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"Rootdown,"

From the rolling rap and percussive guitar strumming of the intro to the confectionary glee of the chorus kicking in, Rootdown’s “Summertime” fits the classic blueprint of a radio-friendly single. The song is catchy and straightforward, a spiritual sentiment of thanksgiving that is lifted up, literally and figuratively, by the upbeat aura of reggae. Like the ultraviolet rays it celebrates, “Summertime” gets under your skin. Band founder and lead singer Paul Wright — a Eugene returnee from the laid-back groove of Southern California beach culture — sprinkles the song with nice details that are easily grasped by anyone who recalls “soakin’ up the sun until it gets dark” during those long, hot days of August. And when he decides to “thank the creator for all that we have,” the emotion is buoyant and all-embracing, a cosmic call for everyone to chill out and love one another. The band plays it loose and funky, and the song’s minimalist effects — a horn riff, some ‘70s style gee-tar reverb, a synthesized vocal bridge — only add to the single’s guilt-free feeling of letting your toes sink into warm sand.

Source (Scroll Down in Article): Eugene Weekly
Web Link: http://eugeneweekly.com/2009/11/12/coverstory.html - Eugene Weekly


"[Review / video] Rootdown, Reed Thomas Lawrence at Bend Spring Festival"

http://frequency.blogs.bendbulletin.com/2010/04/20/review-video-rootdown-reed-thomas-lawrence-at-bend-spring-festival/



Frequency contributor Ethan Maffey checked out the Bend Spring Festival Saturday night and filed this report. Be sure to read all the way through and then check out the video Ethan shot of Eugene’s Rootdown:

This past weekend, the popular Bend neighborhood NorthWest Crossing hosted a scaled-down version of the typical seasonal downtown festival. From the looks of things on Saturday, the smaller festival seemed to be a complete success, and possibly the best indicator was the scheduled music that evening.

First to take the stage was local singer-songwriter Reed Thomas Lawrence, in one of his final Bend shows before his planned relocation to Los Angeles this summer. Still hanging on to a bit of the reggae-pop sound from his last album, the man they call RTL has clearly begun to incorporate more blues and traditional rock into his catalog. New and unreleased material was featured throughout much of his set and, though it was performed with a band put together only days earlier, easily Lawrence is ready for the big city.

After a free-verse introduction by RTL during his final song and a quick stage change-out, Eugene’s reggae/pop/rock band Rootdown — fronted by former solo artist Paul Wright — was ready to finish off the festival crowd and did so with surprising prowess. During Lawrence’s set, Rootdown bassist Jackson Michelson ventured in front of the stage and joined a lady who was enjoying the music with her own brand of dancing. Unsure of whether this represented the headlining band as dorky attention-grabbers or simple lovers of life and fun, I reserved making that call until their set … and it didn’t take long for me to get an answer.

While Rootdown’s music hasn’t pushed any envelopes or carved out brand new sounds, what it has done is present the genre with thoughtful accuracy and brilliant honesty. The performance of tracks from their latest album, “Summer Of Love,” delivered such upbeat messages and rhythms, most festival goers couldn’t help but jump in the air with pumped fists or split index and middle fingers, resonating the peaceful and yet energetic feel of the music. The members of Rootdown are genuine guys who love what they do, communicate that to the audience with every smile and perform each song with the kind of energy found at a Michael Franti concert. Their stage direction is tightly executed and they engage the crowd with charisma that shows off their charm. By the end of the night, I had become a big fan and unashamedly asked them autograph my CD.

If you missed this show, you can still catch an acoustic performance from Rootdown May 9 at The Kilns here in Bend, before they venture as far away as Alaska on their college campus tour … and I suggest you do. - Bend Bulletin


"Rootdown-Summer_Of_Love-EP-2009"

Rootdown-Summer_Of_Love-EP-2009
(Reggae/Rock/Hip-Hop)

Oregon's Rootdown are releasing a new EP in a timely fashion with the start of the summer that will mesh perfectly with your summer activities . Instantly you can feel the summer breeze hitting your face through the visuals on the cover (pictured above). Rootdown start off by grabbing your ears through the smooth vocals of lead singer Paul and finish you off with catchy hooks and breezy guitar riffs. Rootdown has all the right things going for them and hopefully we can see this band keep on pushing out that good music. Look for this must have EP on itunes within a week. Click the cover art to hit up their myspace For fans of G. Love & Special Sauce, John Butler Trio, Iration. - Hillydilly.com


"Courtyard Music Festival welcomes new students with music, eats"

CORVALLIS - If you need more "sweet sweet lovin'" for your "summer summertime in the city," head to the Courtyard Music Festival at 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, at the corner of 25th Street and Harrison Boulevard.

The apartment complex will host dedicated Corvallis singer/songwriter Casey Hurt; the sounds of Caleb & Sol, identical twins from Eugene; Seattle singer Mark Wagner and finish the night with the reggae-infused wanderings of Rootdown featuring Paul Wright.

All the bands share the Christian rock ethic of uplifting, empowering music. Yet each has such an individual take on the genre that any one of them could get away with not using the Christian music label at all.

Rootdown, who will finish the night, infuses a classic college party band lineup with island beats and Northwest lyrics hailing everything from the Burrito Boy chain of restaurants to Oregon sunshine.

"The name comes from putting our roots down in the community," lead singer Paul Wright said. The Eugene native recently moved to Corvallis.

If you listen closely, beneath the reggae beats and laid back vibe, in a style similar to Jack Johnson, Wright ruminates on serious issues of faith and humanity.

"When I started I was a little nervous playing in bars," Wright said. "Since then, I've learned people are people. Our music is really entertaining and that positive feeling and spirit of encouragement fits in anywhere."

The band is just back from a East Coast tour with gigs from Washington D.C. to Jacksonville, Miss., to play songs of their new EP "Summer of Love," which is available on iTunes and at the show.

The band is currently working on 40 to 60 new songs from which they will choose a dozen for their next album.

"I think that every time we get together, we're working on new music," electric guitar player Matt Salinas said.

"It's definitely a collaborative effort," Wright said.

"It's very organic," agreed bass player Jackson Michelson of Corvallis.

"I think we write them faster than any other band I've been in," Salinas said. "When we're creative, we are creative."

The band will be joined by their brass section, saxaphone player and Albany native Chris Rogers and trumpet player Tim Hemphill for the Friday show.

The concert is meant to be a welcoming back party for Oregon State University students and the community.

Rootdown's music and lyrics should also provide an appropriate farewell to the summer months as well with one last blast of shameless summery sounds before OSU classes are in session.

"We all love summer and I think Oregon summers are the best," drummer Craig Paulsen said.


http://gazettetimes.com/entertainment/article_79b72eca-a947-11de-8846-001cc4c002e0.html

- Corvallis Gazette Times


"Rootdown rocks New Student Orientation"

http://www.advocate-online.net/92109/RootdownPge.php

Rootdown, a Eugene band, will play Wednesday as part of MHCC’s Welcome Week and also played in the Main Mall Tuesday as part of Mt. Hood Community College’s New Student Orientation events.

Rootdown, which played several tracks from their recently released album, Summer of Love, released their first EP in November 2007. The self-titled EP was given away online in exchange for submitting email addresses.
“We got over 10,000 e-mail addresses,” said lead singer and guitar player, Paul Wright. “We’re completely independent, we fund everything ourselves.”

Summer of Love is completely self-funded and produced. Rootdown recorded it in Nashville, Tenn., with the help of some of their friends in the business and has released it on their own label, Ocean Ave Records.
Trumpet player and percussionist Tim Hemphill has been playing with the band since its founding. “I was working at (Paul’s) old high school with a group of kids and he came in. He was talking about starting this band Rootdown.” That was in the winter of 2006.

Drummer Craig Paulsen has known Wright for three years and started performing with him during the singer’s previous solo project, after which he was present for the founding of Rootdown.
Jackson Wright, Paul’s brother, joined the band a year ago and plays bass and adds vocals.

The band had their first practice on the first day of summer 2007. Since then they’ve undergone a few changes in the roster. In June of 2008 the band almost broke up. Instead, they decided to continue playing and proceeded with their tour. After their Hawaii tour, they added guitarist Matt Salinas to the band and began writing new material.

“I got laid off and Paul gave me a call about a week later,” Salinas said. “It kind of worked out great for me.” That was about six months ago, since then the band has produced what Paul Wright has called “two of our best songs” and recorded and released their album Summer of Love.

“It has just been a really cool experience for me so far. You know, looking forward, I think our best music is still ahead of us,” Salinas said, commenting on his experience with the band. “Every week I’m knocking something off the bucket list.”

The band’s self described Pop-Reggae-Hip-Hop sound stems from Paul Wright’s exposure to reggae and time in San Diego where the culture inspired their music. He wrote the lyrics to their first song, “Roots,” on the plane as he flew back to Eugene.

Speaking about the goal of the band’s sound, “The Music would be the soundtrack for what we are living for. Kind of like the smoke to the fire.” The goal of Rootdown’s upbeat style is to inspire positive change in the lives of its listeners. “That’s kind of the meaning behind Rootdown. Putting our roots down and making a positive difference in our community,” Paul Wright said.

- The Advocate (Mt. Hood Community College)


""Summer of Love" Album Review"

http://www.thepier.org/view-cd-review.php?artist=124

Rootdown has developed into a slightly different type of reggae-rock act since its last EP came out. Whether it be a little more acoustic or a little more reggae-pop tunes about love. The band has a knack at creating melodies that get stuck in your head. On Rootdown's most recent outing, Summer of Love, we experience a lyrical message that we didn't experience last time around. The love is still there, but it's laced with double entendres and analogies baby.



This EP hit me as a sort of battle. Don't worry, not a heavy intense battle. More a songwriting battle between Rootdown's guitarist/vocalist/singer-songwriter/all around great guy Paul Wright and well... Paul Wright. Paul seems to be treading that fine line between reggae songwriter and christian music songwriter. Now that's not a surprise considering when not fronting Rootdown, Mr. Wright is a well respected Christian solo artist. On Summer Of Love, Paul's more religious lyrics are crossing over into his band's reggae style. Now this is not a bad thing and definitely not a thing to rag on. Paul's not preaching here, he's using his personal writing style to influence his band's reggae-pop sound to make it sharper and take it to another level.



I definitely dig this EP. The band has taken what sound it started with on its Rootdown EP and has really begun exploring what it can do within the reggae-pop genre. The continual guitar flirting between Paul and Matt is really becoming something special, smoothly switching between reggae-rock guitars and laid-back surf guitar. The band is smart enough to know not to take to many big leaps seeing it's only its second EP. But you can hear the progression in the music.



Paul & Co. do an outstanding job of painting an image of the summertime on "Summertime In The City."

Everything really seems to come together in one fluid motion here. Paul's talking-singing, the surf guitar, but what really hits me about this song is the bass and horns in the last minute of the song. You may not reside in a city, but it's too tempting to not say for a good 3:38 minutes that you do indeed live in the city.



The music's not complex. The music may not make you think about the world. But I'll be damned if you're not smiling or feeling good throughout Summer Of Love.



Review by Iain Axness - ThePier.org


"Rootdown Artist Interview"

http://www.thepier.org/view-artist.php?artist=120

Oregon’s Rootdown may have only released two EPs to date, but when the songwriting quality is that damn good the band can’t help but blow up nation-wide. It also didn’t have the lead track on The Pier’s Pacific North West Sampler for nothin’. Vocalist and guitarist Paul Wright stops by for the band’s first Pier interview.



The Pier: Obvious first question, I take it your band is named after the Beastie Boys song of the same name. Why did you choose that?
Paul: Yes we did draw inspiration from that song of the Beastie Boys. But we also love reggae music as well as hip-hop and we found the name fitting since it reflects both of those threads in our music. Also we wanted to build something in our area, sort of like putting our roots down.

The Pier: What was your inspiration for putting the band together to begin with?
Paul: I experienced Ooklah Da Moc and Natural Vibrations in Hawaii and I loved the scene and vibe at those shows. The band and audience were in sync like an ocean moving to the music. We want to cultivate that scene with our music. We wanted to create an experience with our music especially at our shows that made people feel like they were noticed and important.

We want to be able to use our platform in our scene for positive things. For example we partnered with a college in town last month and raised $2,000 that helped send a group of students to an orphanage in Africa. To us it's important to create an uplifting environment where people can feel love.

The Pier: What is the reggae scene like in Oregon at the moment?
Paul: It's not as busy as SoCal or even Central Coast Cali but it's getting more popular and local bands are coming up playing shows. We have the NW World Reggae Festival featuring Groundation and tons of other artists this year. Marko and Ruffkuts clothing out of Ashland are always up to getting something going. They go to more reggae shows than anyone else I know in Oregon. Oregonians love reggae music especially in Bend. The challenge sometimes is connecting a Stoopid or Pepper fan with our music unless we get a chance to open for those bands and play in front of their crowd. Slowly but surely people are starting to notice our music!

The Pier: You gave away your first EP for free on your web-site. Do you think that helped you get wider exposure quicker?
Paul: Yeah for sure. We gave it away and gave people the option to tell up to five friends about the free EP. By doing that we quickly established an email of 10,000 people that we email our newsletter to regularly. Not all 10k peeps might be interested in our monthly shows or buy our EP on iTunes, but if 20% do that's 2,000.

The Pier: How did you approach recording your new EP, Summer of Love, differently from your debut?
Paul: Our first EP we recorded with Jeffery David in LA. On this one we had the help of some friends back in Nashville, but the majority of it was tracked in my buddies house. I personally spent hours on my macbook, since we work with logic, tweaking the mixes. I remember we were flying to the East Coast for some shows last month and on our layovers I'd juice up the laptop and be working on Burrito Boy. The Detroit airport has some pretty sweet laptop stations but no free wifi.

The Pier: What has been some of your personal highlights to date from being in this band?
Paul: Engaging with an audience that is all over the map. Having people that truly love the music and feeling like we are doing something important. Opening for Pepper to a sold out show in Portland was sweet!

The Pier: Are you planning on doing any major touring this year?
Paul: Yes, we want to play a bunch of colleges. We are going to focus on the west coast because it's more feasible for us to do that but we'd love to hit up the east coast and Florida again. Oh and Hawaii would be sweet! Every island of course.

The Pier: If you could jump on the bill with any band right now, who would it be?
Paul: Rebelution. We love their music and their vibe. We love what they're doing right now!

The Pier: Fun last question, tell us something about yourself your fans wouldn't know?
Paul: Most musicians suck at sports but we all love playing basketball. Matt and me played college ball. However, Jackson has web-toes and is still the worst swimmer in the band. - ThePier.org


Discography

ROOTDOWN EP - 2007
Downloaded over 25,000 times since it's debut.

Summer of Love - 2009
Album reached as high as #6 on the ITunes Top Reggae Chart
Single "Taking Over Me" aired both on nationally and regionally broadcasted radio stations.

Tidal Wave - 2011
Shot up the iTunes Alternative charts in its first week of release
Already receiving top 40 airplay in the NW

Photos

Bio

ROOTDOWN’S NEW ALBUM IS AN INFUSION OF ROCK, POP AND TINGES OF REGGAE PRODUCED BY CHRIS STEVENS WHO HAS PRODUCED MAT KEARNEY, BLAKE SHELTON AND MOST RECENTLY CARRIE UNDERWOOD’S “COWBOY CASSANOVA”. THE ALBUM HAS READY RECEIVED SIGNIFICANT RADIO AIRPLAY WITH THE SINGLE “ALL I WANNA DO” AND HAS PICKED UP INTEREST IN THE FILM AND TV INDUSTRY AS WELL AS ATTRACTING ATTENTION FROM BOTH INTERSCOPE AND UNIVERSAL RECORDS. IN THE FIRST WEEK OF THE ALBUM’S RELEASE, THE ALBUM SHOT UP THE ITUNES ALTERNATIVE CHARTS AND HAS ALREADY SURPASSED THE SALES OF THEIR PREVIOUS RELEASE “SUMMER OF LOVE.”

SINCE ROOTDOWN’S NACA DEBUT IN 2009, THE BAND HAS TOURED NATIONWIDE PLAYING AT OVER 60 COLLEGE CAMPUSES, MANY MULTIPLE TIMES. THEY HAVE HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF PERFORMING WITH SWITCHFOOT, THE NEW BOYZ, AUGUSTANA, SUGURCULT, PEPPER, TYRONE WELLS AND MANY OTHER NATIONAL TOURING ACTS. MOST CAMPUSES DESCRIBE THEIR ROOTDOWN PERFORMANCE AS “THE EVENT OF THE YEAR” WHICH IS WHY THEY CONTINUE TO BRING ROOTDOWN BACK TO THEIR CAMPUS.

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