All right, welcome to the first installment of "The Underground Lives" a blog I've started in hopes of bringing some attention to otherwise unheard of bands. My hopes are that some one out there will actually read this, because I've found some great bands that would be worth your while to check out. I would also like to thank all the bands and artists that sent me a link to their sites. It was truly hard to narrow down the 20 responses to just 6 but remember, just because your band wasn't featured in this week's edition, doesn't mean it won't be in it next time around, quite the opposite actually, I've already begun my next list of bands. Anyway, withou tanymore ado, here are my underground picks for the week.
1. The Mirage Theory
OK, OK, Mirage Theory WAS the first band to respond to my forum, but this seems somewhat fitting, as they truly amazed me. This Puerto Rican Haevy Metal group really don't give anything away about themselves on their myspace: not even the band member's names. This is OK though, because the music speaks for itself. Some people could take a glance at their music and write them off as just another metal band, but those people suck. The very first song I listened to (titled: Origin) misleadingly starts off with a ballad-ike, calm-before-the-storm type sound, with eerie percussion, which quickly gives way to blasting down-tuned electric guitar. Very SikTh-like. Mirage Theory combines technical guitar playing and drum beats that would cause even the most experienced head-banger to break their own necks. That's not to say it's all Metal and no Death though. An evil-sounding organ plays in the background which matches excellent with the very emotional screaming. By this I mean you can feel and hear the feeling of desperation that Theory is trying to convey both in their peotic lyrics and dark melodies. Also on Origin is an unorthodox (yet awesome) techno interlude. These guys have a surprisingly well-honed sound for a myspace band, it just goes to show what kind of talent is still unheard of. If you like Sikth, Children of Bodom or any band that involves the words "Metal" or "Core", check this band out. I have provided a link at the bottom for all of this weeks bands.
2. Russell Melton
Well, country rock isn't exactly my cup of tea but I do have a great amount of admiration for Russell Melton. It's not like he's completely country though, he himself says that he mixes in some southern rock and that is noticeable in his songs. Yes, he does have country melodies but his voice has an edge to it that can be found in bands like Rev Theory and Three Days Grace. Mr.Melton has some amazing skill with his acoustic guitar which isn't often evident in most country music. The fusion of country and rock is great for anyone who likes blues and the like and I would reccomend his acoustic rendition of (what I assume to be, apologies if I'm wrong) a former non-acoustic song titled "I Remember". If I, being a primarily punk and metal listener can be entertained by the good old-fashioned texas blues, belted out by this artist , anyone can.
3. Southeast Exit
Southeast Exit described themselves to me as "Electronica-Hardcore". This description inspired one thought from me: "What the f*ck?". When I opened up their myspace page and saw the Grim Reaper background art combined with the South Park profile picture I knew there had to be something good in store. I was not disappointed. True to their word, there are noticeable techno beats continuing throughout their songs. However, the do also favour crushing guitar riffs, and dual scream lead vocals. My first thought of this band's sound was an entire cemetary coming to life and raiding a night club. Simply awesome. Southeast Exit clearly has some real talent and prove that they're not just another screamo band. If there was ever a dance at my High School, I would want these guys to crash it...if only the didn't live in Iowa
4. The Manic Rampage
Imagine the White Stripes vocals with a sort of old-school-clash type rythm and you've got The Manic Rampage. Based in Finland, this group keeps it original with a garage-alternative sound that's always interesting. The nonsensically titled "A Trappy Slack" is distinctively White Stripes inspired but has a really great alt-rock groove to it. Very cathcy and very-easy to get into. My opinion is that soon, you could be seeing these rockers on MTV, Much Music, what have you, very soon. They certainly deserve it a hell of a lot more than Simple Plan and The Jonas Brothers . All of their songs have very odd-sounding names, but hey, isn't that one of the things we all love about alt-rock? I have to say, they've won my respect and they are exactly as they describe themselves:"The White Stripes, The Ramones, T.Rex, The Libertines and Dinosaur Jr. mixed together with a twist of lemon." Kudos.
5. Pig Children
I must admit, at first I felt a bit skeptic about Pig Children just from their name. I was expecting it to be some sort of anti-christ black-metal band but when I saw that they were playing a show called "Dirt Fest", how could I resist? I wasn't too far off the mark with the death metal but I think I would describe it more as Thrash than anything else. They list Killswitch Engage as one of their influences, and that much was clear in the vocal style of their singer, Kyle, but is balanced into hardcore with some thick, meaty screaming. The band's overall skill is impressive, especially for a band that has so recently broke onto the scene. These guys only had 2 studio tracks on their myspace (the other was a live version of a cover of "Sexyback" by Justin Timberlake) and I was still impressed. For being an overall good Thrash act and for coaxing more than a few chuckles out of me with the Jutsin Timberlake cover I would like to say I was pleasantly surprised by Pig Children. Any Killswitch or SOAD fans should give these guys a chance. Make sure you check them out at Dirt Fest...whatever that is!
6. Artificial International
Why it is that people won't accept bands with female singers, I will never know. I can only hope that listening to Artificial International might change their opinions. The lead singer of this 5-piece Australian-based alternative group, Kat has an amazing voice for their genre. I was reminded of Ann Wilson from Heart by the somewhat ska-like vocals but the rest of the band had this Carlos Santanna-esque feeling to it. Bands like this are getting rarer and rarer as emo and rap take over the musical world, but as long as we have bands like AI keeping some of the music from the late 80's yo 90's alive we'll be alright. I would like to reccomend "Boys With Feelings" as my fave track. Their songs have a great bluesy feel to them, any old Clash or Sonic Youth fans will definitely enjoy AI. I know I did.
And so concludes The Underground Lives for this time. I'll have more bands in the days to come, and if anyone wants their band featured in the blog, send me a name and a link and I'll check it out as soon as I can. Thanks to anyone who read this and to all the bands that sent me links to their sites, i reall appreciate it. Hopefully this blog was helpful and hopefully I've managed to spread some good words about some good bands. More to come! 'Til next time
And,a s promised, here are the links to the band's myspace sites:
hey thanks man I've checked out your stuff and I'll try to fit in a good word for Inhale if I can but I've got a lot of ideas flying around right now, if I can't get you this time around though, don't despair
Hey thanks for giving us a feature! ;D
I think this blog is an exellent idea. Both - bands featured and the people who read the article benefit. People in search of new underground unsigned music will be able to get a good picture of what they're going to find behind that mysterious myspace link and naturally the bands will get some free buzz going.
So I hope you'll continue working on this blog. I wish there were more blogs like this one!
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The Underground Lives, July 30th blog
. All of their songs have very odd-sounding names, but hey, isn't that one of the things we all love about alt-rock? I have to say, they've won my respect and they are exactly as they describe themselves:"The White Stripes, The Ramones, T.Rex, The Libertines and Dinosaur Jr. mixed together with a twist of lemon."
Kudos.
