Obsession Day

OBSESSION DAY
Quotes

"Obsession Day has developed a blend of sound that has become uniquely theirs...their live show is very strong as well"
--- Jay Harren - Music Director 99X/WNNX Atlanta

"Lead singer, Gary Pfaff, was one of my first inspirations...I used to watch him mesmerize audiences with his hypnotic rhythm and 'wise beyond their years' songs before the boy could drive!....Obsession Day is sure to have listeners all over the country OBSESSED!"
--- J Records recording artist - Michael Tolcher

“Sexy, sleek, yet soulful, Obsession Day fits like your favorite jacket...”
--- Ted Guggenheim – Celebrity Access

“Obsession Day fuse together crafty lyrics, catchy riffs and a myriad of complementary styles to create a solid array of artistic, listenable songs. OD are your cold beer on a hot summer day.”
--- Lisa Monti - Brash Music

“Excellent Vocals, great song writing, and amazing production value.....Obsession Day is where its at!”
--- Eric Deren – Dzignlight

“Golden-toned Gary Pfaff fronts Obsession Day like the soul of Rock n Roll depends on it. And it does. In a world of indie-rock clones, this band stands apart.”
--- Scott Mitchell - Marketing/A&R

"Obession Day rises out the power chord hungry Atlanta backstreets. One of the hardest rocking bands i've seen in a long time".
---John Thomas Griffith (Cowboy Mouth)

“It’s a great debut from an upstart band and the song Waiting for the Rain is a standout.” --- Craig Ray

"After a couple of years of being on the scene, Obsession Day have proven that they have the drive and talent needed to succeed above and beyond the Atlanta music scene." --- Rob Evans (Peter Searcy Manager)

“This band is REALLY good….I like Disease…and So Into U”
--- Cari Gelber (DecentX.com)
- Various

Obsessed band hits town
By Matthew Strother
Intrigue Editor

October 13, 2005

Bands are usually the culmination of a group of guys, or girls, jamming, playing around and making a name for themselves.

However, Obsession Day started with one man: Gary Pfaff, current vocalist, guitarist and pianist for the band. As a solo artist, Pfaff toured with bands like Sister Hazel and Edwin McCain.

“I played solo for a number of years ... but I had written some material that was a little more rock-based and decided to form a band, and that’s how it came about,” Pfaff said.

The band came together through connections of Pfaff’s.

The drummer, Kevin Caldwell, was already drumming for Pfaff’s solo project. Bassist John “JB” Brown was a friend of Caldwell enticed into the band when he heard the songs Pfaff had written for it.

The original lineup was formed in 2002 and was called Dial 8.

“Eagles ... was actually my roommate-at-the-time’s little brother, and we became really close friends,” Pfaff said. “And next thing you know, he started hanging around the band, then joined the band.”

Solidified as Obsession Day in 2003, the band began touring the Southeast, but traveled as far as California for some shows.

The band plays a mixture of pop, alternative and rock that has drawn attention from the Atlanta music scene. With an upbeat sound mixed with piano, funky bass, rock guitar and Pfaff’s soft, melodic vocals, Obsession Day has carved a niche in the music scene.

The band has even been featured on Atlanta’s seminal independent radio station 99X, spreading its music to the masses.

But the band has yet to go on a full-scale national tour. Pfaff has done national tours in the past, but Obsession Day has concentrated on the Southeast before trying to spread too far.

But Pfaff sees a full-scale tour in the near future.

“We’ve paired up with some groups and done some touring, but we’ve not yet done the jump in a van (thing) for a few months,” Pfaff said. “But I would guess that with our new management, we’ll be looking at doing that with the start of the first of the year.”

But the thought of national tours and major labels doesn’t seem to move Pfaff into obsession with rock stardom.

“We hope for success,” Pfaff said. “I think the thing that I want to see, and I think the other guys want to see, is to continue making good music and make a career out of it. I think that ... everybody'd love to make it and be rolling in it and be a rock star, but as long as we can make a career out of it, we’ll be satisfied.”

Obsession Day released its self-titled debut CD in August independently. Full songs can be listened to and downloaded for free from the band’s Web site and myspace.com. The CD can be purchased from the band’s Web site, cdbaby.com, live shows and via download on iTunes.

Obsession Day will play tomorrow at Eighth and Rail, located on South Railroad Avenue in Opelika.

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Obsessed band hits town
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Obsession Day frontman Gary Pfaff started out as a solo artist and toured with acts such as Edwin McCain in the early ’90s, but decided he wanted to go in a different direction with his music.

“I wanted to do more rock material, so I put a band together,” Pfaff said.

Several years later, the Atlanta-based band Obsession Day was formed and has now been together for two years. The band blends pop and electronica to form a radio-friendly sound that has been compared to some well-known acts.

“Our influences are wide and huge, but we’ve been compared to U2, Foo Fighters and Coldplay,” Pfaff said.

Obsession Day recently released their debut self-titled album in August and is now focused on getting their music heard by as many people as possible.

“It’s all good music,” Pfaff said. “It’s definitely got a lot of familiar characteristics, and it’s definitely energetic.”

Catch the band tonight at Eighth and Rail.
- The corner news

Obsession Day — Obsession Day
Produced by Obsession Day
Mixed by Tim Delaney and Gary Pfaff
Mastered by Rodney Mills at Rodney Mills Master House, Atlanta, GA

The “Obsession Day” of this band’s moniker almost certainly refers to Valentine’s Day, the holiday equally loved and dreaded by every age’s romantics. Sure enough, a red rose adorns the band’s CD cover and the band members themselves muster the very best “puppy dog” expressions for the photo in the insert. Also note the ironic t-shirts with thinly veiled cries of desperation for intimacy like “Spank Me” and “Play With the Best.”

Ten years ago, a band with Obsession Day’s sensibilities would be expected to come up with some angular riffs and an ear-splitting emo-whine to show the girls just how sorry they are for everything they’ve done and everything they’ve yet to do and regret. Now that bands like Saves the Day and Thursday have blazed some important trails, wearing your heart on your sleeve is no longer something for strung-out underground musicians. Obsession Day is allowed to completely bypass the “emo” tag and compete as a potentially successful band.

As with most things concerning popularity, quality is hardly a consideration. Still, Obsession Day isn’t lacking when it comes to writing some decent tunes. “So Into You” is one of the album’s obvious highlights and rightfully begins the album. The songs are of fairly consistent quality and Obsession Day clearly spent some time thinking about how to arrange the order of the songs to keep away any monotony. Truth be told, at least two or three of these songs sound like variations on one another with few markedly different songs, making tunes like the slightly off-kilter “Blue” all the more refreshing. Still, when it works it really works, and Obsession Day is well on its way to keeping the teenybopper masses fixated.

David Gaines
Southeast Performer Magazine - Southeast Performer Magazine