Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
COSTA MESA, CA – The Detroit Bar is an ultra-loungie, uber-trendy hangout located in a 1960’s-designed and built strip mall just outside the major shopping district of Costa Mesa/Newport Beach, and just off the end of the 55 Freeway. This wannabe piece of the Sunset Strip-off-19th played host to the (ex)bassist of the currently-hiatused Halo Friendlies, Ginger Sling, showcasing her solo project to an audience that really thought they must have been at The Standard in West Hollywood.
While wearing her trademark red-with-white-striped shirt, the tiny-framed Sling put on an enjoyable 30 minute set, mixed of classic covers and poppy originals, sung with a grrl-power-esq style, enfused with a passionate delivery. Her musicians were consummate professionals, with the dual guitars working well, giving each song a full backbone of sound, coupled with the reasonable drums and good bass playing by Sling.
We’re interested in catching Ginger Sling again. Ginger Sling has a strong, pop-influenced show with what could be very surprising, far-reaching appeal. We do recommend checking out her EP for some good, could-be mainstream pop tunes…and of course a show or two. - By Aaron D. Settipane, Myracleworks Music Showcase (January 9, 2005)
Sadly, not available in the UK at the moment, this excellent solo debut from Halo Friendlies bassist, Ginger Reyes (aka Ginger Sling), ought to be heard by anyone who loves vibrant, melodious power-pop. Of course, the female singer-songwriters that today’s media prefer (KT Tunstall, Jem, Thea Gilmore, etc) tend to be dreary exponents of coffee table angst. Thankfully, Ginger Sling eschews such trappings, as well any faux Joni Mitchell/ Carole King clichés, and turns in five delicious, straight-to-radio tracks that brim with all the excitement and fun of a long, hot summer. It’s ideal for that drive to the beach.
‘Room’ does not stray too far from the Halo’s sound, except the pop-punk leanings of that band give way to Ginger’s classic influences. The joyous lead track, ‘Now That You’re Here’, is pretty much what the Beatles circa 1965 would’ve sounded like if they came from California. Her rocked-up cover of Paul Simon’s ‘Kodachrome’ is given a spunky makeover and is a radical departure from the laidback original. It wouldn’t have sounded out of place on the last Halo’s album, 2003’s ‘Get Real’.
‘Faith’ breaks the ep’s overall uptempo feel and is a classy, commercial ballad without sounding over-produced or vapid. My only complaint about ‘Room’ is that it’s not long enough, clocking in at a meagre eighteen minutes, but, since it’s one of those releases that leaves one begging for more, Ginger’s obviously doing something very right. Whether a full length album is on the cards is unclear, though, if not, one imagines Ginger will bring more of the same to the table come the next Halo Friendlies album. - By Ross Halewood, Vanguard Online
Discography
Room EP
1. Now That You're Here
2. Meant To Be
3. Faith
4. Kodachrome
5. Are You Gonna?
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
Ginger has been playing in bands and writing songs since her freshman year in High School. So when Spring rolled around in 2004 Ginger decided it was time to break out of the close knit band that she had been in for the last 6 years and do a solo project called Ginger Sling.
Being the bass player and one of the main singer/songwriters for the band the Halo Friendlies, Ginger had the opportunity to accomplish many things bands only dream of. With the Halo Friendlies, Ginger has toured the United States many times over including performing on the Vans Warped Tour. She toured the UK five times in the past year, for months at a time. She has done two USO tours after 9/11 playing shows in Bosnia, Kosovo and Germany. The Halo Friendlies released an album for EMI's Tooth and Nail Records and recorded a song for the Freaky Friday Soundtrack in 2003. She then received a gold record for the sale of over 500,000 copies of the Soundtrack. From 2001-2002 Ginger was also the bass player for the band Lo Ball where she had the opportunity to work with John Porter (The Smiths, Morrissey) and Michael Beinhorn (Hole, Soundgarden). She has also performed live with producer Linda Perry and fellow solo artist Sierra Swan twice in the past few months.
But all of these things have only resulted in making one thing clear to Ginger, "Life is short so I want to make the best music I can from my heart." To her this means writing songs without compromise. Her music is powerful, melodic and full of pop and rock sensibilities. Her main influences are the Beatles, Elvis Costello, Superdrag and Elliot Smith. Ginger Sling, named after a lyric in the Beatles' song Savoy Truffle, is backed by a rocking band with herself on bass.
Throughout 2004 and 2005, Ginger recorded a 5 song EP called The Room and played some shows on the Vans Warped Tour. Her music has been featured on MTV's "The Real World", "Making the Band", "Pimp My Ride" and "Laguna Beach". She also recorded a song for the feature film, "Sky High" that will be released in theaters in the US in July of 2005. Although she loves writing the songs, she loves to play live even more. She performs regularly around Southern California, but keep an eye out for when she comes to your town. You wont want to miss it.
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