Trends and fads come and go, but honest, heartfelt rock ‘n’ roll is here to stay, especially if Chicago rockers Vintage Blue have anything to say about it. After undergoing recent changes to their lineup and band moniker, the retooled quintet has re-emerged with a stunning new 13-track record that goes a long, long way toward getting their point across.

Formerly known as Tanglewood, the reformed entity now known as Vintage Blue have followed up their 2010 debut recording, the seven-track California Road, with their first true full-length,Strike The Mics, which finds the band tighter, leaner and more focused on contributing to the Great American Songbook than ever before. The change in name comes at a perfect time for the group, who have only recently evolved into the cohesive unit heard on Strike The Mics.

“The band is becoming something new, and growing into these new tunes,” says singer/guitarist Ben Bassett. “These songs move us beyond the old band makeup and are brand new to the five of us, so it was time for a different message for the band. This album is all the five of our minds working together, so it was kind of nice to have a whole new idea, brand and image to present with this new album. I think essentially the new name clarifies what we want to be or what the vision is: a contemporary twist on classic rock.”

Vintage Blue—which includes Bassett, singer/guitarist Ryan Tibbs, drummer Will Crowden, bassist Cesar Corral, and saxophonist/keyboardist Matt Zimmerman—formed as the band Tanglewood in Chicago several years ago, first as a cover band playing the local circuit. (Crowden, interestingly, is the grandson of the founder and former owner of Ludwig Drums.) As time passed and the group solidified, the outfit started to also compose their own original material, which gradually worked its way into their live set.

Finally, when the band’s own songs had developed enough, Tanglewood released their first studio effort, 2010’s California Road, which was recorded in a home studio and intended to present the band in its natural state, with no production. Lineup changes ensued, partly prompting the name change to Vintage Blue, but the core roster persevered, continuing their mission to rock the masses. Recently, the band played the House of Blues, Double Door, and Cubby Bear in Chicago, as well as several Chi-Town summer festivals (including Party at St. Mikes, Chicago Ribfest and Taste of River North) and a show at The Mint in Los Angeles, only further building the momentum toward their next release.

For the Strike The Mics sessions, Vintage Blue enlisted producer Jamie Candiloro (The Eagles, Luscious Jackson, Willie Nelson, Ryan Adams), who not only ensured a sparkling sonic result, but also drove the band to write their most concise, structurally impactful songs to date. And thanks to his own personal flair at the helm, Candiloro even unknowingly provided the title for the album.

“When we set up for drum tracking, he positioned everything exactly how he wanted it, and then we came back the next day to continue and there were interns working in there that had just messed with everything,” recalls Bassett. “He’s totally an easygoing guy normally, but he came in and lost it; he was totally pissed off. So from then on until the end of the sessions, he’d leave a note on the board that would say, ‘Do not strike the mics, or I’ll kill you.’ It was always something different, like, ‘I’ll maim you,’ or ‘I’ll beat you,’ but ‘Do not strike the mics’ was always on there.”

One of the key factors underlying Vintage Blue’s strengths as an original rock act is the dual writing tandem of Bassett and Tibbs, who each pen and sing their own respective material. Since the two singers/guitarists each have their own unique interests, when the two come together the material is all the richer after drawing from this diverse musical palette. Strike The Mics distinctly showcases the contributions of both songwriters, as individuals and as parts of the overall collective.

“We have two writers who really come from a different background, but somehow the songs still blend together pretty well,” Tibbs explains. “If someone picks up a record and they like harder rock, there’s one or two tunes they can get into. Maybe they don’t like the poppier tunes, but there’s going to be something for everybody. We try to cover a little bit of everything, and we would call that one of our strengths.”

Both recently single after long-term relationships, Bassett and Tibbs admit that affairs of the heart dominate much of their lyrical content, with a range of emotions from blissful to vitriolic. “Most of them all center on some love theme for me, whether it’s good or bad. A few of my tunes are about the end of things—seeing the end and figuring out things, and how they can end amicably, and whether that’s even possible,” says Bassett. “We’re not one of those bands that write about getting high and drinking on Saturday night,” agrees Tibbs. “All the tunes on the record focus on a love-type theme, whether it’s falling into or out of it. There are a couple of songs loosely based on other band members’ relationships, too.”

“One of the funniest things about writing about love is the different interpretations that people have about lyrics,” says Bassett. “On ‘Speak,’ which will be the first track released from this album, there is a lyric about a diamond ring not meaning anything, and people really reacted negatively. However, the song is about recognizing love and not quite being able to get it, so that line is really about recognizing what’s unattainable in life, not home-wrecking.”

The most introspective cut off Strike The Mics, according to Bassett, is “Just Breathe.” The song was written in a single day, but is the track of which he is most proud. “Instead of focusing on a specific relationship, or idea about love, this song was truly about letting things fall into place,” he says. “Most of the time in today’s society we all want to force the issue, and this song is about stepping back and taking a breath, and trusting that things will work.”

Another standout moment on Strike The Mics, the Tibbs composition “What Lies,” was written while in Costa Rica, and is based on the idea of two people who don’t really know each other, yet who are swept up in a beautiful place for a very short period of time. “In my mind’s eye, I see them as two people who are a bit jaded, but in that moment find some of the naiveté and excitement of your first relationship, and the pain,” explains Tibbs. “I think the lyrics can speak to people at different times in their lives. As time passes, and your life becomes more complicated, you take more and more comfort in the little things.”

With a February 2012 release planned for Strike The Mics, Vintage Blue are eager to share this much-anticipated batch of new material with fans, and hopefully, bring their eclectic blend of soulful rock to their largest audience yet. Although the band are regulars in the ever-thriving Chicago club scene, a regional tour will follow the release, traveling from Madison, Wisconsin, to East Lansing, Michigan, and then to downstate Illinois, where several band members attended college. And that’s only the beginning: Strike The Mics can be savored by classic rock fans the world over, long after last call at the local watering hole.

“We don’t have any preconceived notions…We have this music inside of us, that together we can pull out and make into something,” says Bassett. “We’re just trying to get it out as far as we can, and see what happens. We love all the songs, and we want to put them in front of people.”

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Not many lifelong Paul McCartney devotees can say Macca’s longtime drummer and guitarist guested on their latest album—to net the talents of drummer Abe Laboriel, Jr. and guitarist Brian Ray the songs have to be first-rate. In just 7 years and 3 albums critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter Tom Fuller has matured into a sophisticated tunesmith with a flair for penning cinematic, anthemic, pop-rock with introspective and spiritually-uplifting lyrics. The Chicago native’s third and latest, ASK, released September 5th in the UK and recently in North America on Redcap Records is his most realized vision.

Tom’s pushed his singing dynamically to embrace the full emotional spectrum and he’s written his strongest batch of tunes to date—the esteemed UK magazine Classic Rock made the infectiously hooky “Ask” track of the day. The broad appeal of Tom’s music has made his band, the Tom Fuller Band, compatible sharing stages with a diverse array of established artists such as Fastball, Rusted Root, Robin Trower, Blues Traveler, UFO, King’s X and the Guess Who. ASK is produced by longtime producer/mentor Rick Chudacoff, (Alison Krauss, Smokey Robinson) mixed with Cenzo Townsend and Dave Bascombe (U2, Bon Jovi) at the famed Muscle Shoals studio and mastered at the hallowed Abbey Road Studios.

Tom’s compositional sense on ASK references the British Invasion pop-with-chops heritage with imaginative arrangements, rich harmonies, and sweetly-complex chord sequences. He merges this kaleidoscopic approach with a vulnerable humility; his lyrical approach manages to be both intimate and mystical, at times referencing the confessional storytelling style of James Taylor, Jim Croce, and Harry Chapin. The production aesthetic staves off any revivalist tags, there is a deeply detailed sonic tapestry that calls to mind the atmospherics of modern greats like Wilco and Coldplay.

The compact power-pop of “Ask” and “Lovers” reveals a natural talent for writing in a more singles-driven format. “Ask” recalls the concise catchiness of Tom Petty with hooks that are instantly familiar—one listen and you’re singing along. The driving rock of “Lovers” has a mystical grandeur with majestic Byrds-y 12-string guitar touches and enigmatically romantic lyrics. “I love astrology, tarot, and all the Mantic Arts. ‘Lovers’ is a tarot-reading song with the four symbols the lover, the fool, card lady, and the queen of cups,” Tom explains. “It’s about someone who just met somebody and is scared to death because they have a fear of falling in love. I didn’t complete the song, I left it open for the listener to interpret.”

Engaging tunes like “Keeping Time” and “Garden Dreaming Days” stretch out symphonically with thoughtful peaks-and-valleys arrangements. “Keeping Time” gently unfolds with a wistful fingerpicked guitar and Tom’s gently plaintive vocals, sincere but with longing. “The key line is ‘The fire and passion of any dream will let no one or thing come in between.’ I was in a relationship and what I was doing with music wasn’t that important; she didn’t understand how important this really was to me, it was heartbreaking,” Tom candidly reveals. “Life does go on, and with another day you can fill up the backpack with hope.”

On “Garden Dreaming Days” Tom challenged himself to write in an impressionistically romantic style with achingly beautiful lyrics like: Park Bench Memories/Gazing at the sky/My black umbrella/Can help if it cries/I come here to escape/Whenever I’m feeling sad/Garden Dreaming Days/More Time I Wish We Had. Tom’s a self-taught musician and mainly a guitarist by trade but he scored this poem by writing on the piano. “A couple of sections violate music laws; I’m not a trained guy. If it feels good to me, I run with it, I don’t give a shit about the rules,” Tom says. Paul McCartney ace guitarist Bryan Ray played soaring, teardrop guitar leads, emotional and gorgeously life-affirming.

Tom grew up playing in rock n’ roll in bands but had to leave it behind to make a living. As an adult he returned to the grounding and cathartic act of writing songs for himself to make his way through some personal demons. “There was this calling of a journey of getting alcohol out of my life and it left this huge gap that drove me to pick up a 6-string and deal with my emotions,” Tom says. “I didn’t know jack shit but I just took these baby steps that came together when I met my producer Rick Chudacoff—when the student’s ready the teacher shows.”

Also integral to Tom’s growth has been his band whose interplay, high level of musicianship and song-first sensitivity are all over ASK. This is Tom’s strongest effort not only because of the growth in Tom’s writing, but his vocals have an emotional resonance and confidence not heard on previous albums. ASK is a high watermark for Tom’s maturation as an artist and his growth as a person—it candidly and poetically reveals the depth of his inner journey with big hooks and a lot of heart.

A song like the rock operatic “Hell Fire Angel” with labyrinthine twists that connect winsome folk-guitar passages to raw-nerve rock n’ roll desperation mirror Tom’s impressively dramatic ascension as an esteemed songwriter and metaphorically alludes to his victory over alcohol. It’s a powerful arc from obsessing over Paul McCartney albums as a boy to recording with the former Beatles’ longtime sidemen as an adult. “The ‘awe’ thing kicked in the first day over lunch. The guys were talking about the new songs they’re doing with Paul and they were talking about learning ‘Paperback Writer’ and all the complex harmonies. I was getting chills like these guys can just call him up like it’s going to the beach.” Tom pauses, marveling at the scene before concluding, “I’m a lucky guy.”

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Her warmth and lilting tunes lend themselves to a comforting and delicious listening experience.

Born in Washington, D.C. and having two parents in the Diplomatic Corps (embassy brat) Melanie literally “hit the road” at a very early age. Traveling throughout the world, Melanie learned to appreciate the various lifestyles and music with which she became familiar. The influences of her travels through Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Africa and France all blend together to give her music its pristine, yet haunting sound.

Melanie studied classical guitar under the conductor of the National Symphony of the Ivory Coast (Cotes D’Ivoire) and piano at the “Conservatoire de Musique” in Tangier, Morocco. While at Mills College in Oakland, California, she made a name for herself playing regularly at “The Freight & Salvage” (a coffeehouse in the round in Berkeley), the Starry Plough, LaVal’s Subterranean Room on Northside in Berkeley, at the Mills College Concert Hall, Yoshi’s, and finally, for the Reception of her graduation from Mills. To strengthen her voice, Melanie studied Classical Italian Song (Opera singing) during her four years at Mills which have added to the allure of her music.

In the past few years she has sat in with several well known artists including Livingston Taylor (in Berkeley and Monterrey) and won a Bay Area Singing Contest at 101.3 Radio Station through call in voting. This resulted in a gig doing back up for Rod Stewart at the Concord Pavillion in Concord, California. That lead her to awesome opportunities to attend Grammy Events in Memphis, San Francisco, and Austin. She also assisted Joe Satriani in a “Music in the Schools” workshop event with the Grammy Association.

Melanie is currently excited about her recent release of “Malibu Barbie Bliss” as well as her February 14 release of her video “Malibu Barbie”. She will continue writing for her next CD, playing local venues including The Starry Plough, Freight & Salvage, Bread & Roses gigs, Parties and Wedding Receptions where she has teamed up with the illustrious Chris Rowan of The Rowan Brothers for awesome musical experiences for all present., and other venues as well including the San Francisco Free Folk Festival, Singer/Songwriters in the round in Santa Clara, etc.

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Described as the lost daughter of Leonard Cohen with a voice like Margot Timmons from The Cowboy Junkies, Wolf Larsen has arrived on the scene much the same as Cohen did – a late bloomer in her early thirties, both a writer and a poet, with an offering of searing poem-songs. The music of her debut record Quiet at the Kitchen Door is at once warm and vulnerable, intelligent and transporting – and profoundly soothing. It is the record that will live in your CD changer for months.

Known for an arresting live performance, Wolf Larsen has become famous for bringing any noisy barroom to a standstill. With total focus, stillness and a gentle approach to playing her nylon string guitar, Larsen invites an audience to lean in closer and feel the quiet as a part of the fabric of her songs.

Her unusual name comes from her grandfather, Paul “Wolf” Larsen, for whom she was named. Quiet at the Kitchen Door opens with a poem written and read by her cousin Larsen Bowker, and it is an homage to the original Wolf Larsen. The original Wolf was a Nebraska man who rode the rails across the Depression beaten dustbowl as a young man looking for work. It was Bowker’s poem, specifically the lines, “Nothing left, but belief in possibility / and faith that everything important lay ahead,” that inspired modern-day Wolf, struggling under the weight of her own modern-day problems, to begin writing songs.

Her first solo public performance was a shaky rendition of “Chelsea Hotel #2,” at San Francisco’s famous Monday night open mic at The Hotel Utah. That was in February of 2009, and for a dedicated year after that, Wolf began attending the open mics weekly, working on expanding her repertoire from an exclusive stockpile of Cohen/Dylan/&Welch, transitioning to her own songs she had been working on at home.

As she began to meet more musicians, she started playing out, and grew more confident in the body of work she had amassed. Wanting to make a simple recording, she talked to her friend Nick Stargu, a talented musician and DIY engineer who had some home equipment,. They agreed the project shouldn’t take more than a month. Two violins, one cello, a viola, piano, standing bass, bell section, and any number of MIDI accents and additions later – the two realized a year had gone by, and this was no simple, acoustic record of stories and poem-songs.

But – despite the orchestral arrangements and sweeping soundscapes that characterize the Quiet at the Kitchen Door – most of the album was still recorded as it was written: sitting on the edge of Wolf’s bed, in her bedroom. The two recorded almost the entire album between their two tiny bedrooms in San Francisco, harvesting the strings and bass from friends over email, and the quality of the record is a testament to the range of possibilities available to the modern DIY musician.

Along these lines, Wolf believes strongly in the power of the independent musician. Declining offers from record labels, she’s opted instead to build her own team, using many of the new tools available to the DIYer, such as Bandcamp, Topspin, Soundcloud, Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, YouTube and StageIt to promote the record. While challenging, she says, this has given her the freedom to imagine and shape a trajectory for her career that is aligned not only with an aesthetic vision, but with her core beliefs – a combination that is notoriously difficult to hold onto as an artist who signs away creative and financial control.

For the release of her first record, Larsen is donating a significant portion of proceeds, as well as doing a substantial amount of campaigning and awareness raising, for an idea she truly believes in. The idea is called The Girl Effect, a Nike Foundation initiative that invests in the education of girls around the world. The idea is that if women are invested in at an early age, (which they are currently not – ¾ of all uneducated children in the world are girls) everything gets better. A family has a greater income to feed and keep it’s children healthy.

Larsen doesn’t want to wait until the end of her career to speak up for what she believes in. And she doesn’t want to say she’ll give money when she has enough, when she is famous enough, when she herself is secure enough.

When not playing music, Wolf is an author and advocate for women’s health around the world, and very passionate about this idea. Alongside UNESCO, The World Health Organization, USAID and a growing number of world leaders, Wolf believes that investing in the health, education and empowerment of girls is the best, fastest way to save the world.

Beginning with The Nike Foundations’s initiative and meme called The Girl Effect, Wolf is making a public investment on her Facebook page, as a way of raising awareness, getting people involved, and introducing people to organizations they might not have heard of otherwise. The Girl Effect, as a meme has been gaining incredible momentum in the last year, and Wolf is excited to commit herself and her art to build momentum behind this worthy idea.

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To share the unified soul that is music through ever-exciting songs and stories that drive bodies to move, inspire even the conscious observer, enchant the most intellectual spirit, and void the close-minded apparatus. It is this mission that renders the indie roots rock sound that Green Tea personifies. They are sometimes portrayed as tasting like String Cheese for Chili Peppers fans.

Sonic diversity flows rampant within this group whom originates from New York, Washington State, Illinois, and Wisconsin, yet combining these various wires is the natural fusion of Green Tea. It was at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point that Green Tea formed 10 years ago and with an evolution of members in 2011 and growth of musical roots from Celtic fusion to indie, Green Tea now serves up a powerful brand of original indie roots rock music. The upcoming new album “Wake the Conscious” summarizes this fresh perspective in songwriting and ultimately an energized stage performance. Mixing original indie hooks and lyrics with driving progressions is the band’s modus operandi, catalyzing original inventions on stage with a hint of “live jamming.”

“It takes just one experience hearing Green Tea to become a fan… Perhaps that’s why, when weather pushed their Concert on the Square show into the Great Hall last year, the place literally overflowed with people frantic to hear the music.” -Dino Corvino, City Pages

Green Tea’s keys are held down by Aaron Scharmer with styles enveloping jazz, rock, classical, and futurama – he’s the melotron phenomenon and improvisational whiz. The bass guitar fills bodies with John Julka behind it, otherwise known as miniFlea, John is SOLID energy. John Coletta, on flutes/whistles, vocals, and hands has been compared to Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull with his flying flute-rock stylings and art rock vocals. Besides being a world-renowned semiatician John is most likely “THE WORLD’S BEST” hands player (it has to be seen to be believed). At the core of Green Tea’s sound is Trevor Roark, vocals/guitars, with his original song arrangements that compliment the post post-modern thoughts of our civilized culture. This fresh sound, with intelligent lyrics, indemnifies him as the heart of the Green Tea’s sonic distinction. Yet, Zach Hubert drives home the band’s power on the drums. With unique percussive patterns, Zach gives each song an edge that fans love.

Green Tea continues to progress its fan base of thousands stemming from the Midwestern U.S. with a main stage performances at Oshkosh Waterfest (supporting Rusted Root twice), Milwaukee Irish Fest, Blissfest, Iowa Irish Fest, Porcupine Mt. Fest, Irish Fair of MN, Riverfront Rendezvous, Rocky Mountain Irish Fest, and headliners for the Green Bay Packers Tailgate Tour in 2008 and the largest St. Paddy’s celebration in WI – New Dublin Irish Fest 2008 & 2012. The band showcased at NACA-Northern Plains 2009 and has performed many colleges such as Luther College, St. Olaf, University of St. Thomas, UW-Stevens Point, MSU-Moorhead, and more… and they are slotted to perform a tour of colleges this spring. Not to mention, the group has rocked the stage at various arts centers and clubs around the Midwest including Fine Line, The Rave, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Door Community Auditorium, The Cedar, Falls Area PAC, Shank Hall, Mabel Tainter Center, and more… The band is endorsed by jamLink and was nominated for a 2010 WAMI and two MAMAs in 2008. Plus, the song “Shafted” received honorable mention in the 17th Billboard World Song Contest. Yet, the band has played the same stages as Melissa Etheridge, Nickel Creek, Indigo Girls, Blues Traveler, Guster, Richie Havens, Violent Femmes, & more…

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With a catalog of songs covering everything from hooky piano pop to soul-baring alt-country, lyrics that range from corky to brutally honest—all tied together by an undeniable passion for his craft—singer/songwriter Justin Levinson has won steady praise from audiences and critics alike since his 2005 debut. Five years and three acclaimed albums later, Justin maintains a solid presence that has seen him share the stage with acts as diverse as APOLLO SUNSHINE, SERENA RYDER, BAND OF HORSES, THE VERVE PIPE, BIG HEAD TODD AND THE MONSTERS, MATT WERTZ, WILL DAILEY, ANAIS MITCHELL, CHRIS BARRON of the SPIN DOCTORS,MEMBERS OF THE CLICK FIVE, RYAN CABRERA, and ZOX. Also making major network television appearances on Backstage With Barry Nolan (Comcast), The 10 Show! (NBC Philadelphia), NECN Morning News, Fox 44 Boston, Plum Tv on Martha’s Vineyard and Late Night Saturday WCAX Burlington, Vermont.

Paying his dues and refining his craft at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Justin’s breakthrough ultimately came with his ode to small-town life, “City With Two Streetlights”, off of debut record 1175 BOYLSTON. Drawing upon life in his childhood home of Vergennes, Vermont, the song spent eight weeks on the top 25 CMJ charts, gaining airplay in over 350 stations across the country and catapulting Justin into the spotlight. Amid a slot in the 2006 INTERNATIONAL POP OVERTHROW TOUR and an award for Best Male Artist from the INTERNATIONAL ACOUSTIC MUSIC AWARDS, sophomore album BURY YOUR LOVE was released. With a dash of twang inherited from time spent in Nashville, the record earned praise as a folksy and somber departure—exemplified in melancholy concert staple “Home”(2007 USA SONGWRITER COMPETITION RUNNER UP)—while retaining the trademark playfulness in songs like “Daisy May”, a rollicking tale of a high-school affair gone wrong. Closing the decade was 2009′s PREDETERMINED FATE. A full-fledged dive into alt-country, the album brought Justin his strongest reviews to date, bolstered by the success of Sirius radio staple “Waiting For Someone To Love Me”; the song has gone on to win Justin a nomination for Sirius SINGER-SONGWRITER DISCOVERY OF THE YEAR, a slot in THE MILLENNIUM MUSIC CONFERENCE in Pennsylvania and the ASCAPULAS AWARD from ASCAP. Another track from Predetermined Fate “Losing You To Tennessee” was featured in Virgin airlines. With flights from major U.S. cities, including San Francisco, LA, Las Vegas, San Diego, Seattle, New York, Washington D.C, Boston and Orange County; this added up to more than 416,667 ears per month! “Bandaid On A Bulletwound was also an honorable mention in THE BILLBOARD SONG CONTEST.

“Juxtaposing upbeat melodies with often serious subject matter, Justin creates perfectly catchy tunes that nobody can resist singing along to”, says the PLATTSBURGH PIPLEINE. Dan Bolles of SEVEN DAYS notes Justin’s “knack for letter-perfect pop hooks”, while SNOB’S MUSIC blog has praised Justin’s capability of “penning lyrics that put a smile on your face with vivid imagery and clever turns of phrase, all wrapped up with a keen sense of humour.” On his effortless tackling of multiple genres, SKOPE ENTERTAINMENT declares “the best thing about Levinson’s music is that it has layers”. And Frank Gutch Jr. of ACOUSTIC MUSIC EXCHANGE confidently declared “no matter what kind of day I will be having, my head will raise and a voice inside me will say, ‘It is a good day when I hear Levinson’.”

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The Robbie Boyd Band have achieved a lot in their first year, having already toured Italy, supported the Kooks at Harvest at Jimmy’s Festival in front of 3,000 people and played to a packed out audience at the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire supporting the Delays.

BBC Radio 2 has shown strong support for Robbie’s songs, including the highly acclaimed “Oh Alaska”, and the band recently performed a live session for Jo Good’s Late Show on BBC London Radio.

Robbie’s charming songwriting and distinctive vocals combine with colourful arrangements and nostalgic harmonies, provided by an eclectic mix of talented musicians, to produce an exciting contemporary Folk-Pop sound. Robbie’s catchy songs will get you singing along to their irresistible choruses and are sure to have a lasting effect on you.

Promising energetic and uplifting live performances, the Robbie Boyd Band are generating plenty of buzz around their hometown London circuit and far beyond.

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Ian Narcisi has always understood one simple truth: If you have a dream, make it happen.

Ian’s dream is to change the world through his music. With a spiritual-humanist philosophy and a penchant for complex synth-based melodic progressive rock, Ian believes in the power of the human race to become their dreams. He seeks to build a better world through music, prodding all who will listen to become the selves they have envisioned.

Ian has wanted to make music since a young age. His first steps were piano lessons at the age of ten, but piano just didn’t appeal to his then pre-adolescent mind. What did register was the wild abandon of drumming. Inspired by a friend of his brother’s, Ian began taking drum lessons in 1983. Eight years later, he auditioned and was accepted into The American Conservatory of Music. Ian studied Jazz drumming and composition while at ACM, but eventually left to pursue his other passion, meteorology.

Chasing storms and interning under Tom Skilling at Chicago’s WGN were exciting for Ian, but all the while he was continuing to play with various bands around the Chicago area. Ian began studying voice with opera singer Janice Pantazelos in 1998, going on to perform accapella at various venues around Chicago. Around the same time, Ian returned to his roots on the piano, and began writing songs from his heart. In 2000, Ian met Scottish McMillan, with whom he would play with for close to a decade while continuing to develop and enhance his skills as a performer.

What has happened since then could only be categorized as a slow-moving musical reaction. Ian has continued to develop artistically and as a human being. The latter has been a matter of spiritual, if not religious, inspiration. The former has been a continued progressive rock exploration that varies in synthesis from the classical-inspired compositional style of Muse to the heavy progressive magic of Porcupine Tree. Ian is relentless in his pursuit of the muse, delving deep into his own emotional and rational understanding of the world and sharing in song.

Ian began documenting his songwriting and performance style with 2005’s Off Purpose, a collection of seven piano/vocal originals. This album grew out of a chance meeting with an old friend, Off Purpose, owner of Off Purpose in Chicago. Sandusky not only provided the studio space, but also engineered and co-produced the album. The process was like the loosening of a dam, and songs began to spring forth unbidden. Off Purpose (2006) was Ian’s first full-band EP; this, an important step developmentally. By 2007, Ian was no longer playing out, focusing his time on writing and recording his third EP, Niche In Time.

This new focus brought a greater depth of songwriting; a depth that showed more fully on Ian’s first full-length album, Weight Of The Words, which featured re-masters of the EPs Off Purpose and Niche In Time in addition to six new songs. This dreamy synth-based progressive rock collection shows off a distinct musicality and vision that expands on traditional rock compositional styles in a Muse-meets-King Crimson ménage. Highlights include “Burning” and “Forever Today”. Ian’s songwriting takes on a bit more edge on his 2009 EP Feel No Evil. With songs such as “Sparkle And Shine” and “Little Bit”, Ian shows a developing sense of musical drama.

Ian’s latest EP, Phone Call To Infinity, is his most defining work to date. The edge noted on Feel No Evil is still here, but Ian has polished the rough edges to a fine musical sheen. The song “Behind The Dawn” shows an expansive sound that’s part Queen, part Muse and part Pink Floyd. Similar musical colors dance through “Five Below Nothing” and “Absent Today”. At some point in the recording of this EP, Ian has transcended mere creation into art; at the same time elevating his messages about becoming the best possible you to pure poetry.

This development; this becoming, is all the more exciting when you consider that Ian returns to the studio this fall. It’s difficult to imagine where Ian might go next, but imagine you will. Ian’s music evokes the dreams you never consciously suspected but always understood on some deep, quiet level. This is transcendence. This is art. This is Ian Narcisi.

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After seven years of touring and writing with Nashville based outfit The War, Daniel Levi Goans recorded Choice Cannonballs in the heat and humidity of a North Carolina summer in the very basement where he discovered his love for playing music as a child. His early explorations of the piano evolved into an attempt to capture the rich tradition of American folk. The songs are stripped down tributes to the folk storytelling tradition with sparse soundscapes that evoke the feverish density of the summer in which it was recorded.

Goans retreated into a small wooden library overlooking the Chesapeake Bay to record his second solo release. With over 50 songs prepared, he intended to echo the sultry Carolina-Folk accents of his first release, but the rhythms of the tides began to speak into his music. The walls, the shelves, and the spines of the books became a percussive backbone for the songs. The winds whipping in from the bay opened up space for the words to resonate, fortifying the unadulterated honesty of his writing. What was once the beading of moisture and a breeze rolling off the piedmont foothills was now a tempest, a rush of water both beautiful and dangerous.

Heeding to the winds and the waves on the Bay, BrotherStranger looks into the loneliest moments of human experience with a piercing gaze that weaves them into a place of tenderness and safety. These meditations are nestled in a poetic cadence that resists modern cynicism and fragmentation while harkening to a place in our hearts and our heritage that recognizes the sacred nature of narrative. Intrusive in his hope and with penetrating confidence, Goans leaves a peace in the footsteps of his voice, a suggestion that while beauty is often well hidden, it is freely found.

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Pheroze always knew he was going to be a rock star, he just didn’t know how he’d make it happen. With the impending release of his sophomore album, Crows Into Swine, the singer/songwriter is one step closer to realizing his vision.

Born in London to Zoroastrian parents, Pheroze’s childhood was divided between the strict rigidity of Saudi Arabia where his parents worked and the abundant sights, smells, and sounds of India where his grandparents lived. “I grew up with the whole Bollywood scene at the same time as my mother was blasting Prince, Black Sabbath, and Queen in the house. Freddie Mercury was a fellow Zoroastrian, so she was hell-bent on him being part of my upbringing.” Those varied cultures helped develop
Pheroze’s naturally distinctive worldly voice.

As a twelve-year old in fundamentalist Saudi Arabia, Pheroze took some huge risks to get a foothold in the music business. He decided to sell contraband copies of ‘Penthouse’ magazine to anyone who would buy them for a steep seventy bucks a pop. “I really wanted a guitar, and porn was illegal where I lived,” says Pheroze. “So it just made sense to take advantage of the horny kids there. In retrospect, it was probably not the greatest thing to do in a country that punishes that kind of stuff by cutting off people’s various appendages.”

In 1997, Pheroze ventured to New York City to further his dream of becoming a real musician. He did everything he could to immerse himself in the thriving culture including interning at various record labels. Within a month of arriving in NYC, Pheroze fell into a gig fronting and managing the acclaimed hardcore metal band Scar Culture. The band’s high energy and tight stage show, bolstered by Pheroze, quickly made them fan favorites on the metal scene. He was instrumental in getting the band a record deal with Century Media Records who released their critically acclaimed album Inscribe. After touring relentlessly behind the album, Pheroze made the hard decision to leave Scar Culture in 2002 to focus on writing music that more closely resonated with his creative urges.

After his departure from Scar Culture he found brief periods of resonance with local New York bands, Earthbound Smoke Ghost and Namanista, which featured Pheroze as their dominant songwriter.

Yearning to wear the complete artist hat full time, in 2007 Pheroze started working on his debut solo project titled Driftwood. With the exception of drums, Pheroze played all instruments and produced the entire record. He also explored his Indo/ Persian roots by incorporating the esraj, sarod, and gopichand on Driftwood. Mixing was done under the masterful ear of Nick Cohen (Redman, Ill Nino, Brian McKnight, 40 Below Summer). The result was an album born of cross-style agility and passionately theatrical ebb and flow. IRT Magazine likened it to “System of a Down’s Serj Tankian covering Jeff Buckley’s Grace” while The Big Takeover likened Pheroze’s voice to an “eastern transposed Ozzy Osbourne– Chris Cornell- Ian Anderson- Freddie Mercury- Bruce Dickinson- Frank Zappa banshee.”

While Driftwood found Pheroze realizing the material he had held onto during his band days, his second release Crows Into Swine finds him conquering new territory. “These are songs written exclusively for this album – there are no left overs here. I challenged myself to write songs that resonate with other people as opposed to just writing for myself,” he says.

In addition to exploring new avenues with his pen, Pheroze also allowed producer Clay Holley (Adele, Aloe Blacc, Blakroc) into the creative process for the album. Released on November 1, 2011, Crows Into Swine is without a doubt Pheroze’s most complete work to date. From the hard edged “Kingdoms,” to the subtly melodic “Wreckage of Liars” to the stadium ready “Show Me Tomorrow,” Pheroze sings about the issues affecting our world that most of us think to ourselves but are afraid to say out loud.

Even though the music on Crows is far more Rock n’ Roll oriented than his previous solo effort, Pheroze’s voice is more controlled than ever because he has learned to use it as an instrument. That development is partially thanks to the musical relationship between he and Holley. “Clay and I bonded over the recording of this album, it became a labor of love for us both. He really pushed me mentally and musically,” he says.

With 13 years under his belt and a brand new album on the way, Pheroze has realized a dream and he’s living it everyday. “I write for illumination- mine and others. If people’s humanity and spirit are moved by the music I create, then risking my appendage to buy a guitar all those years ago was worth it.”

Source: http://cyberpr.biz