LOLA MONTEZ

A Tinder date gone wrong. A wife who dreads her murder. Confessions of a jilted lover, wasted youth and surreal erotica.

No subject matter is out of bounds for NASHVILLE rock band LOLA MONTEZ. Fresh off the recording of their debut release, the band is intent on hitting a raw nerve with music fans far and wide.

Singer and frontwoman, Inga Rudin, toured previously with the band NAKED BEGGARS, which featured Eric Brittingham and Jeff LaBar of CINDERELLA. Rudin says, “We like to hear each other out, not judge, and let the music flow.” This is echoed in the diverse sound of the group, also consisting of guitarist Blake Scopino and former SKINNY MOLLY/BLACKFOOT drummer Kurt Pietro.

Pissed-off punk riffs, brazen vocal belts and raucous drums deliver, as do jangly guitars and syncopated beats woven through wide-open choruses. Lola asserts plenty of muscle but with its pop sensibilities firmly in tow. You get hooks alongside a brooding, drop-tuned guitar coated with an icy edge. For this band, the attitude is in the authenticity.

The origins of Lola can be traced to casual encounters and coincidences over several years within Nashville’s burgeoning music scene. What used to be friendly acquaintances pursuing separate projects eventually became fiercely committed bandmates sharing in the thrill of musical co-creation.

“We aren’t just three people who have come together by accident,” says Rudin. “It’s kismet. We listen. We react and become one. We are one.”

PINE TRAVELERS

Pine Travelers create original music based in roots rock and expanding into tight funk grooves, while also gleaning the best elements of outlaw country, folk, and bluegrass to inform their songwriting.

After forming a songwriting partnership in 2013, founding members Nick Clutter and Alex White released the album, “Float On” in 2014, followed by a band name change and subsequent release of Pine Travelers’ self-titled debut album in the spring of 2015. Their songwriting and touring schedule have showed no signs of slowing down, with over 120 performances in 2017 alone, and plans for a new album release in 2018.

Since their formation, the band has brought their live show to countless theaters, clubs, bars, and festivals throughout much of the U.S. The group’s songs allow for a dance-able, energetic show of tightly composed songs, exploratory improvisation, and honest, meaningful lyrics reflecting their northern Midwest roots, and the unique music/arts scene of their home base of Madison, WI. In their songwriting, Pine Travelers strive to portray their simple, hard-working values: rural values meshed with urban sensibility; exciting & engaging sets of rustic roots music with a funky modern twist.

They’ve also performed big sets at quality festivals, like Midwest Music Festival (MN), People Fest, Steel Bridge Songfest, Moondance Bluegrass Fest, Ifdakamp Festival, and Blottopia, sharing the stage with acts like Particle, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, Billy Strings, Pert Near Sandstone, Charlie Parr, Mr. Blotto, Cornmeal and many more!

THE FLETCHERS

With time comes experience, and in the three years since their third album, Heroes of Gravity, quaked across college radio, the Fletchers have added and reflected upon many of life’s ups and downs. Collective and individual, the experiences have made a home on the NJ-based indie band’s latest effort Reset the Dial, and the result is nothing short of poetry. Sometimes loud and raucous, at time cerebral and emotional, the album shows the boys have grown, but will never completely grow up.

You thought it was just right for you / You held it in your hands / But then it slipped right through / Always move on to something new / But novelty wears thin / Now what you gonna do – “Right for You”

The 12 tracks on Reset the Dial conjure some classic themes – love, loss, fear, isolation, restlessness, and starting over – all expressed with familiar optimism that frontman and guitarist Gary Kaplan frequently breathes into his lyrics. Musically, it delivers powerful, fuzz-laden melodies, lush vocal harmonies and impassioned verses, with the subtle influences of iconic artists such as Guided by Voice, early REM, J Mascis, and Bob Mould weaved throughout.

“We’ve been together as a band for almost eight years, and we’ve gone through a lot together and separately,” said Kaplan. “When we started writing this album, we were all very much in different places; we’ve faced significant changes with family, friends, and even jobs. Some of us have become parents for the first or second time. When you’re looking at those kinds of challenges and life changes, you sort of take stock in where you’ve come from and where you’re going. Through everything, the band has been a constant and we were still inspired to make an album and have it be something special. Reset the Dial is the result of all that we’ve been through.”

With releases each year since the band formed in 2008, The Fletchers’ first three albums were written and delivered with rapid urgency. For this fourth album, the band took a slow cooker approach – experiencing life changes and relishing the freedom to write and perform, and finally record and produce on their own terms. Band members Kaplan, Dan Coffey (bass and backing vocals), Rob Freda (guitar and backing vocals) and Cliff Heaton (drums and backing vocals) collaborated more on Reset the Dial than previous efforts, drawing from broader inspiration and experiences and offering some deeper influences and musical elements. When it came to committing songs to tape, Kaplan pursued along with co-producer and recording engineer Erik Kvortek.

Painted with brush strokes of British rock and American indie, tracks like “For the First Time” and “Perfect Daughter” cover subjects like pain and fear and letting go, while the title track deals with rising above a messy and hurtful relationship. The gifts that life offers through friends and family are deftly covered in tunes like “What You Want” and “All I Want is You,” and the reflection on early influence and reverence is found in a captivating cover of The Clash’s “London Calling.”

“Three years has offered the time to play and work out the songs that make up Reset the Dial, and over that time we’ve continued to develop as a band. I, for one, am a lot more confident,” said Kaplan. ” There’s more range to the vocals, and overall more textured sound. We weren’t afraid to be too sweet. We weren’t afraid of being dark. We’ve really painted pictures that tell stories with these song, and we feel good about this chapter.”

THE FUSTICS

Whether with his backing band, The Fustics, or performing as an acoustic artist, Brad Heller has established himself as a credible force among current songwriters. Honing his craft for over a decade and a half the Wilmington, North Carolina, transplant has built a reputation as a thoughtful songsmith who tackles a wide range of personal and social issues. Bouncing between a myriad of genres, Heller finds creative drive in honoring musical influences that inspired him, while never abandoning his own unique sound.

Set to release his fifth full-length record, The Sentence, Heller continues to build his audience with constant touring and spirited live shows. Voted Wilmington’s “Best Original Rock Band,” Brad Heller and the Fustics will be hitting the road in full force in 2018 and beyond.

SEAN K. PRESTON & THE LOADED PISTOLS

Sean K. Preston & The Loaded Pistols is a nationally touring band from Baltimore, MD. Recently signed to RUSTY KNUCKLES MUSIC , their new album “Forgive” is due for release in November 2018. Currently, the group is touring the country to share their raucous honkytonk, dirty blues, roadhouse rock ‘n’ roll, and tear jerking country balladry.

The music of Sean K. Preston draws heavily on the influences of the classic heartbroken sounds of Country & Western music from the 40’s through the 70’s, the honesty of the Blues by the likes of Robert Johnson and John Lee Hooker, the bombast of 50’s Rock’n’Roll, the lyrical sophistication of musical poets like Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan and Nick Cave, the raw energy of Punk, and the spirituality of Mountain Gospel. His own songs range from delicate laments and lullabies to fiery sermons and confessions.

Sean’s interest in music developed as a teenager while growing up in Alice Springs, a small desert town in northern Australia. Sean fell in love with the early Rock ‘n’ Roll, Country, and Blues that filled his father’s record collection. When he and his family moved to the United States, Sean would go to his first rock concerts, inspiring him to learn guitar. Eventually, Sean’s music took him to Ireland where he made his living performing on the streets of Dublin. His move back to Baltimore prompted a successful solo career with his self produced debut record “Hoarse Whisper” and his 6 song EP “Sean K. Preston.” In 2013, Sean began to form his touring band “Sean K. Preston & The Loaded Pistols” and released a full length album, “The Colt From Old Regret.” The addition of two integral members in 2013 and 2015 gave Sean the audacious sound he was searching for.

Christopher “Sparky” Spiridigliozzi went from beating on trash cans as a kid growing up in Hampton, VA to drumming and singing in gigging garage rock bands by the time he was 16. Sparky taught himself guitar during his time in the US Navy and eventually made his way to Baltimore where he spent 7 years playing guitar and singing as the frontman for Mother Jefferson. After building a career in radio and raising a family, Sparky went back to drums full time playing for numerous Baltimore based garage, surf, and punk bands. When he is not touring, Sparky is expertly repairing vintage drum kits at Baltimore’s most reputable drum shop or writing and recording for his solo musical project, Sparky’s BUTTERKNIFE.

Cory McGrath was raised on Black Sabbath and Bad Company in the military town of Browns Mills, NJ. His love for playing music began with drums, but he would later go on to play upright bass for 8 years with Full Blown Cherry. Cory’s style is heavily influenced by the sounds of 1960’s garage rock and high octane country. He currently resides in Philadelphia, PA. When Cory isn’t playing music on the road you can find him hunched over his 1944 Chevy project in the garage or driving around in his 1976 Ford Torino.

Sean K. Preston & The Loaded Pistols have appeared on stage at Muddy Roots Festival, Westport Roots Festival, and Crooked Smile. They spent this past winter in the studio recording their upcoming album and shooting music videos. With a national tour coming up this fall, the band is spending the summer touring the east coast and working on new material.

It’s Blues – Punk – Country – Rock’n’Roll…Amen.