For the second week in a row, I went over to Sonicbids.com to listen to some new music, and I stumbled across a band from Brooklyn, NY, that I really fancy. The name of the band is West Of Seven. Now, some of you might say, “But they’re from Brooklyn!” Yeah, they are, and there’s a reason for that! Out of all of the bands who did submit to Sonicbids.com, there was not one good band from North Jersey for me to feature! Come on, North Jersey bands! Step it up! I had to go out of state just to find a band to feature!
Anyway, that’s enough ranting about the North Jersey music scene! Upon checking out West Of Seven’s Sonicbids page, I caught their song “Life Of My Design,” which is an excellent rock song that can easily be heard on a rock radio station here in NYC. I proceeded to listen to songs like the CD’s title track “Be My Cure,” “On My Own,” and “Stage Rush” on their Sonicbids page and each song is listenable and exhibits excellent musicianship, from the rhythm section to the guitar work to the vocals of Mike Bonfiglio.
West Of Seven was originally formed back in 2003 in Brooklyn, NY. Each member of the band is a nine-to- fiver with hopes of making West Of Seven a full-time gig, but then again who isn’t trying to do that? The band’s debut CD, Be My Cure, shows how hard these blue-collar workers can rock! Singer Mike Bonfiglio’s lyrics and all around vocal ability is the forefront of what West Of Seven is all about. Guitarist Sean Doran’s guitar tones provide just the right mood for these tracks while bassist Juan Bastidas and Tramaine Cashmere’s thunderous rhythms motivate the aggressiveness of the tracks. West Of Seven’s fan base continues to grow with each show that they play in the NJ/NYC music scene. Their CD, Be My Cure, is available for $5 on the band’s MySpace page, myspace.com/westofseven, where you can also here what West Of Seven sound like or even find out where they’re playing next.
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
The dynamic sister duo that I know as HelenaMaria recently made an appearance on the Rachel Ray Show. Not for their music, unfortunately! The girls made their appearance in a Rachel Ray “Steal vs. Splurge” segment where they modeled wedding dresses. Pictures from the episode, as well as new concert dates for the girls can be found at myspace.com/helenamaria.
My boys from Hello Eden have finally posted some new music on their MySpace page from their untitled upcoming CD. The songs “Caroline,” “Yellow Hell” (which I know they wrote about me!), and “Number 7” all contain that unique Hello Eden sound! Only on these songs, it sounds like the boys have grown as musicians, and have grown together as a band because they just click! You have to check out the new tracks at myspace.com/helloeden.
And finally, I want to take a second to congratulate one of my old high school chums from the band Echofission, guitarist John Rango, on the birth of his daughter, Delilah. I would’ve congratulated John sooner, but I just read the email about it! In more Echofission baby news, bassist Mike Jaskewicz also welcomed his son Andrew into the world, so congrats to Mike, as well. Apparently, the babies will be making their Echofission debuts at The Black River Music Festival on August 16 in Chester, NJ, to watch their dads perform. For more on Echofission, log onto echofission.com.
That’s all for now! If your band is from North Jersey and you want some exposure, send your demos and press kits to Arts Weekly, c/o Tim Louie P.O. Box 1140 Little Falls, NJ 07424. No cover bands, please!
Just remember… We’re all in the same boat, so every little bit of exposure counts!
