One band that really impressed me at Rock The Raceway in Englishtown a couple of weeks ago was a band formerly known as Friends Of Bill Wilson, but are now calling themselves Lower The Veil. Musically, songs like “Stand,” “The Sawyer,” and my favorite track, “The Giving Tree,” reminded me of Chevelle. Singer Damien Baldwin sounds nothing like Pete Loeffler but the music and arrangements of these tracks just reminded me of Chevelle, and that’s not a bad thing! Trust me, these guys rocked!
Singer/guitarist Damien Baldwin has fronted the band since 2005. Damien, who actually comes from a musically-oriented family, also served in the U.S. military. The main songwriter in the band, Damien has been writing his own music since he was a kid. In 2008, bassist Rob Lampe would hook up Damien after many years of fronting his own band. Rob is also a professional sound guy with his own production company called 10lb Productions. Drummer Casey Ferry joined the Friends Of Bill Wilson project back in May 2011 after performing with bands like Disgruntled Postal Workers and The Saltwater All-Stars. Casey’s chemistry with Damien and Rob was unmatchable. After performing as a trio for a while, Damien and Rob decided to add another guitarist to the live band in the form of Chris Siano, who performed with Casey in The Saltwater All-Stars.
This past January, Damien decided to officially change the name of the band to Lower the Veil to give the band a new lease on life with a new drummer and guitarist. He now feels that the band has become a well-oiled, creative machine. After nearly a year of being in the works, Lower The Veil has finally released their second CD, The One Hundredth Monkey, and they’re currently playing everywhere possible to promote the CD. If you’d like a sample or want to find out where Lower The Veil is performing next, log onto reverbnation.com/lowertheveil.
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
The boys from Killcode are in the running to have their song “Liberated” featured in a brand new Dodge commercial. The track would be perfect for the commercial, so let’s hope the boys get it! You can log onto reverbnation.com/killcode to vote for their song and download it for free!
The Bad News will be opening for the mighty Steel Panther at the Starland Ballroom on Aug. 16! If you haven’t bought your tickets yet for this show, what the hell are you waiting for? You’ll laugh your balls off while having them rocked at the same time! Steel Panther are one funny bunch of dudes! If you haven’t checked out Jimmy Forest’s new band The Bad News yet, give them a listen now at reverbnation.com/thebadnews69, where you can also hear their new song “Head Over Heels,” which, to me, sounds like it has a Mötley Crüe influence! Check it out now!
And finally, I have to say that the Rock The Raceway event a couple of weeks ago was simply amazing! From the bands, which included Monmouth School Of Rock (who just blew me away), Xero Gravity, Ixion Lux, Lower The Veil, Black Water Rising, Exxplorer, the return of Prophet, who brought out current Accept singer and former T.T. Quick singer Mark Tornillo to jam on a T.T. Quick song (highlight of the night for me!), and rounding out the night was Black Label Society bassist, J.D. DeServio, and his band, Cycle Of Pain, to the special guests of the evening like Eddie Trunk from VH1’s That Metal Show and Jose Hernandez Jr. from HBO’s Oz. Promoter Scott Michalowski, photographers Sandi Murphy and Jeff Crespi, the Old Bridge Metal Militia, and, of course, Aarius Studios owners Joe and Crystal Cattano and their crew of Aarius misfits all played a key role in making sure that this event was a complete success! I was proud to be a part of it and look forward to more shows like this to promote local music in the future!
That’s all for now! If your band is from North Jersey, and you want some exposure, send your press kits to Arts Weekly, c/o Tim Louie P.O. Box 1140, Little Falls, NJ 07424, or you can email me at tim@theaquarian.com, where you can also let me know where you’re performing next!
Just remember….We’re all in the same boat, so every little bit of exposure counts!
Tim Louie is the Author of S**t Happens.
NJN Concert Calendar:
8/1—Steve Brown—Valley Stables, Oakland, NJ
8/2—Julius Seizure/Thanatotic Desire/Darkness Descends/Iratetion—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
8/4—Black Water Rising/Kix/Our Black Friday—Rockin’ The Lake Summer Festival, Pompton Lakes, NJ
8/4—The Brigantines—Harvey Cedars, Long Beach Island, NJ
8/4—Mass Punishment—The Brighton Bar, Long Branch, NJ
8/10—The Brigantines—Langosta Lounge, Asbury Park, NJ
8/11—Lower The Veil—Seven Days Bar and Grill, Keyport, NJ
8/11—Panzie*–The Legendary Dobbs, Philadelphia, PA
8/14—Steve Brown—Rhodes North Tavern, Sloatsburg, NY
8/16—Scarlet Carson—The Delancey, NYC
8/16—Steel Panther/The Bad News—Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ
8/16—Steve Brown and Dennis Zimmer—Sands Casino, Bethlehem, PA
8/17—InDisguise—Le Grande Fromage, Atlantic City, NJ
8/18—John Rango and Friends—The Canal Day Festival, Wharton, NJ
8/18—Steve Brown and Dennis Zimmer—Sand Bar, Brielle, NJ
8/24—Audio Machine—The Blue Room, Secaucus, NJ
8/24—Set It Free/Skid Row/L.A. Guns—Bergen PAC, Englewood, NJ
8/24—Steve Brown and the Fallout—The Beachcomber Bar, Seaside Heights, NJ
8/31—Kosmic Daydream—Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, NJ
