New to me, anyway....
I made a couple of AWESOME recent discoveries and was a little shocked that I hadn't heard much about either of them before, so figured I'd post about them.
1) First one is Dead Air Radio (unrelated to the ChromaKey CD of similar name), specifically their 2nd CD "Signal to Noise Ratio." I'd say they'd appeal to fans of Enchant, mostly because of the emphasis on SONG and MELODY. The musicianship is excellent, with chops-a-plenty, but the standout is the songwriting, without question. Their first CD seems OK, too, but the more recent "S/N Ratio" is definitely the one to start with.
The first track on the CD ("Unbalanced") is in the running for "best 'new' song I've heard this year," alongside songs by Redemption and Circus Maximus. I'd call it "highly recommended," which is also what Ken Golden @ laser's Edge said about it...his review is what convinced me to buy it, so "thanks, Ken!!"
Band site: http://deadairradio.musiccitynetworks.com/
2) The other one is "3". I saw these guys open up for Porcupine Tree recently, and much as I love PT, I thought "3" *completely* stole the show (and yes, PT put on a great show, too). I'd heard of "3," but never heard anything by them. GREAT musicianship (and vocals), AWESOME songs, and I don't remember the last time I had that much pure *fun* watching a band play.
I bought both their latest CDs at the show ("Wake Pig" and their latest "The End Has Begun"), but sort of expected to be let down...some bands come across SO well live that the studio CDs pale in comparison (Peter Frampton, anyone?). Not so here...both live and CD were awesome. I'm struggling with comparison bands, though for some reason I was reminded of Peter Gabriel-era Genesis, perhaps the vocals? Put it this way, they were a great fit as an opener for PT, but I could see them also getting a good reception opening for Dream Theater, for example.
The songs vary between catchy/fun and dark/brooding. There's definitely some "metal-ish" guitar and solos (good ones, too), but the best guitar work is actually the acoustic parts, IMHO. As with Dead Air Radio (above), the emphasis is the killer songwriting, but again, the chops *are* there and these guys DO kick @ss...just not the same way as ...say, Evergrey would.
This is incredible music performed by really good musicians (singer/guitarist Joey Eppard is awesome), so trust me....buy "The End Has Begun" immediately. "Wake Pig" is also excellent, too. There's still a few dates on their tour with PT, so if you get the chance to see them live, GO!! You can thank me later.
BTW, the band said their entire set was from those two most-recent CDs (they have several others), 80% from "TEHB" and 20% from WP.
Band site: http://www.theband3.com
Enjoy!
Craig
I made a couple of AWESOME recent discoveries and was a little shocked that I hadn't heard much about either of them before, so figured I'd post about them.
1) First one is Dead Air Radio (unrelated to the ChromaKey CD of similar name), specifically their 2nd CD "Signal to Noise Ratio." I'd say they'd appeal to fans of Enchant, mostly because of the emphasis on SONG and MELODY. The musicianship is excellent, with chops-a-plenty, but the standout is the songwriting, without question. Their first CD seems OK, too, but the more recent "S/N Ratio" is definitely the one to start with.
The first track on the CD ("Unbalanced") is in the running for "best 'new' song I've heard this year," alongside songs by Redemption and Circus Maximus. I'd call it "highly recommended," which is also what Ken Golden @ laser's Edge said about it...his review is what convinced me to buy it, so "thanks, Ken!!"
Band site: http://deadairradio.musiccitynetworks.com/
2) The other one is "3". I saw these guys open up for Porcupine Tree recently, and much as I love PT, I thought "3" *completely* stole the show (and yes, PT put on a great show, too). I'd heard of "3," but never heard anything by them. GREAT musicianship (and vocals), AWESOME songs, and I don't remember the last time I had that much pure *fun* watching a band play.
I bought both their latest CDs at the show ("Wake Pig" and their latest "The End Has Begun"), but sort of expected to be let down...some bands come across SO well live that the studio CDs pale in comparison (Peter Frampton, anyone?). Not so here...both live and CD were awesome. I'm struggling with comparison bands, though for some reason I was reminded of Peter Gabriel-era Genesis, perhaps the vocals? Put it this way, they were a great fit as an opener for PT, but I could see them also getting a good reception opening for Dream Theater, for example.
The songs vary between catchy/fun and dark/brooding. There's definitely some "metal-ish" guitar and solos (good ones, too), but the best guitar work is actually the acoustic parts, IMHO. As with Dead Air Radio (above), the emphasis is the killer songwriting, but again, the chops *are* there and these guys DO kick @ss...just not the same way as ...say, Evergrey would.
This is incredible music performed by really good musicians (singer/guitarist Joey Eppard is awesome), so trust me....buy "The End Has Begun" immediately. "Wake Pig" is also excellent, too. There's still a few dates on their tour with PT, so if you get the chance to see them live, GO!! You can thank me later.
BTW, the band said their entire set was from those two most-recent CDs (they have several others), 80% from "TEHB" and 20% from WP. Band site: http://www.theband3.com
Enjoy!
Craig
