One band that has really been tickling my fancy lately is a band out of Long Island, NY. I’m not sure if they’ve made it across the river yet to our shores of NJ, but they should! The name of the band is Borgo Pass, and I discovered them through my boys from Killcode. Borgo Pass has the feel of Down and then some. When I say Down, I’m saying that they sound like them. I’m saying that they used that Southern metal feel with their Southern metal riffs and while blending in the Phil Anselmo-like vocal styling of singer James Tamarazzo. I really liked what I heard on the band’s MySpace page and think that these guys can be huge. Songs like “14 Days That Killed Me Slow,” “Wrong Man,” and my favorite song, “Ace Down,” could keep you begging the band for more songs!
Borgo Pass is a five-piece from Long Island that was formed in the mid-’90s. They’ve built themselves quite a large and loyal fan base over the years creating quite a buzz in the heavy NYC music scene. Borgo Pass mixes hard rock/heavy metal with southern rock from the late ‘60s and ‘70s and they churn it together with a more modern and aggressive approach to create the sound that they have today. Their second CD, Powered By Sludge, which was released in early 2000, was the CD that brought them the attention that they were looking for on the music scene. Fans began downloading their songs like crazy via MP3.com. The disc caught so much attention that it was named as one of the “Top 10 CDs of 2000” by the Netherlands’ Aardshock Magazine! Borgo Pass’s newly found attention grabbed them opening slots for bands like Type-O Negative, SuperJoint Ritual, Alice Cooper, Queensryche, Shadows Fall, Alice In Chains, Clutch, Kittie, Anthrax, Biohazard, Life Of Agony, Kings X, The Misfits, Vince Neil (Motley Crue), Overkill, Dokken, and W.A.S.P., just to name a few. Borgo Pass is made up of singer James Tamarazzo, guitarists Paul Rosado and Tom Crane, bassist Joe Rega, and drummer Joe Wood.
The band continues to play the local Long Island music scene. I personally think that Borgo Pass would do really well here in North Jersey, too. If you want to hear what they sound like or want to add them to your bill on a heavy rock night, contact them on their MySpace page, myspace.com/borgop ass. Trust me! These guys kick some major ass!
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
Did anyone get a chance to listen to WFDU 89.1FM this past Saturday night? Evan Toth without his Excuses played host to a three hour radio program that he called Good Music, where he spun nothing but holiday songs that were recorded by major artists and aren’t heard on mainstream radio. Evan Toth dedicated one full hour to just playing holiday stuff off of vinyl, which made this show even more unique. If you missed the show, I need to apologize because Evan sent me the press release a week too late! Anyway, the show really got me into the Christmas spirit! Check out Evan Toth And The Excuses at evantoth.com.
The boys from Echofission have recently added a new song to their MySpace page called “Door” off of their CD, The Straights. Fans of Echofission and radio stations have labeled “Door” as the most “pop sensible” song on the record. The song is very poppy and happy-go-lucky! Check it out for yourself at myspace.com/echof ission. You can also see Echofission live this Saturday night, Dec. 27, at The Thirsty Toad in Lodi, NJ, as they perform their annual holiday show. They’ll play two sets starting at 10 p.m. sharp!
And finally, I recently got a text from my old Smoke Star singer, Ivo, and he told me that his new band Mercury Morning had new songs posted on their MySpace. So, out of curiosity, I went and gave it a listen. I thought that these tracks were really strong and I felt that Ivo’s vocals really sounded great. I especially liked his vocal on the song “Say.” I also really liked what bassist Daichi Kono was doing on the bass. He really colored the song in with his bass lines. I think that Mercury Morning could be a band to watch out for in 2009. Check out the new songs “If We Love” and “Say” on Mercury Morning’s MySpace page, myspace.com/ mercurymorning.
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!
