The BoySz are Back in Town <3

Hey guys!

As you probably already know, Wayne Szaliniski has won my heart with their full-length effort "Black Mirror" last year. Since the album's release they have gone through some changes, and now they are headed out on a whopper of a tour! I took a sec to chat with frontman Andy Milad, who doubles as one of my favorite people on earth!

PHOTO CRED: Daniel Balderas

ANDY: First off, thanks for takin' your time to ask us a few questions, I really appreciate it. Second, so glad you're into the record. That means so much comin' from friends I hope you know. 

TOPH: Thank you for making such a gorgeous set of songs, man. We go back a lil' ways and it's always been so fun to be around you and the music you create :) So, tell me about this tour... Is this your longest one yet?

ANDY: Yep! This is going to be our longest tour to date. Super excited, I'm sure it'll be a blast.

TOPH: I fucking bet! And since you guys released black mirror(one of my absolute favorite things this past year), I know dudes like Nick Galli and Kurt Roy have moved/are moving away. So, how are you guys adjusting to that? (I really wanted Kurt to record my band so it hurts me, hopefully he can master/mix some stuff for me some day!)

ANDY: It's always a bummer to lose a band member. We've played with, I think, five bass players now... so we've learned to adapt pretty quickly. Drums are another issue entirely. When Nick left to go work at his dream-job, we were very sad. Nick had such a profound impact on the sound of the band through his playing-style, so it took us awhile to get back on track. We love Nick, we miss him, but we're also very happy for him. Check his Instagram, he's livin' lavish.

 That being said, we're working with a fantastic new drummer now, Judson Branam. He's got a style all of his own and he's an incredibly positive force to work with. Jud's a really friendly guy and I'm super excited to be touring with him.

TOPH: Good to hear you found a good fit! However, I miss the hell out of Nick. Never got to ride bikes :( And I was broke when it first released, but is "Black Mirror" still available on vinyl?

ANDY: Black Mirror, our debut album, is definitely still available. We sold a bunch when it was released and got more pressed for this upcoming tour. If you can't catch us at a show, you can always get it online, here @ wayneszalinski.bandcamp.com 

TOPH: DOPE! I'm snaggin' that shit ASAP! Now, what were your biggest influences on that record? (I mean both musically and "IRL")

ANDY: Black Mirror is our first full-length record, so it compiles a bunch of songs written over several years. In that time our influences were extremely varied, but I think the strongest were Jeff Buckley, The Smiths, and TTNG

TOPH: I can definitely see it. I'm gonna catch you at PJ's on May 7th, can I please sing with you? <3

ANDY: heck yea man, just get up there w/ me. :)

TOPH: Yesssss. You can count on it. See ya then buddy! Tell Andrew Adams I love him!

You can catch them on the kick-off, like I mentioned, at PJ's in detroit. Click here for the FB event, and peep the poster below for the full tour schedule! Dueces!

XOXO TOPH

Hauntings by Lemix J. Buckley

Toph-life has gotten an upgrade recently in the day-job department, which is not only exciting because I'll get more money(hold the problems, please), but because my schedule won't be all freaking up in my shit when I wanna go to shows. So look out for me in the near future, don't be shy because I'm shy and I'll never walk up to you(especially if you're cute). Also, look out for some live reviews and interviews since i'll actually have time on my hands to do such things.

photo cred: Tyler Humphrey

Anyway- earlier this week, MY DUDES in Lemix J. Buckley dropped a fucking killer single that kills you softly in a sexual way. It's this gorgeous, mathy emo ballad that channels feels through their twinkly, noodly guitar work and quick-witted rythm section. I friggin love these dudes, I've known Josh Gill and Alex Bazzi since before they were allowed to drink(are they even that old yet? shit.), and they have come such a long way. So fun to see locals gro into pros, especially when they're your homies and they write dope shit like this. This shit is called "Hauntings" and it is available to rock on bandcamp as you see below:

I know, I'm wet too.

Make sure you follow these fuckers on facebook and keep an eye out for shows. I also know from a specific source that there is much more where this song came from. You know my ass is posting a review on that shit as soon as it's out as well :)

Thanks again guys, I love you all! See ya soon.

-XOXO Toph

Lake Effect

photo by Blair Spear

So it's been a couple weeks, but things have been crazy since the last time I had a piece together for you guys. I hope y'all got to check out Berserker Fest, I heard it was a killer time. Meanwhile, when I was at Pizza Show at the stick- I saw some ridiculous live music that could have easily rivaled the lineups in ferndale, and I got to see punk bands at the Magic Stick(RIP) one last time before the "EDM scene"(blech) got it's chance to puke all over it. One band in particular caught my eye: Lake Effect.

These dudes hail from Port Huron, MI, and they fucking killed it live. Super raw, emotionally charged melodic hardcore homegrown in our own little angsty mitten. I love it. I bought a shirt and got to meet the dudes, as they were stationed right next to the vile merch at the show. Honestly the nicest, down to earth guys ever. Their most recent EP is titled "History" and you can snag it from bandcamp. They are presently writing a new batch of tracks to be released as well(as per their facebook page), so keep your eyes peeled- I'll probably be pulling a write-up on that bitch ASAP once it's done!  MI kids- these dudes play out a bit, so make sure you catch them. They fucking bring it live! Make sure you say hi to them, and tell them Toph sent ya ;)

Here's a little snippet of their EP in youtube format-

Fucking dope, right?!? I think that jam might be my favorite on the whole set, so it's no surprise they've used it as the teaser. I just love how heavy and pretty the music gets behind the super raw split vocals. And it's sooooo tight, man- tight like your mom. I think you're adopted. There's no way a baby came outta there!

Once again- Get that shit from bandcamp(name your own price, beyotchhhhh!).  

I'm out.  Take it sleazy.

 Love you guys!

XOXO - TOPH

GO BERSERK! AGAIN!

So, obviously you're gonna see me Tophin' around at Cthulhu's Pizza Party this friday with Aren and the crew. However, if you're in the service industry or you've got tickets to the wings game or something- your weekend in the way of live music is not yet lost! If you have the wrong circle of friends or live under a rock(or outside of SE MI)you've probably heard of BERSERKER FEST II. It's a series a of 3 multi-venue shows that apparently will occur annually(at least I hope so, amirite?) in the woodward/9 mile vincinity. So you see- you have 3 nights to choose from, and every night is gonna rule SO HARD. Apparatus booking does a killer job.

The event is this Thursday, Friday and Saturday(March 13th-15th), and is taking place at both The Loving Touch and The Woodward Avenue Brewery(or WAB, for shorties!). You can pick up tickets at Found Sound, UHF, Stormy Records OR on the interwebz. 20 bux gets you in one day, 40 covers the whole 3 day she-bang. You get to see local heavy hitters like Child Bite and Tharsis They alongside incredible national acts like Poison Idea and FUCKING COLISEUM!!! Holy fucking shit, right!?! Everyone cool will be there(I can't be for sad reasons, but go and pour one out for your friendly neighborhood Toph!).

Also, tonight(wed, March 12th)there is a FREE kick-off party at the Loving Touch! Friggin Bars of Gold and Hollow Earth?!? For Free?!?! What the ever-loving fuck?!?! Don't forget your I.D., it's a grown-up's party!

Everything you need to know is at www.berserkerdetroit.com, Including a full lineup. 

You're welcome.

Look for me if you make it to the Pizza Party! I love you all!

XOXO TOPH

FIREPROOF!

Toph is here with another friggin homegrown BANGERRRRRR <3

This past weekend, Under the Gun Review debuted the new single "Fireproof" for our good homies in Wolfshark. I was really excited to hear this jam, and it didn't disappoint. I'm very proud to have known Colin Guffey as a musician for pretty much forever now, and he's come a long way. He's developed a really cool sound as a vocalist, and works really well with the dynamics the band creates. You end up with this really dope fuck-you-you-don't-even-know-me party jammer. The main riff is a really cool norma-jean esque bit they pull through most of the song without losing the energy of it. The chorus hits you with hint of the Used and maybe a little bit of ETID with the way Colin croons over it. I really love the guitar tone in this band. For being what I and a lot of folks are calling a "Party Metal Band"- I feel the tone is pretty sophisticated. You get this really cool high-end English tube sound with a more natural break up. It's GAWJUSS. :) The bridge starts with the whole band stepping aside and letting our bassist shine. He comes in with this really cool slap-happy riff, where you finally realize how good his tone is as well. Gritty, a bit of a fuzz on it, and only slappy enough to be interesting. Reminds me of He Is Legend's bass sound. And then the whole group gets back into it with this escalating set of bars- starting with some delay on the fiddle and Colin cooing like sexy dove over the top. And then we explode. But Colin doesn't, because he is "FIREPROOF, YOU FUCK!"

I fucking love this jam. Check out the vid below, by our good dude Brandan Lee Keller. <3

See?!? I told you!!!!

Aren is shooting an interview with the dudes soon, he'll be talking to them about how sexy they are AND about their forthcoming Spring 2015 EP  titled "Finding Yourself". Look for all of that and more right here at vilecompany.com. ALSO- be sure to follow Wolfshark on Facebook, and come check them at Cthulhu's 2 Year Anniversary Pizza Slam coming up at the stick March 14th!!!!

XOXO- Toph <3

50 SHADES OF CHERRY

Image courtesy of Paul Cherry's facebook page

So I woke up the other morning, Tophin' around on the internet like I always do. I check my facebook feed and find out my homie Paul Cherry has finally released his new video for his single "Cherry Time". If you don't recall, or if you're just now scoping my blogs- I put Paul Cherry's album "On Top" in my top 5 unsung records of 2014. I knew Paul was onto something radical with the direction of his music on this record, and I love his video for "Everybody's Burning Out"(you can see it in the aforementioned blog post). "Cherry Time" completely fucking blows it out of the water. It's incredibly NSFW. Just watch it, I can't waste time explaining it to you- there are no words.

...Yeah.

I can honestly totally relate to this. I feel this same way about TacoBell and those succulent Olive Garden breadsticks. I just don't think I could fuck taco bell in it's nasty turd-laden toilet stall. I'd seduce it at home!

 

-XOXO TOPH

Narco Debut

HEY GUYS. TOPH'S GOT ANOTHER SE MI GEM FOR YOU. :)

Narco Debut is a killer quartet from metro detroit and they "bring it on" the melodic spacey rock front. Gorgeous layers of guitars saturated in delays and reverb, soaring vocal melodies with hella range over a rhythm section that just grooves it all along. It's not all sparkles and bells- there's an edge with heavy breaks that don't get lost on the rocker crowd. I particularly like how they remind me a lot of Coheed and Cambria's "Second Stage Turbine Blade" record- one of my absolute favorite things ever recorded.  Just lots of builds and lots of high range vocals that wash over you once they hit the break. I love it. Check out their video for "Apologia" below:

They're obviously worth checking out live, Detroit kids. Add them on facebook, and listen to their S/T EP on band camp. I believe it is available for free right now.Do it. It's not just good. It's sofa king good!

-XOXO TOPH