Turquoise Boy: An Equation For Success
1/23/12

Turquoise Boy is one of Anchorage’s only suppliers of upbeat dance-rock for fans of Foster the People, Portugal. The Man and AWOLNATION.  The quartet made a splash into the Anchorage music scene with their performance at the homecoming show for Portugal. The Man, Jingle Ball 2011, early last month.  While they were virtually unknown by casual concert-goers and promoters alike, the group quickly earned respect among both their fans and peers by providing the guests of Jingle Ball with a stellar opening performance.  The band’s Facebook page quickly filled up with compliments from people who had never heard of the group before their opening debut, and their page jumped in well deserved “likes” overnight.
 
Not only does Turquoise Boy give a phenomenal live performance, the quality of their recordings is incredible as well. Quite frankly, the first time their song “Burn Down” played on my nightly shift at KZND, I was shocked to hear that this band was local. They are an extremely talented group of musicians, and offer a taste of pop music that Anchorage is fairly devoid of.  They have a commercial appeal that attracts fans of all ages, while still edgy enough to satisfy even the pickiest hipster.  It’s rather impressive that the band achieved so much success in such a short period of time, and I was curious to know what the inner workings of the band were like.
 
According to bassist Marc Bourdain, the band is composed of hardworking dudes, all with a background in music. Marc himself works with the Monolith Agency, guitarist / vocalist Derek Mangrobang operates nearly an entire recording studio out of his kitchen, and guitarist Winston Montecillo and drummer Kelsey McGee have been involved with music nearly their entire lives. The band recorded their entire EP themselves, and has clearly put in the time making their sound unique and catchy.
 
It’s fairly clear that they quench a thirst for dance-rock that Anchorage has been lacking for quite some time. “We want to make people dance,” says Marc.  “We love hooks, and the bass is meant to be felt and not thought about. We just want people to have fun, and that’s 90% of the inspiration.” The other 10% of their inspiration can be summed up by the fact that, frankly, chicks dig dudes with guitars.
 
It’s extremely apparent to me that Turquoise Boy is going to go far, at least in the Alaskan music scene, if not further on in the fiery trenches of commercial music. “At this point our plan is to stay self-produced,” says Marc. Clearly they have a grasp on what it takes to be successful in this business. “Much of our success comes from just working hard and being respectful, and try[ing] to be on time. Bands are a business at the end of the day, a really complicated, ego, booze-filled business. You have to be good with your money, protect your assets, take risks, and be respectful of those in the business.” Keep your eyes and ears locked on Turquoise Boy in 2012, and to those of you performing music yourselves - pay attention to their tactics, because they’re certainly doing it right.

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12.12.11
The Pros and Cons

The Pros and Cons are quite possibly Anchorage’s best-kept musical secret. A quartet of extremely musically talented men in their 20’s, the group has been playing together in different reincarnations since 2007, but still have yet to make a splash in the Anchorage music scene with their current formation. To be frank, I was blown away when front man Joe Johnson (rhythm guitar / vocals) invited me to sit in on one of their practices. I had heard of them only in passing, brought up on the bill of small bar shows and restaurant background music, and was expecting a decent sound, but nothing groundbreaking – after all, it’s pretty common for a band’s cohesion to need work in the early stages of performing. I introduced myself, gathered a smidgeon of background information, and sat down as they jumped into a short set of their original music.

Two aspects of their music struck me immediately: 1; that they were incredibly cohesive, regardless of the fact that they’re generally unknown in this town; and 2; that each member was incredibly musically talented.  They performed their songs with ease, and were extremely comfortable with both their instruments and presence.  Their music is a flavored with intricate guitar melodies, haunting vocal harmonies, and a generally groovy undertone that (as cliché as it sounds) inspires any listener, young or old, to get up and dance. They describe their music as dance-rock, and can best be described as the lovechild of Incubus and the Ben Folds Five. Joe Johnson and Jason Searle split both the vocal and guitar parts, with Johnson taking a heavier load vocally and Searle contributing more intricate guitar melodies.

Bassist Aaron Schlosberg and drummer Adam Waldron not only provide a solid rhythm backing, but also contribute their own melodies and flavor to the Pros and Cons overall sound. With any artist, it’s pretty rare to be able to pick out any instrument, follow it throughout the course of an entire song, and still be musically satisfied, but each member of The Pros and Cons is so musically talented that they combine each of their own elements seamlessly, creating a wonderfully pleasing product.

 

When the band paused for a water break, I immediately jumped on the question that had been on my mind since I walked into their practice space – where the heck did these guys come from? They revealed that rather than jumping into playing shows immediately after forming, they took this past summer and recorded a full-length album out of a home studio. The album is still in post-production, but will be released in early 2012. It was an interesting route to take, but it definitely gave the band an upper hand during their live concerts. All members are performance veterans, so recording each song immediately after forming and solidifying each part’s musical integrity allows them to play amazing music and perform comfortably onstage simultaneously. 

 

The Pros and Cons don’t have too many big concerts on their plate for the next few months, with the exception of an opening slot for the Turquoise Boy CD Release Party in January. However, keep a close eye on this quartet. Their musical product is of a unique flavor, and will please any audience, and hopefully, you’ll see them take this town by storm in 2012.
 

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12.05.11
READY AIM TIMBER

I’m currently sitting on the floor of a hotel room off of 3rd Avenue with 11 dudes, watching “Teen Wolf” trying to find a way to write a serious article about this posse of men who call themselves “uncaged manimals” on a regular basis. Only 3 of the guys in this group of hooligans surrounding me are musicians in the metal band, “Ready Aim Timber,” but the others are regular faces in the posse of scene-sters that make up Boy’s Club, the group of friends associated with RAT. It dawns on me that the true story of Ready Aim Timber is not in the nuances of their passionate southern metal-core music, but within the lifestyle the band and their friends have manifested in Rage City – a lifestyle of hilarity and pure insanity that filters through flawlessly into their live performances.

Ready Aim Timber’s performances are some of the best in the Anchorage underage music scene. The band has an impressive repertoire, including opening slots for Between The Buried and Me, Eyes Set to Kill, 36 Crazyfists and the band’s personal triumph, opening for Every Time I Die with Wichita Shadows at Club Millennium last year.

Ready Aim Timber shows are fast paced, passionate, and tend to carry a healthy serving of shock factor.  Fans bask in the ability to stage dive continuously throughout the show, and vocalist, Matt Young, demands that the crowd not only pay attention to their set, but that they take part. The first time I saw RAT, Matt literally leapt off the stage to shove his face into the kids lined up against the back wall, screaming, “If you’re not going to get in the pit, I’m going to bring it to you!’ I’ve seen him hang from rafters by his knees. I’ve seen countless death stares from sound guys concerned about the weight of a 6-foot-4 bassist on top of their half-stacks. I’ve heard record executives talk about Mac, saying “finally, a drummer that actually hits his drums.” Brandon Parry, though considerably more socially reserved than the other members, flips a switch onstage and “throws down” as hard as the most rowdy guitarists while still showcasing his abilities. Their concerts are much like the house parties that tend to immediately follow because they give Anchorage kids a facet to forget about their lives and completely lose control for a few hours.

Ready Aim Timber formed in early 2009, originally with a different vocalist. When he moved to Juneau in 2010, the band was primed for the entry of an experienced, passionate vocalist who was just as insane as the Talkeetna/Trapper Creek boys, Mac, Brandon, and Jens. Young was introduced to the trio through their brother band, To The Depths, and clicked instantly. Unfortunately, after a year and a half of intense, passionate concerts, the band is in the early stages of a year-long hiatus while Young fulfills his duties with the U.S. Military.  Despite the fact that he is not an original member of Ready Aim Timber, he is dedicated enough to the band that the other members have put the groups advancement on hold until they can continue as the close-knit group of hooligans that they have become. 

Ready Aim Timber is by no means done melting faces in Rage City. Expect much from these boys over this next year – and even more when they reunite as a passionate quartet in 2013.