Fatkid Dodgeball

Over the past few years, one Columbus band that seems to be bouncing to new heights is rock act Fatkid Dodgeball. Formed in 2002 and four drummers later, the quartet—Ryan Eisert (drums), Brian Turnbull (guitar), Brian Frank (vocals, bass) and Casey Potts (guitar)—is working on the follow-up release to its 2007 full-length debut, “Burn It Down.” The band is now recording five new songs with Big Apple producer Baby Paul to add to its 2008 EP “Admission of Guilt” for the new album due out in the spring.

In advance of the band's weekend show at The Basement, Metromix talked to frontman Frank about the band’s new material, the C-Bus music scene and its quirky moniker that is bound to make some folks wince in pain.

As far as the new album is concerned, stylistically speaking how has Fatkid Dodgeball evolved over the past few years?The first album was kind of pop-punk, and we definitely tried to expand a little bit more with our songs (on the EP). It’s kind of a weird vibe. At the same time experimenting and kind of broadening our musical scope, we kind of honed in on songwriting and put stuff out there that people could definitely get into on the radio. And we just kind of continued that with this second half. There are a couple of tracks (“Gone”) that are more acoustic based, and there’s one song (“Nothing Left to Say”) that’s very heavy on piano, which we never really did before. It kind of has more of a Coldplay-ish vibe, but still kind of plays true to the Fatkid Dodgeball rock edge.

Hmm. Are you sure your fans want to hear Coldplay and Fatkid Dodgeball in the same sentence?
I don’t know. I think our fans are really diverse, and I think they are loyal. I think some bands get stuck in doing what has worked for them before. Really the successful bands are the bands that can push those boundaries and kind of build upon what they’ve done and kind of stretch the limits a little bit. That’s what we’re doing. The core sound is definitely still there, it’s just we’re adding some things to it.

Speaking of adding things, Fatkid Dodgeball has definitely added something positive to local music. What’s your take on the Columbus music scene?
It’s one of those things where there’s a lot of different ways to look at it. I think Columbus has a lot of great bands, but at the same time there aren’t a lot of venues that kind of support the original local bands. There’s a huge cover scene in Columbus and that’s where people can make money. We’ve been there to pay the bills and try to finance an album and stuff, but as far as making Columbus a launching point for a sound or something like that, it’s definitely a hurdle.

After taking some time off, Fatkid Dodgeball is playing Saturday at The Basement. Let’s talk about that gig.
It’ll be a fun time. The Basement is one of my favorite places to play. It kind of has a rock ’n’ roll vibe. It doesn’t feel like Columbus. It’s not all done up, and it has a great sound system. We’ll be playing some new material that people haven’t heard before, and you’ve got some great bands we’re playing with. It should be a really good rock show.

Referring to the band’s name, growing up were you the fat kid or the dodgeball thrower?
I don’t know. I’ve probably been both at some points in my life. The name came from a college roommate who brought a girl home and in the morning he came walking down the steps and said, “If she comes down stairs, tell her I’m out like a fat kid in dodgeball” and he left. And it just stuck in my head.


That’s funny, but in this PC world, the name must offend someone. Does the band ever get grief from overweight ex-dodgeball players?
I don’t think any grief. I don’t understand but sometimes people will have trouble saying it. They’ll say, “Fatkids Dodgeball,” they’ll pluralize it and then they’ll say, “What is that Fatboy Softball?” And all of that and most of the time people laugh and they kind of remember it and it sticks in their head. It’s usually a good thing, especially with the Internet. If you search for a lot of band names, you’ll come up with a million other things. If you search for Fatkid Dodgeball, you’ll basically find stuff about us, so it worked out pretty well.
- John Benson - Metromix Feature

RAINEY HOWARTH
Staff Writer


FAIRBORN – In 1988, 15-year-old Casey Potts walked into Absolute Music and bought his first guitar with money he saved from a paper route. Seventeen years later, he's about to embark on a tour of the Midwest and East Coast as the lead guitarist of fatkid dodgeball, a band that's barreling rapidly toward the big time.

Potts, a Fairborn High School grad, said he was walking downtown when he saw a red Kramer guitar just like Eddie Van Halen's staring at him from the window of the Fairborn music store. He decided he had to have it and, after the purchase, kept coming back to the store for lessons with Paul Schauer, and eventually started giving lessons himself.

Although he joked that he wanted the guitar because he "sucked at sports and needed a girlfriend," it's not hard to see that he's really in it for the music. Listing all the bands on Potts' playlist would take its own article, but a small sample might include Guns 'N Roses, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Ramones.

Now living outside Columbus, Potts will always remember Fairborn as the start of his musical journey.

"Fairborn means Foy's Halloween Store, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Chicken 'N Pizza, and Cadillac Jack's," he said, "and this is where I learned all about music. This is where I first heard Led Zeppelin, my favorite band of all time."

Potts played in two other bands before finding the right fit with FKDB in 2001. He and band members Brian Frank, Brian Turnbull and Jon Lawrence formed a group that, for Potts, is "the best band I'll ever be in, and the first good band." They bring their fans music to have fun by. "It's upbeat, original rock 'n roll, with catchy melodies and choruses," described Potts.

It's not always easy for the four of them to agree on a melody or set of lyrics. "We play like brothers and we fight like brothers," he admitted, but the work and the close relationships pay off. "By the end of the day, the moment you hear the song play, people responding to something you created, that's the best part."

After the disagreements are worked out and the songs have taken shape, the band takes the stage for live performances that Potts loves. "I've always wanted to be in a band where you are blown away by the live performances. Our live performances are better than any mp3. We're very energetic on stage."

And the music means as much to Potts as it does to his fans. "No matter where you are or what technology you have ... there's this element that can capture in your mind pictures of where you were the first time you heard a song. That release is something that is important to me, that escapism."

Fatkid dodgeball's songs are broadcast on Columbus radio and available online at www.fatkiddodgeball.com and www.myspace.com/fkdb. At 10 p.m. on Dec. 30, they will perform at Elbo's, 200 S. Jefferson St., Dayton, and the next night they will be in New York for the famous club CBGB Gallery and Lounge's "Last New Year's Eve EVER" bash. The New York City icon will close its doors forever next year, and Potts said playing there, where many of his favorite bands played, is "a dream come true." That performance will kick off a winter tour, giving Potts a start on another dream – to play in every state in America.

But he promises not to forget his roots. "I grew up in Fairborn. Fairborn is my home. I've moved around, but Fairborn will always be home. One day I'd love to play at the Nutter Center and say 'Fairborn' – they like to say it's in Dayton, but it's not – Fairborn, Ohio, 'get ready to rock!'"


- Fairborn Daily Herald

U Weekly - www.uweekly.com
article by Mandy Simon

If you’ve ever thought that eating 16 sliders from White Castle after 3 shots of Beam sounded like a good idea, or if watching fat kids play dodge ball sounds entertaining, then you already have something in common with Fatkid Dodgeball.

Rocking the Columbus, Athens and the Cleveland bar circuit, Fatkid is accruing fans from all over the state. Two lead guitars and harmonizing vocalists coupled with a deep bass presence give Fatkid fans what they want: a rocking show with compelling lyrics and actual musical talent to boot.

A long time in the making, the Fatkid Dodgeball name has an interesting history. Frank, lead vocalist and bass player, first thought of the name after his freshman year roommate used the expression, “If they wake up, I’m out like a fat kid in dodge ball.” Three years later the expression came up again while brainstorming, and the band decided that was the perfect fit to describe what the band’s about-- having fun. Their songs are melodic and catchy. You will find yourself singing about “Ohio Skies” while nuking your ramen noodles. “Take Your Time,” another single from their upcoming album, includes a rap about White Castle, derived from guitarist Potts’ single days.

“We would go out and it would be like Night at the Roxbury. All my guys with gel, cologne, we’d be at a bar going, “What’s up, what’s up, what’s up.” Finally it would be 2:30 in the morning. We’d all just decide to go to White Castle. “If we don’t meet no girls, yo it ain’t no hassle me and my boys are goin’ down to White Castle.” “I’m not trying to rap. We’re not being serious. But we want to rock, and we want people to approach us and talk to us. With the White Castle rap, it reminds people that they can talk to us.”

Though looking to branch out, Fatkid Dodgeball is still partial to their roots, exemplified in their “Ohio Skies” single that’s getting a lot of love on CD 101 and a little bit of love on other regional stations. To request the song on the radio, you can go to http://www.fatkiddodgeball.com and click on the links to local radio stations. They don’t expect fans in Michigan to request the song during football season.

Upcoming plans include a tour and CD release. Frank explains, “We’re in the process of a tour. It’s like a weekend warrior tour. Starting in mid-October, we’ll be heading out of Columbus, staying out on the road during the weekend coming home during the week to pay our bills.” They also expect to release their first album this November. Songs include “Get It,” the official song of the National Dodge Ball League, and “High Street,” named after our own well-trodden High Street. The new album promises a deeper rock and roll influence, and maturing lyrics. “When we first started out, the songs we wrote were more about girls, drinking, and partying. And throughout the past year or two, we’ve graduated college and did a lot of things we hadn’t done before. A lot of the writing is self-reflective on where you’re at in your life, and issues that are just a little more mature. It’s a song about walking down High Street, looking back at all the stuff you’ve done, where you’re going now, being confused, but feeling that everything will be okay.”

If you’re not into checking out new music, then I hope for your sake that Fatkid is playing at the next bar you frequent. Look for a CD in November, listen to music and find out where Fatkid Dodgeball is playing by logging onto http://www.fatkiddodgeball.com. - U Weekly - Columbus, OH

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Columbus OH's FATKID DODGEBALL has just released their latest EP entitled "Admission of Guilt" in stores and iTunes US & UK, Rhapsody, Amazon and Napster in September 2008!
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Recorded in NY with super producers Tomas Costanza & Anthony Santo (HOLLYWOOD RECORDS, EPIC RECORDS, COLUMBIA, ETC.) at the world famous Killingsworth Recording Studios, FKDB is poised to be the next breakout band from the region and is proud to announce the release of their latest single "RUN" from the highly anticipated follow up to "Burn It Down".
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The FKDB live show is nothing short of an energy kick to be seen in person - we are actively seeking to become part of a label family and are looking forward to an opportunity show you the whole picture. This group's marketability spans from the MTV crowd to their folks - the commercial brand marketing has endless possibilities and they are soundtrack ready - Sports, MTV, movies, TV you name it..
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Marketing
•Fatkid Dodgeball ONLY area band asked to open for Universal Recording artists SAFETYSUIT for Red, White & Boom Fourth of July Festivities – 2008 – sponsored by Clearchannel Radio 106.7 Columbus, OH
•Winners of the MySpace voter contest to open for FALL OUT BOY at Blossom Music Center in Cleveland, OH
•Over 325,000 MySpace total plays, over 17,000 friends, 500 average plays per day currently
•Voted Amongst the top twenty unsigned bands in the country in 2007 on Alternative Addiction!
•2008 inclusion to Pump Audio licensing catalog.
•Fatkid Dodgeball featured on MTV2’s “On The Rise”. A new series dedicated to discovering untapped talent via interview clips and live performance footage – airing since August 2007.
•Fatkid Dodgeball guest artist on Alternative Addiction’s V.9 compilation featuring the single “Brown Sweater”. Also featured on site’s top ten unsigned artist section!
•MTV’s Laguna Beach featured FKDB’s “17 Forever” in episode 305! Currently airing in reruns.
•Lead single “RUN”, “Get It” & “The Shakedown” to be featured on VRShell, LLC BETA DUI videogame to be released winter 2008/spring 2009 – VRShell in talks for international release.
•Submitted to Chop Shop Music Supervision for consideration on Gossip Girl, Grey’s Anatomy & Mad Men.
•FKDB is featured on MTV2’s new site “On The Rise”. This new venture is a showcase for up and coming artists where fans can cast their votes and bands can promote their way right to the top! Fatkid Dodgeball is among the local leaders placing in on MTV2’s Top 5. Notched over 25,000 votes in just under 2 weeks on site!!
•Announced as the Official Band for the National Dodgeball League. Radio single “Get It” is currently streaming on their website. Links and banners on their website currently traffics 70,000 visitors per month.
•Rock Me TV| rockmetv.com has deemed Fatkid Dodgeball their priority band to break. Fatkid Dodgeball has been working with RockMeTV, A LIVE & exciting internet TV show broadcasting music videos and entertainment 7 days a week/ 24 hours a day complete with cyber jockeys. Now available to over 20 million viewers, RockMeTv.com is a community for independent artist and entertainers around the world.
•FKDB has teamed with DecentXposure to offer ringtones, MP3 downloads and more on the DecentXposure website. The band is also featured on the recently released DecentXposure compilation DX8. #1 requested ringtone in debut week!
•FKDB has joined forces with "MEM ASIA". The band will now have representation in parts of Asia, which covers Hong Kong, Singapore, Korea and Japan. This relationship is to secure the licensing for video games, downloads, TV, films and other software in the Asian market.
•FKDB is among a select group of artists in consideration to appear on PBS’ Roadtrip Nation TV series and has licensed “17 Forever” to PBS for commercial use.
•Noteborn Music is an international publishing company that has hand picked “Get It” for use in movies, TV shows and advertising campaigns. FKDB will also work with award winning music producers and engineers on projects with Spike TV, On Demand cable, MTV and national advertising.
•Advanced to final round and selected as stand by artists for NXNE 2006 and 2007.
•International POP Overthrow (IPO) participants – Chicago IL at Wise Fools Pub – 2006
•National endorsement from the National Dodgeball League – NDL site receives over 17,000+ visitors per month and noted as one of the fastest growing sports in the U.S.
•Current ASCAP Members.
- Onevakynd Music Group

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 21, 2006
New York, NY --- DecentX.com (DX), the leading ringtone and download site for independent and unsigned artists, has added a new avenue of Xposure for its affiliated bands by setting up weekly sampling polls with the music voting site VoteTheMusic.com (VTM). Each week five DX bands are chosen to have samples displayed on the VTM home page. Fans can listen to each of the five samples and then vote to select their favorite.

“It’s a great way to get fans of mainstream artists from My Chemical Romance to Hilary Duff to discover emerging bands before they sign their first ‘big deal’,” explains DX’s Ben Hordell. “It’s the perfect cross-promotion. We think that once fans get a taste of DX artists at VTM, then they’ll click on over to DX to see who else we have for them.”

Also doing some clicking will be decision makers at the major labels, notes VTM’s Alex Hamilton. “Because we have voting pages for all the major label artists, we think we have a lot of label folks who are taking a couple of minutes to check out the DX talent. As we add even more features to help Xpose DX artists, we think we could become a very powerful resource for major label A&R executives, the guys with the power of the pen.”

In the first round of DX voting, the big winner was Columbus, Ohio’s Fatkid Dodgeball, which won over Wideawake, Roots Down Below, Ludo and Zox. “Fatkid Dodgeball has a very aggressive and loyal fan base,” says Hordell, “and that’s something the labels like to see, especially if they like the music, too.”

The next round of voting is now underway through Friday evening, Nov. 24 and features tracks from In Theory, Copperpot, Cedarwell, Zac Brown Band and Ordinary Peoples. Bands who want to get in on the action can sign up with DX through the site at www.decentx.com. Voters who want to support their favorite artists can do so at www.votethemusic.com.

CONTACT:
Ben Hordell
201 313 1100
Ben@decentx.com

- Ben Hordell

If you look way down at the bottom of the VTM home page, you'll spy a new feature. We're working with the crew from DecentX.com to spotlight the indie and unsigned artists from that most excellent site…and so far it's been a rout.

Fatkid Dodgeball, from Columbus, Ohio, has been kicking some serious butt. The first poll was 'pick a favorite' while the second introduced mp3 samples from each band. Each time, FKDB won handily.

Does that mean they're the best band we've featured? Not necessarily. What it means is that they've got aggressive management and motivated fans. And that's really the point of Vote The Music. We're here to let fans support their favorite bands, whereever and whenever.

When FKDB heard about the poll, they put out the word and the votes came rolling in. The same thing can work for you and your favorite band, whether the idea is to get on TRL, get a spin on the MTV2 affiliate in Albequerque or just pump up the performance on the Pure Volume Band Rankings page.

As for our DecentX.com poll, we've put FKDB on the sidelines this week, while we offer up tunes from Copperpot, Cedarwell, In Theory, Ordinary Peoples and the Zac Brown Band. Next week, things get even more interesting when we up the ante one more time and put up videos from The Cat Empire, Fishbone, Conscious, Mer and Russ Golan & Molehead. We really like of few of these videos…hope you do too.

By the way, if you're a DX band reading this, send us your videos. The more videos we get, the more often we'll be able to do all-video polls.

And once we round up a few more winners, we'll put FKDB back in the mix and see who comes out on top.

Posted by SpudBoy on Tuesday, November 21st, 2006 at 2:57 pm In Music | Comments RSS

- Evan Chad

If you're one of the 14 people in Cleveland who haven't seen Fatkid Dodgeball (that's two words, folks) yet, then you don't know that the Columbus-based rock band has a growing legion of screaming female fans -- and that's the kind of endorsement you can't fake. And if you need musical details, the band is a study in contrasts: acoustic riffing and electric leads, vocal harmonies and pop-punk energy, and gentle melody over hard-hitting beats. - Cleveland Scene

Article by Elizabeth Blackburn

Everyone’s vying to be the “next big thing.”

A lot of bands have what it takes to make it in the industry, but they don’t have the dedication that it takes. Here’s one band that could very well be it: Fatkid Dodgeball.

Based in the Ohio State area, the fatkids play rock ‘n’ Roll and refuse to be classified as anything else. They have a large audience in Columbus and growing group of listeners in the Springfield area.

In March, they placed third in the Budweiser True Music: Battle of the Bands at Promowest Pavilion. They have been offered a couple recording deals, but they are holding out for the best one. They are determined to make it big, and with their hard work and talent, they’re bound to do it.

Brian Frank, vocalist and bass guitarist, writes the music, along with Brian Turnbull, who plays acoustic guitar and does vocals.

Casey Potts, who went to Midway Elementary and Fairborn High School, plays lead electric guitar. Jon Lawrence is the newest addition to the band. He plays drums, keyboards, and mixes recordings in his studio, Blue Radio Recording.

I had a chance to sit down with the band.

When did each of you start playing?
Brian Frank (BF): I started when I was about 13. Brian Turnbull (BT): I was about 17. Jon Lawrence (JL): I picked up my first drumsticks when I was about 15. Casey Potts (CP): I was 12. Thank God, I sucked at sports.

When you were in high school, what did you see yourself doing at this point?
CP: I pictured graduating college, and I’m still working on that. But I always knew I’d be in a band. JL: I thought I’d graduate from Kent State and be a teacher, but now I realize that’s definitely not what I want to do. I want to be a rock star. BT: I did the same thing. I came to Ohio State and I was going to go into communications. That fell through. BF: I just always wanted to be in a band, doing something creative. I used college as sort of a back up plan. I was hoping I’d be at least where I am right now, and I think things are going pretty well.

What’s one thing you wish you had done differently in high school?
BF: I wish I had known that the cool people in school aren’t the football players, or I would have focused more on my music. JL: I’ve got to say that I’m pretty satisfied with my high school career. I mean, I got through it. I learned how to play some instruments and I had fun, so no regrets. CP: I would have studied more. JL: Cut the mullet, dude. CP: (Laughing) yeah, I would have cut the mullet.

In three words, sum up your years in high school.
BT: Kind of dorky. JL: Time well spent. You get educated and you do your thing. BF: Biding my time. CP: No girlfriend. BF: Yeah that would be awesome if we, you know, weren’t doing an interview, and that wasn’t going to be in the paper. CP: OK, OK, fun-short-cool. BF: that sounds like you. CP: Me and my experience.

Who was your greatest musical influence?
BT: Guns and Roses. That’s what got me into music. It’s their stage presence and everything about them. That’s what introduced me to rock. BF: Mine is not a musician, it’s my aunt. When I was 5 and everyone else was running around in sand boxes, my aunt was introducing me to the Beatles. I was 5 years old and I rocked the Beatles and The Monkees. Ever since then I’ve just loved music. If I had to pick one band, though, it would be the Beatles. JL: NOFX, definitely CP: I’d say Led Zepplin. Classic, guitar-based rock.

How did the four of you get together?
BF: Online dating service. BT: No. no. Brian and I went to the same high school. BF: but I didn’t know him because he was a dork. BT: See a band that I was in had a show and our bassist quit. Our drummer introduced us (to him) and he learned 13 songs in a day and we played a graduation party. We’ve played together ever since. Casey was introduced to us by a mutual friend, and we met Jon through some friends of Brian’s. BF: I bartended at a bar where Jon’s roommates went. We’d been looking for a drummer for about a year…I heard his CD and that was it. The rest is history. CP: So basically, we met through friends of friends. Through the grapevine.

OK, so why “Fatkid Dodgeball”?
JL: Yeah I want to know that too. BF: For a long time we were called “Turnbull” because we were just to lazy to think of a band name> then we were “Upper 90” because our old guitarist like soccer a lot, and we couldn’t figure it out. He tried to explain it and we didn’t get it. So we were throwing names around and I had this roommate who came downstairs one time when we were laying around on couches and he said, “All right guys, I’m out like a fatkid in dodgeball.” Twenty minutes later I was like, “that’s the coolest thing I’ve ever heard in my life.” So I wrote it down. CP: that was the only one we could agree on. One was “Underground Beef” or “The Sensitive Linebackers.” JL: I am so glad you didn’t go with either of those.

How would you classify your music? Rock ‘n’ roll?
BT: We’ - Springfiled News-Sun

Fatkid Dodgeball? Dirty Leon and the Showerheads? The central Ohio groups are just a couple of the many garage bands that hope to soon be as recognizable as Metallica or Green Day.

Brian Turnbull and Brian Frank started Fatkid Dodgeball after graduating from Pickerington High School in 1996.

"Our first show was in a barn, and our group just formed from there," Turnbull said.

Six years later, the group has expanded to include members Casey Potts and Jon Malone and is getting its first taste of success. It plays frequently at Columbus clubs such as Bella, Skully's and Old School (formerly Alcatraz). It also is working on recording and producing an album.

Fatkid Dodgeball is far from being satisfied.

"Music is our main focus now," Turnbull said. "This is long term, and, eventually, we want to get out of Columbus."

On the other end of the spectrum is Dirty Leon and the Showerheads, a group just starting out. Johnstown High School seniors Jake McKim, Mike Holley and Josh Oswald formed the band last year after playing together at school events.

Johnstown band director Mark Zirille supports the group.

"As a music teacher, my job is to promote music. If this motivates kids to play, then I'm all about it," he said.

Their main "gig" is backing up the school's chorale during concerts, but all of the musicians have been in other groups, some of which have played in area bars.

"The turning point in my outlook on music was the first time I got paid for playing," McKim said. "Getting 75 bucks for having fun for three hours blew my mind."

Both groups have had to overcome obstacles. Turnbull said that the greatest challenge Fatkid Dodgeball faced was getting respect in Columbus.

"At first we had to play on Monday nights in area clubs, but now, we play every Friday night. That's pretty cool."

The members of Dirty Leon and the Showerheads recognize that they will face similar difficulties.

"For me, finding time to practice and venues to play in are the hardest things," Holley said. "Getting support can be tough, too. My parents are supportive of my dream, but they want to make sure I keep my feet on the ground and have something else to fall back on."

McKim defines their goal:

"Ideally, we would achieve moderate success, but realistically, we'd all be happy to simply live off our music."

Members of both bands think that the persistence is worth it.

"There's no feeling in the world like performing for people who are into the music," Holley said.

Turnbull agreed:

"Playing is the best feeling. Hearing people sing back the words we wrote is incredible. There's no other thing we'd rather do."
- The Columbus Dispatch

"Fatkid Dodgeball to Play Elbos" from Dayton Daily News

By Carol Simmons
Dayton Daily News

DAYTON 12/30 | When was the last time you heard a young rock band sing harmony? Real harmony? Harmony drenched in driving drum rhythms and crashing guitar riffs, at that.

OK, maybe you can think of an example off the top of your head, but still, you have to admit it's relatively rare.

But it's all part of the package for the Columbus-based Fatkid Dodgeball, which plays Elbo's this evening before heading to New York City for a New Year's Eve gig at the famed CBGB's nightclub.

Formed in 2001 as part of the Ohio State, High Street scene, the quartet has built up an avid Columbus following that is expanding along its regional edges. Athens and Springfield have already joined the team, and Dayton is likely to follow with additional exposure.

Fairborn is taking note as well, seeing as guitarist Casey Potts grew up there, graduating from Fairborn High School before his eventual move to Columbus.

In addition to Potts, the group includes founders Brian Frank (vocals and bass) and Brian Turnbull (vocals, acoustic and electric guitar) and more recent addition Jon Lawrence (drums, percussion and electric guitar).

A new album is due out early in the new year, and the melodic anthemic singles Ohio Skies and Get It are already getting some Midwest radio airplay.

D.X. Ferris of Cleveland Scene Magazine has written that he expects big things from Fatkid Dodgeball, which he has described as "a study in contrasts: acoustic riffing and electric leads, vocal harmonies and pop-punk energy, and gentle melody over hard-hitting beats."

Former Fairborn-ite Potts recently told a reporter at the Fairborn Daily Herald that he has high hopes for his band, but won't ever forget his origins.

"I grew up in Fairborn. Fairborn is my home," Potts told the Daily Herald's Rainey Howarth. "I've moved around, but Fairborn will always be home. One day I'd love to play at the Nutter Center and say 'Fairborn' — they like to say it's in Dayton, but it's not — 'Fairborn, Ohio, get ready to rock!' "

Contact Carol Simmons at 225-7309.
- Dayton Daily News