Hard Rock Daddy presents Music Discovery Monday – 3/30/15.
Each week, the HRD team shares songs that fly below radio’s radar, ranging from lesser-known artists to deeper cuts from both up-and-coming and established artists.
In addition to exposing the Hard Rock Daddy audience to new music that isn’t getting the attention that it deserves from radio, Music Discovery Monday also features a segment called “Hard Rock Music Time Machine,” which showcases older songs (from the 70s to today) that hard rock music fans may have missed at the time of release.
In addition to appearing on the embedded YouTube playlists beneath each section, all songs featured on Music Discovery Monday can be listened to by clicking on the hyper-linked song titles.
This week, Poynte guitarist, Matt Bryant discusses the inspiration and meaning behind the first song off of the band’s latest release, “Take Control.”
ADAM WALDMAN – (Publisher, Hard Rock Daddy)
POYNTE – “Take Control”
Like many hard rock artists today, Poynte has had to deal with challenges to get to where they are today, not the least of which is finding the “right” lineup to move forward with as a unit. It took a while for the current lineup to come together, but it was worth the wait. With a solidified lineup, Poynte is poised to build upon the success that they have already achieved. The band won the 2012 Ernie Ball Battle Of The Bands and in that same year, also won Cabo Wabo Your Shot to Rock. From the band’s latest release, Discreet Enemy, “Take Control” offers a taste of what the solidified lineup is capable of creating together…an edgy sound featuring big hooks, vocal harmonies and meaningful lyrics.
In a Hard Rock Daddy exclusive, founding member/guitarist, Matt Bryant, offers insight to the inspiration and meaning behind “Take Control”…
“This is the opening song of the album, and also the inspiration for the album title. The song is about taking control of YOUR life and not letting anyone else determine your destiny. To most people, it carries a political overtone, but we prefer to leave the lyrics open to interpretation. We feel that it’s important to write songs that the listener can find their own way to identify with.
The pre-chorus of the song says…‘discreet enemy, don’t let them take control,’ which is the underlying story to nearly every song on the album. It’s hard to recognize an enemy when they promise you the world. Every song speaks to a different situation where we learned who our friends and enemies were, and tells stories of overcoming and triumph.
‘Take Control’ was the first teaser track that we released from the album. We felt it was a fit to give a glimpse into the album as a whole.
Our first official single from the album, ‘Hold On,’ will be released in the next couple of weeks, accompanied by our first official music video.
We are currently involved in the Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands to earn a slot on Rock On The Range. CLICK HERE to give our tracks a listen. If you like what you hear, and want to support us, share the page and leave a comment letting us know what you think!”
BREAKING BENJAMIN – “Failure”
In 2010, while touring to support their album, Dear Agony, Breaking Benjamin went on hiatus due to Benjamin Burnley falling ill, and unable to tour in support of the record. After dealing with legal issues and a number of lineup changes (Burnley is the only original remaining member), Breaking Benjamin has finally returned. Released on March 23rd, “Failure” is the first single off of the band’s much-anticipated upcoming album, Dark Before Dawn, which will be released in June. With “Failure,” Breaking Benjamin is picking up right where they left off before the extended hiatus and lineup changes.
JON LOVELESS – HRD Music Scout
MELLOWTOY (f. CRISTIAN MACHADO) – “Chain Reaction”
Hailing from Milano, Italy, the band’s latest release is heavy on screams/rough vocals, but really shines to me on the clean choruses. The guest appearance by Cristian Machado from underappreciated “Latin Metal” standouts Ill Nino is welcome, but doesn’t take away from the song. Enjoyment will likely depend upon your tolerance for the vocal style, but there’s enough here to warrant a listen to see whether it fits into your own personal listening rotation.
THE TAKING – “Never See Me Again”
Self-described “electronic rock” band from San Antonio, Texas delivers more punch than the genre label might suggest on this track from their debut album. While they cite sonic similarities to bands including Linkin Park, Imagine Dragons and Breaking Benjamin, this track comes over more to me as a lighter/more electronic version of Device. Hard to explain but that’s what I hear every time I listen to this particular song, which works better than I would have guessed.
ROB DELL’AQUILA – HRD Music Scout
THE POODLES – “House of Cards”
Swedish melodic rockers, The Poodles, released their new album this week, Devil in the Details. “House of Cards” is an early favorite, boasting the hooks and drive that they’ve become known for, along with some gritty guitar work.
TALON – “Sin City Sister”
Talon pounds out old school hard rock for the modern era. On their fourth album, Fourplay, they reunite with original lead singer Michael O’Mara, and from start to finish, everything continues to click. His soaring vocals melt right back in with the grooving guitars of Kory Voxen and Jim Kee.
CHRIS HERZEGOVITCH – HRD Music Scout
PHOSPHENE – “Anti-Hero”
New release from Phosphene. Captivating voice and great energy from one of Chicago’s up-and-coming metal bands. Signature sweet vocals rising above the edgy, heavy rhythm line. You’ll get a charge out of this one!
OSTROGOTH – “Clouds”
Belgium’s Ostrogoth has been around since 1976. This track is old-school metal with a glory theme. Great guitar work, especially on the intro. It’s rare for them to record; this is the first studio work since 1987.
HARD ROCK MUSIC TIME MACHINE
ADAM WALDMAN
BLACK ‘N BLUE – “School Of Hard Knocks” (1984)
Many people know Tommy Thayer as the guitarist who replaced Ace Frehley in KISS, but long before he donned the Spaceman makeup for the first time, he co-founded the Oregon hard rock outfit, Black ‘n Blue. The band garnered early attention for their song “Hold On To 18” (which is still a popular rock anthem), but couldn’t sustain their early success. By 1989, the band went their separate ways, but have since reunited, albeit with varying lineups. And though KISS is Thayer’s top priority these days, he does reunite with his original band from time to time. “School Of Hard Knocks” is a classic hard rock anthem that still holds up to this day.
LITTLE CAESAR – “Hard Times” (1990)
Back in the late 80s, when L.A. rockers Little Caesar arrived on the scene, the expectation was that they would become a household name. By all rights, they should have, especially given the team of heavy hitters that they had behind them (Jimmy Iovine, John Kalodner and Bob Rock). As the saying goes…timing is everything. While some speculated that their gruff appearance didn’t quite match their sound, the more likely explanation is that they fell prey to the machinations of the music business. Musically, the band deserved a much better fate. Though they ended up parting ways, they stayed close and eventually reformed. Here’s hoping that the “hard times” are behind them as they take a second bite of the proverbial apple.
JON LOVELESS
STATE OF SHOCK – “Have A Nice Day” (2011)
Perhaps the best illustration of how wide the border between Canadian success and U.S. success can be is this Vancouver-based band. A multi-format success in Canada, the group never really broke through into the U.S. mainstream, and that’s a shame, if not an outright disgrace. Talented, personable, highly accessible, with smartly written lyrics and hooks that could snag a whale. Arguably my favorite song of all of 2011, and certainly one of my most-listened to and most talked about.
ANTHRAX – “Fight ‘Em Till You Can’t” (2011)
Over the past few years, this legendary member of The Big Four has quietly scored at least a half dozen “hits” that landed on either on the Active Rock or Mainstream Rock airplay charts. Conventional wisdom would be that it’s hard to have a “hit” that’s relatively unknown, but such is my perception of this track from the album Worship Music. Perhaps not a groundbreaking song, nor an all-time great, it’s still a contemporary take on a popular theme (zombies) and worthy of more recognition than it received. Sometimes great really is the enemy of good.
ROB DELL’AQUILA
SALUTE – “Heart Of The Machine” (2010)
Mikael Erlandsson of Last Autumn’s Dream contributes vocals and keyboards while Martin Kronlund mans the guitar on this, the title track, from Salute’s 2010 album. The hooks are big, there’s a monster chorus, and they’ve even got David Reece (Accept, Tango Down, Bangalore choir, and soon…Bonfire) on backing vocals.
REECE KRONLUND – “Magic Pudding” (2011)
Having collaborated previously in Gypsy Rose and Salute, guitarist Martin Kronlund and vocalist David Reece reunited in 2011 for the album, Solid. “Magic Pudding” was my favorite from that undeniably “solid” album, highlighting the incredible skill of both artists in an aggressive piece with some bluesy undertones. Watch for Reece later this year fronting a new album for German melodic rockers Bonfire.
CHRIS HERZEGOVITCH
NEVERLAND – “Take My Advice” (2007)
Swiss power/prog metal band Neverland released this gem back in 2007. Hard driving from the start, “Take My Advice” establishes a sense of urgency that is the undertone of this confident and inspirational tune. This is a tight, skilled band that doesn’t miss a beat through many tempo changes customary to the prog genre.
WESTWORLD – “Illusions” (1999)
Another Tony Harnell project from back in ’99 featuring Mark Reale from Riot and Bruno Ravel from Danger Danger. Excellent musicians with rock in their DNA belting out a inspired melodic metal.
SUBMISSIONS
To be considered for Music Discovery Monday, please e-mail a link to the song being submitted on YouTube and an artist bio to…
submissions@MusicDiscoveryMonday.com
[…] Like many hard rock artists today, Poynte has had to deal with challenges to get to where they are today, not the least of which is finding the “right” lineup to move forward as a unit. It took a while for the current lineup to come together, but it was worth the wait. With a solidified lineup, Poynte is poised to build upon the success that they have already achieved. The band won the 2012 Ernie Ball Battle Of The Bands, and in that same year, also won Cabo Wabo Your Shot to Rock. From the band’s latest release, Discreet Enemy, “Take Control” offers a taste of what the solidified lineup is capable of creating together…an edgy sound featuring big hooks, vocal harmonies and meaningful lyrics. (MATT BRYANT discusses “Take Control”) […]