Tyler Hilton cancels tour

Past opener, Tyler Hilton, has been forced to cancel his summer tour. What a bummer, I was hoping to (finally) get to see him again!

He posted on his official website, tylerhilton.com :

(Deep breath in….and…) I’ve got some good news and bad news for you guys. First, the good news. Matt Serletic has joined the team and will be producing the last songs needed for the record. We start today and are planning on working for the next 3 weeks or so on 6 new tunes. This will be it! No more recording to come after this. There is a light at the end of this long tunnel. Unfortunately, like some good things that come, they do so at a price. The price of this final hurrah will be having to cancel the tour with Better Than Ezra that I had planned starting on the 9th. Look, this is something I hate to do and I know lots of you were looking forward to the shows, but this is something I really need to do. It’s importance is implicit in having to cancel a tour my friends in the band went out of their way to help me out and bring me aboard. Believe me, all I want to do is get out there and play for you. Every freaking state, every country. My tour plans the last few years have been so scatter brained because there has always been this record to contend with. I will finish this music this summer and then all I’ll have to focus on will be playing it back to you live and as often as your area will have me. I’m so so sorry to everyone who was looking forward to seeing the shows and sorry to everyone on the Better Than Ezra team and my team who did all the work to promote and make this happen. I hope everyone will understand and know that I’ll be back out there soon enough. And when the next time comes to leave on tour….I’ll be
out there for a long while. I’ll be yours again!

Thanks for understanding

At least we still have his new album to look forward to!

Honor Society embarks on first headlining tour

Past local opener, Honor Society, is getting set to start their first headlining tour – The Full Moon Crazy tour. Known as a tour within a tour, the gentlemen are also opening up for The Jonas Brothers on the Canadian and American legs of their World Tour.

The Full Moon Crazy tour is the official pre/after party of the World Tour Shows! You never know who is going to show up! Some of the shows are matinee shows while others will start after the Jonas concert has already wrapped.

If you are in the area for any of these shows, I strongly suggest that you check the guys out. Self proclaimed as “Justin Timberlake’s Rock Project”, Honor Society’s songs will make you want to dance and sing along, no duh. Also keep an eye out for their upcoming debut album, due out later this year.

If you go to a show – let them know that Katie sent you if you happen to meet them (and I suggest you try to if you can, they’re really great guys!) and if you end up at the Boston, Farmindgale or New York shows – come by and say hi to me as well, as I’ll be there! (And Farmingdale is my birthday so bring cupcakes too.. if you want.. lol)

Past Local Opener!

Honor Society opened for Hanson as one of the local openers on the Live and Electric Tour in NYC in 2005. Since then, they’ve switched drummers and have been working on smoothing their sound.

Recently, the guys have been on the west coast opening up for the Jonas Brothers and working on their first full length CD! (Their EP, a tale of risky business, is available on iTunes or honorsocietymerch.com)

Tomorrow, Honor Society returns to NYC to play a sold out show at The Fillmore at Irving Plaza.

I happen to also be a huge fan of this group – and will be live blogging from the show at my Honor Society Blog, Far From Shore So be sure to check it out!

If all goes well – I will try to do some live blogging from Hanson shows on this blog! (Perhaps starting with details after the Members Only Event!)

Wednesday Artist Spotlight: Syd

Syd opened for Hanson in Boston, MA on November 4, 2005 on their Live & Electric tour.

<img src=”http://a435.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/87/l_f073f526cc98215bc12b9d6e51085992.jpg”.

Where is your band based out of?

I’m from Vermont originally and split my time between the east and west coast and my band is primarily on the east coast. haha, I’m hard to pin down.

Can you give us a little background on the band?

Sure, yeah, I started playing gigs in college which was *gulp* about 8 years ago now, got swept out on tour during school and right out of school and basically never looked back, I was doing around 200-300 shows a year! I started out as a more acoustic based singer/songwriter with a band just because that’s what I got stuck doing and with my last record let the floodgates open up and strapped on an electric guitar and now I feel more 100% true to myself when I get on stage. Which is the way it ought to feel! That record got picked up by a small independent record label and is getting re-released next week (10/14) actually!

What made you decide to enter Hanson’s opening act contest?

It was a *complete* whim. A friend of mine forwarded me the email and I just uploaded my stuff and sort of forgot about it.

What were your expectations before opening? Were they met?

Well, I had played some shows with Pat McGee before and he was a really nice guy and I just hoped to be treated with respect and maybe get a chance to talk with the guys a little bit. I was also hoping the fans didn’t hate me. hahah. I pulled up to the club and there were lines out the door hours before doors and I was like “woah, these guys have still got it!”–I got in and chatted for actually quite a while with Isaac who was very cool. Then I heard their sound check and was surprised at how extremely tight they are! Forgive me for being one of the guys that heard mmmbop so many years ago and never heard from them again, but when I heard their new stuff I was excited for their show. They totally delivered. And by the way, the crowd was *awesome* to me. Really paid attention and gave me all their support. That was most excellent.

Since opening, what has your band been up to?

Touring, recording, writing! I’ve recently started a small record label and been producing records for other friends of mine–actually something Isaac and I had talked briefly about. The label is called The Co-Op and you can find it online at co-opsounds.com. Lisa Piccirillo and Patrick Thomas are the two artists on the label now and we’re looking to bring more folks on board in the new year.

Do you have any upcoming shows?

Why yes I do, thank you for asking. I’m playing the following shows:

November 14, 2008, 9:00 pm
Castelton State College
Castleton, VT

November 20, 2008, 9:00 pm
Lake Forest College
Lake Forest, IL

Syd

Wednesday Artist Spotlight: BUMP

BUMP opened for Hanson November 9, 2005 in Detroit, MI on the Live and Electric tour. Get to know them a little bit better:

BUMP
www.bumpgroove.com
www.myspace.com/bumpband
www.youtube.com/bumpdetroit
www.reverbnation.com/bump

Photo Credit: Josh Band

Where is your band based out of?
Detroit, MI

Can you give us a little background on the band?
We started about 7 years ago in East Lansing MI when Chris and Yorg were students at Michigan State University. We’ve shredded and melted faces all over the country ever since!

What made you decide to enter Hanson’s opening act contest?
We actually didn’t enter, our lighting director did it without telling us….And we won!

What were your expectations before opening? Were they met?
We didn’t know what to expect. The given was the screaming girls, that didn’t disappoint. I can tell you though that we were really impressed with how tight Hanson was. They’re a really good band who gets some crap from a certain side of the industry. We get asked all the time by radio DJ’s and journalists what it was like to play with Hanson, we always tell them they were sick!

Since opening, what has your band been up to?
Touring, touring, and touring. We’re built on our live show and staying on the road. We’ve also been recording a new album which is due out later this winter. It’ll feature 10 new songs and will really change some perspectives on “what the Bump sound is.” The album has a really cool progressive lofi indie sound that we’re really excited about!

Do you have any upcoming shows?
We started a fall tour in October and have our big annual Thanksgiving Eve show here in Detroit at the Majestic Theatre. We hope to see you out!

Wednesday November 5, 2008
The Bottleneck, Lawrence KS
10:00 pm * $5 * 18+

Thursday November 6, 2008
The Grammophone, St. Louis MO
TBA
Friday November 7, 2008
Bent River Brewery, Moline IL
10:00 pm * $5 * 21+

Saturday November 8, ,2008
Mousetrap, Indianapolis IN
10:00 pm * FREE * 21+

-

If you go to one of their upcoming shows – be sure to tell them that I say hello!

Wednesday Artist Spotlight: Cash Cash

Formerly known as “The Consequence”, the band opened for Hanson in Atlantic City, NJ on October 29, 2005 as a part of the Live & Electric tour.

Photo Credit: Kelly Petry

Where is your band based out of?
We are based out of a small northern jersey town of Roseland

Can you give us a little background on the band?
We used to a be a band called the consequence but had to change the name due to legal reasons. The band has been through lots of band members, and the current lineup has been going strong for almost 3 years.

What made you decide to enter Hanson’s opening act contest?
Hanson is absolutely amazing, their harmonies are amazing, and they have been a great inspiration to us. Also – they look like they have very loyal amazing fans.

What were your expectations before opening? Were they met?
Ee expected the best show we had ever played, and at the time it was. It was so much fun.

Since opening, what has your band been up to?
We are currently signed with universal republic, and are heading on tour with metro station, tyga, and shwayze in the fall. We are releasing a 5 song ep on itunes on oct 7. and planning to release the full length by early January

Myspace

Wednesday Artist Spotlight: Joshua Fletcher and the Six-Shot Romance

Joshua Fletcher and the Six-Shot Romance opened for Hanson on the Live & Electric Tour, in Atlanta, GA in October of 2005.

Where is your band based out of?
We’re based out of Atlanta, Georgia

Can you give us a little background on the band?
We got together in the summer of 2005 after I made a solo record. I needed a band to play behind me and that’s when the Six-Shot Romance was created. We’ve all been friends for forever, and we’d been playing music together in some form for about 3 years at that point. Colin (the drummer) and I were in a punk band before this one called “The Knockout.” we used to play with our guitar player Casey’s band a good bit. We’ve been through a few bass players but I’ve known our current bass player, James, since the 8th grade because he was dating my cousin. It all kind of came together almost accidentally. I ran into Casey one day and after we’d got to talking a bit we figured out that neither one of us was really playing in a band, so we decided to make it happen, and after that everything just kind of fell into place.

What made you decide to enter Hanson’s opening act contest?
A girl I went to school with was helping us out with all the managing and stuff, and she got an email from a promoter in the area. She brought it to me and I was really excited about it.

What were your expectations before opening? Were they met?
We just expected a great crowd. It was our first experience with a Hanson crowd, and I’d say they were certainly everything we expected and more. It was a ton of fun.

Since opening, what has your band been up to?
Since then we’ve released a record, gone on tour a few times, and tried to build up more of a following in the area. The whole thing has been going really well.

Do you have any upcoming shows?
We’re playing October 18th at Under the Couch in Atlanta with two other great locals. It’s going to be a great show, and everyone that’s anywhere close should come out!

For future band dates, stay tuned to the band’s MYSPACE

Wednesday Artist Spotlight: Robbie Gold

This week we chat with Robbie Gold, who opened for Hanson on their Live and Electric tour show at Indiana University, November 14, 2005.

Where is your band based out of?
Chicago Illinois, I’m just solo however.

Can you give us a little background on how you got started?
Basically I started playing guitar pretty late, it was about junior year in high school. I always loved singing from when i was little, high school plays, disney movies, and all that. But I definitely remember first being inspired to be a musician by the movie “That Thing You Do”. I just saw that and knew it was what I wanted to do.

What made you decide to enter Hanson’s opening act contest?
I knew Hanson from growing up and enjoyed their acoustic stuff, and loved the harmonies, so I figured this was a band who’s audience would probably like my music, because it is very similar in the sense of acoustic based and led by vocals, and I am around their age so i have grown up with probably many of the same influences.

What were your expectations before opening? Were they met?
I didn’t know what to expect. It was very cool and I liked the maturity in their music, definitely breaking away from their young brother image. They were all very nice, I just regret not getting more information about their record label, as i am in search of someone or something to get my music career going.

Since opening, what have you been up to?
I graduated from Indiana University this summer and in a quest to make enough money to live in my own apartment in Chicago, I have just been playing about 5 nights a week at restaurants, parties, bars, etc. basically anywhere I can get a gig. JBTV a long-time public access Chicago-based tv station/recording/editing studio, has actually allowed me to hang out in their studios a lot lately, and they have expressed interest in getting me a band together and recording/promoting me to the Chicago music circuit. This would be amazing, however I hate to even plug this in this interview, but I wouldn’t know where else to ask. I clearly understand the vast amount of musicians probably trying to get signed to 3cg records, but i really do feel that I am at the point that I could really be of benefit to a label and obviously vise versa as I really want to do this professionally.

Do you have any upcoming shows?
Right now I am just playing local restaurants in the suburbs of Chicago, but this winter I plan to move to the city and open for as many acts as I can, get a band together, and start headlining shows myself. My site is www.reverbnation.com/robbiegold and I am always posting my show dates on there. Thank you so much for contacting me.

thanks again,

Robbie Gold

Past Openers – upcoming dates!

Since interviews with past openers are only being posted once a week, by the time their spotlight rolls around the dates they currently have posted might have passed. Here are some upcoming dates of past openers – be sure to catch their Wednesdays Artist Spotlight in the upcoming weeks:

BUMP
Saturday October 18, 2008 Elbo Room, Chicago IL
Sunday October 19, 2008 Mr. Roberts, Madison WI
Tuesday October 21, 2008 The Waterfront, Menomonie WI
Wednesday October 22, 2008 White Horse, St. Cloud MN
Thursday October 23, 2008 Bunker’s Music Bar & Grill, Minneapolis MN
Friday October 24, 2008 Choppers, Mankato MN
Saturday October 25, 2008 Nutty’s North, Sioux Falls SD
Sunday October 26, 2008 Bar Fly, Omaha NE
Tuesday October 28, 2008 Sandbar, Vail CO
Friday October 31, 2008 Dulcinea’s 100th Monkey, Denver CO
Saturday November 1, 2008 Hodi’s Half Note, Fort Collins CO
Sunday November 2, 2008 Old Town Pub, Steamboat Springs CO
Wednesday November 5, 2008 The Bottleneck, Lawrence KS
Thursday November 6, 2008 The Grammophone, St. Louis MO
Friday November 7, 2008 Bent River Brewery, Moline IL
Saturday November 8, ,2008 Mousetrap, Indianapolis IN
Wednesday November 26th Majestic Theatre, Detroit MI

SYD:
October 11, 2008, 8:00 pm Emelin Theater Mamoreneck, NY
November 14, 2008, 9:00 pm Castelton State College Castleton, VT
November 20, 2008, 9:00 pm Lake Forest College Lake Forest, IL

Joshua Fletcher and the Six Shot Romance
October 18th at Under the Couch in Atlanta

If you head out to see a show, be sure to tell them I said hello and send a review to be posted here!

Wednesday Artist Spotlight!

Starting October 1, each Wednesday (for at least October, and hopefully a while more!) We will be featuring a small interview with the local opening bands from the Live & Electric tour. If this all goes well, it will be extended to some of the other local bands that opened on the promotional and The Walk tours. It should be interesting to see what they are all up to (and how many are still together!) after almost 3 years!