5.18.2015

SCHOOL OF ROCK ROCHESTER END OF SEASON SHOW

Youngers Irish Tavern
11:00-11:15 PM ROCK 101
11:15-1:15 PM WOMAN WHO ROCK
1:30-3:30 PM GROHL vs CORNELL
3;45-5:45 BLUE ALBUM BEATLES
6:00-8:00 PM HOUSE BAND

SUMMER MAGIC FESTIVAL IS BACK WITH THE BABYS!


The biggest festival in Mount Clemens, MI in years!! Four days of fun including national/local/regional bands, carnival, street vendors, awesome food. $3.00 General Admission daily, VIP tickets available. For more info: www.summermagicfestival.com.
 

Featuring THE BABYS!


5.17.2015

SWEET CRYSTAL "QUAD" REVIEWS AND NEWS


Pretty sweet to see how Sweet Crystal's latest EP "QUAD" is making it's way across the planet...and making reviewers sit up and take notice. Check out some of these quotes:

G. Kleinbloesem, Strutter'Zine (Netherlands):

"...the legendary Christian Classic Rock/AOR band Sweet Crystal returns with a new album titled Quad. The band still sounds fresh and clean in 2015 with a melodic rock/aor sound in the classic Petra/Sweet Comfort Band/Allies/White Heart style and surprisingly they have some great guest singers this time, namely Amy Susan Heard and David Perez. Amy is a wonderful female singer and let's hope on a future release she will sing more, because the track on which she sings, Some People May Ask, is a lovely uptempo classic 80s AOR tune with catchy melodies. Another highlight is the Kayak/Magnum ish epic semi prog/pomp piece Anthem, which instrumental sounds like a classic."

T. Rogen, Equal Ground "Indie Album Reviews":
"QUAD is a five-song EP that demands your attention…it’s intense...”Foot of The Cross” is an interesting mix of ballad and arena rock. I appreciated the guitar solo and some of the classic moves like the pick scratch against the strings. “Some People May Ask” was tailor made to be in a play. I’m talking about a huge Broadway play where people are doing somersaults and fifty people are singing...This song should be played in an arena, one of those mega churches or Carnegie Hall...I don’t go to church regularly (if ever) but if I did I would hope that Sweet Crystal was there to rock my socks off first thing in the morning."

D.C. Hathaway, "D.C. Coast To Coast" (San Diego, CA, USA):
"Nobody spreads the gospel musically quite like Sweet Crystal whose rocking melodies compliment the message that ALWAYS grabs me and lifts MY soul. Their EP QUAD is NO exception to their past releases, but even BETTER! It’s so refreshing to hear loud rock music that REALLY means something. I’m a fan forever and SO blessed Sweet Crystal is part of the family on the D.C. Coast To Coast playlist.”

A. Rockwell, Angelic Warlord (Phoenix, AZ, USA):
"All of the Detroit, Michigan based Sweet Crystal’s chief qualities - AOR and commercial hard rock leanings, soaring lead vocals, tightly woven guitar harmonies and radio friendly catchy hooks - are present on its independently released spring of 2015 five song EP Quad. Quad from featuring near perfect production that aligns a presence fill low-end with guitars, keyboards and vocals in just the right amounts.

Polish is of the type connoisseurs expect form and AOR meets melodic hard rock album. Credit the group in this capacity for recruiting mixing technician Chuck Alkazian (Pearl Sound Studios) and mastering engineer Scott Hull (Masterdisc)- the results speak for themselves!

First full length track “Foot Of The Cross” proves an excited groove laden hard rocker, as an arresting bass line and added traces of organ collide to establish nothing less a climactic scene. Instrumental moments find searing guitar feedback and razor edged soloing holding sway. As always, frontman Marq Speck proves a natural fit for the genre at hand with his signature raspy to melodic middle register vocal qualities.

Sweet Crystal goes full-bore symphonic progressive rock on “Anthem”, a direction in which we have never previously heard from the group. Classical instrumentation and guitar harmonies open the first two instrumental moments, with the lone verse that ensues giving way to a final instrumental interlude that closes things in magnanimous fashion (and suggests of prime Kansas in the process). All the while angelic choir vocals lend to the glorious feel at hand. ...if a long term fan or into any type of AOR, melodic rock or commercial hard rock then Quad comes strongly recommended."

Anyway, you get the picture...QUAD appears to be doing just fine...and of course it's because of you and your support that we keep on with the music and the message. Got QUAD? Here are some links to use to grab one for yourself...and your parents...and your kids...and that guy next door who could really use some Sonshine in his life! 

SWEET CRYSTAL

13 Time Detroit Music Award Winners



5.16.2015

MOTOBUNNY: FABULOUS DETROIT LACED BAND HAS NEW RELEASE

MOTOBUNNY Photo by Susan Jordan Anderson

When you arm two wild front women with Detroit-laced hooks, you get MOTOBUNNY: Iggy-Pop-meets-Icona-Pop, American rock n’ roll.

The debut album was released May 12 on Rusty Knuckles Records. With radio singles already spinning around the USA and a US tour in the works for Spring 2015, this bunny is ready to roar. #VROOM



Before Motobunny, the band members toured internationally and shared stages with Michael Jackson, Karmin, X, Iggy Pop, The Damned, The Dirtbombs, Mary Weiss, The Neighborhood, Billy Corgan, Little Richard, Jim Adkins, Prima Donna, Kongos, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, The The New York Dolls, Franz Ferdinand, The Jim Jones Revue, and appeared in official SXSW showcases and in official Fender promo films.


Their other projects have been featured in Rolling Stone, SPIN, Little Steven's "The Coolest Song in The World" compilations, Rock & Folk, Village Voice, Austin Chronicle, LA Weekly, Detroit RocknRoll Magazine, Phoenix New Times, RETROKIMMER.COM and XMU's Radar Report, among others, and aired on Sirius/XM and BBC radio. Their original tracks have been featured in a 2014 Canada Dry commercial and in the syndicated TV shows Rescue Me, Fairly Legal, Bad Judge, and Being Human.


Members

Christa Collins, Nicole Laurenne, Michael Johnny Walker, Rik Collins

Management
 Steev Ricardo, Twisted Rico Management, Pittsburgh, PA. 
 twistedrico@gmail.com 857-389-0532

Links

motobunnymusic.com
facebook.com/motobunnymusic
twitter.com/motobunnymusic
instagram.com/ motobunnymusic
youtube.com/motobunnymusic

5.03.2015

GO WEST: THE BOSS MUSTANGS


The Richter Scale reported that the west side of Michigan felt a rare 4.2 earthquake Saturday afternoon as The Boss Mustangs threw down their final show in Hudsonville, MI. Coincidence? I think not. These fuzzy fellas have been kicking down some of the most powerful live sets that you have ever seen, and why not go out with a literal earthquake that was felt throughout the Midwest?


Formed by Mastermind and exceptionally talented guitarist/songwriter Mickey Catalina in 2009, The Boss Mustangs released their self titled debut album on Spinout Records in 2011 (and an extended release on Rotoscope Records in 2013).

Like many bands, they had some line-up changes.  I have only seen their current four piece; Dan Cadillac (vocals), Mickey Catalina (guitar), Hyde DeSoto (bass), J. Edsel Hoover (drums).


I was a bit late to the game.  I discovered these guys in late 2011.  Ann Arbor and pockets of SE Michigan had just been through a very dark period.  The asexual indie rock/folk scene dominated all areas of the country, and Ann Arbor/SE Michigan was not excluded.  I stopped going to live shows, as they turned into one big snoozefest after another.

I lost faith and like so many other music enthusiasts, I needed something to kick my ass all over the place and leave me on my hands and knees, begging for more. In November of 2011, I popped into a really great show at Woodruffs (Ypsilanti) that included Blue Snaggletooth, Lava Moth, Wild Savages and the mighty Boss Mustangs.
 
The Mustangs offered some crazy freak out Rock ‘n’ Roll Garage Punk that we all so desperately needed.  It was love at first sight and sound.

I made the drive out to Beer City Spring Fest in Hudsonville, Michigan on Saturday May 2 to see the final Boss Mustangs show.  The fest was cool. They had a lot of breweries feature tastings of great west side brews including Dark Horse, New Holland, Vaner Mill Ciders, Mitten Brewing Co., and well, as you can imagine, a ton more (see the full list here).
  

The Boss Mustangs kicked things into high gear with “Turn On,” one of their signature tunes that always hook the crowd.  Mickey Catalina may be a clean technical guitarist, but he can get real down and dirty.  His heavy, powerful tone will hit you like a tsunami (check out Catalina's cover of Maggot Brain).  Michigan has some of the finest guitarists this country has to offer, and Catalina stands out as one of the best. 

The original Mustangs line-up had two guitarists, but really now, who needs a second guitar player in the band when Mickey can easily do the job of two men?  He’s incredible to see live and I look forward to the projects he takes on in the future.  Front man Dan Cadillac is quite a vision on stage and has a remarkable vocal range.  He offers straight up Rock ‘n’ Roll swagger with breathtaking waves of Dickie Peterson and Jeffrey Lee Pierce. Watch  the Official Video for “Turn On.” 


Moving through the set, they hit on “Burnout” which reminded me of one of the reasons why I love their live shows so much. The rhythm section. The heavy-handed bassist Hyde DeSoto joins forces with their commanding drummer Jason J .Edsel Hoover, delivering an unforgettable pulse to each and every tune.

We can thank these two Rockers for the hip shakin’ grooves that keep us locked into the unrestrained, wild sound that make The Boss Mustangs so appealing. Memorable tunes on their final set list included “Mrs. McKee,” "Hazel Holly,” "No Friend” and in the absolute true to form spirit of the band, they ended the show with a blistering cover of “KOTJ” by The MC5.


Did you hear that? THAT was the sound of my heart breaking. No more Boss Mustangs. Thanks for many years of astounding live performances that left your audiences floored and begging for more. Thanks so much for The Last Hurrah.

Post Mustangs News: Dan Cadillac is actually a superb guitarist in his own rite and has moved on to the Heavy-Psych band Imperial Sun Crusher, with larger than life bassist Hyde DeSoto. They will be coming back into SE Michigan for FuzzFest this June.



Story and Photos by: Theresa Kiefer
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...