BELT

author: Laura Turner
Singer/songwriter Terrace B is an actor and musician originally from Portland, Maine. Terrace B moved to New York City to pursue his art and meet California singer Paul Munoz. They formed Belt, which grew into the current five-piece lineup. Belt's music is an unusual blend of alternative rock and punk laced with wit. They site a diversity of influences but have been described as Barenaked Ladies meet Nirvana. Terrace B writes "happy songs about terrible things and irony is an ongoing theme". Dead Come Back is the band's original debut featuring nine [stet] songs and two hidden repeating tracks. The CD opens with 'Never Tired', which speeds along at a frantic pace. The song is an edgy, clever tribute to caffeine. 'Got A Hole' melds dark, visual lyrics with colorful inflections and instrumentation. 'Night of the Living Dead' is a snappy song featuring quirky quips and up-tempo guitars. Belt is a unique band crafting an innovative brand of rock with haunting harmonies, humor and creativity!

- cdbaby.com

author: Radio Mike
This is Damn fun music. What else could you expect From an Album cover that Looks like a Very cool Sunday Comic and a very Goth-Like album title like 'Dead Come Back.' We especially Love the 'Night Of The Living Dead.' Just go See ‘em Soon to See what we Mean.
- fevered brain radio network

Unsigned Band of the Week – BELT

Fri, Oct 17, 2008 4:19 pm
more: unsigned bands, music

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The happy-go-punky sound of BELT provides those who still wish to dance at shows reason to do so. Contrary to the impression the band's name gives; BELT has sweet harmonic vocals and a rhythm section that sounds like Cake crossed with NOFX. Lyrically they recall They Might Be Giants or Weezer and their un-pompous passion for anti-folk is easy to enjoy. Plus, they are always down for a smoke with a fan.


The band was started by Terrence B. and Paul Munoz and has recorded one album, Dead Come Back. This was before their sound fully developed. Now, armed with an unmistakable style, BELT has undertaken a new effort – a monthly event everyone in Manhattan should check out at least once.


BELT brings indie rock lovers and musicians together at Tainted Blue Studios in Times Square for an evening of live music, networking and fun called From the Penthouse: Artist Loft Series.


Tainted Blue Studios, whose clientele includes the likes of Alicia Keys, Coldplay and Paul McCartney, has developed a community-building event that allows artists to record their music in a state of the art studio while it is being showcased.


What musician could ask for anything more? Patrick Shaw, the studio’s Executive Producer, and BELT produce the show in partnership with NYC songwriter/booking agent Christina LaRocca.


Cool people, live music, a penthouse overlooking the brilliance of Time Square… It’s very hip, very fun and very accessible. Check out www.fromthepenthouse.com for an invitation to the Artist Loft Series or for further information.

BELT is:
Terrence B, (vocals and guitar)
Paul Munoz (vocals)
Mike Bell (guitar)
Jeff Haffro (bass)
Elliot Jacobson and Ron Thaler in a revolving door policy (drums)

Visit BELT at:
www.myspace.com/beltband
www.fromthepenthouse.com
www.sonicbids.com/belt2
www.myspace.com/kidzalbum - High Times.com

MUSIC: House band
by Ben Johnson/Staten Island AWE
Friday October 03, 2008, 1:00 AM

Photos courtesy of Virginia Kamenitzer

Clifton's BELT goes from 'slacker' to 'pro' with Manhattan penthouse gig

A lot of bands say they're "doing it for the kids." Most of them are lying.
The jury is still out on who Staten Island's BELT band is doing it for, but they're the right guys for the job. At least that's what producer Patrick Shaw thought after bringing the quirky crew into his state-of-the-art penthouse recording studio in Midtown two years ago, for an audition to play the music on his "Kidz Album."

"They were the only ones who had talent, intelligence and personality," says Shaw, 29, of Brooklyn, a musician and engineer who co-owns Tainted Blue studio with Andrew Koss. "A lot of people had two of those things, but these guys were the only group who had all three. I needed somebody who could sing harmonies well and get the jokes."

Any day now, the fruits of Shaw and BELT band's yearlong labors will arrive in droves of shrink-wrapped CDs filled with raps about rocket-fitted crocodiles, silly songs about bananas and robot prog rock.

"These songs let us give it our all, and they're fun to play," says lead singer Terrence Brennan, 27, a Staten Island transplant from Portland, Maine. "We just got the live show down. We've played a couple of shows for kids, but a couple for drunk adults as well."

Evidenced by a recent well-attended late night performance at Wicked Willy's in Manhattan, "Kidz" music really can be for the big people, too, like Harry Nilsson's animated musical parable "The Point!" or the recent kids albums by They Might Be Giants. Brennan's Clifton housemates -- guitarist Mike Bell, 23, and vocalist/rapper/hype man Paul Munoz, 35 -- help make the live BELT experience a lot of fun too, if you get down with goofy music.



LIVE AID
BELT performs at 8 p.m. Oct. 6 in the "From the Penthouse: Artist Loft Series" at Tainted Blue Studios, 723 Seventh Ave., Manhattan.
Tickets: $10; space is limited so reserve them now at artistloftseries@hotmail.com
Sample the sounds: MySpace.com/beltband, TaintedBlue.com
Win it!: E-mail AWE@siadvance.com with "BELT" in the subject line to be entered into a raffle for two free tickets.

But the collaboration with Shaw is a perfect example of how BELT's versatility and willingness to try new things opens up doors. The band released an original song on a compilation disc from local Penny For the Guy label, and plays the third Wednesday of every month at Geoff Celis' Open Film Night at Martini Red in Stapleton.

On Oct. 6, the group will celebrate its one-year anniversary of hosting the monthly "From the Penthouse: Artist Loft Series" at Tainted Blue -- an intimate showcase they scored after working with Shaw on his children's songs. The first Monday of each month, BELT plays their own music along with three other artists or groups. These concerts bring artists and 50 fans into the posh recording studio for a kind of underground version of "MTV Unplugged."

The performances are stripped down, acoustic, and before and after, fans get the chance to check out a studio that hosts the likes of Alicia Keys, Christina Aguilera and Mariah Carey, from the blinking lights of the control room to the breathtaking rooftop views. Everything is recorded and then later provided to attendees, and as long as the artists aren't making money of them, the live cuts can be distributed and used for promotion.

The Loft Series has been a great way for BELT and a few other S.I. players like Heavy Weather's Christina LaRocca and bassist Chris Kuffner to make connections and gain new fans. But it's not as exclusive as it might sound -- the small size of the studio dictates the audience number, and BELT, a group of technically capable musicians, seem like friendly and open curators.

The band's original material, like the tongue-in-cheek "In America" or morbidly funny "Night of the Living Dead," has no shortage of jokes or apparent musical influences. Barenaked Ladies come to mind. So do Simon and Garfunkel harmonies, bits of '90s grunge, and the ska-loving stylings of Sublime.

Brennan's first job was "cemetery technician" -- his dad's a mortician and his mom is a nurse -- and he says this gives rise to a lot of the light-hearted thoughts on life and death in the band's music. In "Night of the Living Dead," the singer pokes fun at horror flick cliches, belting out "We should make sweet love and start a relationship based on this traumatic situation." It's not going to be part of the next Fashion Rocks concert anytime soon, but part of BELT's aesthetic is obviously bucking tropes of musical coolness.

The group's upcoming record of originals, still untitled and due sometime this fall, is no exception.

"I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't bring world peace and reverse global warming," quips Brennan. Getting serious, he amends: "We've been playing the songs for - Staten Island Advance