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THE B-52'S
www.theb52s.com
It has been said that the B-52's are as quintessentially American as the Beach Boys. And twenty-five years and over twenty million albums into a career that began as a low-rent lark in Athens, Georgia, the B-52's remain the most unlikely rock stars ever. The first band to glorify pop culture with an almost Warholian sense of purpose, the B-52’s purveyed their absurd B-movie style and off-kilter sound celebrating the weirdness lurking just beneath the surface of Americana ... not exactly a recipe for chart success but way ahead of its time, nonetheless. Any mystery concerning the longevity and ongoing appeal of the B-52’s is immediately solved when exposed to the B-52's unique concert experience, which may well include a verbal tongue-in-cheek lashing from Fred. From the timeless gems of "Rock Lobster," "Planet Claire" and "Private Idaho" to the more recent classics of "Channel Z," "Love Shack" and "Roam", the B-52's unforgettable dance-rock tunes start a party every time the music begins.
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GNARLS BARKLEY
www.gnarlsbarkley.com
Hot on the heels of two sold-out shows at the Fillmore, the soul, electro, alternative sounds of Gnarls Barkley will throw San Francisco off its axis. Band members Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse released their first album, St Elsewhere in April, 2006. The duo made their debut performance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 30, 2006 after their first single, “Crazy” became the first ever UK number one single based on download sales alone. Some of the popularity is due to the performance of the song at The 2006 MTV Movie Awards, where the band performed in Star Wars costumes -- including the garb of Rebel Alliance pilots, Imperial officers, Stormtroopers, Chewbacca, Jango Fett, Obi-Wan, with Cee-Lo singing as an unmasked Darth Vader.
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AUGUSTANA
www.augustanamusic.com
Augustana is an alt-rock originally met and formed at Greenville College in Greenville, IL. After locally releasing their Mayfield EP, the band decided to quit school and head to Los Angeles in search of a label. After losing and replacing their bass player, Augustana officially formed in California in 2004. Their first major-label album, Augustana - All the Stars and Boulevards, was produced by Epic Records and catapulted them into the spotlight. The band is perhaps best known for its single, “Augustana – Boston”, whose music video features the lead singer on a beach full of pianos and was featured on the WB show "One Tree Hill”.
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BLUE OCTOBER
www.blueoctober.com
Blue October isn’t just your average, everyday rock band from Texas. The group was formed in Houston in the late ‘90s by lead singer/songwriter/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, his brother, drummer Jeremy, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, later joined by guitarist/vocalist CB Hudson and bassist Matt Noveskey. The group’s epic live shows and exploration of subjects like mental depression, drug use, love, betrayal, forgiveness and cathartic transcendence have helped them amass a strong, loyal following through five albums, three of which have been released by Universal Records.
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CARBON LEAF
www.carbonleaf.com
Carbon Leaf blasted into the national spotlight two years ago with their major label debut, Indian Summer. But while they kept busy working as support on major national tours (Dave Matthews Band, Counting Crows, John Mayer, etc.) and headlining their own, these Virginia-based self-starters kept moving forward musically as well as professionally. That point rings clear throughout their new CD, Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat, a collection of songs whose sound is the richest, whose grooves are the most infectious, and whose messages run the deepest of anything they’ve yet put to disc.
With Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat Carbon Leaf defines itself as a tight instrumental unit, capable of cranking up the heat even with scaled-down arrangements based on acoustic guitar, in perfect complement to a vocal sound that can’t be mistaken for anyone else’s. Barry Privett has mastered the art of singing with a compelling detachment; his voice, whether on its own or woven into two- and three-part harmony, beckons the listener into the lyric as it opens within the heart of these songs. They’ve come a long way from their decision, as students at Randolph-Macon College, to try their luck at forming a band. But for all they’ve accomplished, Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat is something different. It is a turning point: accessible yet poetically elusive, rhythmically irresistible yet understated, a harbinger of what will come and the sum of what had gone before. Carbon Leaf is on its way up!
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