Music
Press
"Connor O' Brien is one of the best musicians I have seen during my years in Cleveland." - Dan Mason, Program Director
"Connor O'Brien... remember that name, he's going places. Do yourselves a favor and go buy his CD." - Huey Lewis and The News
"His reputation as a great live performer is more than well-deserved... you've gotta see this guy and his band in action!" - Dennis O'Brien, Program Director
"Connor O'Brien is more than ready for the next big step... a true rarity these days... a modern-day, self-sufficient pop artist who has actually taken the time to hone his craft. He sings, plays and writes with the best of them." - William Gruber, Program Director
"The song 'Make Ends Meet' is a ribald, funky rocker with enough cowbell to make the drummer from Blue Öyster Cult give up the goat." - Jason Bracelin
"Fan-freakin'-tastic vocals!" - Matt
"Don't ask me why, but I felt a Bon Jovi vibe." - Kristen Pasculli
"Next up was Connor O’Brien who went out and put on a kick-ass performance. This is a must-see act. If you haven't seen him yet, go soon. You will not be disappointed." - Brian Williams
"He applies his soulful and malleable tenor to self-written catchy pop/rock songs full of jingly-jangly guitar that would be right at home wedged between John Mayer and the Josh Joplin Group." - Malcolm X. Abram
"WKDD was lucky enough to have Connor O'Brien and the band perform for our Pro Football Hall Of Fame events! These guys ROCK!" - Matt Patrick
Discography
1st Album - "Connor O'Brien"
Inside Out (#1 Charting single in France, 2000)
2nd Album - "Soliloquy"
Ready To Fall (Major Regional/National Airplay), Promise You This (AAA Radio Rotation)
3rd Album - "Prizefighter"
Debuting Spring 2007
Bobby & Me (Regional NE Ohio Airplay)
Photos
Bio
"YOU'VE GOTTA SEE THIS GUY!" -Dennis O'Brien (WZOO 102 FM)
"A KICK-ASS PERFORMANCE!" -Brian Williams (Village-Buzz)
"THESE GUYS ROCK!" -Matt Patrick (WKDD 98.1 FM)
"NOT TO BE MISSED!" -Lauren John (TalentSTAR)
"CONNOR O'BRIEN KICKS ASS!" -Geraldine Chung (RARB)
Connor O'Brien's music is powerful. In fact, Ohio's largest newsweekly, Scene Magazine, may have described it best when it called Connor's music "a near-perfect blend of buoyant pop and acrobatic rock."
A classical violinist since the age of five, Connor seemed set for a future in the orchestra until he learned that he could sing... and sing like no one else. His rare voice led him to be accepted into all 11 music conservatories he auditioned for after high school, but he chose to attend the prestigious Eastman School of Music of New York, with it's world-
renowned opera department. After fine tuning his performances touring the country in a nationally ranked a cappella group, and playing some of the nation's major venues; Connor set his mind to turning a musical 360° and launching his rock career.
Connor's eponymously titled first CD featured the hit song "Inside Out," a self-penned tune that received radio airplay all over the U.S. and eventually, along with other accolades, charted to the #1 spot in France.
And audiences have responded. Connor has shared the stage with such national acts as Mariah Carey, Vertical Horizon, Edwin McCain, and Huey Lewis among others. He has been featured in numerous magazines and newspapers along with making several national television appearances, including a position as the executive music supervisor for a Discovery Channel series in 2004.
Connor's second album, “Soliloquy”, and its regional hit single "Ready To Fall" was a tight, eleven-song package which one Cleveland-area newspaper simply called "a masterpiece." Recorded in studios all over the country, "Soliloquy" brought Connor's musical vision to life combining creative and thought provoking songwriting with complex vocals.
The focus now is on the highly anticipated third album, "Prizefighter". Over a year in the making, (most of it written, produced, and engineered by Connor himself), this album features a musical growth unparalleled in his young career. From the smash piano ballad "Blue Room", to mid-tempo singles such as "Feeling Again" and "Falling To Pieces"
(featured on The WB’s “Roswell”), and even the hard rocking seven minute opus of "Reconcile", this record truly represents this talent at it’s best. As a writer, as a producer and most importantly as a performer, Connor is running at full stride.
"Write a song that touches the very core of who someone is inside, and the rest will take care of itself", Connor says. "It's these common experiences that we as storytellers are called to tell."
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