Trace Of Day

The modern rock field is crowded with bands that sound awfully similar, even to the trained ear of a professional music critic. The genre is divided into subcategories but it's easiest - and most sensible - to simply label most of the groups "emo," a term that speaks as clearly to the YouTube generation as "rock 'n' roll" did to the baby boomers.

Emo acts get played on radio stations like 97X, appeal to suburban youths and are occasionally referred to as MySpace bands, due to their ubiquitous presence on the online "place for friends" site and dependence on MySpace for publicity. These are the acts touring the country every summer as part of the Warped Tour. The most successful - such as Fall Out Boy or Taking Back Sunday - typically proceed to headline their own tours.

Tampa Bay-based Trace of Day, which performs at Rockerfella's in Bradenton on Friday, has all the makings of a marketable emo band. For starters, the quartet has the sound down. The layered guitars of band members Josh Fay and Taylor Bringuel backed by the tight rhythms of drummer Chuck Barilla and new bassist Joey Grych create a radio-friendly foundation for the emotional outpourings of lead singer Nate Kussella.

Trace of Day has been performing around the area for several years but recent months have found the band on the cusp, it would seem, at least, of breaking out. The group enjoys a fervent local following reflected by the more than 10,000 "friends" and overflowing comments sections on Trace of Day's MySpace site. Opening for popular national acts like The Academy Is, Crossfade and Authority Zero hasn't hurt the band's reputation, either. Last month, the group issued their first proper full-length, "Farewell, Goodnight," on Tampa-based Lucky Penny Records.

"We're not doing this just to be a garage band or mess around," said Trace of Day's eldest member, 30-year-old lead singer Kussella. "All of us want to make it. None of us are going to give it up until we get there."

The singer listens to popular new bands like Finch, Taking Back Sunday and The Used because he "likes to stay on top of what is going on right now." He still enjoy the bands that he grew up with - U2, R.E.M. - and sited Bob Dylan as another favorite.

"We're pretty open to all types of stuff," Kussella said.

Trace of Day's biggest show to date should have been opening for Taking Back Sunday. In fact, it was scheduled to happen. Trace of Day won a radio popularity contest based on fan voting to appear on the 97X Summer Rock Show at Coachman Park in Clearwater last month with Taking Back Sunday, Angels and Airwaves, Head Automatica and The Subways.

"There was a hellacious thunderstorm and the fire department shut it down," Kussella said. "It was a major, major bummer."

The silver lining was that the members of Trace of Day were able to kick it backstage with the guys from Taking Back Sunday and Angels and Airwaves, the latest project from Blink-182 front man Tom Delonge

"All those guys were the most down to earth guys ever," said Trace of Day drummer Barilla in a separate phone interview. "The guitarist from Taking Back Sunday said he was really disappointed we didn't get to play, because he remembered what it was like when his band was in our position.

" 'Keep playing shows and building the fan base,' he told us. And then he and Tom Delonge asked for copies of our CDs."

Trace of Day's record label, Lucky Penny, is trying to get a major label interested in distributing the band's album, "Farewell, Goodnight." Meanwhile, Trace of Day continues to practice several times a week while playing gigs across the region.

"Things are definitely moving a lot faster than they've ever been," said the 29-year-old drummer. - Bradenton Herald

Formed: In 2004, by Barilla and Fay.

Label: Lucky Penny Records

What they play: Thunderous and rhythmically dynamic rock that's comfortable in the fold of emo pop.

That cool drum sound: "When we formed, it was trendy to be nu-metal and sound like Limp Bizkit," Barilla says. "I wanted us to be different, and part of that was not to play everything in 4/4 time and change things up."

Unlikely influence: Bob Dylan. "He tells stories in his songs," Fay says. "At the same time, he keeps it abstract and writes it so that people can relate to it."

Geographically diverse: Kuusela and Barilla live in St. Petersburg, Fay in Brandon, Jobe in Ruskin and Bringuel in Clearwater.

Props: The guys praise Jesse Cage at 97X (WSUN-FM 97.1), who has helped get the band exposure. "He's the man," Barilla says. "You can print that."

Fan base from scratch: "We don't play to the people we went to high school with," Barilla says. "We all come from somewhere else."

Kuusela: "That's really a blessing. We have a crowd of people come out, and we know it's because they're coming out because they like our music."

Catch them live: Trace of Day performs a spastic and wildly energetic stage show. "We need to play a big space because of all the running around we do," Barilla says.

Day jobs: Barilla: "I sell commercial vehicles."

Kuusela: "A/C man." Jobe: Masonry contractor.

Bringuel: CVS consultant.

When Fay hesitates to answer, Barilla says, "He's a computer geek!"

Fay: "I would just say geek. It spans beyond work." - St. Petersburg Times