coalesced in 2016 and has released a whopping four albums and five EPs since then.
Learn more about Norfolk Kayak Rentals at www.NorfolkKayaks.fun.
This show has been rescheduled from Tuesday August 1, 2023 to Tuesday October 15, 2024. Ticketholders – there is nothing you need to do; your original tickets are valid for the new date and will be honored at the door.
“Ness is one of the most underrated pure songwriters in rock.” – Los Angeles Times
Here’s how you know you’ve made it in the music business: You’ve stayed strong for three decades on your own terms, on your own time, by your own rules, and over that time your influence has only grown. Each of your albums has been stronger than your last. You’ve been brought onstage by Bruce Springsteen, because he wanted to play one of your songs. You’ve seen high times and low ones, good days and tragic days, but every night you give 100%, and every morning you wake up still swinging.
This is the short version of the Social Distortion bio — the long version could be a 10-part miniseries. But over the past 30 years, the punk godfathers in the band have all but trademarked their sound, a brand of hard rockabilly/punk that’s cut with the melodic, road-tested lyrics of frontman Mike Ness. Their searing guitars and a locomotive rhythm section sound as alive today as they did in ’82, as do Ness’ hard-luck tales of love, loss and lessons learned. “The most common thing I hear is, ‘Man, your music got me through some hard times,'” Ness says. “And I just say, ‘Me too.'”
Hard Times And Nursery Rhymes (produced, for the first time, by Ness himself) is the band’s first record since 2004. For a band with a career spanning over 30 years, Social Distortion experienced a significant amount of firsts in 2011. For starters, Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes debuted at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and was the highest debut that the band has yet seen. Hard Times was also the #1 Independent Album and the #2 Modern Rock/Alternative Album week of release. The band also made their late night television debut when they performed “Machine Gun Blues” on Jimmy Kimmel Live, and later played for Conan on Hard Times’ release date. Taking their successes to the road, Social Distortion played European festivals including Reading and Leeds for the first time. They also booked their first tours of Australia and South America. And finally, Social Distortion played Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits Festival, and Coachella – all of these for the first time.
Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes has Social Distortion’s key components — their patented mix of punk, bluesy rock n’ roll and outlaw country — while also stretching the boundaries of their signature sound. Social Distortion is a blend of potent power that appeals to all ages. They are honored to have been able to reach as many people as they have so far. “I write songs for myself, and I hope that other people will like them too,” Ness says. “I think every record you make is showing people what you’ve learned over the past few years. It’s showing people, ‘This is what I know.’ ”
Now in their fourth decade, Ness and Social Distortion have officially achieved one of the most nonpunk things possible: They’ve failed to burn out.
Since the release of dada’s groundbreaking 1992 debut Puzzle, the trio has created an array of songs boasting progressive rock musicianship, dazzling vocal harmonies and melodic power pop layered with inspired psychedelic and experimental rock impulses. Adding to the trio’s groundbreaking line of attack are the marathon-length shows that deliver on the promise that every performance is the only one of its kind.
Three decades after the Los Angeles outfit embarked on its singular journey, singer-guitarist Michael Gurley, singer-bassist Joie Calio and drummer Phil Leavitt are celebrating dada’s 30th anniversary.
“dada is about digging into our roots, examining and celebrating it.” Says Calio.
Puzzle was released on September 8, 1992, and it didn’t take long for the band’s sonic imprint to find an audience. The album’s first single “Dizz Knee Land” found widespread airplay on alternative and mainstream rock outlets cracking the Top 5 on the Modern Rock Single’s chart and pushing the album’s sales to over 1,000,000 worldwide. The band was soon touring around the globe, opening for the celebrated likes of Crowded House, Depeche Mode and Sting.
“People always ask, ‘Do you still talk to each other after all these years?’ So that’s really why I wanted to commemorate it because no matter the size of the career if you can stick together and still have a desire to play music together you have accomplished something” explains Leavitt.
Dada was founded when Gurley and Calio began writing songs and performing as an acoustic duo in the late ‘80s. But from the beginning, their approach was unique amidst the onslaught of ‘90s bands featuring lead singers and mostly generic backing bands.
“Joie and I were both lead singers. But we really found quickly that harmonies were going to be a big strength for us,” recalled Gurley, noting both he and Calio are fans of Simon & Garfunkel’s pioneering harmonies.
Gurley noted that once they recruited Leavitt, they were able to blend the thunderous power of trios such as Cream with the artful harmony-minded songcraft of Simon & Garfunkel.
The success of Puzzle was followed in 1994 by American Highway Flower, featuring the ambitious “Ask the Dust” and astounding “Feet to the Sun,” dada has gone on to create a magnificent discography featuring a half-dozen full-length albums and an EP. The trio has also issued a number of solo efforts and offshoot projects along the way exploring a range of styles including folk, blues, jazz and rock. Gurley and Leavitt were both members of Butterfly Jones while dada was on hiatus in the early ‘00s; Calio has released several solo discs and with X Levitation Cult. Mike Gurley and the Nightcaps are a popular jazz group in Southern California.
Additionally, Leavitt has stepped out from behind the drum set as lead singer and Calio is playing guitar in 7Horse, a psychedelic blues project that has released 5 albums to date. Bringing a stripped-down approach, 7Horse cuts to the bone and identifies core feelings and phrases in their music. Their latest effort “The Last Resort” was released earlier this year. Their debut album “Let The 7Horse Run” spawned the hit song Meth Lab Zoso Sticker, which was chosen by Martin Scorsese for his film The Wolf of Wall Street. Since then, it’s had over 3 million views, 35 million streams and over 100,000 downloads.
Long-time and new fans of dada all have one thing in common; they are passionate about the band and have a deep connection with its three members.
Three decades after the Los Angeles outfit embarked on its singular journey, singer-guitarist Michael Gurley, singer- bassist Joie Calio and drummer Phil Leavitt are celebrating dada’s continuing legacy.
Over the last 15 years The Used have released a collection of albums that have shaped the space of the alternative rock scene. High energy live shows, gut wrenching relatable lyrics, and melodies that blended pop sensibility and hard rock creating the perfect combination to make an everlasting impression on fans globally. The band put everything into writing and recording their new album The Canyon and from start to finish you are submerged into an inescapable visceral universe and McCracken leaves us with, “That’s what this record is – it’s a moment of silence for what’s real.” The Canyon was released on Oct 27.
Blackberry Smoke has evolved from rough-edged club act to arena-ready rock ‘n’ roll juggernauts, while steadily extending and expanding the Southern rock tradition. Since the group’s formation in 2000, the band has never shied away from hard work, playing more than 250 shows a year and building an ever-expanding audience on the strength of its live shows. In addition to winning fans and friends throughout the United States, they’ve toured Europe multiple times and performed for the first time ever in Australia in 2016 to sold-out crowds. Along the way, Blackberry Smoke has found time to record a handful of independent releases, including the albums Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime, Little Piece of Dixie and The Whippoorwill, plus a pair of EPs, the concert DVD “Live at the Georgia Theatre,” the live CD/DVD set Leave A Scar and their latest project Holding All the Roses, the first album the band feels properly captured their musical essence. Additionally, the band has had songs featured in movie and video game soundtracks, including EA Sports’ Madden NFL 16, performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Conan and toured with and befriended idols such as The Marshall Tucker Band, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd and George Jones. For more info on Blackberry Smoke, visit blackberrysmoke.com, like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter and Instagram @blackberrysmoke.
