Next week, Familiarize Yourself will be doing something we’ve never done before. We’re give away an exclusive track from Everyone Everywhere‘s upcoming self-titled LP. If you’re a fan of ’90s emo stuff like The Promise Ring and Braid or comtemporary stuff like Algernon Cadwallader, you’ll LOVE this band and record. We were enlisted by the fine gentlemen who run Tiny Engines to be a part of a tour of independent blogs in an attempt to provide people with a song-by-song introduction to Everyone Everywhere. Ten different blogs will each post a different song from the record, including the opportunity to download that song. This way, by the time of the album’s physical release date, people will have heard each track and will be so impressed by the music than they’ll scurry over to the band and/or label website and order the album. So, make sure to comeback here on Wednesday April 28th and download the 10th track off the album, “Fld Ovr.” We really stoked about being able to give stuff away on here, so please help us, Everyone Everywhere, and all the other blogs by checking out sites and downloading all the tracks.
Make sure you check out all the other “tour dates” and pick up all the tracks from this awesome album!
Side A:
Monday, April 19th: The Ripple Effect “ Tiny Planet”
Tuesday, April 20th:Â Can You See The Sunset From The Southside “ Raw Bar OBX 2002″
Wednesday, April 21st:Â Built On A Weak Spot “œFrom The Beginning To The Tail”
Thursday, April 22nd:Â Dryvetyme Onlyne “(That’s me!) “ Tiny Town”
Friday, April 23rd:Â Battle Of The Midwestern Housewives “Tiny Boat”
Side B:
Monday, April 26th:Deckfight “Music Work Paper Work”
Tuesday, April 27th: The Album Project†“Blown Up Grown Up”
Wednesday, April 28th: Familiarize Yourself “Fld Ovr”
Thursday, April 29th: Reviewsic “I Feel Fine”
Friday, April 30th: Clicky Clicky Music “Obama House, Fukui Prefecture”
What is love? Never Shout Never‘s Christofer Drew wants to know. According to the Corinthians passage quoted on his MySpace profile love is patient, kind, and trustworthy. In his own words love is “the weapon for this wounded generation.” As depicted in the music video for his single (appropriately entitled “What is Love?”) it might be your after-work drink, an unrequited romance, or maybe we just don’t know at all.
Photo Credit Not Found. Please contact gali@familiarizeyourself.com.
While he figures it out, Christofer Drew is working with a sound that is sort of like skateboarding around on a sunny day off with no destination in mind; a classically emo voice coupled with an acoustic guitar and some additional miscellaneous instruments (shaker, snapping fingers, assorted percussion). The bio of the brainchild behind NSN simply states, “My name is Christofer Drew. I am nineteen. I make music for expression; not for a paycheck.“
Seems the dollar hungry music industry might have a thing or two to learn about inner peace from this guy.
I had the opportunity to speak with the enlightened musician about his love for 60s pop, the AP Tour (which Never Shout Never is currently headlining), and his outlook on life. Read on. Read more…
Sunday was Rock for Autism‘s benefit concert at Beat Kitchen featuring So Many Ways, Michael Vecchio, Last Fast Action, and Hotspur. I discovered Hotspur when they toured with Cavashawn in the Fall, stopping at Beat Kitchen to blow my mind. I immediately fell in love with the two songs I was able to catch after showing up late, and bought the CD to hold me over until I could experience a full set. Well, that opportunity didn’t come around until now but it was well worth the wait.
As keyboardist Dave Trichter started playing a suspenseful introduction singer Joe Mach slowly approached the stage, hopping on just in time for the band to explode into “$$$” (my favorite song on their 13-trackalbum). The early show (doors at 3pm??) pulled in only 30-40 heads but Hotspur worked with the small audience to make the room feel even smaller… and jam packed. The band transitioned into song after song seamlessly and without pause. When they finally did take a break the crowd burst into cheers, urging on the next song.
Off stage the boys are making waves as well. They recently won MTVU’s “The Freshman” contest with their song “Chandelier”, traveled to SXSW, and are currently on a Midwest/New England tour. I cannot recommend Hotspur highly enough to the devout pop-rocker like myself. Super catchy hooks and choruses and beats with high impact make this a difficult act to forget, and one you should check out before they start selling out clubs across the U.S., which I predict for them very soon.
We are putting a lot of blood, sweat, and tears (well maybe not so much blood), into this project. Check back for video updates, concert updates, and love. We need you now, help us spread the word!
FamiliarizeYourself.com has big things ahead.
Portland-based band Portugal. The Man came through Chicago this weekend, rendering me speechless Friday night at their sold out Lincoln Hall show. In a stunning and seemingly effortless performance, the foursome delivered a taste of their 70′s soul, funk, and blues-inspired sound.
Photo: © Lauren Cohen
Monochromatically lit in alternating colors, Portugal. The Man warmed up the crowd with a long instrumental as smoke machines pumped enough fog that the stage took on a mystical quality from my vantage point in the balcony. When bassist Zachary Scott Carothers was spontaneously lit with red, blue and green polka dots and singer John Baldwin Gourley began crooning in unison with the enthusiastic audience I knew I was in for a spectacular night. Read more…
A little bit indie rock, a touch of folk, and based heavily on electro-pop, Hexes & Ohs bring us a handful of songs that would be right at home playing over the sound system at a bar in Wicker Park as the fake ID-toting clientele puts away PBR after PBR.
The band represents what music is all about at its core: sharing; when you hear a great band you share it with a friend, when you go to a show you share a special experience with the artists as well as the strangers around you. To that end, they recently released an album of collaborations called Share (remixes). The seven track album features remixes of their songs by four fellow Canadian bands and remixes by H&O of songs by three others.
The duo, made up of Heidi Donnelly and Edmund Lam, is making their mark this Winter in several countries. They have announced a feature on Canadian clothing chain Le Garage’s Spring 2010 campaign; their sophomore album Bedroom Madness [produced by Bryon Wong (Crystal Method)] was released this month in U.S. stores and on iTunes (it was released in Canada in 2008); and they headed out for a Spanish tour this month, from which they will return at the end of March.
Bottom line: synth beats and pop melodies coupled with the duality of both male and female vocals make Hexes & Ohs casually enjoyable.
At one time or another you were horribly embarrassed. You were picked last for a team, taunted based on the contents of your lunchbox, or tripped on the stairs causing your pants to rip in the most horrifying of places. It’s time to reclaim that memory and wear it as a badge of honor. As the Webelos say, “for those ready to embrace who [you] are, we salute you.”
The quartet hails from Chicago and represent both Columbia College and Northwestern University. The band’s philosophy boils down to being true who you are, no excuses, no apologies. They believe in the power of a solid hook and they do it well, drawing influences from the forefathers of pop: the Beatles, the Hollies, the Beach Boys, et al. Don’t be fooled though; the Webelos’ sound is not a throwback, nor are they a band based on nostalgia for a time in which none of the members lived. Their sound is at once modern and classic. As singer Danny Leavitt puts it, “you have to respect your roots, and those are pop rock’s roots.” The Webelos appreciate their inner dweeb and their inner pop star and once you get to know them, those are things you will appreciate, too.
Read on for my interview with Webelos lead vocalist Danny Leavitt.
Read more…
The Skallywags are not casual hobbyists. They are group of hard-working, skilled, driven, passionate young musicians. As full-time musicians they have gained a loyal following and as full-time students they are perfecting their talents. Their brand of guitar-driven rock hints at classic rock, ska, country and 90′s pop-rock (Ã la Third Eye Blind). I had the opportunity to interview Skallywags vocalist and Columbia College student Kristine Spieldmann. Here’s what she had to tell us about her band.
Photo Credit Not Found.
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1998 was a pretty good year for me. I was 9 years old; I mastered long division; and I discovered rap. Jay-Z’s “Can I Get A” played in my boom box every day for months, and I rapped along with all I had in me. When Eminem blew up the charts with “My Name Is” three years later I battled it out with the boys on the playground and I out-rapped them every time. It is a secret dream of mine to be a professional rapper, but unless it’s karaoke night you won’t see me on stage any time soon. Instead I’m going to live vicariously through Amanda Blank.
You might not look at her and think now there’s a rapper but you’d be dead wrong. Not only does she flow expertly, Blank creates songs that make you move fast and hard, and she brings it live. I was fortunate to catch her in June performing to a full room of excited young hipsters eagerly tearing up the dance floor as she ambushed us with an onslaught of musical shock waves. Read more…
