Of Mice & Men I See Stars review

I've been promising this for quite some time now so its about time I actually did it!

Almost 2 weeks ago (good greif its been that long? Finals are throwing me way off) Me, Hailey, her boyfriend and her brother all went to see For the Fallen Dreams, iwrestledabearonce, I See Stars, and Of Mice and Men.

Please Ignore the scary things the flash did to my hair and face.

We listened to For the Fallen Dreams.  They are a great band but they were having so technical problems so their set wasn't the best.  However I refuse to call them bad because they are talented and were very friendly when we met them at their signing.

I don't have any pics for them so here's one from google:

Next up was ISeeStars which we actually went up to the stage for.  I've seen them live before and they were just as good as before.  & it was sad/funny/painful when the lead singer was swinging his mic about and nailed their screamer in the head.

Here's a few shots from their set:

Next was iwrestledabearonce for which Hailey and I hung back with everyones stuff while the boys went up to the stage.  If you've never listened to them, do it.  Its quite an experience.  Its very random, spastic, and frantic, but they are one of the most energetic and enthusiastic group of individuals I have ever seen. At one point, one of the guys started saying "The floor is f*cking lava! Now jump! jump! jump!" Again, don't have any pics for them so heres one from google:

Finally, it was time for Of Mice & Men.  Now I'm not gonna lie, I've heard some pretty nasty things about their lead, Austin.  I thought he might be an jerk but I was very very wrong.  He was crazy and energeticfrom the beginning of the show till the very end.  He would reach out, grab peoples cameras, film himself, the crowd, and the rest of the band, then carefully handed it back to them.  He crowd surfed and attempted to crowd walk and grab the rafters but it didn't quite work.  The show was absolutely amazing (although the wall of death, or as we coined it, extreme red rover may have intimidated me a bit).  The lights were insane and everything went off well.  I have a whole new respect for the band.

Heres the pics:

Attempted Crowd Walk

Crowd Walk Fail

Guitar

Overall It was a great night.  They took the concert from okay to absolutely amazing.

Next time comes Breaking Dawn review and pics from the line.

p.s. Finals are making things cray cray so bare with me!

Peace, Love, Music <3

Happy Birthday!

First things first, I would like to wish Love Is Louder a very happy 1st birthday! You've helped so many people, and I'm sure you will help many more in the future.
To celebrate their b-day, I would just like to tell everyone reading this that I love you, and that you are beautiful and perfect and amazing just the way you are.  Don't ever let anyone tell you any different!

Next up, I would like to make an announcement about my new poll! It over there on the side and you can vote on which band you want me to review next.  Your options are:

D.R.U.G.S

Raggedy Angry

 

Bring Me the Horizon

 

Green Day

 

Go vote everyone! Vote more than once, even!

Peace, Love, Music<3

The Birthday Massacre Bio/ Review

You've been waiting with uncontained anticipation *rolls eyes at own joke* and the time is finally here!

I give you....

Originally called Imagica, The Birthday Massacre formed in 1999 in London, Ontario with an original line up of
Chibi-lead vocals

Rainbow- guitarist
Micheal Falcore- guitarist
Aslan- bassist

Dank- keyboardist

Having rehearsed for months, the band played their first live show at Diversity night club in London on October 28, 2000. It was here that the band released their limited edition demo(there were only 40 hand numbered copies). This cd contained the song “The Birthday Massacre” which was later renamed “Happy Birthday”, and was recorded on a 4 track cassette recorder (some of you youngsters out there may need to look that one up!). A month after the show, the band recruited O.E. to play live drums.

In 2001, the band relocated to Toronto (Dank left the band a short time before this). They immediately began working on a new cd that would be available on their website starting May 31, 2002. In order to avoid confusion with a California metalcore band with the same name, Imagica became The Birthday Massacre.

In July of 2002, the band released the limited edition CD Nothing and Nowhere.

In 2003, Adm joined the band to play live keyboards, and O.E. left to pursue his own band, Isle of Dogs, and was replaced by Rhim on drums. During this time frame, the band designed their interactive website NothingAndNowhere.com that contained hidden objects and unreleased music. They also chose the color Violet to represent all themes, as they associated it with fantasy and melancholy.

On July 20, 2004 the band released their EP Violet, independently as they had all previous recordings. In the fall of 2004, the band was signed to Repo Records and Adm resigned. Throughout 2004, the band finally toured outside of Canada and in the US with bands such as 51 Peg, Deadstar Assembly, and Crossbreed.

In 2005, The Birthday Massacre signed with Metropolis records, re-released Violet, and began a series of International tours. Owen joined the band on keyboards, testing many nicknames before going with his real name.

In 2006, the band tour North America on their Broken Minds tour. They then toured Europe with Das Ich, Jesus on Ecstasy, and Dope Stars inc. They were seen as the shining new hope for the alternative scene, remixing many songs including Straight to Video by Mindless Self Indulgence.

Walking with Strangers was released in 2007 and made Billboards “Top Heatseeker” list. At a show in Hamburg with Psycho Luna, the band’s performance was recorded and used for Show and Tell.

With the song Looking Glass, the band recruited extras from their fanbase and handcrafted over 35 masks for the music video. It was released with on the Cd by the same name in May 2008.

2009 found Chibi and the boys on tour with I am Ghost and Dommin in North America and Europe. They also participated in a contest called “Book the Band”, which they won! The band then took a year off from touring in order to create more of their signature music.

On September 14, 2010 the band made their comeback with the release of their next album Pins and Needles.

They began a tour in America with Otep and Raggedy Angry, then continued to tour with Black Veil Brides and Aural Vampire.

The band also launched a new website TheBirthdayMassacre.com that was created by Owen. He would go on to help create an online comic called Disappointing Monsters.

The band’s latest masterpiece Imaginary Monsters was released in August 2011.

With its electronic, industrial, new wave gothic rock sound and unique internet presence, the band has become a fast and withstanding favorite amongst those within the alternative scene and beyond.

I personally love the band and was, after months of searching, able to find a copy of Looking Glass. I’m still on the lookout for any of their other albums. (Come on local album stores, you can do it!)

Well there you have it! My second official band review of all time. I hope everyone enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

*All information and images belong to the band and/or original owners.

Also, I will be having another poll for another band review up soon!

Peace, Love, Music<3

Motionless In White Review/ Bio

Motionless In White



This Pennsylvanian metal core band was formed in 2005 with an original lineup of Chris Cerulli- vocals, TJ Bell- guitarist/ vocalist, Ryan Sitkowski- guitarist, Frank Polumbo-bassist, and Angelo Parente- Drums. The name of the band comes from the song “Motionless in White” by Eighteen Visions.

In 2007, the bands hard work and dedication scored them a deal with Masquerade Recordings. Their debut EP “The Whorror” was released later that fall.

While working a three week spot in Warped Tour 2008, MIW caught the attention of many major record labels as well as Shawn Mike, vocalist of Alesana. The band accepted management to The Artery Foundation. In December of 2008, the band was signed with Fearless Records.

In February of 2009, the band released their second EP, “When Love Met Destruction”. Shortly after the release, bassist Frank Polumbo left the band for reasons unkown. The band then added Ricky Olson as their permanent bass player in October of 2009.

 

On October 12, 2009 the band released their debut full length album “Creatures”. (Interesting fact? The band used all fan submitted lyrics - except for the chorus - on the title track of this album.)

 

In May of 2011, rhythm guitarist TJ Bell left the band. Later, Ricky Olson switched from playing bass to rhythm guitar. The band now has a fill in bassist, Devin Sola, but it is unclear if he will become a permanent member.

On July 7, 2011 the band released their music video/ short film for the song Creatures. The release was followed by a live Ustream session. The video is very eerie as it delves into the human psyche, showing that there is a secret, often darker, side to everyone no matter how they look. It was gritty instead of overproduced, which seem to add to the videos success.

 

The band is currently on the All Star Tour with the bands Emmure, Alesana, iwrestledabearonce, blessthefall, For Today, In This Moment, Born Of Osiris (I love, love, love them), The Ghost Inside, After The Burial, Attila, For All Those Sleeping, Memphis May Fire, Chelsea Grin, and Sleeping With Sirens.

 

MIW is known for its insane stage presence and unique sound.Overall, the band supports the important message of being yourself and not giving a f*ck what other people think. Their fan base has become very strong and call themselves “Creatures”.

If you like the Misfits, Cradle of Filth, The Black Dahlia Murder, or Eighteen Visions, you should definitely check out Motionless in White.

Yes, I am a Creature. No, I haven't seen them live *shakes head sadly*, although I would love to.

*All images found on google. The top photo belongs to Jeremy Saffer. Click it to go to his blog.

*So, what do you think of my first band review? I want brutal honesty! (Ok, not brutal. How about creative critiquing?) Anything you would like to see/ not like to see in the next review? Are there any bands I should check out?

Peace, Love, Music<3

Band Review: Forever the Sickest Kids

I was going to do a concert review over this band but realized I have seen them more than a few times and should probably do an overall band review. Hope you enjoy!

*All info and album photos are property of FTSK and found on google.

Forever the Sickest Kids is an American pop/rock band from Dallas, Texas consisting of Jonathan Cook - Lead Vocals, Caleb Turman - Guitar and Backup Vocals, Austin Bello - Bass and Backup Vocals, Kyle Burns - Drums, Marc Stewart - Guitar, and
Kent Garrison - Keyboards. Their first EP Television Off, Party On was released in July of 2007, followed by their debut album, Underdog Alma Mater in 2008, The Weekend: Friday EP in 2009, and their self titled sophomore album in 2011.



Underdog Alma Mater

The Weekend : Friday EP

Sophomore Album

Having been to four of their concerts, all at different venues, I can say that they are great live. Unlike many pop/ punk/ rock bands, their songs are not all autotune and no talent. They are energenic and hilarious on stage. They are very down to earth and seem to genually care about their fans.

Here are a few photos of the band live and when I met them.

*All below photos are mine unless stated otherwise.

Jonathan Cook. Not the best quality photo but oh well....

Same show, again, not great quality, but I tried!

And now some photos where I met them. :)

Caleb Turman, Me, Mark Stewart

Me, Jonathan Cook

Although I have already seen them many times, the next time they are in my town, you can bet I'll be there!

Peace, Love, Music <3