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THE PLUNGE X DOUBLE TROUBLE: youbloom | HEADROOM #8 with Featured Artists from the Los Angeles 2015 Music Festival

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There are some good quotes out there about doing things by twos.

“Two heads are better than one.”  “There are two sides to every story.”  “Take two for a better chew.” 

Whichever way you do your sums, there can be no doubt that everything really is better with a friend. Especially true of first experiences. So we asked two members each from two different bands featured in the fast-approaching youbloom Los Angeles 2015 Music Festival & Conference to share with us their, well, side of the coin when it comes to reminiscing about that mack daddy of first experiences: the first band.

And just for fun, we’ve also got two solo artists to share their stories about the time they took the plunge.

It all adds up to double trouble.

 

Paul denmantau

Paul Weber (  Lead vocal / Trumpet / Percussion, DENMANTAU): “My first band is still the same one we founded 12 years ago called DENMANTAU. We (got together in) high school and have stayed together ever since. After graduation we went to Australia and New Zealand to discover busking, which quickly became our means of living. That enabled us to travel the whole world as I always have dreamed of. After touring two times in California we decided to move to the US, and have lived in Los Angeles over a year now.”

Julian denmantau

Julian Schonscheck (guitar/keys, DENMANTAU): “The first band I was ever in is still the same that I play in today, over 12 years later: DENMANTAU. We have quite a (history) behind us already. We started as school band, traveled half the world, played countless shows and street performances, and made the step to move from Hamburg, Germany to Los Angeles together, living off nothing but love and music. I feel so blessed to be in a group of friends that is so talented, loving and understanding. We live our lives so close together that this is not just a band anymore, it is family.”

They arrived in Los Angeles on a mission: to be the biggest band in the world. German born and bred, they’ve honed their chops and are stopping at nothing to share their tight, bohemian, insanely danceable music with every pair of ears from here to the moon. Set to be a highlight show at youbloom LA, you really need to see these guys. For fans of: the good Pearl Jam stuff, Jack Penate, Paolo Nutini

Robert blue moon

Robert Blue Moon(poet/emcee/other vox, Crvscxnt Moon): “The first band or collective I can say I was a part of was (called) Cream of the Block. It included me, my current band members Menlo and Kwazar, and a producer of ours named Chris Felix (of Cloudy River Music). We were young, talented and naïve we knew nothing close to what we know now, but we tried our hardest to make a movement via Myspace. Now that I look back on it, those were fun and easy times, but I am so happy that we have grown since then.”

Menloblack

Menlo Black(vox/raps/guitar/piano, Crvscxnt Moon): “My first music group formed in the halls of my middle school. P$C was created by a gang of T.I.-influenced southern kids. Although our run only lasted until winter break, we filled our lunch room with breakbeats built with table tops and Bic pens.”

 

Whip smart and acerbic, yet feel-good and uplifting, this is a group with cunning musical abilities and a tangible desire to venture beyond the well-tread environs of intellectual hip-hop. Crvscxnt Moon blend soul and gospel into a refreshing helping of music with something to discuss. For fans of: J. Cole, Blackalicious, Mr. Lif
Felice LaZae

Felice LaZae, singer/songwriter: “I’m a solo artist, but I always perform with a band so I guess my answer to this would be when I first started performing with my own full band live at a public venue (excluding school performances in high school and college).  The first time I performed with my own full band was a few years ago at El Cid in Los Angeles.  It was my first big show in LA.  I remember I had been sick the week before and had to go on vocal rest so I couldn’t sing during our rehearsal.  I mouthed all of the words while the band played without me.  It was the oddest rehearsal, but by the night of the show, I was ready to go and it went great.  I loved it so much and I’ve been gigging ever since.”

Joining the ranks of powerhouse women in the music industry – the kind who know exactly what weapons they wield in the form of vocal might, presence, and prowess – comes Felice LaZae, a blaze of a thing; confident, sharp as nails, and already racing her way to the top. Which is right where she belongs.  For fans of: The Black Keys, Betty Davis, Imelda May
Shira Yevin
Shira Yevin (frontwoman, Shiragirl): “My first band was my own;  it was just me and a DJ (back in the day before I had my whole punk rock band), (and) yeah, we were pretty bad. (The DJ) had never sung before, and I needed backup vocals, so I kind of just threw her out there on stage with me. It didn’t help that a lot of the first songs were pretty bad too. But hey, we were inspired, and we had the passion!”

Not one to mess with, Shiragirl’s been doing her own electropunk thing and making no apologies whatsoever for over a decade. Striking out on her own from an all-girl band to make music at once gritty and groovy, she’s all of the party and none of the prissy. Bring your best dance partner and get ready to rock. For fans of: Candy Hearts, a less trite Ke$ha, Natalia Kills

MY FIRST TIME: youbloom | HEADROOM #7: with Featured Artists from the Los Angeles 2015 Music Festival

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Researchers have discovered that most of your earliest memories are lost to the eroding forces of time by the time you turn 7. Since most adults don’t retain recollections from before the age of 3, that means that you’ve got four good glory years in childhood where only the best times come out of the memory dump unscathed by this childhood amnesia.

Not surprisingly, the memories you do still hold on to from this period are associated with events and experiences that so profoundly shaped who you would grow up to become that they’re literally unforgettable.

For those who’ve gone on to identify themselves with the unpredictable medium of music, the impressions that music first made on their gonzo little kiddie brains feel like they happened just yesterday. Artists from five of the bands playing the upcoming youbloom LA 2015 Music Festival share theirs with us for this Lucky Number Seven edition of HEADROOM. Do enjoy the trip down memory lane. 🙂

 

Aigua UPDATED

Alper (guitar, backing vox, Aigua): “My first experience with music was setting up drums made out of pots and pans to play along with songs on TV.”

Danielle (lead vox, Aigua): “My first experience with music was definitely in the womb, where I was introduced to The Grateful Dead and various other jam bands and genres of music. My earliest (actual) memory of performing was bouncing around my grandfather’s music room with my cousins, dancing and singing to the first NOW CD.”

A Turkish-Brazilian duo with a new twist on latin sounds firmly in their crosshairs, Aigua deliver sweet, sparse melodies in their signature laid-back way. Expect a set that will refresh your ears after a long day of gig-hopping. Beautiful work. For fans of: Sufjan Stevens, Maia, Rodrigo y Gabriela

 

Victoria Scott PIcture YB Blog

Victoria Scott (lead vox, The Blue Dolphins): “When I was very little my Dad had an amazing collection of LPs called Rock Revival, an anthology of rock and roll with about 8 discs in the set. They included songs by Otis Redding, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, The Angels and The Rolling Stones…to name a few. It was heaven. My sister and I would dance around the living room to those songs. Of course, we wrecked my Dad’s LPs with our clumsy child hands picking up and putting down the needle of the record player with a bump. I really regret that now.”

The once acoustic-driven sound of The Blue Dolphins has evolved, blending clear, pretty vocals with south-of-the-border, surfy sentiments, and something altogether harder to pigeonhole. Unabashedly succinct, feel-good tunes from a duo who, from the sounds of it, are just getting started seeing what they can do. For fans of: The Sleepovers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, a sweeter, less fuzzy Mika Miko

 

Damessa

Damessa (power vox, Crvscxnt Moon): “My first singing lesson wasn’t until I was 10 years old. I was fresh meat at a performing arts school (Osceola County School for the Arts). I enjoyed every moment of it. (It’s where) I learned the basics of music.”

Whip smart and acerbic, yet feel-good and uplifting, this is a group with cunning musical abilities and a tangible desire to venture beyond the well-tread environs of intellectual hip-hop. Crvscxnt Moon blend soul and gospel into a refreshing helping of music with something to discuss. For fans of: J. Cole, Blackalicious, Mr. Lif

 

Carolina Carito Plaza

Carolina Plaza (composer/vox, Carito Plaza): “My romance with music start when I was 17 years old and my classmates from my new school forced me to sing in the Voice Festival; my first time in front of a crowd. I was a very shy girl; so nervous I was shivering…but I won and I never left the stage after that.”

Jazzy and sensual R&B is given the latin treatment in the hands of the very talented Carolina (“carito” means little Carolina) Plaza. A capable collaborator, but strong enough to stand alone,her music is danceable, infectious, and smooth. For fans of: Aaliyah, India.Arie, a one woman TLC

 

Jonas denmantau

Jonas Gerigk (guitar/vox, DENMANTAU): “My parents took me to a music festival when I was 12 years old. I saw bands like The Prodigy, Iggy Pop, Staind and my favorite childhood German punk band Die Ärzte. I had listened to rock music before but this festival made me feel the rock’n’roll lifestyle! The smell of weed and beer everywhere; happy, drunk and dirty people all over; everyone dancing and enjoying themselves in a peaceful way. I was fascinated by the positive group vibe and the idea that we all came together for the sake of one thing: music! It made me realize that music causes a harmonic connection within all of us and it’s been my dream to play in festivals ever since.”

They arrived in Los Angeles on a mission: to be the biggest band in the world. German born and bred, they’ve honed their chops and are stopping at nothing to share their tight, bohemian, insanely danceable music with every pair of ears from here to the moon. Set to be a highlight show at youbloom LA, you really need to see these guys. For fans of: the good Pearl Jam stuff, Jack Penate, Paolo Nutini

 

What about you? Is your first memory musical? Or did something stand out in later life that brought music into focus for you? Share with us in the comments below.

How to be a great lead singer

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how-to-be-a-good-lead-singer-hot-sprockets-youbloomDublin
The Hot Sprockets delivering at youbloom Dublin

Mike Murphy explains that fronting a band is no easy task and examines the issue of how to be a great lead singer.

Anyone that thinks being a great lead singer is easy does not understand the skill. Sure, anyone can stand up in front of a band and pose as a lead singer and vocalize in some manner, but that is not what makes them great. Mastering the skill takes developing charisma, timing, having a solid understanding of the material being presented, delivery of the material, and a voice that fits the genre. We have all seen lead singers we have loved and hated.
It’s a rough business.

How many of us have looked at and listened to a band and evaluated the singer to a higher standard? I think we all have; it is instinctive. Why? I think many people, especially non-musician types, do not recognize being a lead vocalist as a real instrument; like drums, guitars or keyboards. Being the lead vocalist is perhaps the hardest instrument to master! A band can have all great musicians, but if the singer sucks, the overall opinion of the band suffers.

Sure there have been lot’s of bands who have made it in the music industry without the luxury of a serious or strong lead vocalist. Some last only a short time and have lineup changes. Other bands, adapt the music around the singers voice and make it work. I won’t cite specific examples because my opinion may differ from someone else’s as to what is good and what is bad. However, I can think of great punk bands and rock bands that made the music work around the abilities of the singer.

When I evaluate a lead singer’s talents, I first decide how his or her look fits with the band. Let me give you an example. If you are watching a heavy metal band and the singer is dressed like he is in a surf music band, in Hawaiian shirt, shorts and flip flops, I might wonder what is going on. I would be distracted by that personal presentation because it does not fit the genre. I don’t care how good the singer is, he or she is a fish out of water. A singer has to look the part depending on the music being played.

I want to know if the lead vocalist can really sing and/or is singing on key. Granted, different genre’s have different ways of “singing” the lyrics. I get that, but the important part is how he or she will manage that vocal ability throughout the show. Is he or she going to lose power with their voice or lose it entirely. Singing death metal and pop music are two completely different styles and presenting the vocals is very different. Some would argue that yelling vocals and screaming are not singing. It is expression and singing is just that; expression. Some singing is just more melodic than other styles.

I grade hard on what the lead vocalist is doing with themselves while performing or while the band is playing and they are anticipating the next line. Is the posture good and appropriate for the tune being performed? Certainly you would not want to see a vocalist presenting an aggressive posture while doing a soft ballad! Turning your back on the crowd is a big no-no in my book. Back away and go get your sip of water, tambourine or whatever you need to do. How much does the singer interact and look at the crowd; not just the people up front, but the sides, the middle and the back of the venue? Using the entire venue is critical.

Being a lead singer is definitely not easy. It is very much a skill. Mastering that skill takes a lot of hard work and dedication. Many will fail a bunch of times before he or she finds the right fit and can consistently perform the craft. In many ways becoming a professional lead singer is a survival of the fittest activity. The music industry, especially for a lead vocalist is a rough business. The strong will survive unless he or she has self sabotaging behaviors. That’s a topic for another blog. Happy singing!

Mike-Murphy-youbloom

Post by Mike G Murphy. Mike G. has been writing songs for 35 years. He studied voice at United States International University in San Diego California and has a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Phoenix.

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