ADMIRALS

Documentary focused on the lives of indie artists in specific music scenes. Sponsored by Chevy and aired during David Letterman - Chevy Music Showcase

Documentary chronicling pro-supercross racer Ryan Villapoto's return to professional racing. - Specialized

Stillwater’s Admirals released their self-titled debut EP today on Dallas-based Idol Records. The 6-track EP is full of melodic guitar and key work teamed up with a driving rhythm section. The band leans heavily on their influences (Radiohead, Interpol, Keane, etc), but deliver a sound that is a culmination, rather than an imitation, of those artists. The EP was co-produced by Norman’s Trent Bell (The Starlight Mints, Evangelicals). - Majestic Show

Who likes indie music? I do. Who likes good local music? I most definitely do. The Admirals are a band from Stillwater, Okla., home of Oklahoma State Univ(<<<my school!!). The four man band performed at on Library Lawn on Thursday, Sept. 1 as the kick off event of OSU’s entrepeneurship club. I happened to be in Edmon Low library when they started their concert and upon detaching myself from my head phones I could hear their laid back sounds coming from outside. The music was so enticing that I couldn’t help myself, and I’m glad I did.

There music is very similar to that of Coldplay(new album Oct. 24!!) or Muse. The band consists of Colton Tucker (Guitar/Vocals), Andrew Bair (Keyboards/Piano/Guitar), Cory Brewer (Drums), and Brett Murphy (Bass). These guys really know what they are doing in their genre and their music. They create a light sound that gives you the right amount of beat to want to tap your foot and just listen, maybe sing along a little. As you can tell, many other listeners were getting the same vibe on Thursday.

Whether you are from Stillwater or not you will enjoy this band, if you like this genre of music that is. The Admirals have reported being in the recording studio. So hopefully they will be producing albums soon. They have also recently been interviewed by radio station in Tulsa, Okla. and traveling around the state performing almost constantly. They are all ready creating a name for themselves amongst fellow okies and have much potential to be heard and liked all around the world.

Keep your ears open>>Shelby Rose - Tone with voice

STILLWATER, Okla. — A Stillwater band is playing shows and readying a six-song EP for release in the near future.

Admirals lead singer and guitarist Colton Tucker said he writes the group’s lyrics about everyday feelings.

“I haven’t really gotten into a lot of story writing yet,” said Tucker. “I mean, I’m still kind of young. I don’t have any Bob Dylan stories or anything. Some of the new songs are kind of geared toward more of a serious message about life and living in the moment.”

Tucker is joined by keyboard player Andrew Bair, drummer Cory Brewer and bass player Brett Murphy.

Bair describes the group’s music as “kind of underground” but “not unreachable.”

“We’re just always working toward exposing the music to people, whatever method possible,” he said as he laughed. “A lot of that is playing shows and a lot of that is behind the scenes and emails and phone calls and reading emails and then crying yourself to sleep because they don’t email you back, you know. What are you going to do?”

The group has been touring in support of their music. The band recently played a show at The College Bar in Stillwater.

“We play around Oklahoma a lot,” said Bair. “We play in Texas some and we’re playing in Missouri next month and so like a lot of little weekend trips.”

The band will also complete a small tour this summer, he said.

Admirals, while playing songs that aim at everyday life, also knows when to be less serious.

“We like our fans to have fun,” said Brewer.

He recalled having a half full beer thrown at him mid-song at a concert.

“It was (in) a good way,” he said. “He was a friend of mine. They were partying on stage, basically.”

While the group has a tight knit collection of fans and friends, it is gaining new fans at every show.

“We look for those venues where there’s people there, but no one knows who the heck we are and so, in people not knowing who we are, hopefully win them over,” said Bair.

A release date for the group’s upcoming EP has not been set.

Group members Tucker and Brewer met in sixth-grade, forming a band at age 14.

“So we did that for like four years, and then we played in our high school band contest, and we won that, and we’ve known (Brett) since high school,” said Tucker.

Murphy’s roommate had a band headlining a show, and Tucker and Brewer were set to open the show but were missing a bassist. Murphy offered to step in and play. Bair met the band members in the last couple of years, he said.

“I had a friend who introduced them to me at a party and I saw them play. It was at a house party, I think, and I enjoyed them, and we had talked about I was going to record their album,” said Bair. “I was going to record a demo for them and just in the process of kind of like getting together and recording these songs, I helped play some keyboard and synth stuff and we’re just like, ‘Why not? Why not just play?’”

All four members, under the age of 23, are set to prove themselves.

“We just want to get our name out there as much as we can, just make it viral,” said Murphy.

While many of the members expressed their appreciation for the art and love of music, Tucker said he liked the idea of music expressing a message.

“A lot of people don’t have that voice,” he said. “Either you go be a politician or you have to be rich and powerful, but music you don’t have to, and I feel it’s really nice that we’re all kind of educated, and I feel like we can put across a positive message that will help people out.”

For more information on Admirals, visit www.facebook.com/admiralstheband or on Twitter at @admiralstheband. - Stillwater News Press

While Oklahoma may not be the first place that comes to mind when you hear “indie rock hot-spot,” the state has been known to produce some innovative and influential rockers. After all, the state is the birthplace of The Flaming Lips, Other Lives, Starlight Mints, and Colourmusic. And now, the OK State can lay claim to one of the Midwest’s best kept secrets–ADMIRALS. Hailing from Stillwater, Oklahoma, ADMIRALS are quickly gaining a reputation for their melodic brand of new-wave indie-rock.

Combining elements of folk, blues, jazz, and indie-pop, ADMIRALS have been compared to a variety of alt-rock giants like Radiohead, The Verve, and Arcade Fire. And soon, you can pick up their self-titled debut EP which is expected to drop April 24. The album, which is produced by Trent Bell (The Flaming Lips, Chemical Brothers, Dressy Bessy, Starlight Mints, Chainsaw Kittens), features six tracks including “Sirens” which you can stream for free below.

Stay tuned for more exclusive information and reviews of ADMIRALS’ self-titled forthcoming album. - Pure Rock News

With its self-titled debut EP, it’s not hard to see Stillwater rock outfit Admirals wears its influences on its sleeve.
Seconds into “Sirens,” one can tell that Radiohead and Muse register high on the band’s radar, yet more bound by convention than either.

If that reads as a dig, it’s not necessarily meant to be; as much as Admirals obviously lust after that huge, space-rock sound, it also strives to be catchy and accessible. It’s simply more Chris Martin than Thom Yorke.

Lesser groups would fall flat on their faces aspiring to such heights, but Admirals’ more-than-capable core — highlighted by singer/guitarist Colton Tucker’s exceptional alt-rock pipes — easily cruises to lofty altitudes. “Heartstrings” will inspire air drumming and passionate sing-alongs in three listens or less and wouldn’t sound out of place on modern-rock radio.

The other songs touch bases across a wide spectrum, with moments akin to fellow Stillwater act Deerpeople, right at home on Interpol’s Antics, or straying into The Fray territory.

Admirals don’t necessarily find themselves over the course of the six-song affair, which mostly reads as a patchwork of influences, for better or worse. As impressive as this debut is, the polish might have erased some of the group’s character in the process. Some quirks, cracks and imperfections might actually work in its favor.

Still, Admirals’ proper introduction to the world is hugely promising, and they seem more than apt to find themselves in the company of those bands they so openly adore. —Joshua Boydston - Oklahoma Gazette

Admirals, an electro-infused indie quartet from Stillwater, OK, are clearly excited about their brand of adrenalized, cosmopolitan indie rock. Their burning, churning synths, powerful drums and layered guitars will surely hit you in the guts.

Amidst The Blue starts off admirably, with a powerful, burned out electro bassline, quickly joined by choppy, catchy guitars and disco drums on “Brand New Disease”. This is Admirals at their finest: stomping, racing, propulsive. Tucker’s vocals have enough edge to deliver the infection, taking you along for the ride. There’s sharp songwriting, quick turns, feints and jabs, only to unexpectedly fade out in a beautiful keyboard wash.

This starts the album’s finest triptych. “Where Do We Belong” sounds like some romantic, but still energetic ’80s synth pop, complete with keyboard ‘oohs’ and insanely infectious hooks. “I Want You” is ripping electro punk, with tight, punchy drums and dissonant guitars @ 120 mph. This ability to energize, to create party anthems that will move a room full of people to sweaty frenzy.

It’s when Admirals try to get deep, to evoke feelings other than party abandon, when they falter. Like on the ballad-y “Plastic Fashioned Dream”, when he’s talking about someone ripping his heart out “against a fucking wall”. The music is lush and romantic, and somewhat despairing, but the vocals lack dimension. There’s a little bit of a crack, hinting at his true heart, but it’s entirely flat and smooth, lacking dynamics and dimension. When Colton sings “Don’t you want to lose control for once?” on “Follow Me”, you wish he’d follow his own advice. “Lose control, if only for a moment”.

There is a tendency in modern society, towards über-politeness. This is fine, when riding the bus or having a conversation, but we must never forget, that rock ‘n roll is about revolution. It’s a primal id explosion, designed to upset and destabilize, and this tendency is a little disturbing.

Don’t let this deter you from giving Amidst The Blues a listen. They’re fantastic musicians, and take great care with arrangements and selecting the perfect sounds to fit each song, particularly the keyboards. They’re deadly effective at moving large rooms full of people. It is because of this potential, that I want to see more, want to see them go further, want to see them EXPLODE. - The Drainage

Sometimes it helps to not be very good.

Some of the best albums and artists were born out of happy accidents owed to varying degrees of early suckage — the perfect note or chord for a song found by missing the one you are aiming for, failed mimicry of an idol bearing something entirely new and great instead.

That’s not a problem Tulsa indie act Admirals have ever had to wrestle with or, conversely, had the benefit of struggling through. The members have been polished and accomplished from the band’s outset, and when they threw a dart at that big, arena-friendly Radiohead-meets-Coldplay sound, they landed it squarely in the target.

But for all its merits, the band’s 2012 self-titled debut EP came too easily. Its six songs weren’t necessarily bland but hedged nondescript, neglecting the edge alternative rock demands. There were bright spots, but for the most part, Admirals sounded too focused on sounding like your favorite band to find an identity of their very own.

That changes with Amidst the Blue, the band’s new full-length effort. The four-piece finds itself by shedding away any preconceived notion of what the band is or should be, engaging every whim and executing each one precisely.

Chiefly, it feels like a band that has broadened its scope. The group flirts with the crossover alternative of Incubus (“She’s Delicate”) brooding new wave dance jams (“Brand New Disease”) and pop-bent post-punk straight out of 2005 (“I Want You”), successful in each go.

But that eclecticism feels organic, bred inherently instead of externally stamped in. More so than ever, Admirals embrace and play well with their instincts. And as good as the end product is, you hope they continue to trust them moving forward.

Aforementioned opener “Brand New Disease” marks a quick jolt out of that polite, mom-approved territory, an electrified and excitedly jumpy song that brings the spark the band’s early material needed so badly and rides it like lightning. “Where Do We Belong” cements the shift, working a disco-tinted dance-rock groove that doesn’t lose a single watt of that early energy.

The pierced “I Want You” only ups the ante with each passing frenetic, breakneck guitar riff, giving into a more subdued trio of “Plastic Fashioned Dream,” “Sideshow Melody Life” and “Sirens” (reworked from the EP) that dip more into their older selves. To call it a swoon would be harsh, but the mid-album swing doesn’t reach the same heights its early and later efforts do.

Singer Colton Tucker really shines through in the album’s final moments — namely late-album anchor “Follow Me” — recalling current alt-rock powerhouse vocalists like Young the Giant’s Sameer Gadhia. Most of Amidst the Blue boasts a similar radio-rock appeal, much in thanks to Tucker’s dynamic voice and his soundly professional backing cast.

And it’s more than apparent that this has been the band’s goal all along — and the building blocks were always there. Admirals just needed to ditch the instruction manual and let their imagination run the show. - Oklahoma Gazette

Formed in 2011, Stillwater’s Admirals has been forging full-steam ahead from all angles, taking seriously the responsibilities of finding its sound and of reaching out to an audience at home and across the nation. Keyboardist Andrew Bair took the time to answer a few questions.

Q: How did time on the road supporting your self-titled EP shape your sound, going into recording the new full-length “Amidst the Blue”?

Andrew Bair: We released our self-titled EP in April of 2012 and toured all over that summer for a couple months. We happened to do a lot of writing before/during the tour, so a lot of the songs from “Amidst the Blue” actually were nailed down during that tour. It definitely made us more confident, but a lot of the songs on the new album were from even before we started playing out of state that often. Though our writing style hasn’t changed greatly, we have played in front of all kinds and sizes of crowds in all kinds of different venues. From the sold-out shows to the “opposite of sold-out” shows, touring really opens your eyes to the full scale of the ups and downs of being in a band.

Q: I get the sense that from the get-go, Admirals always planned on building up a national following — at the very least, you had a plan of some kind for growth. How did you approach your band’s decisions with a clear goal in mind?

Bair: When we first got together, we didn’t really know what we wanted this project to turn into. All of us have experience in business management, marketing and entrepreneurship, whether in school at (Oklahoma State University) or in our alternate professional lives. Once we made the decision to actually be a band, it made sense for us to take it as far as we could go.

Q: You started out in a production role for Admirals, then transitioned to joining. How did it come to that?

Bair: Initially, I saw (guitarist/vocalist Colton Tucker and drummer Cory Brewer) play at a house party while we were all attending OSU. I was blown away by their sound. It had this spacy experimental vibe but a very clear and catchy pop quality as well. I have always enjoyed music production and wanted to help them produce a demo. With an already established style in place, my production role was to kind of build off that, rather than to change anything. I added some ideas to the first demo and played keys on everything, and (I) just kind of started being in the band from there. I feel like I really weaseled my way in.

Q: What was it like then working with Trent Bell, of Bell Labs, in the producer’s chair instead?

Bair: I don’t want to say it was a relief, but it was totally a relief. I’ve had a decent amount of recording and production experience, but watching Trent work and learning from him was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Also, it’s really, really important to have a fresh set of ears guiding the album process. Far too many times, Trent would suggest a change or an idea in the studio, and I’d wonder, “Why didn’t I think of that?”

— Becky Carman,

For The Oklahoman - NewsOK