Video appearances by Michael Dedic – Bass, Brian Latimer – Drums
Zachary Murray – Videographer
-
Small Town Titans – Dragonfly
York, PA heavy rock band Small Town Titans have released the Official Music Video for their heartrending single, “Dragonfly”. “Dragonfly” is vocalist Phil Freeman’s celebration and memorial of his mother’s life and tragic passing.
“This song was written for my mother. She passed away in February of 2017 after a three-year battle with cancer. She loved dragonflies which happen to have deep spiritual significance in many traditions and cultures, representing love, freedom of spirit and compassion. She embodied all of these qualities…The intent of this song is to celebrate her life and bring a little light and love to anyone who may be dealing with the grief of losing someone to illness. She was and is an amazing soul, and I hope this song captures a tiny glimmer of her spirit for the person listening to it.”
– Phil FreemanThe Small Town Titans are a power trio from York, PA who love to constantly create, as well as play live. Gone is the notion that a rock band should only release 10 songs at a time every 2 years. In a world where music fans crave new content constantly, the Small Town Titans aim to deliver their brand of art all of the time, drawing inspiration from a new wave of rock bands such as Highly Suspect and Royal Blood, and rock legends such as the Foo Fighters, Audioslave, and Deep Purple. Thanks to their efforts at assembling their own studio in a basement, STT can create and release songs, podcasts, live online concerts, and more with no rules. This artistic change in attitude stems from touring for the better part of 2 years, and realizing how difficult it really is.
After coming home from their last 30-day run, the band had made $4,000. After repairing their vehicle, restocking their merchandise and more, the band was left with $1,000. After putting most of that back into the band’s funds, as usual, each member took home $150. This startling reality made STT take a step back and evaluate themselves as a band, a brand, and a business. After firing their manager, the boys soldiered on with the help of their team at Round 2 Records. They began to truly treat Small Town Titans as a legitimate small business more than ever before. Unnecessary expenses were cut, and more creative and innovative sources of new revenue were explored, such as utilizing the direct to fan creation platform Patreon, where the band is currently making $200 every time they release a new song on YouTube.
Instead of trying to make a million fans, STT is focusing on the fans they already have. With a love for playing live, a Small Town Titans show has evolved into more than a concert. It’s an event, with a setlist that’s decided right before the show, and plenty of stage banter in between songs. The band simply hits the stage to deliver an energy driven show using guitars, drums, and their voices. Nothing more, nothing less. This approach to their live performances has led to them sharing the stage with acts such as Highly Suspect, Papa Roach, Black Stone Cherry, Pop Evil, and more.
By focusing on their engagement with social media and managing themselves, Small Town Titans are growing like never before and having more success as a business and a brand. The band just wrapped up a weekend-long recording session at Hybrid Studios with friend Kevin Soffera, drummer for Seether on the 5x platinum selling record Disclaimer II, and who STT also recorded their last album Reflection with. Six brand new songs were recorded live in the studio, as well as professionally filmed by Springwood Productions at the same time. These new songs and videos will be released throughout the rest of 2017 and 2018. Songs range from the hard-hitting “Me, Myself, and Monster” and “Wreck” to the ballad “Dragonfly”, an emotional song written in memory of Phil’s mother, who passed away earlier this year due to cancer, performed live with just one voice and an acoustic guitar.
Small Town Titans are actively forming a team of like-minded individuals in the new music business who are just as driven and passionate as they are, rather than waiting to be discovered. As the band continues to grow their fan base online this year, they will also hit the road, this time with a smarter game plan, a stronger fan base, and a passionate team behind them.
LINKS:
http://smalltowntitans.com
https://www.facebook.com/smalltowntitans
https://twitter.com/smalltowntitans
https://www.instagram.com/smalltowntitans
https://www.youtube.com/smalltowntitans
https://www.patreon.com/smalltowntitans -
Holygram – Modern Cults
German post-punk shoegaze outfit Holygram has released their long-awaited debut LP ‘Modern Cults’. Comprised of eleven tracks, this album is now available on CD and double vinyl, as well as digitally via Cleopatra Records. The band also just kicked off their North American tour with one of the biggest electronic bands on the planet, VNV Nation and Charlottesville, VA artist The Rain Within.
Holygram cleverly blends new wave and Krautrock with post-punk and shoegaze to achieve headstrong multi-layered bliss. This is a thoroughly contemporary homage to the sound of the ’80s with a resolute look to the future – the result is driving, dark and catchy.
Earlier, the band teased the singles ‘Signals’ and ‘A Faction’. Two years have passed since the Cologne-based outfit released their self-titled EP.
Produced by Maurizio Baggio, perhaps best known as the producer of The Soft Moon’s ‘Deeper’ and ‘Criminal’ albums, they recorded this LP at Cologne’s Amen Studios.
Holygram is Patrick Blümel (vocals), Sebastian Heer (drums), Marius Lansing (guitars), Pilo Lenger (synthesizers) and Bennett Reimann (bass). Formed in 2015, the band’s approach to making music references the past, while remaining future-oriented. Hard-to-combine elements cleverly come together to become the soundtrack of a city that appears threatening in the twilight.
The new album surrounds themes such as big cities, alienation, and anonymity, hope and memories, love and identity. These reflections interact closely with the band’s unmistakable signature sound. Atmosphere oscillates between the brutal sounds of the big city and the fragility of the people that lose themselves in it – intelligently observed scenarios of a world falling apart in which individuals have long ceased to play a leading role.
Last year, Holygram accompanied British synthpop legends OMD on their European tour and also played numerous festivals, including Mailfeld Derby, Wave-Gotik-Treffen and New Waves Day. Wrapping themselves in dense wafts of mist and cool lighting on stage, they’ve made quite a name for themselves on the live circuit.
‘Modern Cults’ is now available everywhere, including via Cleopatra Records on CD and vinyl, as well as digitally via Bandcamp. The album is out in Europe via Oblivion / SPV.
Holygram will be touring Europe and US/Canada this fall with one of the biggest electronic bands on the planet, VNV Nation.
LINKS:
http://holygram.band
https://www.facebook.com/holygram.official
https://holygram.bandcamp.com
https://www.instagram.com/holygram_band -
Bromide – Magic Coins
British noise-pop outfit Bromide has announced their new single ‘Magic Coins’, an infectious track accompanied by ‘Always Now’ as its b-side. ‘Magic Coins’ is an unexpected rhythm track that is seemingly drum and bass-inspired, written collectively by all three band members.
Bromide is Simon Berridge on vocals and guitar, Ed Lush on drums, and Hugo Wilkinson on bass. These songbirds worship at the altars of Husker Du, Teenage Fanclub, The Replacements, Guided By Voices, Dinosaur Jr., The Only Ones, Buffalo Tom and other melodic rockers equally obsessed by songs, songwriting and the euphoria associated with playing music through amplified electronic equipment.
Hailing from London, their sound has been described as “Grant Hart fronting Sebadoh” and “Elvis Costello fronting Dinosaur Jr.” Vive Le Rock noted that they mix “the best bits of The Lemonheads and Dinosaur Jr. replete with melancholic melodies and J Mascis-ish guitar lines”.
“Magic Coins is a good example of how being in a band can take things off in directions you’d never expect. I’d been trawling youtube one night and on my travels come across Susan Boyle’s gobsmacking debut performance on ‘X Factor’ and a thumping AC/DC gig from Oakland Coliseum, California in ’79. Both had made me think about the nature of performance and invisible energy release and so I put this into a new song I was writing “I wanna stand in their shoes. Tell me what it is I have to do,” says Simon Berridge.
“When we next got to practice, we hadn’t played together for a while and I remember starting playing the riff and Ed literally running to get behind the drum kit. He started playing this frenetic almost drum and bass beat and the song exploded. It ended up totally not where I was expecting.”
This single follows the album ‘I Woke Up’, released in the summer of 2018, and the ‘I Remember’ album previous to that. In that time, they have won over news fans including Gideon Coe at BBC 6 Music, who has called their music ‘Fantastic’ and says their latest single ‘Two Song Slot’ is ‘a mighty fine tune’, playing these tracks numerous times over several months.
Legendary producer, Brian O’Shaughnessy (Primal Scream, My Bloody Valentine) recorded, mixed and produced these tracks at Bark Studios in Walthamstow, London. Seamlessly welding their pop onto their rock, together they achieved Bromide’s sublime college-rock sound. The band also wrote some of the music in the studio while recording, including the confessional album opener ‘Tale To Tell’ while album closer ‘I Woke Up’ sees them begin to stretch their wings a bit as a Glenn Branca / Krautrock groove builds to an an epic conclusion complete with thunder, rain, autoharp and anything else lying around the studio.
“We’ve recorded the most recent two Bromide albums with Brian because he knows how to make you focus on what you’re trying to achieve, plus he knows how to make it sound great,” says Simon Berridge.
The ‘Magic Coins’ single will be released digitally and plans also include a 7″ on limited edition vinyl. The ‘I Woke Up’ album is available across online stores and streaming platforms, as well as on limited edition vinyl and CD. It can be obtained from Scratchy Records through Cargo Records.
LINKS:
http://www.theinternetatemysoul.co.uk/bromide.htm
https://www.facebook.com/bromidebanduk
https://twitter.com/bromide_band
https://open.spotify.com/artist/7l4GWNPAIsXLRFSaCvC6pb
https://itunes.apple.com/cy/artist/bromide/285841264