Since the demise of one of my favorite local bands, Dead Letter Box, singer David Alexander and drummer Tony Ortiz have been laying pretty low working on their craft and writing new material. It was only a matter of time that they were going to explode right back onto the scene with a vengeance. Even when I was living in Astoria, NY, near the dynamic duo, I would hear some of the new tunes they were writing together, but I had no idea that it was going to become this monster that they call Auraborus! I had the opportunity to jam with David a few times in his down period, and he’s even sung lead vocals on the Lesson In Violence stuff, which features members from Split Vision and the Marc Rizzo Band. Tony, whom I used to see on the “N” train almost everyday, texted me to check out the new band Auraborus, and I almost “Auraborussed” in my pants when I heard the thunderous “I Am Your God” and the more melodic “Your Dark Past.” David’s trademark vocals and Tony’s thunderous drumming are alive and kicking!
The word Auraborus is derived from the ancient alchemy symbol “Ouroboros,” which depicts a serpent or dragon swallowing its own tail and forming a circle. The symbol symbolizes self-reflexivity, cyclicality, rebirth, renew, and constantly re-creating oneself. The symbolization of “Ouroboros” is the best way to define the band members of Auraborus—singer David Alexander, drummer Tony Ortiz, guitarists Mike Iadarola and Paul Milne, and recently added bassist Joshua Kerekes. All five of the band members seem to have met in a transitional time in their lives, and now they see a renewal stage in their life about to happen.
The music has the ability to take a music lover on many different journeys as the music expresses all of the hardships and betrayals that they’ve experienced and in turn giving life to new experiences. Their music is like a work of art, well colored in by each instrument with layers of vocals that you don’t normally hear from a local band. I can see big things happening for Auraborus! Now, they just have to start playing out! Give them a listen at myspace.com/auraborus, and maybe you, too, can “auraborus” in your pants after listening to their music!
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
The boys from With Daggers Drawn have a brand new song on their MySpace page, myspace.com/withdaggersdrawn. The song is called “One Night Dance” and was recorded and self-produced in their own rehearsal studio in Clifton, NJ. Chris Clancy, singer from the band Mutiny Within, handled the mixing duties on “One Night Dance,” while local guitar virtuoso Angel Vivaldi handled the solo. Angel actually played a bunch of live shows with the guys from With Daggers Drawn. You can download “One Night Dance” for free at purevolume.com/withdaggersdrawn. Catch them live at The School of Rock in South Hackensack, NJ, on Halloween Night with Haste The Day. For tickets, email the band at wddband@yahoo.com.
New Jersey legends Non-Fiction will be hitting the stage together for the first time in 10 years on Nov. 7 at Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ. I recently ran into Non-Fiction singer Alan Tecchio and asked him how the rehearsals were going for the highly anticipated reunion show. He answered, “They are going great! It’s like putting on an old glove—the fit is just fantastic and natural! Once we launched into the old songs, it sounded pretty damn solid even though we haven’t played together in 10 years.” I guess we’ll just have to see for ourselves! Tickets for the Non-Fiction reunion show are on sale now at dingbatznj.com.
And finally, Joe and Crystal Cattano, owners of Sayreville’s Aarius Studios, have just released the latest installment of their new reality series Project: American Studio. The series is a behind-the-scenes look at the daily “ins” and “outs” of a recording and rehearsal studio where the characters are the employees and the bands that rehearse at the facility. The unique thing about the show is that most of the bands featured in this column are customers of the studio and can be seen on an episode. This recent episode shows owner Joe Cattano playing drums for Savatage and T.S.O. guitarist Chris Caffery as they geared up for a show at Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ. Also on the episode is my singer J from Mean Venus and his Crazy Ass American CD photo shoot, which also featured various Aarius girls. To find out more about Project: American Studio, log onto myspace.com/ProjectAmericanStudio or to watch all episodes of the show, log onto youtube.com/user/ProjAmericanStudio.
That’s all for now! And remember, 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!
NJN Concert Calendar:
10/14—KrashKarma—The Trash Bar, Brooklyn, NY
10/15—Eden Star—Crocodile Rock, Allentown, PA
10/15—Queen V—Crash Mansion, NYC
10/15—KrashKarma—Sweeny’s, Philadelphia, PA
10/16—ZO2—Mercury Lounge, NYC
10/17—Diablo Royale/Shadows Lie/Borgo Pass—Crash Mansion, NYC
10/17—Crawl 2 Chaos—Uncle Mike’s, NYC
10/18—Eden Star—Mexicali Blues Café, Teaneck, NJ
10/18—KrashKarma—J.D. McGillicuddy’s, Philadelphia, PA
10/20—KrashKarma—The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ
10/22—Serotonen—R Bar, NYC
10/22—Queen V—Don Hill’s, NYC
10/22—Eden Star—Crossroads, Garwood, NJ
10/22—KrashKarma—Doc Watson’s, Philadelphia, PA
10/23—Bled For Glory—Axis Lounge, Carlstadt, NJ
10/23—Atom Strange—The Bowery Electric, NYC
10/23—Avenida—I.M. Automata Chino, Jersey City, NJ
10/23—KrashKarma—The Beehive, Lawnside, NJ
10/24—Black Water Rising—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/24—Beatrix Kiddo—The Italian American Club, Jackson, NJ
10/24—KrashKarma—The Sterling Hotel, Allentown, PA
10/25—KrashKarma—J.D. McGillicuddy’s, Philadelphia, PA
10/27—KrashKarma—The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ
10/28—KrashKarma—The Trash Bar, Brooklyn, NY
10/29—Our Black Friday—Mexicali Blues Cafe, Teaneck, NJ
10/30—Kosmic Daydream—Cornerstone Inn, Carlstadt, NJ
10/31—Knollwood—Chiller Theater, Parsippany, NJ
10/31—Beautiful Disease—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/31—With Daggers Drawn/Haste The Day—School of Rock, South Hackensack, NJ
10/31—Diablo Royale—Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, NJ
