A BOY NAMED JOHN—Parsippany, NJ
I stumbled upon this hidden gem out of Parsippany, NJ who I am loving at the moment. I have to say that I really liked what I heard of this band so far. The name of the band is A Boy Named John, which is weird because no one in the band is named John, but their music is awesome! I checked out the band’s latest music video for their song “Gentlemen” and I loved it. I needed to hear more, so I clicked on the music video for a song called “Sir Rock” and I loved the arrangement of this track. Singer Christian Singh has such an amazing voice too.
The guys from A Boy Named John have never shied away from expressing their distinctive musical visions. According to their bio, the band was first a vision between good friends on a middle school playground. The band has since journeyed from the stages of school dances and auditoriums to opening for major acts like You Me At Six and The Academy Is at Starland Ballroom in Slayerville, NJ and The Spill Canvas at Webster Hall in NYC. A Boy Named John was named in honor of the guys’ middle school music teacher, who blew the first breaths of inspiration into these fledgling young musicians. A Boy Named John first made their mark onto the Jersey music scene with the release of their 2014 EP, Or So It Seems, which was often compared to bands like My Chemical Romance and Bayside. The band’s deeply intimate lyrics blended nicely with their theatrical performances and really earned them some notoriety within the Jersey music scene as they watched their fan base grow. Joining singer Christian Singh in A Boy Named John are lead guitarist Josh Lustig, rhythm guitarist Jack Lips, bassist Nick Spillert, keyboardist/guitarist Paul Singh, and drummer Dean Mulligan. Yes, that’s three guitarists.
Since the release of their debut EP, Or So It Seems, A Boy Named John has been performing continuously throughout the East Coast, spreading their music around like wildfire to a massively growing and passionate fan base. Back in June, the band independently released their first full-length CD, So We Live | So We Die. The band is determined to leave a mark on the music scene wherever they stop and perform. You have to check these kids out. They write some pretty damn good music! Visit them at ABoyNamedJohn.com.
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
My brothers from Brand Of Julez have released some artwork for their upcoming CD, Forward. According to frontman Julez Zamora, “We wanted the album artwork to show from dark to light and from bad to good, because no matter how many times Brand Of Julez has been set back or been knocked down, our love of music and our belief in ourselves has always kept us pushing Forward.” I definitely can’t wait to hear this CD in its entirety. I love the drive in these kids. For more on Brand Of Julez’s new CD, Forward, visit Facebook.com/BrandofJulez.
The guys from Gathering After Ashes are looking for a new bass player. They posted on their Facebook page, “Gathering After Ashes is holding open auditions for a permanent bass player. We’re located in Passaic County, North Jersey. Please read the below requirements, and PM us for more details if you’re interested: Must have transportation, must have professional gear and must commit to playing 1 to 2 shows per month in Tri-state area, and weekend rehearsals on Fridays and Saturdays.” That seems pretty fair! If this is you, contact Gathering After Ashes at Facebook.com/GatheringAfterAshes.
And finally, how about the Dark Sky Choir guys putting out an original CD? I thought that they were just a cover band this whole time, and boom! My bros, guitarist Freddy Gorhau from Wizards Of Winter and bassist Joe Stabile from Lords Of Mercy, had announced at the end of January that they were heading into Trax East in South River, NJ with producer Eric Rachel to lay down tracks for their first CD of original music! Good for them and I can’t wait to hear it! The boys will be celebrating with a CD release party at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ on June 23. For more info on Dark Sky Choir, visit Facebook.com/DarkSkyChoir.
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:
3/9—Hecyos—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/11—Black Night Revival—Arlene’s Grocery, NYC
3/11—Overkill/Nile/Amorphis/Swallow The Sun/Xenophile/We…Our War/Enrage—Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ
3/11—Despyre/Black Dawn/Steel Reign/Funghoul/Atomic Minds/Steel Spades Syndicate—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/11—Steve Bello/Uli Jon Roth—The Chance, Poughkeepsie, NY
3/12—Rahway/Sekond Skyn/Negative Sky/Travel Amygdala —The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ
3/12—Trace Your Steps/THEWARWITHIN/Sinking Monroe—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/13—OG MACO/Young Greatness—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/14—Angelmaker/Falsifier/Extortionist/Filth/Ender—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/17—Jaded Past—The Brighton Bar, Long Branch, NJ
3/18—Judas Priestess/Natural Born Losers/Symetria/Corners Of Sanctuary/White Void/Firefight/Cold Blooded Capital/Kold Blooded/Prince and Beggar—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/22—Tarpit Boogie/Reign of Zaius/Borgo Pass/False Gods—Arlene’s Grocery, NYC
3/23—DOPE/Combichrist/September Mourning/Davey Suicide/Panzie*/Deprived—Highline Ballroom, NYC
3/24—Lane Six Present: Last In Line—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ
3/24—Skunk Daze CD Release Party/Disposable/Taylor and The Apes/Montgomery—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/25—Jersey Campfires Production Presents: Rahway/Palaceburn/Know Your Enemy/Sucker/Sinertia/Answer Infinity—Tenth Street Live, Kenilworth, NJ
3/25—Killcode/Baelfire/Corevalay/Ryder/The Shade—Stanhope House, Stanhope, NJ
3/26—Match Party/Cover Her Face/Drakensberg/Signals of Bedlam/VIV—QXT’s, Newark, NJ
3/31—Lane Six Presents: Tim “Ripper” Owens/Ghost of War—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ
4/2—A Boy Named John/The Rose Monarch/Nominee/Sundressed—William Paterson University Student Center, Wayne, NJ
4/8—Voodoo Terror Tribe/Binary Code/Seas of Wake/Orbynot—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
4/8—Steel Panther—Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, NJ
