The Spectaculars

Material:
"With a sound that combines Outkast with Steely Dan, the Spectaculars represent the ultimate marriage of hip-hop and classic rock. Featuring Edwards’ charismatic vocals backed by Knight and Towns, the rhyme is layered over Donald’s powerful drum licks and a bass that Towns pumps up to heart-stopping intensity. 'Have You Heard Things,' delivers an Eminem-influenced message that there are only three laws: 'We’re born, we cheat and we die.' The remainder of the material is just as compelling and hard-hitting."

Musicianship:
"Whether the style is reggae, jazz or rock, the band have a stellar sound. Their skills are well-applied even in this diverse range. Donald supplies the power-packed drum beat, complementing the exceptional bass work of Towns. Knight’s guitar lines are accentuated by the keys of Saint John to form the perfect accompaniment for the words blasted by Edwards."

Performance:
"The Spectaculars lived up to their name at this showcase event, and gave the packed house something to cheer about. Whether by way of R&B, jazz or classic rock, Edwards’ powerful lyrics managed to stand out above the music, mesmerizing the crowd and winning them over. The audience felt the love and returned it, fueling a fiery performance."

Summary:
"The Spectaculars find themselves in a unique position. The multiple layers and diverse range of genres of their material present an opportunity for the songs to reach a wide-range of listeners. The group’s extensive appeal offers something rare in today’s niche marketplace."

––Bob Leggett - Music Connection Magazine

The Spectaculars take their Hip Hop roots, infuse it with R&B and a heavy dose of rock then bend this blend into an eclectic mix of pop genius. It's true, this recipe of love, truth and the good life is like listening to your favorite mix tapes, Parliament, Outkast, Keith Sweat, LLCoolJ and little ‘70s rock - it's all in there! The Spectaculars are quickly carving their own niche in modern music. They are as lyrically poignant as they are musically prolific, and most truly spectacular! - Indie Feed

http://spinearth.tv/report/spinearth-tv-exclusive-twelve-singles-from-rising-bands

The Spectaculars
"A Girl Like You"
Hometown: Minneapolis, MN
The only cover among our 12 picks, "A Girl Like You", originally sung by Edwyn Collins, is a one hit wonder making it's second rounds. Just as shoegazing, neon, and Raybans' Wayfarer sunglasses can be revived, so can 90s dance-pop -- with a vengeance. The Spectaculars, a Minneapolis-based quintet, spins it as well as anybody, throwing in extra synths and little vocal charms. The band's latest album, You Can Look Up Now can be found on iTunes.

Joel Saint John from the The Spectaculars discusses "A Girl Like You."

"The song "A Girl Like You" is our cover of the Edwyn Collins' tune. We chose it for our second album, You Can Look Up Now for a few reasons: it's a kick ass song that we've always seen a lot ourselves in, it really fit the vibe of the rest of the album, and we figured a cover song may be a smart way to establish ourselves state-side. We've been fortunate to create a bit of a following in Europe, but our goal is to get the entire planet spinning to The Spectaculars. So thank you, SPINearth, for this opportunity!" - SPIN

http://www.independentmusicawards.com/ima/9th-ima-submission-spotlight-the-spectaculars/

ARTIST NAME: The Spectaculars
HOMETOWN/CURRENTLY BASED: Minneapolis, MN
WEB SITE: http://www.thespectaculars.com
INFLUENCES: David Bowie, Johnny Cash, Todd Rundgren, Biggie, Led Zep, T Rex
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: MIDEM 2006 (1 of 8 bands that performed for the “Buzzbands Showcase”), NXNE Headliner 2007, LA Music Awards Headliner 2008
WE SUBMITTED TO THE INDEPENDENT MUSIC AWARDS BECAUSE: We truly believe in the power of independent music, and we feel it is the perfect vehicle to create awareness for, and help promote our new album and music video.
WE’RE PROUD TO BE INDEPENDENT ARTISTS BECAUSE: We can do anything we want with our music, we just need help doing all of those things.
WHAT’S NEXT: Just released our Sophomore album, You Can Look Up Now and our debut music video “Hup 2?
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiyHDSctmQg), touring this fall and winter.
SUCCESS = Making the music we want to make with the people we want to make it with, touring, releasing material and having it heard for a long time to come, being able to survive and prosper off of those efforts so that we can continue to focus, build, and create.
WHAT MAKES OUR BAND STAND OUT: It’s ability to naturally blend genre’s without sounding forced. We’re eclectic due 100% to the personalities in the band.
WHERE WE TOUR: Mainly Midwest and West Coast. Our desires are to extend that as much as possible, to as many areas, continents, and planets as possible.
OUR FAVORITE VENUE TO PLAY: The Varsity Theater, Minneapolis MN. It’s our home and truly one of the best venues in the country. They have an old school approach; vibe, taking care of bands, professionalism, quality sound, and flexibility.
OUR CURRENT TOP TEN PLAYLIST:
Brazillian Girls, “Losing Myself”
Orba Square, “Raining Again”
The Noisettes, “Never Forget You”
The Black Keys, “So He Won’t Break”
David Bowie, “All The Young Dudes”
Jay Z, “Thank You”
Brother Ali, “Good Lord”
Jeff Buckley, “Corpus Christi Carol”
N.E.R.D., “Sooner or Later”
T Rex, “Cosmic Dancer” - The Independent Music Awards

The Spectaculars
Press Release, 8/4-08

Greetings Spectacular People! We just wanted to share a few updates with you all.

First things first-

The Spectaculars are currently on standby for a 12 date UK Tour from 10/1 - 10/12. We'll obviously share more info with you as things progress, and it sounds like we'll know that info by mid-August.

Along with that, we continue to feel the love from the sexy-Euro's: We are also in the finals for the 2008 UK Singer/Songwriter awards, so keep your fingers and toes crossed for us!

Last, but surely not least, we just received news that our tune, "Mista Ambarosia" has been selected to be on the soundtrack for "Center Stage, Turn It Up"! We could be more pleased. The film is set to be released at the end of October of this year.

Oh yeah, don't forget that our new album is set to be released on 10/1/08, along with our debut video for "Hup 2", which is in it's final stages of editing.

All of this happening at once?! Couldn't be!! It's shaping up to be a CRAZEEEE FALL SEASON!!!

More details to follow on all of these Spectacular opportunities that continue to come our way.Thanks again for all the love and support, as always!

Stay true, ya'll.

The Spectaculars - The Spectaculars

Get in your car, pop The Spectaculars “Have You Heard Things?” CD into your player, turn up the volume and drive—you’ll love the experience. The album is unabashedly eclectic, yet built for the mainstream—some R&B, hip hop, soul and rock ‘n’ roll—but it fuses together a dynamic story that is honest to who the band is rather than songs selected by an A&R person who is trying to guess what they think the public, or radio programmers, want. This album is made for music lovers. “Have You Heard Things?” is energetic and fun and makes you want to play it again and again. You gotta get a copy.

Tanja Crouch,
Former Vice President Orbison Records
&
Barbara Orbison Productions - Tanja Crouch, Orbison Records

The Martinez will be buzzing with fresh musical talent this evening. MIDEM has teamed up once again with online artist promoters Sonicbids to get the new acts onstage. The MIDEM buzzband 2006 night features laid back afro groove act Karlex; Ghana-born reggae artist Selasee; hip-hop hustler Beat Assailant and pop-rap group THE SPECTACULARS. - The News, The Official MIDEM Newspaper

"The Spectaculars took the stage to thaw the crowd with their serious, soulful set of hip-hop, r&b and rock. This band is super fun - Minneapolis' very own Robert Randolph, indeed . . . a stellar show to a very large and appreciative crowd. These are the nights I'm proud to live in the Twin Cities and write about the local scene."


- Perfect Porridge

"Sometimes rock. Sometimes hip-hop. Sometimes R&B. Sometimes all three at the same time . . . Rich guitar licks and hard chords in the funky, melodic vein of Prince and Living Colour . . . and no doubt about the incredible stage presence. Seasoned performers who know how to entertain the room."
-- ChartAttack/Chart Magazine - ChartAttack/Chart Magazine

Band / Artist : The Spectaculars -
Rating : 9 out of 10

I love hearing new music that makes my ears price up and pay attention, as was the case with The Spectaculars. I say new music, which this was to my ears, but not the the music shelves, as this album came out in 2005. It is however the most recent work from the Spectaculars and I’m hoping that something new is just around the corner.

The first track is “Mista Ambrosia”, which is as an original sound as I’ve ever heard. It’s certainly a sound you could hear on the radio and recognise in the blink of an eye. A classic case of opening an album with a sheer classic in the making. “The Save” is a more conventional pop song, with some decidedly strange harmonies, which you hear around the 2 minute mark. Probably a classic case of hearing too, because I was using headphones. “You On Me” struck me as a Lenny Kravitz cover that isn’t. It’s a kind of fusion of 70’s classic rock and 90’s guitar rock.

Sometimes I complain about a band being all over the place. This is an album that while is most definitely all over the place, manages to hold it all together into one coherent package. “Dear Sexy” has soulful Wild Cherry vocals, but again they’re fused into numerous musical styles and influences, that results in a wonderfully laid back and funky track.

“Holy Hannah” again is a total departure from the tracks that precede it, but as I said before, this is a classic example of a Chaos theory album. All over the place, but at the same time very uniform in it’s excellence. “Anti-Hectic” harkens back to the 70’s in it’s feel, but has that contemporary edge, that prevents this album from being derided as a throwback also ran. Talking of throw backs, I couldn’t help but smile when I heard “Have you Heard Things”. There’s a dialog that introduces the track, and I couldn’t help but hear Barry White’s voice in my head, as opposed to the one that is on the track.

There really is too much on this album, to really give it justice in this small space. Suffice to say, it is comforting in it’s style and influences, but refreshing, in the edge that has been introduced throughout. There’s enough different styles of track to keep you interested and highly entertained.

I must give a special mention to the final track “Stone Age” which gives the hip-hop, pop feel of the majority of the album, a real infusion of 70’s super rock. Brilliant.

Conclusion : Extremely funky, with originality by the bucket. An absolute riot of an album.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 6th, 2007 - Indie Launchpad/Podcast