Fossil Generation
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Fossil Generation

Muncie, Indiana, United States | SELF

Muncie, Indiana, United States | SELF
Band Rock Alternative

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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Press


"Muncie Music Fest Hosts Up-and-coming band Fossil Generation...."

"One notable progressive rock act that took the 7:15 p.m. slot on the FM music stage was Fossil Generation. With songs consisting of wailing guitar solos, moments of improvisation, and the incorporation of space noises from a synthesizer along with auxiliary percussion and groovy drum parts, its high-energy live set really stuck out in comparison to the hip-hop act prior or the country act that followed. Imagine what a modern day Jimi Hendrix would sound like, mashed together with the Mars Volta, and sandwiched in with musical characteristics similar to that of Muse, Radiohead and sometimes Tool. This is the live sound of Fossil Generation.
The local Muncie quartet, formerly known as Bradley Thomas & Friends, all met at Ball State and are no amateurs when it comes to gigging around Muncie.
“We usually play out in Muncie every couple of months or so,” said Bradley Thomas, singer, songwriter and lead guitarist. “We’ve also played Muncie MusicFest last year, Muncie Gras and Muncie RibFest.”
Thomas is a former Ball State student who planned on double majoring in Japanese and telecommunications.
The band’s collective favorite experience from the festival was the crowd and their reactions.


“It’s really cool that a lot of people came out early and stuck around to see us play. We weren’t really expecting that,” Thomas said.
He believed the bigger crowd would start to come out later on in the evening, but that ended up being not exactly being the case. The band members agreed that the most memorable moment of their set was the reaction of the crowd, one intoxicated senior citizen in particular.
“I remember looking up from playing and seeing a drunk guy just jumping up and down,” Thomas said. “He was really getting in to it.” - Ball State University Daily News


"Fossil Generation To Appear At Muncie Music Fest 2012"

Previously known as Bradley Thomas & Friends, Fossil Generation is no newcomer on the midwest music scene. Last year, the band performed many of Muncie's big events including Muncie Music Fest 2011, Muncie Gras, Muncie Ribfest, and countless performances at downtown Muncie's favorite music venue Doc's Music Hall. Now under a new name and with a whole new arsenal of mind-blowing material, Fossil Generation proves that there is no limit in the directions they can go with their sound. By combining elements of progressive rock, metal, punk, and pop, the band seamlessly weaves between sounds and genres, leaving no empty space untouched with their music. Fossil Generation further solidifies their own reputation by putting on one of the most energetic acts in the midwest at the forefront of the underground music scene. - Muncie Music Fest


"Fossil Generation To Appear At Muncie Music Fest 2012"

Previously known as Bradley Thomas & Friends, Fossil Generation is no newcomer on the midwest music scene. Last year, the band performed many of Muncie's big events including Muncie Music Fest 2011, Muncie Gras, Muncie Ribfest, and countless performances at downtown Muncie's favorite music venue Doc's Music Hall. Now under a new name and with a whole new arsenal of mind-blowing material, Fossil Generation proves that there is no limit in the directions they can go with their sound. By combining elements of progressive rock, metal, punk, and pop, the band seamlessly weaves between sounds and genres, leaving no empty space untouched with their music. Fossil Generation further solidifies their own reputation by putting on one of the most energetic acts in the midwest at the forefront of the underground music scene. - Muncie Music Fest


"Muncie Band Looks Toward Second Album"

"They sound like a stripped-down version of The Fratellis with blunt vocals and pop riffs vaguely reminiscent of Yellowcard and a spaciness to the guitars that flirts with the line between a purposeful disorganization and a stark descent into chaos.
In the two years since Bradley Thomas & Friends was formed, the band has gone from playing house parties to being regulars at Doc's Music Hall and Be Here Now. After releasing an EP, they completely overhauled the style and lineup of the band, released their first full-length CD, and toured locally and regionally.
For frontman and guitarist Bradley Thomas, the past two years have been about discovering who he is as an artist and what kind of band he wants to be a part of.
In the beginning, Bradley Thomas & Friends was more of a pop group, focusing on catchy vocal melodies. The style demanded a lot of singing from Thomas, who ultimately felt he would rather base the band's sound around the instruments.
"I kind of really wanted to show people that I was a better guitarist than I was showing at the that time," Thomas said. "Every now and then, I'd have a cool guitar part but it was kind of boring."
In January, Thomas replaced the drummer with current band member Ryan Minton and got rid of the keyboardist and second guitarist altogether.
"They weren't changing with the rest of us and we were changing a lot as a band at that time," Thomas said.
The changes included a more balanced amount of singing and instrumentation in each song, and a more organic approach to songwriting. Practices became about improvising together. Minton would start a beat on the drums and Thomas, along with bass player Shawn Ayala and hand percussionist Seth Scales would build upon it with their instruments. They would then pick out the parts they liked best and turn them into songs.
This method is how Bradley Thomas & Friends wrote their debut album "Zeta Reticuli." Moving from one extreme to the other, Thomas focused almost exclusively on the guitar. When the time came to record "Zeta Reticuli" in May, Thomas had never actually sung three of the songs on the album.
"I was pretty confident in the way the music sounded," Thomas said. "I just kind of looked at the sheet for a second and sang it in my head, and usually I would have the producer play it ... And the next take I did it, that's usually the take we kept."
"Zeta Reticuli" was released on July 5 and has sold over 150 copies, including 60 from Amazon.com and iTunes sales.
The band will be back in the studio in November to record their second album, which Thomas said will be a throwback to the group's original pop style.
"I kind of feel like we made a huge jump from the old band to how we sound now on [‘Zeta Reticuli']," Thomas said. "The idea is to go back and make an album that is supposed to be kind of in between that album and our old EP."
The second album will also include more instrumentation than the first. While "Zeta Reticuli" was lightly-produced in order to create a sound in keeping with live performances, this new effort will have a lot more instrumental layering to create a fuller, more developed sound.
"Last time it was about making an album that was fun to play live," Thomas said. "This time we're making an album that's ... a good album. The focus is to make a really big, epic, awesome album, regardless of whether it's doable live."
The band plans to use violins, string basses and cellos in addition to a piano and the possible addition of a second guitar line.
Thomas said the band intends to take their time recording and releasing the second album, unlike the first, which was recorded in four days and released less than three months later. They plan to record 20 songs, twice as many as their first album, then spend a few months perfecting them and paring the playlist down to around 12 songs. The remaining unused songs will likely be released online as an EP.
Because of the time involved in writing and recording such a lengthy album, Bradley Thomas & Friends have scaled back on their live performances. Until July, they were playing nearly once a week. According to their Facebook page, Bradley Thomas & Friends have three shows scheduled for the rest of the year: Stik Nite Fest on October 14-16, Nov. 4 at Doc's Music Hall and Nov. 11 at the Earth House in Indianapolis.
Local performances will likely continue to be limited in the future as Bradley Thomas & Friends focus on growing fan bases in other cities and consider a possible move.
"I kind of feel like that's the next step, to get out of the Midwest," Thomas said. "[We want to] do exactly what we did here, just slowly take over, get people to know who we are and spread out in a circle in the surrounding areas until everyone knows who you are." - Ball State University Daily News


"Live at Muncie Music Fest 2011"

“For two solid years, Bradley Thomas and his friends have been in constant pursuit of musical adventure. When listening through the band’s earlier work with their EP ‘Casual Friday’ (2010), a quirky pop sensibility emerges on top of a garage-rock sound. In the first year of the band, many band members came and went, making each show quite unique in comparison to others. However, the band finally reached a stable lineup in early 2011, replacing their drummer in favor of a more complex style that could utilize the use of hand percussion and drums to create a unique groove beneath intonation of the guitar and bass. In doing this, the band created a completely unique style of their own, one which combined elements of progressive rock, indie rock, pop, and punk.
In lieu of this style, the band wrote and recorded their debut full-length album in spring of 2011. “Zeta Reticuli” (2011) was released on July 5, and took advantage of the many talents of the multi-talented members of the band. The band performed their last show on Nov. 4, 2011 at Doc’s Music Hall in their hometown of Muncie, Indiana. They later went on to form the band FOSSIL GENERATION.” - The Scene from Indiana Public Radio


Discography

"PRIMITIVE"
released: May 2013
label: TBA
tracklisting:
1. Majestic
2. Deep Space Underground
3. Earthbound (In My Head)
4. Blue Chariot
5. Nebuloid Stargazer
6. Ambidextraterrestrial
7. Curious Furs
8. Primitive
9. Solaris
10. Jupiter Coil

"ZETA RETICULI"
debut full-length album
released: July 5, 2011
label: self-released
tracklisting:
1. "Light Up the Sky"
2. "Barney & Betty"
3. "Coming From Quebec"
4. "Altered States"
5. "Other Mother"
6. "Confabulation"
7. "Restless"
8. "Roles Reversed"
9. "Zeta Reticuli"
10. "Hills"

**("restless" was aired on Shine 99 radio out of Indianapolis. "coming from quebec" was aired on multiple college radio stations throughout the midwest, mainly from Ball State University and Indiana University, and was also aired on WERK104.9. "barney & betty", "coming from quebec", and "confabulation" receive considerable amount of daily rotation on local muncie radio station 88.7)

Photos

Bio

On the verge of releasing their much-anticipated debut full-length album, "Primitive," Fossil Generation has continuously been taking the midwest by storm. With a uniquely new presentation on progressive rock, the band chooses to excel at finding new genres amidst improvised jamming to create a multitude of layers that create their sound. In doing this, the band has created an album that presents itself as a blend of indie rock, punk, and even bits of metal, all while remaining true to their own sound.

(taken from Muncie Music fest 2012's website)
"Fossil Generation is no newcomer on the midwest music scene. Last year, the band performed many of Muncie's big events including Muncie Music Fest 2011, Muncie Gras, Muncie Ribfest, and countless performances at downtown Muncie's favorite music venue Doc's Music Hall. Now, with a whole new arsenal of mind-blowing material, Fossil Generation proves that there is no limit in the directions they can go with their sound. By combining elements of progressive rock, metal, punk, and pop, the band seamlessly weaves between sounds and genres, leaving no empty space untouched with their music. Fossil Generation further solidifies their own reputation by putting on one of the most energetic acts in the midwest at the forefront of the underground music scene."

Fossil Generation's debut album "Primitive" will be released digitally on May 28, 2013.

Band Members