Driven Far Off

The latest on the indie, alternative, and rock music scene including news, music, contest, interviews, and more. Best described as your favorite place to find new bands.

Staff Recommendations December 10th, 2006

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Bryce Jacobson

After the break up of Acceptance I cried like a little baby… Why do you ask? Well Jason’s voice is basically irreplaceable and he will be missed. On the other hand, I didn’t really cry, it was just sad to see him go. Well some of the other band members have since moved to California and started a new music career with a band called Thunder Thunder. Check out their MySpace page for a couple of new songs and let us know what you think. Granted its no Acceptance but at least its something new to listen to.

Tyler Hayes

When speaking of amazing bands that are no longer around that should be, Beloved always comes to my mind. If you can still find anything from this awesome hardcore band please try too. As far as bands that are still around please check out Edison Glass. They have a similar feel to Copeland without coming close to copying them. They are a band that deserves your time.

Edison Glass Myspace

Staff Recommendations December 3rd, 2006

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Bryce Jacobson

I’m going for movies this week due to the lack of music releases.

Comedy: Accepted, Clerks II
Animation: Cars, Over The Hedge, Ice Age 2
Action: Mission Impossible 3, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest

All of these are out on DVD now and Pirates of the Caribbean comes out this Tuesday! Let us know what movies you’ve been watching lately.

Tyler Hayes

A movie thats still in theaters thats worth the time and money, would be “Stranger Than Fiction” . Some Movies that are out on DVD that are worth checking out would be…

  • Finding Neverland
  • Say Anything
  • Contact
  • Lord of War

Julie Watanabe

As far as movies go, I’m not caught up on the latest releases (or any releases in general), but if you’ve yet to see it, I highly recommend V For Vendetta. The script is amazing, the acting is phenomenal, and the message is thought-provoking. My friend Ray is a big comic book buff and he says the movie is adapted from a graphic novel by Allan Moore, which he posits is better than the movie, so I guess that’s worth checking out also.

I’m not a movie person, but I’m tv-series whore. With that admission, I suggest getting the first season of Prison Break on DVD for Christmas. Male or female, Prison Break is high suspension, edge-of-seat action that’s pushing every series currently on air to be better. The cinematography is breathtaking and combination of film colors is something to be reckoned with.

Even though it’s winter lull, I do have a quick music rec. Dropping Daylight released their latest album Brace Yourself earlier this June and unfortunately didn’t become the hit it should have due to lack of press. Brace Yourself is loaded with rockin’ guitar licks, crazy piano work, and clear emotive vocals. Believe me when I say this is not some wishy washy piano-pop/emo group. Despite having a piano score playing in every track, this is the hardest I’ve ever heard the piano rock in my entire life. Highly recommended. Check them out.

Myspace

Jamie Pham

Ratatat – Found out about this band a while back and was blown away by them… They are on tour with the Faint so if they havent come to your town already, be sure to check them out!

Michael Schneider

Hmm, how about nothing. Just do your finals.

Staff Recommendations November 26th 2006

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Bryce Jacobson

There aren’t to many albums coming out this time of year but there is one that fits in perfect. Check out A Santa Cause 2 for a whole bunch of holiday tunes from some of your favorite artists.

Michael Schneider

After attending his live show on Friday with Hellogoodbye, I must recommend Dave Melillo. Since hearing his first demo before he signed to Drive-Thru, I’ve always been impressed, but never expected him the talent I saw in his live performance.

Staff Recommendations November 19th 2006

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Julie Watanabe

MAE – Multisensory Aesthetic Experience. Its so cool that these guys have an entire intellectual theory driving their music creation. The MAE boys are currently holed up in the studio recording the material for their next highly anticipated record through Tooth and Nail. I remember back in 2002 when these guys were vitual nobodies and their first single “Embers and Envelopes” slowly infiltrated the community at mp3.com (when it was still respectable). The day Destination: Beautiful came out I bought it at Tower Records for 8 bucks and ridiculed the critics for calling it plastic and overproduced. Several years later in 2005, the band came busting out of left field with a monsterous new sound on The Everglow. Forget plastic and overproduced, this was a record to outlive generations and outreach genres. I’m listening to it a year and a half later and am still blown away by its near-perfection. I don’t often rec bands that already have a solid fan base, but in MAE case exceptions can be made. For every person NOT listening to this record, go out and complete yourself by purchasing a copy. For those of you already versed in the MAE experience, go find your mp3s and relive them again.

MySpace

Jamie Pham

Dustin Kensrue – Got the CD earlier this week and haven’t been able to stop listening to it. Trust me when I say GET THIS CD WHEN IT COMES OUT IN JANUARY!!!. For now, you can listen to a couple songs on his myspace and watch a video of him covering “Hide and Seek” by Imogen Heap…

Michael Schneider

Well, Mr. Pham you have done it- you made the perfect recommendation. I completely agree. Dustin’s cd is amazing!

Tyler Hayes

I’m seriously not just saying this too join the bandwagon, I too recommend Dustin Kensrue. The music has been done before, but he just does it so well. Also I would definitely recommend checking out Future Of Forestry.

Cassidy Myers

Slick Shoes – This band is old school, but still one of the best early Tooth And Nail bands.

Staff Recommendations November 12th 2006

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Trevor Bivens

So a month or two ago, Bryce tells me about this band called Kenotia . Well, due to my obscenely slow internet connection, I had yet to check them out. While lurking at The Masquerade in Atlanta last night, I happened to catch the last four songs by this Marietta, Georgia five piece(it was their new drummer’s second show, I believe.) I was blown away by how good they were. The first thing that automatically caught my ears was their singer Carly’s stellar voice. She sounds better live than a certain Fueled By Ramen band’s front-lady and everyone should know this is extremely rare and high praise coming from me. A double dose of Ryans brought on intricate guitar parts and their rhythm section rounded things out nicely. They have various demos up on their myspace and purevolume pages, so I’m now anxiously awaiting a proper release.

Myspace – Purevolume

Julie Watanabe

November marks the dawning before the dead season of December drought. What this means is that the notable releases will be few and far between throughout the month until December rears its head and NOTHING will be worth spending your Christmas money on. There will be attempts to cling to the paltry threads of November releases for recommendations, I suspect +44 (11/14), Brand New (11/21), and Incubus (11/28) for the die-hards, but don’t expect to hear so from me unless The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me tears a black hole in time and space. Since I don’t see that happening soon let me introduce California’s Ultraviolet. Fronted by the one-woman riot Sarah Hudson, Ultravoilet is Sarah and three of the hottest eletronic-centric musicians to hit the avant garde dance scene in 2006. The band’s latest EP Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control is four songs of heavy-hitting synth jams and grungy electro that remind me of the four-track days. Sarah’s voice is naturally high, which normally would annoy me, but in this case fits quite flawlessly with the dark, twisting milisecond pulses and artifical sound of the music. The lyrics are timely in a “in-your-face-punk” kind of manner and will surely hit a sweet spot with people who like songs written about the enamour of music. If you enjoy the plastic dancebeats of bands like Shiny Toy Guns and A Kiss Could Be Deadly catch yourself some Ultraviolet.

MySpace

Bryce Jacobson

The band I’m going to recommend is one that you probably already know you’re going to listen to or you just might pass. If you were a fan of Blink 182 then you’re going to want to at least take a listen to Mark & Travis’s new band Plus 44. I have to say that I didn’t anticipate this album as much as Angels & Airwaves but for the most part When Your Heart Stops Beating delivers in more ways then one. The album has a closer sound to Blink 182 then Angels & Airwaves but I wouldn’t be happy with this album if it was a new Blink 182 album. Mark’s vocals are the best they have ever been and the guitar and bass ring of Blink on every other note, so whats not to like right? Well let us know who your favorite of the two bands are in our new poll, and if you don’t like either of them, let us know that as well.

MySpace

Reema Desai

Chances are that if you read this site then you allready listen to and love Brand New, but my recommendation for this week is to pull out Deja Entendu again and revisit them for a while. I got to see them play twice yesterday, once acoustically and once full band and I was truly blown away. Aside from loving their sets I was reminded that there is a force behind this band that draws people in like almost no other musician today. I couldn’t tell you why they reach people the way they do; I couldn’t even tell you why they are my favorite band but it is certain that whatever that untouchable force is, they still have it.

Tyler Hayes

Everybody seems to have written a novel for the recommendations this week, well I will keep it short and sweet. If you like even the slightest hip hop feel on songs then please check out Mat Kearney. He has a hip hop, almost rap feel to some songs while others are mellow rock.Ԛ  I don’t typically enjoy any rap, mostly because the content makes you a little bit dumber, but Mat Kearney is different in that way because it’s full of content. Listen to one song and you’ll be hooked. (this is longer than I thought it would be.)

Staff Recommendations November 5th 2006

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Bryce Jacobson

Weatherbox – The bands new EP is filled with indie tracks that are just an overall great listen. It brings me back the days when bands didn’t add all this electronic stuff to make their music sound better. We are streaming their new EP The Clearing all this week so be sure to take a listen.

Army of Me – Rise is the title of Army of Me’s new EP. Their sound reminders me a little bit of Jimmy Eat World, but then again it doesn’t. Its just another great indie EP and we are streaming it all this week so be sure to take a listen and pick it up this week if you like what you hear!

Michael Schneider

Matt Wertz – The new record is still in my regular rotation after having it for months. His live show is unbelievable, take any chance you have to check him out.

Tyler Hayes

Inkwell – This is a band that never fails to produce very catchy melodies in each song. There debut full length “These Stars are Monsters” is almost for sure a release that went unnoticed. If you’re looking for something new, and who isn’t, please pick this up.

Staff Recommendations October 29th 2006

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Bryce Jacobson

Brookside hail from Long Island, New York. Their sound is something of the older pop-punk days where there was actually a little bit of punk sound to it. The bands new album, Tonight, Long Island, is filled with guitar hooks, heavy bass, and that hard yet catchy sound. Check out their MySpace page and take a listen, especially to their song “Tonight, Long Island.”

Jamie Pham

The Secret Handshake. Saw them perform at Bamboozle Left two weeks ago and I can’t say enough about this band. Check them out and you will know what I am talking about. Look for their new full length album early next year off of Triple Crown Records.

Valida Prentice

The future of The Cottars is currently a bit of a mystery. Originally a foursome with two brother-sister pairs musical prodigies, one of the families may have dropped out. Their renewal of traditional Celtic music to fit today’s modern pop is breathtaking and you should check out “Waterlily” on their MySpace page while you still can. Though no news has been released regarding the state of the band since two members dropped off the tour in August, it is possible that the Cottars have reconciled or will continue with permanent new members. Fingers crossed for the former.

Tyler Hayes

This week I have a few, and they are all good so pay attention. First off the obvious, Copeland, because they have a new cd coming out and it’s fantastic. Check out the review on this site for it. Second is the band Fair. Fronted by Aaron Sprinkle this is easily one of the best records to come out in 2006. Lastly another obvious one, Dead Poetic, who’s album “Vices” also comes out this week. It’s a stellar release and one that many people will enjoy, please go out and spend your hard earned money on these CD’s. They are worth it!

Staff Recommendations October 22nd 2006

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Michael Schneider

The Best of Bamboozle:

Hellogoodbye – Combining their performance at Bamboozle and my first real listen to their record, I can’t recommend anything higher than this band.

Cobra Starship – Expect my interview with Gabe to be up tomorrow! This CD is awesome and definitely a dance party waiting to happen.

Between The Trees – As if we haven’t been pushing them enough already, I LOVE this record. Read the review and stream it by clicking the banner up above!

Julie Watanabe

Brandon Heath – About this time in October I was hoping to serve up a recommendation for My Chemical Romance’s The Black Parade without the bat of an eyelash, but MCR went ahead and made a crappy record so I’m left to scavenge through my album collection to find you something above sub-par. I came up with a record I’ve been overplaying through all of October. Brandon Heath’s Don’t Get Comfortable came out in mid-September of this year, but unlike his in-life roommate Matt Wertz’s album, hasn’t enjoyed the same amount of instant acclaim. Being familiar with both singer’s debuts, I find myself more drawn to Brandon’s wholesome, college-coffehouse authenticity than Matt’s new-era soul/pop/funk fusion. For an idea of Brandon’s audience think mellow acoustics like Jack Johnson under clever pop verbiage like Jason Mraz, with an unbeat appeal reminscent of John Mayer. If you’re in the mood for something markedly less rock and more roll-down-your-windows-and-drive pop give Brandon Heath a try.

MySpace

Tyler Hayes

Melee – This is a band that you need to watch out for. Hopefully people have heard of them but they deserve to be HUGE, and with the right marketing they will be when their major label debut comes out in the spring of ’07. Melee is a pure feel good pop band that will make you want more please check them out if you haven’t yet.

Myspace

Staff Recommendations October 15th 2006

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Trevor Bivens

Jimmy Eat World – Bleed American

For the longest time, I thought I had lost this album. Well, I found it this weekend, and I got to experience the awesomeness all over again. This disc is packed full of gems and everyone should be able to appreciate the sweetness(ahaha I kill myself sometimes) that is Jimmy Eat World.

Mike Duncan

Third Eye Blind – A Collection

E-Card

Tyler Hayes – Mxpx

Probably the band to blame for me getting into music in general (pun intended). I’m excited about their new b-side album, as you should be too!

Myspace

Michael Schneider

Between The Trees

Seeing this band yesterday at Bamboozle and hearing their new record, there’s not one band out there right now that’s more set to hit it big. If you’re a fan of Melee, Copeland, or the Fray, check these guys out, they kind of do a little bit of it all.

Valida Prentice

The Svengalis

Greetings from England!Ԛ  I was in London this past weekend and two guys in a bagel shop invited me to see their band play across the street.Ԛ  So this is a twofold recommendation, first clearly I recommend the Svengalis, a cute little unsigned English indie band.Ԛ  Further, I recommend that you go out to a local venue and check out a local show (with bands you haven’t previously listened to) and see if you find a new gem somewhere other than PureVolume/Myspace.

Ԛ 

Staff Recommendations October 8th 2006

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Bryce Jacobson

I’m going back in time with this weeks recommendation. Mourning September was/is a great band on Floodgate Records, their sound is comparable to Forever Changed, and for that I was instantly hooked on this album. The band is currently on hold (meaning we probably won’t hear anything new from them anytime soon, they do have a newer demo on their MySpace page, and Brandon has joined Mike Kelly to play guitar) but be sure to check out their album A Man Can Change His Stars if you get the chance.
PureVolume

Tyler Hayes

I still can’t get the new Decemberists record out of my player. This week I will make it short and sweet. Do your self a favor and go to Best Buy and buy one of the best records for only $7.99. If you have ever like Denison Witmer, Sufjan Stevens, or the likes. Then you will be thanking me later for this recommendation. For that, you’re welcome.

Reema Desai

The Killers – Sam’s Town:Ԛ  I know that pretty much everyone allready has an opinion on this band, but put aside whatever your previous feelings were about The Killers or Hot Fuss, and listen to Sam’s Town for a moment.Ԛ  The songs are more diverse, the vocals are better & the instruments are more complex.Ԛ Ã”šÃ‚  Instead of falling into the sophmore slump, the band took a chance with this album and sucessfully created in my opinion one of the best albums of the year.