Bands you should know: Encasing Embrace

Encasing Embrace is a melodic metalcore band from Alexandria, VA. The band consists of bassist Bowtie Steele, vocalist Ryan Thornton Olsen, lead guitarist Matt Neyland, and drummer Malcolm Richardson. These guys are no small band either! Having over 2,000 Facebook likes, popping up in the search bar on youtube like any other large band, playing shows like crazy, and working on an album Encasing Embrace is getting bigger by what seems like the second. The band is already a household name around most teens in the metal scene! What are these guys really like though? Well I can tell you from experience they are some of the nicest guys you will ever meet and will go out of their way to make any fan happy. I have the wonderful pleasure of being friends with Bowtie who is probably one of the nicest people I've ever met despite the heavy sound of the band and the metal look. If you've never checked them out I suggest you should, these guys are definitely worth your time. Give them a Facebook like (hi this is that link), a listen to on Soundcloud (that link is here), check out their YouTube (just look up Encasing Embrace), and stay tuned into my blog for a full review of their album when it surfaces!

Spooky Casual's music to make an apperance in a movie!

Spooky Casual's song November is to be in a new movie called "Glamarus" which is being filmed by Dylan Greenberg. The movie seems super trippy and extremely entertaining. The screening for "Glamarus" is going to be on August 18th, 2014 at 9:50 P.M. at Videology in NYC. Check out the trailer here. Like Spooky Casual's facebook page here and don't forget to show Spooky Casual some love by checking out their bandcamp page here!

Let's get Naked.

Naked is a very popular solo project by Carl Smith who is also in the band, Spooky Casual. It's got the same kind of Spooky Casual vibes but darker in a way. Naked was established in December of 2012 and is still going strong to this day. In fact Naked just got off tour a few days ago! A few words that you may use to describe naked could be nostalgic, loud, dark,  and intense. If you search Naked's bandcamp page you can find everything from Naked's first release, Black Temple/ White Temple: Naked/ The Sepia Raven Split, to the most recent Naked release, Split w/ Spooky Casual. Naked even has merch! Patches, shirts, and CDs. Check out his merch here. Check out Naked's music here. Naked and Spooky Casual also have a show on August 6th 2014 at Victor's Italian Ice in Eldersburg, MD at 6:00 P.M. Go check it out, you won't regret it!

Warped Tour with a Spooky Casual member!

Yesterday, July 22nd 2014 was Warped Tour at Merriweather Post Pavillion where you could find many bands promoting their music and jamming out to the music of other bands as well. I for one took part in this event along with guitarist of Spooky Casual, Matt Hiles. Periodically meeting up with him between different band sets was no easy task but it was done, especially when sharing one common interest, the UK based band, Neck Deep. While I was second row to the front watching the guys do their thing, Matt decided he was going to be a part of the experience and joined into the mosh pit. At a few different points you could catch Hiles crowd surfing even! Warped Tour is an experience I hope everyone gets to enjoy at least once!

What the duck is Drukk?

Drukk is the newest project out on the Cybergrind scene. Drukk is founded by Spooky Casual's own, Matt Hiles. Spending hours recording and mixing the techno metal has gotten Drukk an instrumental single out into the bandcamp/Facebook universe. Within 24 hours the instrumental single, which is titled "Agent Double 0 Br00tal", has gotten mixed responses, offers for various collabs, even some recording offers. I'd say Drukk is off to a pretty epic start! The most interesting part about Drukk is no actual intstruments are involved it's all computer which makes the fact that it's getting so much attention already twice as amazing. Here's to making it, Drukk! P.s. while doing other research on Drukk I discovered there is also a 32 second track called "Dr. No" check both tracks out here.

Bwendon on a break or breaking up?

The Fredrick/Tawney Town based group, Bwendon has been off the scene for quite a while lately. The band consisting of bassist Collin Lloyd, guitarist C.j. Eller, and drummer/ vocalist Ryan Gabriel who is also in the one man project Hunson Abadeer, is a group with jazzy/ alternitive instrumentals and Ryan's own American Football sounding vocals. While Bwendon was known to play quite a few open mics at Readers Cafe in PA, The Hanover Hub in PA, and even a few house shows the band also hosted a radio show every so often on the Mount Saint Marys radio station where they played some of their favorite tracks, answered questions and discussed various topics. Bwendon also announced that they were in the recording studio and even released one of their tracks that was recorded via their Facebook page, but as it is with all good musicians and bands, where are they now? Bwendon has been inactive for months! C.j. graduated college, Ryan just released the newest Hunson Abadeer EP, and Collin is in a punkpop group? While Ryan calls it a temporary break, an anonymous source tells me that Collin said he thinks that Bwendon is just about over. So which is it? Just a break or a break up? Are we ever going to get a full album or professionally recorded EP from them? Are we going to get any new music? These are the questions your fans want to know Bwendon! By the way, fun fact: in Bwendon's profile picture on Facebook a painting of an eye that I made for Collin is in the center of the picture. Check Bwendon's stuff out here.

New Project Alert! Jack Motel: Next big rocker on the scene?

Jack Motel is a one man project made by Nick Anthony in June of 2014. Jack Motel has a classic rock vibe that will make nearly anyone fall for his interesting lyrics and intense sound. Although just starting out, Jack Motel has a four track EP up on Bandcamp already called Of All Places (It's free!) all which Nick wrote and recorded by himself. Jack Motel has also done a cover of Hunson Abadeer's "Home Alone" which is featured on Hunson Abadeer's newest EP Grace and Age. It's incredibly well recorded and the vocals and instrumentals sound phenominal! Especially because as Nick has told me, the cover was recorded and mixed all in one day! I hope Jack Motel posts the cover on his Bandcamp or facebook soon so you all can hear the amazing cover.  I suggest everyone keep their eye out for Jack Motel because I can see a bright future within this amazing rock project! Jack's Bandcamp page --> http://jackmotel.bandcamp.com/releases

Spooky Casual has some unreleased tricks up their sleeves?

Spooky Casual, a band based out of Eldersburg, MD consisting of members Matt Hiles, Emma Pailer, and Carl Smith, announced on July 7th, 2014 that there is some "big news coming". Could we be seeing a new EP in the future? Maybe some new tracks? Only Spooky Casual knows and I think we're all excited to see what the news could be. How soon is soon though? It's July 18th and the news still hasn't been released! Anyone else as impatient as I am? Spooky Casual is a band with a very nostalgic, trippy, meditative, vibe. Guitarist Matt Hiles has been known to describe the band's sound as "Pink Floyd influenced". Although the band has only released two tracks on Bandcamp I know there are a good majority of us excited to see what else this band has in store. So hurry up Spooky Casual and tell us the news and give us some new music to jam to! Here's the link to their Bandcamp page, http://spookycasual.bandcamp.com/ November is my personal favorite song, what's yours?

Hunson Abadeer releases Grace and Age EP

Today at 12:00 A.M. Hunson Abadeer released a five track EP called "Grace and Age" via Bandcamp. The one man project which is Hunson Abadeer consists of 19 year old Ryan Gabriel who is also the drummer for the three person group, Bwendon. Hunson Abadeer takes vocals that can be associated with an American Football vibe with indie folk/ alternative instrumentals, creating the soothing and mellow vibes which are Hunson Abadeer. In July of 2013 Hunson Abadeer released his self titled EP which was four tracks, one of them being an "Astrodub Remix". You can definitley hear and see an improvement in Hunson Abadeer's work from the 2013 EP to the most current 2014 EP, Gabriel's recording quality has improved, the lyrics feel deeper, and the connection feels more real. On the Bandcamp page, Hunson Abadeer described Grace and Age as "A DIY album arranged and recorded in my bedroom over the course of June/July 2014 showcasing haunting feelings of nostalgia and heartbreak. Grace and Age is a welcome to new friends and a farewell to old." It stays very true to that quote as well, you can feel the feeling and the hurt behind some of the lyrics that Gabriel sings. I can't wait to see where Hunson Abadeer is a few years from now, with this new release and the new sounds it's bringing I see a very bright future ahead of Hunson Abadeer. I suggest if you haven't already, check out Grace and Age by Hunson Abadeer on their band camp page (http://hunsonabadeer.bandcamp.com/) maybe even download it!