Some bands spend their entire careers stuck in the shadows of others. Female-fronted rock bands are constantly compared to Paramore; prog-metal acts are weighed up against Dream Theater and Periphery; and political rock bands get pinned with the “RATM Clone” tag as soon as they hit a proper groove.
Third-group members Djevara have done more than most to Read more…
Progressive music should live up to its name. In other words, it should progress and look forward rather than lazily gazing backward into retro-ville. With that in mind, it’s great to hear Falsense getting it right once again. Read more…
Here’s how to spot a professional band:
1) They throw themselves into their performance from note one, needing next to no time to get into it.
2) They make you want to move the moment they start playing. Your body tells you that you’re in the presence of greatness before your brain does.
3) Their playing is airtight, every instrument blending together flawlessly – and what’s more, it all looks effortless.
4) Their songs are performed with such passion and intensity that you cannot look away.
5) They actively communicate with each other onstage. Nobody is shut away in their own little bubble.
6) The band in question put in the effort regardless of audience size, venue, or time of day.
Even if I’d never heard of RedTower, Natassja Saliba, Rob Chapman, Rabea Massaad, Ben Minal, or Dave Hollingworth (the latter of whom were taking a break from recording Dorje’s debut album to session here), I’d have been in no doubt as to their calibre from the moment this low-key late afternoon showcase started. Read more…
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Over the past few years, crowdfunding has become one of the music industry’s most talked about topics. Adopted by acts as diverse as art-pop legend Amanda Palmer and Canadian tech-metallers Protest The Hero, crowdfunding has made headlines worldwide and opened many eyes to the power of direct-to-fan business models.
Ben Minal created one of the top Indiegogo campaigns of 2012 before he had even finished university. Beating a target of $7,500 nearly three times over, Ben was able to send his band Dorje (fronted by YouTube guitar star Rob Chapman and completed by guitarist Rabea Massaad and bassist Dave Hollingworth) on a two-week UK tour alongside The Drills, themselves fronted by regular Bon Jovi sideman and session legend Phil X. TMMP sat down with Ben Minal to talk about Dorje, crowdfunding, the future of the music business, his current projects and passions, and how a man ordering a pizza changed the course of four careers. Read more…