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By Christy L. Breithaupt / Special to The Detroit News

Hear 6 finalists at Chrysler Arts, Beats & Eats
What: Detroit News Sonic Summer: A battle of the bands finals showcase.
When: 6-11 p.m. Sept. 3
Where: Downtown Pontiac
Admission: Free
Call: (248) 334-4600
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Lisboa and Free Element triumphed over the Desolation Angels and the Robin Horlock Band at The Detroit News' Sonic Summer semifinals Thursday at the Magic Bag in Ferndale.
The victors will move on to the finals at the Chrysler Arts, Beats & Eats in Pontiac on Sept. 3. They will join the Killer Flamingos (pop/rock), Paper Street Saints (rock), Vigilante Sidekicks (punk) and Not for Sal (rock), other semifinals' winners.
Saturday's chosen band will open for Canadian melodic-pop band Sloan at 10 p.m. on Sept. 4.
The judges for Thursday's competition were Dana Forrester, director of the Motor City Music Conference; Scott Guy, general manager of Web Entertainment; Reprise Record's Joe Greenwald and Leah R. Dudek, artist development representative for Geffen/Verve Records.
"I think overall it was a good selection of bands," Guy says. "It wasn't about technical playing as much as it was about the energy they brought to the stage."
The first band of the night, the Robin Horlock Band, had a Gin Blossoms meets John Mayer feel about it. The band, chock-full of Beach Boy good looks, performed a set that pulled from rock, reggae and pop roots.
Next up was the toe-tapping, country-rock trio Desolation Angels. Loud and energy-infused, they channeled country greats such as Johnny Cash along with rockabilly staples such as the Reverend Horton Heat for a sound that was invigorating.
Lisboa, the third act, mixed Detroit loft-rock with an indie-emo twist. The band's frontman, sporting a gray mechanic's shirt and a black baseball cap, had an unassuming air that somewhat defined the bands' overall energy.
Finishing up was Free Element, a crowd-pleaser to be sure. The band's lead singer, who has the stage presence of Fred Durst and physical resemblance of Henry Rollins, minus the tattoos, took strong command of the stage.
Free Element combines an almost metal-like passion with the Top-40 accessibility of a power-pop group.
Lisboa, as a perk of winning, had the honor of playing an encore song and, appropriately enough, chose to perform a cover of Sloan's "Take It In."
"Most of the groups are pretty big Sloan fans," says lead singer Joe Kirkland of Detroit. "We had a blast. We're used to playing in sweaty basements, so this was incredibly gratifying to us."
Co-hosting the event with The News' Adam Graham was Jay Hudson of WRIF-FM (101.1), a partner in Sonic Summer.
Listen to all the Sonic Summer contestants at www.detnews.com/battleofthebands.
Contest sponsors
The Detroit News Sonic Summer: A Battle of the Bands is receiving help from the following sponsors:
• Effigy Studios of Ferndale is providing the winner with 12 hours of recording time. Effigy's client list includes Floetry, India.Arie and Macy Gray.
• DE1X Production of Detroit will create a live video. DE1X helped produce a music video for rapper Proof and a behind-the-scenes video for Eminem's "Like Toy Soldiers."
• The Axis Music Academy of Southfield is providing amps, drums and sound equipment for all three semi-final showcases. Axis provides hands-on music instruction for a variety of instruments and genres in studios around Metro Detroit.
• Guitar Center of Southfield will provide the winning band with a state-of-the-art Line 6 Variax guitar. Guitar Center is the nation's leading retailer of guitars, amplifiers, percussion instruments, keyboards, live-sound/DJ and recording equipment.
• The winning band or artist also will open for Sloan, the Canadian pop-rock group headlining Chrysler Arts, Eats & Beats on Sept. 4.
• The Motor City Music Conference, based in Royal Oak, is giving away a performance spot at its Spring 2006 event to the winning band.
Christy L. Breithaupt is a Metro Detroit freelance reporter.
- The Detroit News

Rockers Killer Flamingos and Paper Street Saints will join punk group Vigilante Sidekicks and pop/metalloids Not for Sal at the Sonic Summer finals at Pontiac's Chrysler Arts, Beats & Eats festival during Labor Day weekend. But two more bands will be chosen to play for the finals from Sonic Summer's third round. That battle -- featuring Free Element, Lisboa, Desolation Angels and the Robin Horlock Band -- will be today at the Magic Bag in Ferndale (on Woodward Avenue just north of Nine Mile). Admission is $5, and doors open at 7:30 p.m. Two bands from each round will compete in Sonic Summer: A battle of the bands Sept. 3 on The Detroit News stage at Chrysler Arts, Beats & Eats. - The Detroit News

After an intense week of online voting (and online bickering among fans), the second four semifinalists in The Detroit News' Sonic Summer contest have been chosen.
More than 137,000 votes were cast, 10 times as many as the first heat. The four bands that came out on top are young garage rockers the Satin Peaches, jazz quartet 4 Smooth, pop/rock bar-stars Killer Flamingos and polished modern rockers Paper St. Saints. These four groups will square off next Friday at Clutch Cargo in Pontiac's. Judges will determine which two of the four will advance to the finals at Chrysler's Arts, Beats & Eats Labor Day weekend.
"We're excited to meet all these bands and play with them," says Jesse Shepherd-Bates, guitarist and vocalist for the Satin Peaches.
The scores were close all week long. Pop/rockers Prime Ministers were in the top four until 11:58 a.m. Friday (voting ended at noon), but at the last minute, Paper St. Saints forged ahead and took the fourth spot. Heavy rock group the Kingsnakes also fared well in overall votes.
"This round was far more grueling and competitive than the first round," says Charlie Grover, drummer for Paper St. Saints. "It was a battle; it truly was."
"I'm excited to know that our fans were as willing to vote for us as the other bands' fans," says Killer Flamingos guitarist Todd Best. "I just want to prove that we have a strong and loyal base of fans who are dedicated to our music, and that will show when (at the showcase) we have people singing along to our songs and having fun with us when we play."
The first round of voting sent four bands to a showcase at the Magic Stick, which took place Friday night. Winners of that showcase will be announced Monday. Monday evening, voting will begin for the third group of bands. The four bands with the most votes from that round will perform at a showcase Aug. 25 at Magic Bag in Ferndale.
Two bands from each showcase will perform Sept. 3 on The Detroit News stage at Chrysler Arts, Beats & Eats.
Vote for your Round 3 favorite
Voting for the third and final group of 10 acts will start Monday evening at www.detnews.com/battleofthebands. The four top bands will battle at the Magic Bag in Ferndale on Aug. 25.
• Radiocraft: Female-fronted pop/rock.
• JoCaine: Country-fried American rock.
• Robin Horlock Band: Sensitive rock a la John Mayer.
• Desolation Angels: Johnny Cash-inspired rock and roll.
• Tripper: Radio-friendly modern rock.
• Vespas: Smart indie rock.
• Lisboa: Pop/rock with crafty songwriting.
• Amino Acids: Spaced-out noise punk.
• Earworms: Catchy pop/rock with strong melodies.
• Free Element: Emotional rock and roll.
Sponsors
The Detroit News Sonic Summer: A Battle of the Bands is receiving help from the following sponsors:
• Effigy Studios of Ferndale is providing the winner with 12 hours of recording time in its state-of-the-art facility.
• DE1X Production of Detroit will create a live video.
• The Axis Music Academy of Southfield is providing amps, drums, and sound equipment for all three semi-final showcases.
• The Motor City Music Conference, based in Royal Oak, is giving away a performance spot at its spring 2006 event.
• Guitar Center of Southfield is providing the winning band with a state-of-the-art Variax guitar.
The winning band will receive 12 hours recording time at Effigy Studios and a live video by DE1X Production. The winning band or artist also will open for Sloan, the Canadian pop-rock group headlining Chrysler Arts, Eats & Beats.
You can reach Melody Baetens at (313) 222-2402 or mbaetens@detnews.com. - The Detroit News

Free Element guitarist Randy Roberts drops to the stage during the band's show-closing set. Judge Rick Galdi called the band "a great surprise."

"After (Free Element) played, I was like, 'There's no way we have a shot at this," said Drake (of The Killer Flamingos).

Free Element closed out the evening with a set of driven, soaring alt-rock that saw guitarist Randy Roberts spazzing out with showy guitar moves.

"I think everybody came out on top, because we got to play in front of all these people," said Free Element singer Andy Perry, who fought a cold all week -- with vitamin C drops, green tea, honey and ginseng, the whole nine -- to be able to play Saturday.

Not For Sal lead singer Sal Aiello could be seen in the crowd bobbing his head along to Free Element.

- The Detroit News- Adam Graham

3 out of 5 stars

"... Remember This holds its own and has some downright catchy tunes." - Real Detroit Weekly

4 out of 5 stars

Those of us still nostalgic for early nineties radio bands finally have a new CD to ease the angst. The tracks on Remember This range from pop-punk to guitar-driven rock to mournful lament, but the vocals keep Free Element’s sound cohesive throughout the album. Andy Perry has one of those memorable voices that rattles around inside your eardrum long after you’ve turned off your stereo. For a self-made album, it sounds pretty good, thanks to studio help from masters Al Hurshman and Keith Cleversley. Only the most anal retentive of audiophiles will let the less-than-perfect mix ruin their enjoyment of this extremely likable CD. - Imige Magazine / Cortney Philip

Free Element
By Nick Brandon
GO & DO Editor

Who's RIFFing: Free Element is vocalist Andy Perry, Dan Rose (guitar/vocals), Randy Roberts (guitar), Brian Carney (bass) and drummer Jake Bayer. The band hails from the Detroit area.

The story behind the RIFFs: For eight years, the quintet has been playing together in some form — in fact, Bayer, Roberts and Rose grew up in the same neighborhood, first jamming together in middle school. From 2001 to ’03, the group started gigging, eventually finding Perry after auditioning front men. Since joining, Perry and company have played many shows in the area and are wrapping up their debut album.

Explain the name: “The band’s name has a pretty simple meaning to all of us,” Perry said. “We all feel as though we are in our element when we are playing music, and that has a way of almost setting us free.

“What better name than Free Element?”

The sound of these RIFFs: Perry says three words are key when imagining Free Element’s style — big, loud and melodic.

“We like to give listeners that rumbling feeling in their chest when the bass drum hits, chills up their spine when it’s time for a soaring vocal part and that all too common grin from ear to ear when they hear guitars kick in,” Perry said. “We rock a massively layered and textured sound.”

The band’s individual Influences include Third Eye Blind, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins and Hum.

Got RIFFs on the record? Free Element’s debut record Remember This will be released Dec. 20, but can be preordered now through its official Web site, found at www.freeelement.com. The disc is available for $12.50, and for $25 you can pre-order a T-shirt/CD combo pack.

“The album sounds great at lower volumes,” Perry said. “This is a CD you will want to listen to and show your friends cranked up to really get the full effect. You can also get a better idea for what it’s like to be at one of our live shows.”
Free

Your RIFFs outlook: “The future is wide open and extremely hard to predict, but we like to think we have a pretty good idea of what it holds,” Perry said. “We plan to do whatever it takes to get our music heard all over the world, and to help support our efforts playing tons of shows and touring all over the nation.

“We have only just begun our journey into the world of music.”

Where will you RIFF next? Free Element will be in concert Friday, Dec. 10, at The Magic Stick in Detroit. Also, the band is planning its record release party, and details will be posted soon, along with other news and show listings, at www.freelement.com.

Website: www.freelement.com
Link to Article: http://bands.goanddomichigan.com/riffs.asp?ID=24 - Nick Brandon / GO & DO Michigan

Free Element
By Nick Brandon
GO & DO Editor

Who's RIFFing: Free Element is vocalist Andy Perry, Dan Rose (guitar/vocals), Randy Roberts (guitar), Brian Carney (bass) and drummer Jake Bayer. The band hails from the Detroit area.

The story behind the RIFFs: For eight years, the quintet has been playing together in some form — in fact, Bayer, Roberts and Rose grew up in the same neighborhood, first jamming together in middle school. From 2001 to ’03, the group started gigging, eventually finding Perry after auditioning front men. Since joining, Perry and company have played many shows in the area and are wrapping up their debut album.

Explain the name: “The band’s name has a pretty simple meaning to all of us,” Perry said. “We all feel as though we are in our element when we are playing music, and that has a way of almost setting us free.

“What better name than Free Element?”

The sound of these RIFFs: Perry says three words are key when imagining Free Element’s style — big, loud and melodic.

“We like to give listeners that rumbling feeling in their chest when the bass drum hits, chills up their spine when it’s time for a soaring vocal part and that all too common grin from ear to ear when they hear guitars kick in,” Perry said. “We rock a massively layered and textured sound.”

The band’s individual Influences include Third Eye Blind, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins and Hum.

Got RIFFs on the record? Free Element’s debut record Remember This will be released Dec. 20, but can be preordered now through its official Web site, found at www.freeelement.com. The disc is available for $12.50, and for $25 you can pre-order a T-shirt/CD combo pack.

“The album sounds great at lower volumes,” Perry said. “This is a CD you will want to listen to and show your friends cranked up to really get the full effect. You can also get a better idea for what it’s like to be at one of our live shows.”
Free

Your RIFFs outlook: “The future is wide open and extremely hard to predict, but we like to think we have a pretty good idea of what it holds,” Perry said. “We plan to do whatever it takes to get our music heard all over the world, and to help support our efforts playing tons of shows and touring all over the nation.

“We have only just begun our journey into the world of music.”

Where will you RIFF next? Free Element will be in concert Friday, Dec. 10, at The Magic Stick in Detroit. Also, the band is planning its record release party, and details will be posted soon, along with other news and show listings, at www.freelement.com.

Website: www.freelement.com
Link to Article: http://bands.goanddomichigan.com/riffs.asp?ID=24 - Nick Brandon / GO & DO Michigan