CADEN'S CRY

A Passion for Music

Saturday, May 31, 2008

BY THAD LEWIS
tlewis@newsexaminer.com

“Music is my life, my passion and my release,” says Ryan Templeton, Lead s i n g e r and guitarist for Caden’s Cry, the winner of a recent local battleof the bands in Connersville.

From the time Templeton banged on the drums when he was 4 years old, everyone around him knew he was bound for music greatness.

“I was playing on my Muppet’s drum set with a picture of Animal on the front of it, matching the beat to an Elvira song, and a few days later my dad got me a real drum set,” Templeton recalled. Templeton was born to Donnie Templeton
and Linda House, and raised in Connersville. He has a sister Erica and a half sister, Lisa Russell. He is a 1997 Connersville High School graduate and attended Ball State University. He said he is a few classes away from his degree
in business administration.

But music is in his blood, he says. His dad and uncle both play guitar and his cousin Daniel Hurst is a drummer. For 10 years, Templeton said he played drums in church. Templeton said he picked up the guitar for the first time while he was attending BSU and had an instant connection to the instrument. He played drums in various bands through high school and college and played guitar for the first time with the band Crazy Fists. His uncle Mike, who Templeton said he always looked up to, was also a member of Crazy Fists. “We had a pretty good run at it for four or five years,” he said. “I then gave up music for a few years to focus on work and going back to school.” One day out of the blue, Templeton said, he decided to record the songs he had written and hand them out to friends and family. Rob Rieman, an album producer with Hansum Studios in Cincinnati, convinced Templetonto start up a MySpace page and allow people from all over the world to hear his music.

One of Templeton’s first big breaks was having his song “If I Should Die” featured in the independent film “Forever Yesterday.” In April 2007, Templeton said his solo album was released and a year later he played 50 shows with Caden’s Cry. The solo album, “The Rise of My Fall,” has sold more than 1,000 copies.

Copies can be purchased at shows or on the band’s MySpace page at www.myspace.com/ryantempletonmusic.

The original members of Caden’s Cry were all from Connersville, including Hurst, he said. Now the band is made of guys from all over Indiana.Templeton met drummer Becket Weir in Fort Wayne last summer. That led Templeton to bass player Pete Wickes and, at the first of this year, lead guitarist Jason Swazay joined the group, completing Caden’s Cry.

“Its been a blast,” Templeton said. “We have had the opportunity to play some of the biggest stages in Indiana in just a short period of time and have opened for a few national acts.” The group has lofty ambitions. “We hope one day we are that national act, and a household name,” he said. “We are going to play the big stage for a living. I dreamt of it as a drummer and now I dream of it as a singer and guitar player.”

Caden’s Cry placed first two weeks ago in the Whitewater Shrine Fest Rock Band Challenge during the John Conner Spring Festival in Connersville.

“There was no better feeling than playing in front of the home crowd,” Templeton said. “I had a lot of family members at the concert. My nephew Caden got to see me for the first time.”

Caden is almost 2 years old — and already has a band named after him. “I always like playing all age shows,” he said. “We have so many younger fans who can’t get into a lot of the places we play on the weekends.” Insane Pro Wrestling has asked the band to do all the music for the organization’s up coming DVD project, he said.

“We made a name for ourselves in a hurry, but a lot of people around here still don’t know us,” Templeton said. On June 6, Caden’s Cry will compete in the OT’s Battle of the Bands in Liberty. Caden’s Cry will headline Corefest II in Bentonville on July 5.

Also this summer, Caden’s Cry will be in the recording studio with plans to release a five-song EP. A full-length album will hopefully be released later this year or early 2009, Templeton said. Caden’s Cry would not be where it is if not for the loyal support of the hundreds of fans who come to their shows, Templeton said. “They drive all over to support us,” he said. “They’re the best. They’re the reason we do what we do.”

Templeton said he is impressed by the talented musicians Connersville has produced over the years. He said he sees that talent in current bands like Cat Saves Mouse and 7 Days Away. “This town is full of great musicians,” he said. “It always has been. There is a lot of great talent that has come out of this town. The little bands from Connersville
are competing against the best from Indianapolis and Cincinnati and they (Connersville bands) continue to make them look bad. “I’ve been influenced by more local musicians than I have by mainstream acts,” he added. Templeton said he is very appreciative of the late Matt Ledford, front man of Kramus, who died earlier this year. “He (Ledford) took me under his wing and got me singing karaoke, and the next thing you know, I am recording an album, have a band and playing right by him,” Templeton said. “It’s crazy. I hated seeing him (Ledford) go,” he said. “It was hard. Matt was a close friend of mine for a long time. It’s still not real to this day. It’s like a bad dream I can’t wake up from.”
Kramus put Connersville on the map, he said. “I find myself daily listening to his old songs,” Templeton said.


Caden's Cry collects top prize in band contest

Thad Lewis
Reporter

Monday, May 19, 2008


Caden’s Cry performs Saturday at the Whitewater Shrine Fest Rock Band Challenge. The event was held in conjunction with the inaugural John Conner Spring Festival. Caden’s Cry walked away with the first-place prize of $1,500. (THAD LEWIS / News-Examiner)
A band with local ties claimed the top prize Saturday during the Whitewater Shrine Fest Rock Band Challenge staged in conjunction with the inaugural John Conner Spring Festival.

Caden's Cry finished first and took home $1,500 in the event that featured 13 bands from across Indiana. One band, 67 South, was unable to attend at the last moment.

Ryan Templeton, Caden's Cry lead singer, is a native of Connersville.

The top three bands were decided by fans' monetary contributions during the day. Proceeds were to be donated to the Shriners hospitals.

"This was a huge success," Chris West, festival co-chair, said. "We entertained a lot of people of all ages."

During the course of the day - which lasted from 2 p.m. Saturday to about 2 a.m. Sunday - West estimated as many as 5,000 people came out to see and support their favorite bands.

"Everyone enjoyed it and I hope to do it again," West said.

Connersville's own 7 Day's Away was second and collected $1,000 and Cat Saves Mouse, another Connersville-based band, took third place and $500.
- Thad Lewis