I searched high and low for a band from Jersey to feature this week, but some reason, I found myself landing in nearby Philadelphia. Thanks to the lovely Lindsay Klein and her Homegrown Spotlight blog, I came across this band Plantation and within the opening riff of “Slow Down” off of the band’s EP, Out Of The Dark, I was hooked! As I listened to each song like “Painted Desert,” “Lost Dog” and the title track, I found myself just mesmerized by their music, and singer Corey Presner had that Layne Staley and Maynard Keenan-thing going on. Coming from a huge Alice In Chains and Tool fan, I loved these guys! There was a lot of soul in the vocals and strategic songwriting.
According to their bio, Plantation formed back in 2011 by lead guitarist Patrick Fiore down in Vineland, NJ, which was the home of my former band BlackOcean. So now I don’t feel so bad picking a band from Philly, since their roots are right here in the Dirty Jersey! Fiore chose the name Plantation in honor of his desire to one day own a self-sufficient farm/recording studio and calling it The Plantation. When 2013 rolled around and after taking a year-plus off from playing music, Fiore decided to restart the band because people would not leave him alone about playing music. The current lineup consists of two original members from the original Plantation and that is Fiore on guitar and drummer Ben Torpey. Rounding out the rest of Plantation is longtime friend and bassist Matt Williams and new singer Corey Presner. In 2014, the band moved its home base to Philadelphia, where they recorded their first EP, Out Of The Dark, which they released in May of 2014. The EP earned the band their first national act support slot opening for CROBOT in Atlantic City, NJ.
This year proved to be sort of a breakout year for Plantation. As they continued to ride their wave of success from their debut EP, Out Of The Dark, the band was selected as Philadelphia rock station WMMR’s Artist of the Month in March, and they’ve also been featured twice on Lindsey Klein’s Homegrown Artist Spotlight on WDHA in both February and April. Plantation is quickly climbing the ranks in the Philly music scene as well, so check them out now while they’re hot. They have a great sound that is catchy as hell! Visit them at PlantationBand.com to find out where they’re playing next!
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
Just as I was wondering what the hell happened to my brother Joe Vidal and his band Judge The Fallen, I read that back in July, the band changed their name to Head Therapy, which features new singer Lacid all the way from Greece. Head Therapy makes their debut on October 10 at Tenth Street Live in Kenilworth, NJ with Ocean Of Illusions, Dead Eyes Of Fall, Off The Turnpike, The Dark Matters, As All Hope Dies, Lunatic Fringe and MDMG, with my brother Don Jamieson from That Metal Show hosting. For more on the new Head Therapy, visit facebook.com/HeadTherapyBand.
My bros from Lower The Veil have been laying low on the scene lately. The only show they performed this summer was the Rock Against Dystrophy show up at Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ back in August. Apparently, the boys have been under lock and key writing some new material for a new CD. I, for one, cannot wait to hear it! Keep your eyes and ears peeled on any new Lower The Veil news at LowerTheVeil.com.
And finally, my buds from the band LEEDS out of Old Bridge, NJ have released a new live CD called Live At The Bitter End via Bandcamp.com, which I feel is a pretty interesting concept for a local band. Most live CDs come from bands who’ve been around for a while, but Leeds is the second local band in a month that I’ve heard has done a live CD. My bros from Mother are also releasing one. Maybe this is a new trend for local bands to get people to their live shows? Check LEEDS out at thisistheleedswebsite.com and check Mother out at rockyourmother.com.
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:
9/30—The Jersey Panic/Sleep Cascade—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ
10/1—Pralaya/The Binary Code/One Hundred Thousand—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ
10/2—Dark After Dawn/I Contacted/Submit to Suffering/We Take the Night—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/2—The Vibrators—The Brighton Bar, Long Branch, NJ
10/7—Scott Rocco/Moon Sugar/Newborn—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ
10/9—Scottish Windows/The Winery Dogs—Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ
10/10—Don Jamieson/Ocean Of Illusions/Dead Eyes Of Fall/Off The Turnpike/Head Therapy/The Dark Matters/As All Hope Dies/Lunatic Fringe/MDMG—Tenth Street Live, Kenilworth, NJ
10/10—40 Below Summer/DizneyFist/Gravity Well/Me With Creeps/Common Wealth—Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ
10/10—Dogs of Reason/Tarpit Boogie/OGRE—The Clash Bar, Clifton, NJ
10/11—Psychoprism/Fates Warning—The Chance, Poughkeepsie, NY
10/11—GENITORTURERS / Voodoo Terror Tribe—Tenth Street Live, Kenilworth, NJ
10/11—Psycoprism/Fates Warning—The Chance, Poughkeepsie, NY
10/11—Bad Case Of Big Mouth/Save Society/No Lost Cause/A Boy Named John/The Nameless/Silent To Slaughter—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/16—Zire’s War/Barren/Chained to the Dead/Robots and Monsters—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/17—Madame Mayhem/Rabid Assassin/Resistance/ORBYNOT—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/18—The Icarus Account/Jamie Fox/Brian Lowe/Arejay Ella/Chrissie Limos— Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
10/24—Rebel Revolution/Mach 22/Pavelle/Clashing Plaid/Black Sun Rising—Bull Shooters Saloon, Philadelphia, PA
10/24—Whiplash/Attaker/Legion/The Heist—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
11/4—Scottish Windows/Skid Row—Irving Plaza, NYC
11/6—Corevalay—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
11/7—Sworn Enemy/Robots And Monsters/Hellshot/Juan Bond—The Grand Victory, Brooklyn, NY
11/13—Malvador/The Things They Carried/That of A Lion/Comb The Desert/Enochian—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
