Big Rock Finish… reviews of independent music

The Real Nasty serve up a completely fresh approach to blues-based country rock. Consider the instrumentation: front man Ryan Lukas plays an upright bass, while percussionist Matthew “Smitty” Smith plays a trap-set and provides backbeats using an afro-Cuban box drum known as a cajon. With bluegrass influenced Jacob Groopman rounding out the lineup on electric guitar, the result is an utterly unique sonic blast of blues-inspired rock mingled with a hint of old-time country authenticity—equal parts Led Zeppelin and Johnny Cash.

To be sure, it’s a potent blend. So it should come as no surprise that these San Francisco Bay Area boys, who come from serious musical pedigrees that include The Crane School of Music and the Oberlin Conservatory, are getting heavy airplay on college radio stations around the country.

http://www.therealnasty.com/

Forged in the hothouse that is Louisville’s indie-rock scene, The Fervor has been known to deliver unpretentious rock ’n’ roll replete with eerie, ambient guitar riffs and soul-laid-bare vocals of gut wrenching intensity.

Since formally delivering a well-timed sonic punch to the music scene with their 2007 debut, Bleeder, The Fervor, led by the harmonious alto crooning and glistening keys of Natalie Felker, has criss-crossed the Eastern half of the United States and drawn crowds at festivals including CMJ and Forecastle.

With the addition of Michael Campbell on bass and Mat Herron providing steady, trance-inducing beats, they’ve released their second full-length studio album, Arise, Great Warrior, just released on Removador(MP3), Karate Body (LP) and SonaBLAST! (CD).

http://www.thefervor.com/cms/

Holy City Zoo is a four piece alternative punk rock outfit hailing from New Brunswick, New Jersey. The band consists of Joe Lanza (Guitar/Vocals), Frank DeFranco (Guitar/Vocals), AJ Russo (Bass/Vocals) and Brian DePhillis (Drums). The group blends driving, forceful rhythms with healthy doses of organized chaos. Some main influences of the band are the Foo Fighters, At the Drive In, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Fall of Troy, ..And You WIll Know Us By the Trail of Dead, Bear Vs Shark, Weezer, Tera Melos, Sonic Youth etc.

The band formed in 2007 as a side project for Joe Lanza. Quickly after this formation, Frank DeFranco came on board and the two began to compose material. Bassist Aj Russo, who has worked with Joe in previous bands, liked the demos that he heard and eventually decided to leave his other band to join. In the summer of 2010, the band’s drummer decided to call it quits. Brian DePhillis, who had previously been in a band with AJ, was asked to fill in the role. This line-up solidified the sound the band had been looking for, as they wrote brand new material and decided to take the side-project a bit more seriously.

March of 2011 saw the release of the bands first EP. It was released by their own independent label Tiny Giant Records, which the band co-founded with fellow New Jersey musicians The Nico Blues. Along with the label, they also formed the Tiny Giant Artist Collective, which vastly improved the communication amongst local bands in the New Jersey/New York area. This helped spread the word about Holy City Zoo’s shows and EP, which helped create a sustaining buzz in the New Brunswick music scene.

http://holycityzoo.bandcamp.com/

A brief explanation for the uninitiated. Eclectic Method essentially pioneered the art of audio-visual mixing and redefined what it means to move a crowd. Beginning with their experimental splicing of U2’s “Mysterious Ways” video with the Beastie Boys’ “Intergalactic,” Eclectic Method’s exploration of cutting and pasting disparate sounds and images revolutionized our collective experience of music, politics, pop culture, and life in general.

Case-in-point: groundbreaking viral videos featuring cut and looped reimaginings of works by everyone from Quentin Tarantino to Wu-Tang Clan.

www.eclecticmethod.net

On April 1, 2011, The Apollo Effect finalized their negotiations and are now celebrating the signing of their worldwide contract with the Spectra Records family. Finishing touches are being put on their new cd, “Escape Plan” which is due for release mid-summer 2011.

Needless to say we’re pretty jacked about it, knowing Escape Plan will be given a proper release with focus on the U.S. market as well as international markets. Because of Spectra’s game plan, the album won’t be released officially until mid-summer. However, that gives us a little more time to make a few additions to the album that otherwise might have been set aside. Still, it will definitely be worth the wait.

We are getting set to start filming a video for Night Time (from the new disc Escape Plan). Toronto film maker Jimmy Keegan will be directing the video which is going to be a pretty intense little piece of cinema.

www.theapolloeffect.com

We predict very big things for this band who has already gained notable press and highlights such as a placement in the season finale of MTV’S “Skins”
, Metromix
, Paste Magazine’s “Top 100 @ SXSW”
, Filter
, RCRD LBL
, Creative Loafing
, YouTube Feature
, AOL Spinner Listening Party
, Much Music “First Spin”

and an ever growing army of fans throughout the U.S and the world!

http://www.facebook.com/littletybee

MarilynMusic is the partnership of musicians/composers Michael Gaines and Casey Conrad. Gaines and Conrad created MarilynMusic to combine their knowledge and love of a broad range of musical genres with the tastes of today’s pop audience. The prolific team has numerous tracks expertly produced, with new material constantly being created. Gaines and Conrad collaborate on every aspect of the music from the writing to the finished production.

www.marilynmusic.net