Mid-Atlantic Rock Reviews

Ascending From Ashes hails from Bergen County, New Jersey. The band has really been together since 2007 when they were originally known by the name “Make It Fit”. Ascending From Ashes released their debut 7 song EP in 2012 that is well worth a listen, and in reality well worth a purchase. The album actually contains 5 songs, as two of the tunes are different edits of songs as “radio edits”.

Ascending From Ashes – “The Phoenix” EP

This is a band that manages to showcase a lot of versatility in style in just five songs. The clear favorite for me is the tune “Asphyxiation” which is has almost it’s own progressive hard rock style that is like a little tiny concept album within a single song. Lots of twists and turns exist in “Asphyxiation” making it really cool tune highlighted by heavy riffs mixed in with some great harmonies.

A close second favorite is “Slings and Arrows” which is an acoustic tune in a completely different style from the rest of the CD. This is a great acoustic tune and once again, some really nice harmonies come through. The first two songs mentioned here alone make this CD well worth owning.

Ascending From Ashes

There are two straight forward rock tunes that are also very good in “Into the Mirror” and the first track “Henry St.” Henry St. is the heavier of the two tunes and features some pretty cool guitar work, especially in the first minute or so intro section of the tune. Both songs are rock solid tunes.

Last but certainly not least, for the headbangers out there, “Jimini Cricket” is a flat out heavy head banging tune that is completely different in style again.

Variety is the really cool thing to take away from Ascending From Ashes’ “The Phoenix” EP. Not only are the songs varied in style, but within the individual songs, there are constant style changes and musical departures that make this a really cool release. I am giving this EP a very strong MARR recommendation. We have not had the pleasure of seeing the band play live, but we are sure our paths will cross at some point.

You can see a live version of “Asphyxiation” at this link on the band’s YouTube Channel.

Ascending From Ashes has a lot of dates scheduled in early 2013 in the New Jersey and New York area. You can find them on their Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/AscendingFromAshes or on their website at http://www.afamusic.com

K-rock

I decided to start a new little feature to point out the story behind the song for various artists. Dan Fogelberg, who is legendary for the ballads recounting the stories of love, love lost and the wholesome adventures of life has a song, that has always been my favorite that I suspect many of you have never heard. Sitting all the way down at track #9 on the 1972 release Home Free is the tune Wysteria. The tune sounds like an sorrowful love song….but is it?

Dan Fogelberg – Home Free – 1972

If you want to see first before I reveal the story behind the song, here is a link where you can hear it. It is actually a very beautiful tune… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fmbx4Y1UmbA

OK..now that you’ve listened to this beautiful love tune, let me tell you that the tune is actually a song about a vampire. Yes. a vampire.

Here’s what Dan had to say about it in an interview on www.performingsongwriter.com

“I don’t know where that came from. I think that was just a college drug haze, because it doesn’t make much sense. It’s this really weird thing about a vampire; a dead woman. I used to ask the audience what they thought this song was about and nobody knew. (Laughs) Wysteria is dead, it’s a ghost. And this guy’s still hung up on this ghost. Listen to it in that context (laughs). It’s a weird song. I think I remember lying in a hallway of some dumpy house I lived in in college and this thing came out. And I didn’t even know what the name “Wysteria” meant. I was at a head shop and I saw a candle or some incense called Wysteria, and I thought it was a great word (laughs).

Who knew the guy who sing “Same Old Lang Syne” and “Run For The Roses” had this dark side to him? Any way you slice it though, this is still a great tune. So there you have it. What it was all about.

K-rock

True Becoming was a band we first saw in December 2102 on back to back evenings as they shared the stage with Pop Evil, Otherwise and Charm City Devils in their home state of Pennsylvania. We were immediate fans of True Becoming’s live act and made sure we left these shows with their 2011 EP “The Fight” in our hands.

“The Fight” EP

A listen to the CD confirmed for us that True Becoming is the real deal and a band that MARR highly recommends checking out. I kept thinking of how to describe the band because lead singer Rich Allen has a very similar sound to Matchbox 20’s lead singer Rob Thomas. The band has a heavier style than Matchbox 20 but the similarity in the sound of the singer is hard to miss.

The EP features 6 tunes and is a strong release from the guys from Mt. Carmel, PA. The strongest tunes on the CD in order are the first tune “Night On Fire” which has a pretty cool mix of of heavy rock with a slightly mellower chorus, but definitely a memorable tune and one I find myself playing the most. The second tune on the CD “Like Falling” has been the tune that seems to have caught the attention of a number of radio stations including the legendary 105.7 the X, Y106.5 and others.

Another particularly noteworthy tune on the EP is “Innocent” which has a dark overtone and captures the bands style of heavy riffs mixed with melodic choruses prevalent in many of their tunes. Here is a version of “Innocent” we shot at one of the live shows from December: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TmtWyJyX1s

The band is primed to release a new album sometime in 2013, and we will be eagerly awaiting the chance to hear the new tunes from True Becoming. In early February the band’s bassist Ed Steff announced n the band’s Facebook page that he would be leaving the band, but would stick around to finish the new album. His departure seemed amicable and the band has advertised for a new bassist on their Facebook page as recently as February 13, but we can tell what these guys have in mind for 2013 from the quote “must be tour ready” in the posting for a new bassist!

You can find True Becoming on their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/TrueBecoming and you can pick up the 2011 EP “The Fight” on Itunes. We’ll be keeping our eye out for the 2013 release and bring you a review as soon as we get a chance to hear it. In the mean time, we recommend seeing these guys live if they are in a town near you. They are a great live act. The band has a show coming up with Adrenaline Mob on March 15 in Allentown, PA at the legendary Crocodile Rock.

K-rock

We first met Small Town Titans back in December of 2012 as the band played to a sold out house in their hometown of Harrisburg, PA in a show where they would open for Pop Evil. Not only was it the first time we met and interviewed Small Town Titans personally, but it was the first time we saw their live act.

You can see our Interview with Small Town Titans Right here.

It was pretty clear from their live set that this was a band we would be seeing more of in the future as the hometown boys thrilled the Harrisburg crowd with their high energy live act, which was capped off with their fan favorite party classic “Party In Hell”. It was based on this performance that we gave a much closer listen to the band’s 2012 self-titled album. A closer listen to Small Town Titans’ first CD has us writing this strong recommendation for this CD as an album you’ll want to think about adding to your library.

Album – Small Town Titans

The album kicks off with the aforementioned fan favorite “Party In Hell”, a song that even took the band a bit by surprise when fans began demanding it at shows at first. Singer Phil Freeman comments on the song “It started out, we had this riff going and it kinda started out as a joke almost… and then it just evolved into something that we thought was a great anthem for partying”. We witnessed the effect the tune had on the crowd and it is now a tune that the band would probably take heat for from fans if they were to leave it off the setlist.

This five song CD features a collection of four other very strong tunes. The second tune “Casting Stones Among The Wicked” definitely has that vibe of a band like Soundgarden, a band that Small Town Titans lists as an influence. It’s not a carbon copy, but you can definitely feel a bit of the Chris Cornell influence, especially on the vocals. It’s a very cool tune that is heavy and bluesy at the same time.

The CD shifts gears on the next two tunes, “Amnesia” and “State of The Unknown” which have an almost southern sounding influence to them reminiscent in style to tunes by bands like Blackstone Cherry. These are both very cool tunes, and the departure in stye from the first two tracks are part of what makes this album interesting. The variety in style almost has you feel like you are listening to three different bands. This makes sense in that the band members all find their roots in varied types of music ranging from metal to hard rock rhythm and blues, to hair-metal to Johnny Cash.

K-rock interviews Small Town Titans

Small Town Titans closes out the CD with “Sky High” which returns us to that hard rock/progressive sound found in “Casting Stones Among The Wicked”. This is a band who has a great live act, and who we highly recommend that you check out if they are at a venue near you. Playing primarily in the Mid-Atlantic region, the band has a reputation for doing some amazing things in their community by volunteering their time and talent to help their fellow man. The week after we first met the band they were off to New Jersey to support relief efforts for Hurricane Sandy, and the band has proven in the past that this is not the kind of thing they do for PR, but rather the spirit of a band who believes as we do at MARR in “Changing the World Through Rock and Roll”.
The band currently has a fundraising effort underway to support the recording of their next album and is advertising an opportunity to get the new record for only $1 via their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/smalltowntitans/info?ref=ts You can also pick up the self titled “Small Town Titans” CD we have highlighted here via that link or via Itunes for only $4.95.

We’ll be keeping our eye on Small Town Titans in 2013, and look forward to the next opportunity to see them live.

K-rock

Wild Night for the Wild Ones

Review and photography by Michele Landon – Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

When I heard the Black Veil Brides of Hollywood, CA were coming to Rams Head Live in Baltimore with their “Church of the Wild Ones Tour”, I knew I wanted to go and see what all the talk was about. I had been hearing about them for awhile and since they have just released their 3rd album “Wretched and Divine: The Story of the Wild Ones”, now seemed to be the perfect time!

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

Checking them out on Facebook, YouTube and elsewhere on the web prior to the show, I found they have a huge following and when I arrived at the venue the lines were going out the door and down the block. We had even arrived an hour before the doors opened, I shouldn’t have been surprised. Young ladies wearing makeup that matched their favorite band member was the look of the night. The BVB Army is alive and LOUD in Baltimore!

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

The Relapse Symphony from Washington, DC, Bad Seed Rising from Maryland and William Control of Seattle, WA warmed the crowd up and each had a different look and vibe. The crowd was straining against the barricade and the fans were holding up their BVB art, banners and signs. A glimpse of the song list taped to the stage showed that it was going to be a music packed show. The Relapse Symphony guys lead the crowd into chanting the Black Veil Brides to the stage and the night exploded with I Am Bulletproof.

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

Andy Biersack, frontman for The Black Veil Brides, belted out the songs to a full, as in you can’t move foot in any direction, packed house. When he paused to talk to the crowd, it was clear that his voice was strained. Later I found out he and pretty much the rest of the band was getting over colds. But they never let on. Personally I can’t imagine doing what they do when you aren’t feeling well.

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

Andy, Ashley, Jinxx and Jake strutted, sang and hypnotized the crowd while Christian on the drums beat out New Religion, Wretched and Divine, and All Your Hate. After leaving the pit area, I moved to the right of the stage and 1/3 of the way back on the floor to watch the rest of the show. I was disappointed that it was difficult to photograph CC on the drums. He was set high on risers and was pretty much hidden by the drums themselves and the lighting.

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

The lights were impressive if not a little blinding but well done. The guys put on a hell of a show. I don’t think I have ever been to a concert where the crowd sang each and every word to every song…at the top of their lungs! I wish I could say I was able to get a really good read on the music, but the crowd singing really did overpower everything. But I really didn’t mind…it was who the band is. They have a devoted and incredible fan base that love them dearly.

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

Several girls had to be pulled from the barricades due to the stress and heat, and kudos to the security at Rams Head Live for keeping an eye out for the safety of all. Three levels of BVB Army received intimate appreciation from the Black Veil Brides. They played to everyone in every corner of the venue and the army sent their love back in volumes! Ashley made a heart with his hands and sent it to all with a smile and the crowd sent them back. During one of the songs Andy told the crowd to light up their phones and the stage was bathed in an eerie greenish glow with only the cell phone pads held in the air with several old school lighters.

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

They have power, skills, showmanship and the ability to hold everyone thru the night until the end. From what I have seen from older video and concert footage, these guys are growing more and more with each album. They are very creative and taking their music even further with a movie, “Legion of the Black”, that goes hand and hand with the new album and tour.

Black Veil Brides: photo by Redhead LIVE! Music Photography

I thoroughly enjoyed The Black Veil Brides and will be waiting in line the next time they come to Baltimore…but with the well deserved accolades they are receiving worldwide, I do believe they will be on a bigger stage next time around! They are on tour in the UK now and you can catch them at Rock On The Range this spring!

Check out The Black Veil Brides:
www.facebook.com/#!/Blackveilbrides
www.itunes.com/blackveilbrides
twitter.com/#!/OfficialBVB
www.blackveilbrides.net/

More photos of the Black Veil Brides show can be seen here:
www.facebook.com/redheadlivemusicphotography
Black Veil Brides – Rams Head Live – Baltimore, MD – Jan. 18th 2013