Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
"Exciting, diverse rock act that combines alt/pop hooks & garage rawness with vintage flair and a touch of punk/metal influence. Their sound is a melding of Our Lady Peace, Jane’s Addiction, Chevelle and Guns N’ Roses/Axl Rose. Incredibly versatile and polished with standout vocals." - Robert Thompson
**** 1/2 (out of 5) stars
Lawrence Santiago's Axl Rose (Guns ‘n' Roses) meets Peter Garrett (Midnight Oil) vocals is a match made in heaven for the hard driving rockin' sound of the band he fronts, American Popular. "Sold Out (The American Way") is a knock-yer-socks off kick ass album with no bullshit allowed. Besides, who has the time for that when you can play as good as these guys do? Nothing new going on here, it is just straight ahead hard rock music minus all the extra polish and glitter that often is added to some records to enhance their sound and cover up what a group really sounds like. Their approach is obviously to get in the studio, play their asses off, record the tracks, then let people listen. It works very well for them. The are like the spontaneous combustion that happens inside an engine, the only difference is there is not a muffler to silence the noise nor anything to keep the flames from coming out.
Santiago's voice is very flexible for a hard rock singer, he can scream, set a softer pace, or maintain an immense energy level with seemingly no effort. The music must carry him to that lofty level of vocal prowess. The variety of metal played is exciting…rock, hard rock, metal, and all of the above come into the equation offering a variety of listener's different decibel levels. For those that like their music hard, fast and loud or a mish mash of all levels of intensity, it is here on this CD. They never loose their hard-core edge and their sound is comparable to what a live in the studio recording would be.
"My Therapy" was my favorite, no surprise there, because I need therapy on a regular basis, musical that is. In truth, all the songs were great! If you need to blow the roof off your house or your noggin, this will do the trick. In a world full of sell outs that give up their beliefs and original sound just to make it in the music biz, American Popular do it their own way, the American independent music way.
- Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck
"Sounding radio ready, and deservingly so, this edition of what has been done by the likes of Linkin Park, System of a Down, Disturbed and Chevelle is packed solid with guitar, chorus, guitar licks and wrenching vocals. The acoustic guitar comes out on "Even Though I Never Said" and again on "Mr. Trampoline" before getting back to normal (aside from drumbeats in the background) and showing the versatility within. What stands out here is the title track that looks into the American obsession with being popular. No reason this stuff here wont be the next big thing to hit music and video channels near you. - JC
"I WOULD SIGN YOU ON THE SPOT!!! If I were a record exec. or if I had the money. I would invest in you guys! I could hear that song all over the radio. If you ain't got a deal soon. Don't worry! Cuz you will. If you don't. It would be a damned shame. The whole song was B E A utiful!! It had a good hook, the harmony's were great, and it had balls. It was mixed good as well. Good variety in one song! I would love to hear the album."
Suede Velvet, Oklahoma City - GarageBand.com
"American Popular from NYC mixes numetal with postgrunge in the same neighbourhood as Janes Addiction,Dust for life and System of a Down. Their debut "Sold out" is produced by Marc Jordan (Rubikon,Milla Jovovich,Daniel Lanois),“Every song on this record has the potential to be a smash" says Marc about American Popular, I don´t disagree with fame producer MJ but they need a major label to distribute this album coz they do make modern huge sounding Arena metal that could be big in the rest of the world.
I won´t be surprised if you´re gonna hear more from this band in 2005,they´ve got the stuff that echoes out longevity and how many bands do you know has a numetal guitarist from Thailand?, well Pat Yongkittikul left his homeland to join this band in the states and his riffs sure makes AP´s music alive and kicking."
- Melodic.net
"The intensity of American Popular's melodies, the warm, eerily beautiful vocals, and ironic lyrics set them apart from anything new I have heard in the last five years. I listen over and over again to -- "My Therapy," "Mr. Trampoline" and "Sold Out" -- as the guitars rant, stew and sing through a personal quest to own piece of mind and personal identity. Really one of the most energized, stellar, mesmerizing, provocative albums of the year."
- CDbaby.com
Feel 85
Stickyness 81
Life 72
Overall 80
I’m always sceptical about albums that don’t have a consistent sound. Did Pretty Fly and Why Don’t You Get a Job drag the rest of Americana down because they weren’t punk rock? Did Feeling This pull Blink 182’s self-titled down because it was still living in the past rather than moving forward with their new sound? Well, maybe.
It is perhaps then a brave move for a rock band to offer any kind of mix in today’s music scene. Then again when it comes off it produces a fantastic album that will blow you away, in this case American Popular’s debut, Sold Out (The American Way).
It reaches from the hard rock styling of My Therapy right down to Mr. Trampoline, each track offering something totally different to the last. And it keeps you listening. It’s like when you re-watch Donnie Darko, each time you do, you pick up on something new that makes it even better.
Somehow the album achieves the kind of skipping-no-songs consistency that you find with AFI while still making every song unique. To be honest I can’t think of another band that manages such originality so well, maybe think the variety Alien Ant Farm offers taken to the extreme and you are getting there.
Don’t get me wrong, as much as I like this album it is a rock album. Which is great for those who like the rock genre although a question how much appeal the album will have outside of rock fans. What rock album does though and further more why should it?
Conclusion time. What can I say; Sold Out is a great album. Seriously great. If you like pretty much any band in the hard rock genre then I recommend you check out this album. - Emotoday.com
Discography
"Sold Out (The American Way)" - Aug 2004
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
(contact info at bottom)
Recent Highlights
-Played on over 130 radio stations nationwide (see complete list, below)
- 50,000 Plays and a #1 Song on mp3.com
- One of the only indie bands to be played on KROCK New York
- Featured on Z100's Radio Star (New York City)
-Made final cut of bands considered for "Battle for Ozzfest"
- 4 songs in upcoming independent motion picture, "Tied Up"
American Popular has recieved airplay on the following stations:
XM Radio Unsigned
> WBCN Boston
> WKGB Binghamton
> WXSR Tallahassee
> KXRK Salt Lake City
> WANZ Tuscaloosa
> KTCL Denver
> KSPI Oklahoma City
> WARQ Columbia
> KACV Amarillo
> KS95 Iowa City
> KUPD Phoenix
> Waitt Radio Syndicated
> KDVV Topeka
> WBTZ Burlington
> WLIR Long Island
> KZCD Lawton
> KQRA Springfield
> KKBS Gumyom
> KKFI Kansas City
> KZZE Medford
> WWSP Stevens Point
> WSUP Platville
> WRST Oshkosh
> WORT Madison
> WVUA Tuscaloosa
> KLPI Ruston
> KLPX Tucson
> KBPI Denver
> KASS Casper
> KMSA Grand Junction
> WLVR Bethlehem
> WVCS California
> WPTC Williamsport
> WVUM Coral Gables
> WFCS New Britain
> KNDI Honolulu
> WMPG Portland
> WRBC Lewiston
> WKNH Keene
> WTCC Springfield
> WEBN Cincinatti
> WJCU University HTS
> WBWC Berea
> KEYJ Abilene
> KQRX Gardendale
> WXUT Toledo
> WPUP Athens
> WVUD Newark
> WWVU Morgantown
> WNRN Charlottsville
> WOBX Nags Head
> KFSR Fresno
> CHMR St Johns
> WVOF Fairfield
> ELEC Putnam
> WNHU West Haven
> WDTS Georgetown
> WSCB Springfield
> WKKL West Barnstable
> WLOY Baltimore
> XTSR Towson
> WUMM Machias
> WALT Davidson
> WUCR Cranford
> WSOU South Orange
> WRUB Amherst
> WGCC Batavia
> WCWP Brookville
> WEOS Geneva
> WRHU Hempstead
> WVIC Ithaca
> WSIA Staten Island
> WARC Meadville
> WYBF Radnor
> WVMW Scranton
> WXVU Villanova
> WNRS Sweet Briar
> WGDR Plainfield
> KIWR Council Bluffs
> KRNL Mt Vernon
> WIIT Chicago
> WAHS Auburn Hills
> KMSU Mankato
> KBUL Omaha
> WCAV North Canton
> WMSR Oxford
> WOJB Hayward
> WMSE Milwaukee
> KUWS Superior
> WRGW Washington DC
> WNSU Fort Lauderdale
> WVVS Valdosta
> WASU Boone
> KUCO Edmond
> WSBF Clemson
> KSAU Nacogdoches
> UTD Richardson
> KALX Berkeley
> KGFN El Cajon
> KCRH Hayward
> KBEA Long Beach
> KSMC Moraga
> WPMD Norwalk
> KCSS Turlock
> KDNK Carbondale
> KICB Fort Dodge
> KRUX Las Cruces
> KTEK Socorro
> NVWR Reno
> KEOL La Grande
> KZMU Moab
> KWCR Ogden
> KTCV Kennewick
> KAOS Olympia
> KUGR Pullman
Bound together by the contradictions of their origins American Popular exerts an element of irony in that they are not a “pop” band, but a product of American pop culture.
AmPop was born out of the explosive songwriting energy of Santiago, who spent most of his early childhood as a drummer. Lawrence describes his earliest musical influences, “When I was little, a day didn’t go by where I wasn’t riding in mom’s 79’ Cadillac listening to pop like John Lennon, Elvis or Tito Puente”
“To tell you the truth though when I started AP I didn’t think it would turn into this because it was more just an outlet for the songs in my head (songwriting) then anything else. I never imagined going beyond my living room; having a real CD with thousands of people hearing us on the internet or the radio. But now that we have come this far we’re ready to take it as far as it will go – beyond New York, beyond America …”
Speaking of which, Guitarist Pat Yongkittikul traveled all the way from Bangkok to join the band, leaving behind his background as a producer/engineer/recording artist with many superstars of Thailand including his own band ‘The Barbies’ (Warner Music Thailand/Sony Music). “I still listen to a lot of Classical, Blues and Top 40,” explains Pat, “but kick ass rock still moves me more than anything else.”
Before joining the band, classically trained bassist, BK, dropped his upright and picked up an electric five-string to tour the U.S. and Europe with Jazz/Funk Metal artist Gooding. Hailing from Wichita, BK explains, “there wasn’t much to do but listen to music like Iron Maiden or Metallica, but it was Cliff Burton who inspired me to be a rock musician.”
Guitarist Burton Gans joined American Popular after an 11-country tour with rock quartet ‘Pist On’ (Atlantic Records). No stranger to mass audiences he supported many acts including Marilyn Manson, Queensryche and the Misfits. Speaking about American Popular, Burton says “this band has it all -- the songwriting, the sound, the chemistry -- it’s all there.”
Last but not least is Justin Benson, the Texan drummer who Lawrence quotes as having “the tightest chops in New York.” Self-taught and extraordinarily dynamic, Justin began playing after hearing his first KISS album. “I fell in love with it and just knew I had to be drummer.” Justin soon found himself playing with an eclectic group of artists such as the Grammy nominated Blues guitarist Bert Wills.” Now with the powe
Links
