Music
Press
The Chicago band celebrates the release of its debut album, "And Then We Ignite." Breezy melodies and thoughtful lyrics make this a band worth checking out. --MH
- Chicago Sun Times
“Ash Ave comes out of the Windy City with a lighter pop that might be the right formula to make it with this age of music - when reaching the masses is imperative. Their debut EP "Three Minute Mile" welcomes the easy listener to kick back in a world that is almost never cooler than strolling on Ash Ave.”
- - USA4real Upstream Radio
“Chicago’s Ash Avenue wants to be the next Matchbox Twenty, The Wallflowers, Gin Blossoms, and this five-piece is certainly on its way to completing the always-selling package.”
- Illinois Entertainer
“This is not only a band, but a band with strong songwriting skills. Dynamics, lush distortion and melodicism puts them in league with the Foo Fighters, but without sounding derivative - and this is helped by the singer's unique voice.”
- Garageband.com
Ah, the 90s. Aside from being a decade of relative peace and prosperity, it was the last decade in which you could reliably turn on the radio and hear decent pop/rock from bands like The Gin Blossoms, Collective Soul, The Wallflowers, Del Amitri, Fastball, Better Than Ezra, etc. Nowadays the only time I turn on the radio is catch a sporting event while I'm out driving. The point I'm making here? Actually, I'm not sure I have a point. Oh yeah - if this were the mid-90s instead of the mid-00s, a band like Chicago's Ash Avenue would have a good shot at some decent radio airplay. Instead, they'll have to rely on touring, word-of-mouth, the internet and the kindness of strangers.
If And Then We Ignite, the band's debut disc, doesn't take you back to the days when Clinton was in office and Bush wasn't (WARNING: analogy only valid for the next 14 months or so), then I'm not sure what will. Anyway, hit radio's loss is your gain here: 12 tracks of quality tunes that straddle the line between power pop and what is now called "adult alternative". "Mistake Me Home" gets things going with a driving sound that's somewhere between the Gin Blossoms and the poppier moments of The Replacements; "Disposable King" is a mid-tempo beauty which wouldn't sound out of place with all of those Teenage Fanclub wannabes I wrote about yesterday; "New Year's Day" is almost pop-punk; "Trash Romance" might have Jakob Dylan wondering if he didn't write it; and "Rise & Shine" is a great Heartland-styled rocker that reminds me of the BoDeans. - Absolute Powerpop
Discography
3 Minute Mile, 2005 - EP
And Then We Ignite, 2007 - LP
Our music can be found on:
Itunes
Rhaposdy
Napster
Amazon
Myspace store
Fresh Tracks
also have ring tones available on
Groupie Tunes
Featured artist on Coke's website www.mycoke.com for the month of January 2008.
Absolute Powerpop - CD of the Day, 11/1/07:
Collapse - Garageband.com - Song of the Day - Jan. 20th 2006
UPstream Radio
Photos
Bio
Ash Avenue formed in August of 2004, when long-time friends and former band mates
Rob Merz, Jim Brennan, and Chad Noyes decided to reenter the live music scene. After an exhaustive search to find a lead singer, a mutual friend introduced them to Chicago native Johnny Alletto. In early 2005 they spent a weekend at Engine studios recording the three-song EP, �Three Minute Mile.�
With the addition of Eric Ellis on drums, Ash Avenue started playing shows at venues like the Taste of Chicago (July 4th, 2008), Martyrs�, Hard Rock Cafe, Schuba�s, Double Door, The Abbey, Cubby Bear, Durty Nellies, Subterranean, Joe�s Bar, Duffy�s, etc. Ash Avenue has also opened for national touring acts such as Fastball, Guess Who, Fire House, and Third Eye Blind.
After more than two years of shows and a year in the studio, Ash Avenue released their debut album, �And Then We Ignite�, on September 29th, 2007.
Recently, Ash Avenue was featured on HGTV�s "Design on a Dime", Coca Cola�s MyCoke.com (as Rock Band of the Month), and Q101�s �Local 101�. The band distributes music through Fresh Tracks, CD Baby, iTunes, Amazon, and Rhapsody and boasts over 10,000 fans on www.myspace.com.
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�Breezy melodies and thoughtful lyrics make this a band worth checking out.�
- Mary Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times
�And Then We Ignite� is a hook-heavy, upbeat album containing 12 songs injected with intricate instrumentation, thought-provoking lyrics and dynamic vocals. In addition to the
band�s usual electric guitar/bass line-up, the inclusion of Hammond B3 organs, Wurlitzer
and Rhodes keyboards, mandolins and analog synths has fused Ash Avenue's modern sound with a classic, vintage vibe. Songs such as �Collapse�, �Trash Romance� and �Disposable King� are guaranteed to resonate long after you hear the final chord.
�Hit radio's loss is your gain here: 12 tracks of quality tunes that straddle the line between power pop and what is now called "adult alternative". "Mistake Me Home" gets things going with a driving sound that's somewhere between the Gin Blossoms and the poppier moments of The Replacements; "Disposable King" is a mid-tempo beauty. "Trash Romance" might have Jakob Dylan wondering if he didn't write it; and "Rise & Shine" is a great Heartland-styled rocker that reminds me of the BoDeans.�
- AbsolutePowerPop.com
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