Away Team

March 29, 2012 — To get fans ready for the May 22 release of their fourth album, BENEATH THE SCARS (Executive Music Group label via Fontana/Universal), 12 STONES is hitting the road with Saliva and Royal Bliss starting April 18 in West Springfield, VA.

For  BENEATH THE SCARS, the New Orleans band joined forces, once again, with producer Skidd Mills (Saving Abel, Skillet, Saliva), who had previously worked with 12 STONES on 2007’s ANTHEM FOR THE UNDERDOG.  The first single, “Infected,” mixed by Johnny K (3 Doors Down, Disturbed, Staind), is spinning on Active Rock stations nationwide and is available for download on iTunes and Amazon.  Fans who pre-order the album from band’s official website  will have early download access to six songs.  The rest of the album will then be made available on May 22.

A lyric video for “Infected” can be seen below.  As singer Paul McCoy explains, “The song was written about the messed up state of the world.  It speaks about how crazy these times are, and about being fed up with the chaos and hatred.”

Check out 12 STONES at any of the following stops, with more dates being added in the coming days.  Fans should check any of the band’s websites for updated information.

DATE        CITY            VENUE

With Saliva and Royal Bliss:

Wed 4/18    West Springfield, VA    Empire

Fri 4/20        Vienna, WV        YellowBeards Tavern

Sat 4/21    Maggie Valley, NC    Stingrays

Sun 4/22    North Charleston, NC    Market Street Saloon

Thu 4/26    Mt. Clemens, MI    Emerald Theatre

Sat 4/28    Flint, MI            Machine Shop

Fri 5/11        Broussard, LA        The Station Bar and Grill

For More 12 Stones visit their official website or click here.

February 22, 2012 – 12 STONES will release their fourth album, BENEATH THE SCARS, May 22 on the Executive Music Group label via Fontana/Universal.  The band joined forces, once again, with producer Skidd Mills (Saving Abel, Skillet, Saliva), who had previously worked with 12 STONES on 2007’s ANTHEM FOR THE UNDERDOG.  The first single, “Infected,” mixed by Johnny K (3 Doors Down, Disturbed, Staind), is currently being serviced to Rock radio and will be available for download on iTunes and Amazon on February 28.

Fans who pre-order BENEATH THE SCARS from the band’s official website will have early download access to six songs starting March 6.  The rest of the album will then be made available on May 22.

A lyric video for “Infected” recently premiered on Loudwire.com and can be seen below.  As singer Paul McCoy explains, “The song ‘Infected’ was written about the messed up state of the world. It speaks about how crazy these times are, and about being fed up with the chaos and hatred.”

Early buzz for BENEATH THE SCARS surfaced last year as the track “Bulletproof”—which was mixed by Mike Shipley (Green Day, 30 Seconds To Mars)–made its way onto Rock radio stations across the country, including SiriusXM’s “Octane,” WIIL (Chicago), WBSX (Wilkes-Barre), KDJE (Little Rock), WRXW (Jackson), KFRQ (McAllen) and KHTQ (Spokane).  It reached #1 on the CMW “Rock” chart, where it lived for eight consecutive weeks.

As singer Paul McCoy explains, “The album title comes from knowing that we all eventually fall short of our expectations regardless of financial, emotional, physical well being.  But in the same breath, we all strive to find a way to better ourselves.  That’s human nature.  There are always two sides to people.  It’s all about realizing that we all bleed the same.  We are ALL human.  Lyrically, the songs capture the essence of life’s challenges.  As an example, the song ‘I’m With You’ is about the impact a friend’s suicide had on all of us in the band.  It’s a song of hope for those that are going through the trials we all face and the hardships that are a part of life.”

A new partnership with the Executive Music Group and a recording that is the realized vision of a decade of finding their voice in BENEATH THE SCARS has delivered a renewed passion for the future of 12 STONES.  “Thanks to EMG,” says McCoy, “we have found a new love for this industry.  I think that people forget how hard it is to succeed when you don’t have the right people in place.  We think that we are finally poised to break through the mold.  I have never felt stronger about what we are doing and I think that this is only the beginning for this band.”  Guitarist Eric Weaver added, “EMG, and their partners in Fontana/Universal, are all supporting the vision that we have for the band.  We’ve always wanted to reach out to our fans that are all over the world, and finally we’re getting to do that.  Our first tour in support of BENEATH THE SCARS will be in the U.S., and the opportunity to tour globally is something we have been waiting years for.”

12 STONES’ previous albums and singles have sold over one million copies in the U.S., in addition to singer Paul McCoy winning a Grammy® Award for “Best Hard Rock Performance” for his contribution on Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” smash hit single which went on to sell over 14 million albums worldwide.  The band has also garnered multiple GMA Dove Nominations for their singles “Broken” and “Lie To Me.”

Here’s the complete track listing of BENEATH THE SCARS:

1. Infected

2. Bulletproof

3. For The Night

4. Worlds Collide

5. That Changes Everything

6. The One Thing

7. Blind

8. I’m With You

9. Bury Me

10.        Psycho

11.        Only Human

12.        Someone Like You

13.        Shine On Me

14.        Pretty Poison

August 15, 2011 — EGYPT CENTRAL–John Falls (vocals), Joey Chicago (bass), Blake Allison (drums) and Jeff James (guitar)—is well on their way to another hit single from their critically acclaimed WHITE RABBIT album (Fat Lady Music/ILG), which debuted on SoundScan’s “Current Hard Music Albums” chart at #5 and at #78 on Billboard’s “Top 200 Albums” chart.

“Kick Ass” is currently being serviced to radio stations across the country. A live video exclusively premiered on Revolver magazine’s website today. The clip was shot at a sold-out show in Ft. Wayne, IN with Isaac Dietz at the director’s helm.

Radio won’t be the only place where the song will be heard. So far, the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys football teams are playing a re-vamped “Gridiron” version of the song, “Kick Off,” as part of their in-stadium music program. Other teams will be adding the song to their stadium playlists in the coming weeks.

In touring news, EGYPT CENTRAL recently concluded their headlining tour with Burn Halo and Red Line Chemistry, as well as a brief stint with Hinder have concluded. Next they’ll be heading out with Saving Abel with other radio station festivals and more headlining shows happening along the way. A Fall tour is currently in the works. Check them out at any of the following stops:

DATE                   CITY                                                       VENUE

Fri 8/19         Albany, NY                                           SPAC (Q-RUPTION/Q103 show with Godsmack,Five Finger Death Punch)
Tue 8/23      Winston-Salem, NC                            Ziggy’s (with Saving Abel)
Wed 8/24    Jacksonville, NC                                  Hooligans (with Saving Abel)
Fri 8/26        Vienna, WV                                          Fishbone Gill and Grill (with Saving Abel)
Sat 8/27       State College, PA                                 WQWK-FM (“Rock the Block 2011” free show)
Sun 8/28     Jermyn, PA                         Eleanor Rigby’s (WBSX show, first 97 people get in for $0.97 cents all tickets after are $9.97)
Mon 8/29   Hampton Beach, NH                          Wally’s Pub (with Saving Abel)
Tue 8/30    Erie, PA                                                  Sherlock’s (with Saving Abel)
Fri 9/2        Orlando, FL                                The Plaza Live (WJRR Hard Labor Radio Show with The Art Of Dying and Black Tide)
Sat 9/3       Tallahassee, FL                                     Floyds (WXSR Radio Low Dough)
Thu 9/8     Baltimore, MD                                      Power Plant Live! (Baltimore Ravens Kick Off Party)
Sat 9/10    Columbus, OH                                       The Basement (headlining show)
Thu 9/15    Clifton, NJ                                            Dingbatz (with Pop Evil and KYNG)
Fri 9/16     Jacksonville, NC                                   Hooligans (with Pop Evil and KYNG)
Fri 9/23    Houma, LA                                             City Club (with Pop Evil and KYNG)
Sat 10/8   Batesville, AR                                         Riverside Park (Rocktoberfest show with Pop Evil)

For more EGYPT CENTRAL click here.

12 STONES SET TO RELEASE NEW ALBUM, ‘ONLY HUMAN,’ AUGUST 23 ON THE EXECUTIVE MUSIC GROUP LABEL

As singer Paul McCoy recently explained to Revolvermag.com:  “One of the things
that I love about this record is that there are so many different things.  We’ve
got some songs that are really heavy and then some really nice songs that have a
full orchestra behind them.  There’s a lot of variety on this record.  Those 12
Stones fans that like the heavy stuff, we’ve got something for them.  And the 12
Stones people who like ‘Lie to Me’ and stuff like that, we’ve got plenty of
songs in there for them as well. This album’s our most mature for
sure.”

The New Orleans band’s previous albums and singles have sold over two million copies in the U.S., in addition to singer Paul McCoy winning a Grammy® Award for “Best Hard Rock Performance” for his contribution on
Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” smash hit single which went on to sell over 14
million albums worldwide.  The band has also garnered multiple GMA Dove
Nominations for their singles “Broken” and “Lie To Me.”

Stay tuned for further album details and news about the
band’s forthcoming summer tour.

www.12stones.com

www.facebook.com/12stones

www.twitter.com/12stones

www.myspace.com/12stones

www.ExecutiveMusic.com

EGYPT CENTRAL COUNTS DOWN TO MAY 31 RELEASE OF
WHITE RABBIT WITH DAILY EXCLUSIVE CONTENT FOR FANS
VIA FACEBOOK

May 19, 2011 — Beginning Thursday, May 19th, Egypt Central will be counting down to the release of their new album, White Rabbit, by premiering sneak peeks into the making of the album on the band’s Facebook page.

A new, exclusive, behind the scenes video clip featuring lead singer John Falls and drummer Blake Allison, along with a preview of one of the 12 tracks from the album, will premiere on each of the 12 days leading up to the May 31 release of White Rabbit (Fat Lady Music/ILG/Warner Music Group). Watch the band give you insight into each song, and listen to clips from all 12 tracks from the album before you can buy it.

White Rabbit is the follow up to 2008’s self-titled debut album, which debuted at #8 on the Billboard “Heatseekers” chart. Produced by Skidd Mills (Saving Abel, 12 Stones, etc.) the album features twelve songs of heavy riffs, lyrics from the soul and strong melodic hooks. Threaded throughout this collection of songs is a story of consequences that occur when one accepts or declines the invitation from the “White Rabbit.”

Bassist Joey Chicago is the artist behind the artwork included in the CD booklet, which features the first four cells of a comic strip series based around the story of the “White Rabbit.” The band has partnered with Revolver, who will be exclusively unveiling the first 12 sequential parts of the comic strip—with commentary from Chicago—one per day, leading up to the album’s release date. See the first cell here.

The first single and title track was released to Active Rock radio and iTunes on February 15.  It’s currently sitting at #19 on the Active Rock radio chart. A video for “White Rabbit” was recently shot in Nashville with director Mason Dixon (Framing Hanley, Tantric).  An exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the making of the video can be seen on Noisecreep.com here.
Fans can pre-order the album along with other goodies here.

EGYPT CENTRAL is John Falls (vocals), Joey Chicago (bass), Blake Allison (drums) and Jeff James (guitar).

www.egyptcentral.net
www.facebook.com/egyptcentral
www.twitter.com/egyptcentral
www.myspace.com/egyptcentral

Band performance times have been announced for the first annual Carolina Rebellion at Metrolina Expo in Charlotte, NC on Saturday, May 7. 30,000 fans will converge at Carolina Rebellion for a full day of non-stop rock, featuring performances from hard hitting rock artists Avenged Sevenfold, Godsmack, Three Days Grace, Stone Sour, Seether, Bullet For My Valentine, Theory of a Deadman, Alter Bridge, Hinder, Skillet, Saving Abel, Halestorm, Black Stone Cherry, My Darkest Days, Cavo, Rev Theory, Pop Evil, Art Of Dying and Drop D. The box office opens at 9:30 AM and doors open at 11:00 AM. Music begins at 11:30 AM and wraps at 11:50 PM.

Band performance times are as follows (set times subject to change):

Monster Energy Carolina Stage
12:20 PM Cavo
1:50 PM Halestorm
3:30 PM Skillet
5:20 PM Bullet For My Valentine
7:10 PM Seether
8:45 PM Three Days Grace
10:45 PM Avenged Sevenfold

Monster Energy Rebellion Stage
11:50 AM My Darkest Days
1:20 PM Saving Abel
2:50 PM Hinder
4:40 PM Alter Bridge
6:30 PM Theory of a Deadman
7:50 PM Stone Sour
9:40 PM Godsmack

JägermeisterStage
11:30 AM Drop D
12:50 PM Art Of Dying
2:20 PM Pop Evil
4:10 PM Black Stone Cherry
6:00 PM Rev Theory

Metrolina Expo is centrally located off of Interstate 77, between Interstates 85 and 485, just north of downtown Charlotte. For directions to the site, please visit www.carolinarebellion.com.

Carolina Rebellion is proud to be sponsored by Monster Energy, Jägermeister and f.y.e. – for your entertainment, and is produced by Right Arm Entertainment and AEG Live, the same team that produces the highly successful Rock On The Range in Columbus, OH.

For more CAROLINA REBELLION click here.

The 2011 daily performance lineup has been announced for ROCKLAHOMA, the three-day camp and rock festival that will feature a mix of the best classic bands and today’s top active rock artists. America’s biggest Memorial Day Weekend party kicks off summer May 27-29 at “Catch the Fever” Festival Grounds in Pryor, OK.

The daily performance lineup for ROCKLAHOMA is as follows:
Friday, May 27
Whitesnake, Hinder, Skillet, Sick Puppies, All That Remains, My Darkest Days, Jonathan Tyler & The Northern Lights, Texas Hippie Coalition, New Medicine, Bad Things, Wildstreet, Loveblast, D’Molls, Alias, Blue Tiger, Firststryke, Chuck Cooley and the Demon Hammers, Signum A.D., Silverstone, Return to Custody

Saturday, May 28
Staind, Sebastian Bach, Drowning Pool, Rev Theory, Cavo, Pop Evil, The Gracious Few, Hail the Villain, Taddy Porter, Electric Touch, Gypsy Pistoleros, Cutlass, Mock Star, Aura Surreal, Aska, Strikeforce, Siva Addiction, A Good Fight, Bait, Rocker Lips, Sweatin Bullets

Sunday, May 29
Mötley Crüe, Poison, Papa Roach, Seether, Black Label Society, Saving Abel, Escape The Fate, Crooked X, Art Of Dying, One Less Reason, Bad Things, The Glitter Boys, Black Tora, New Cool World, Pretty Little Suicide, Diemonds, Brandon Clark Band, David Castro Band, Desi and Cody

The official ROCKLAHOMA pre-party on Thursday, May 26 will feature performances from Fist of Rage, Tiranico, Aformatic, Floodlyne, Blackwood, and Stun.

New to ROCKLAHOMA 2011 is the AXiS Campground Stage. Since the camping experience is one of the most memorable parts of ROCKLAHOMA for many fans, event producers have added this special performance area to enhance the campground. Anyone holding festival and camping tickets will be able to experience the sounds of the country’s finest new rock bands performing on this stage, located next to the General Store in the main campgrounds. Camping tickets may be purchased by calling the ROCKLAHOMA Camping Office at (866) 310-2288, where fans can choose their exact campsite.

Single day tickets for ROCKLAHOMA go on-sale Friday, April 15 at 10am CST at all Ticketmaster outlets and at www.rocklahoma.com.

Fans are encouraged to buy tickets early as prices will increase as of Friday, April 15 at 10am CST and again the week of the event. General Admission 3-day ticket prices are now available for only $119 plus service fees and VIP Reserved 3-day tickets, which include unlimited beverages and catered meals as well as access to the air conditioned VIP tent, are just $320 plus service fees. As of 10am CST April 15, prices will be $139 plus service fees for General Admission and $350 plus service fees for VIP Reserved.

Doors to the main ROCKLAHOMA festival area and stages will open at 3pm each day. Campgrounds will open on Sunday, May 22 and remain open until Tuesday, May 31.

For more ROCKLAHOMA click here.

Although the first annual Carolina Rebellion is still over a month away, tickets have already sold out.

30,000 fans will converge at Carolina Rebellion at Metrolina Expo in Charlotte, NC on Saturday, May 7 for a full day of non-stop rock, featuring performances from hard hitting rock artists Avenged Sevenfold, Godsmack, Three Days Grace, Stone Sour, Seether, Bullet For My Valentine, Theory of a Deadman, Alter Bridge, Hinder, Skillet, Saving Abel, Halestorm, Black Stone Cherry, My Darkest Days, Cavo, Rev Theory, Pop Evil, Art Of Dying and D2. The festival will feature some of today’s biggest rock acts on three stages, with the main stage presented by Monster Energy.

Metrolina Expo is centrally located off of Interstate 77, between Interstates 85 and 485, just north of downtown Charlotte. For directions to the site, please visit www.carolinarebellion.com.

Carolina Rebellion is proud to be sponsored by Monster Energy, Jägermeister and f.y.e. – for your entertainment, and is produced by Right Arm Entertainment and AEG Live, the same team that produces the highly successful Rock On The Range in Columbus, OH.

Carolina Rebellion would like to thank its media partners, sponsors and “Rebels” for already making the inaugural event a success.

For more CAROLINA REBELLION click here.

The daily performance lineups have been revealed for the Fifth Anniversary of ROCK ON THE RANGE–America’s premier destination rock festival–May 21-22 at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

A limited number of ROCK ON THE RANGE Saturday and Sunday single day Stadium GA tickets will be available for only $59.50 beginning March 28 at 10:00 AM EST. In addition, as a way to honor those who serve their country, ROTR will again offer a $30 single day Stadium GA ticket to members of the military. To qualify for the $30 ticket, concertgoers must present a photo ID with military ID to the Columbus Crew box office Monday through Friday from 9am-5pm between May 1 and 21, 2011. Two-day weekend Stadium GA festival passes (which include entrance to the Friday pre-party) start at just $99.50 plus service and transaction fees.

The daily artist lineups for ROCK ON THE RANGE are as follows:

Friday, May 20 Pre-Party (doors open at 6pm):
Steel Panther, Danko Jones, Lez Zeppelin

Saturday, May 21 (doors open at 11am):
*Monster Energy Stage: Avenged Sevenfold, Korn, Staind, Alter Bridge, Hinder, Sick Puppies, Rev Theory, Finger Eleven
*The f.y.e. Stage: Danzig, Escape The Fate, My Darkest Days, Crossfade, Asking Alexandria, Trust Company
*Jägermeister Stage: P.O.D., Black Veil Brides, 2 Cents, Egypt Central, Bad City, Downplay

Sunday, May 22 (doors open at 11am):
*Monster Energy Stage: A Perfect Circle, Disturbed, Stone Sour, Bullet For My Valentine, Black Label Society, All That Remains, Saving Abel, 10 Years
* The f.y.e. Stage: Hollywood Undead, A Day To Remember, Trapt, Cavo, PopEvil, Hail The Villain
*Jägermeister Stage: The Damned Things, Fu Manchu, Evans Blue, Art Of Dying, Red Fang









For more ROCK ON THE RANGE click here.

Rocklahoma returns May 27-29 to kick off summer with the nation’s biggest Memorial Day Weekend party at Catch The Fever Festival Grounds in Pryor, OK! 2011 marks the 5th Anniversary of the three-day camp & rock festival that will feature a mix of the best classic bands and today’s top active rock artists. Rocklahoma is proud to be presented by Bud Light.

The initial Rocklahoma lineup includes: MÖTLEY CRÜE, STAIND, WHITESNAKE, SEETHER, PAPA ROACH, SAVING ABEL, SKILLET, SICK PUPPIES, SEBASTIAN BACH, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, DROWNING POOL, MY DARKEST DAYS, REV THEORY, ALL THAT REMAINS, ESCAPE THE FATE, CAVO, THE GRACIOUS FEW (FEATURING MEMBERS OF LIVE AND CANDLEBOX), HAIL THE VILLAIN, JONATHAN TYLER & THE NORTHERN LIGHTS, TADDY PORTER, POP EVIL, CROOKED X, TEXAS HIPPIE COALITION, NEW MEDICINE, ART OF DYING, ELECTRIC TOUCH, ONE LESS REASON, GYPSY PISTOLEROS, ALIAS, WILDSTREET, THE GLITTER BOYS, GUNNER SIXX, BLACK TORA, MAD MAX, AURA SURREAL, FIRSTRYKE, ASKA, PRETTY LITTLE SUICIDE, ARENA, BLUE TIGER, BAD THINGS, CUTLASS, MOCK STAR and more special guests to be announced.

“2011 promises to deliver the biggest Rocklahoma punch to date!” says Joe Litvag, Senior Vice President of AEG Live and Co-Executive Producer of Rocklahoma. “Not only have we stepped up our game with the top active rock artists on the charts this year like Seether, Papa Roach and Sick Puppies, but we’ve also taken the classic artists to a new level of insanity with the likes of Mötley Crüe, Whitesnake, and a few surprises yet to come! The Rocklahoma loyalists asked for it, and we heard them loud and clear…This is the perfect balance of talent that will give something to every rock fan in the region!”

General Admission and VIP packages for Rocklahoma go on sale Friday, February 18 at 10am CST at all Ticketmaster outlets and www.Rocklahoma.com. General Admission 3-day ticket prices start as low as $99.50. Fans can save by buying early as ticket prices will increase in the coming weeks. Camping tickets may be purchased by calling the Rocklahoma Camping Office at (866) 310-2288, where fans can choose their exact campsite.

The VIP tickets and packages for the 2011 festival are sure to please the most rabid rock fans. This year’s VIP packages include:

Groupie Package (1 Person)
- VIP Reserved Ticket
- Access to air-conditioned VIP Catering Tent
- Private Backstage Lounge Access
- Weekend Pit Access

Roadie Package (1 Person)
- VIP Reserved Ticket
- Access to air-conditioned VIP Catering Tent
- Private Backstage Lounge Access
- Private Restroom Access
- Weekend Pit Access
- VIP Deck Access
- Event Poster, T-Shirt and Festival Mug
- Commemorative Laminate

Rockstar Package (2 Person)
- All amenities from Roadie Package
- Three Night Stay at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa
- Shuttle Service to and from festival
- Best Seats in the House

For a detailed list of amenities included in the 2011 Rocklahoma VIP ticket packages, visit Rocklahoma.com.

“We’ve always tried to offer the greatest experience to our Rocklahoma VIPs,” comments Mark Nuessle, President of Catch the Fever Festival Grounds and Co-Executive Producer of the festival. “This year we’ve brought back the air-conditioning to our VIP catering tent and backstage lounge, by popular demand, and we’ve expanded our packages to include Pit access, Best Seats in the House, and even hotel accommodations and transportation this year! For those who want to be pampered, Rocklahoma will take good care of you!”

Rocklahoma is located just 45 minutes northeast of Tulsa, in Pryor, OK. The Catch the Fever Festival Grounds is a premier destination for a multi-day festival and includes on-site camping with access to restrooms and shower house, a general store for campers, VIP reserved seating, hospitality areas and much more.

Established in 2007 as a classic rock destination festival with the motto “life, liberty and the pursuit of rock,” Rocklahoma was revamped for 2010 as organizers teamed with AEG Live to create an event encompassing a much broader mix of classic, current and up-and-coming rock artists.

For more ROCKLAHOMA click here.

From Pollstar.com:

The CAROLINA REBELLION has been announced for May 7th at the Charlotte North Carolina Metrolina Expo, Carolina Rebellion will feature performances by Avenged Sevenfold, Godsmack, Three Days Grace, Stone Sour, Seether, Bullet For My Valentine, Theory Of A Deadman, Alter Bridge, Hinder, Skillet, Saving Abel, Halestorm, Black Stone Cherry, My Darkest Days, Cavo, Rev Theory, Pop Evil and Art Of Dying with more acts to be announced.

All those bands will rock Charlotte from two main stages sponsored by Monster Energy, while the festival itself is sponsored by Jägermeister and the F.Y.E. chain of entertainment stores and is co-produced by Right Arm Entertainment and AEG Live.
Fans will have the chance to snatch up tickets for just under $50 dollars once the onsale begins. But that price will be available for only a limited time, so you need to move fast.

Tickets for the general admission festival go on sale Feb. 18 at 10 a.m. EST and start at $49.50 for a limited time. VIP packages, which include hotel rooms, are also available in three exciting flavors, Silver, Gold and Platinum. For more information, visit CarolinaRebellion.com.

 It’s been two short years since America became “Addicted” to Saving Abel, now the boys from Corinth, Mississippi are back, and they’ve brought a friend.  Meet “Miss America” the group’s follow-up to their self-titled Gold Record debut.  The album lives up to it’s feminine moniker, in that, much like the women in my life, sometimes what I think they’re going to say and mean and what they actually say and mean, are two very different things.  While “Miss America” gives us plenty of mental candy for our minds to chew on, I needed to go deeper and get inside of one of the minds behind “Miss America”…  Saving Abel guitarist Scott Bartlett.  Here’s how it all sounded when Scott and I spoke about everything from government, to ghosts, and believe it or not… galloping guitarists…

AWAY-TEAM: So the new album “Miss America” comes out on Tuesday (June 8th), congrats on that…

SCOTT BARTLETT: It’s very exciting man, I don’t think we know what we’re getting into, but either way we’re ready for it.

AWAY-TEAM: Ya know I’ve had the chance to hear it, I’m really digging it.  In fact I was just listening to it today.

SCOTT BARTLETT: It’s eclectic, right?

AWAY-TEAM: Yeah man I love it.

SCOTT BARTLETT: I think it still sounds like us, but it sounds like a more grown-up version of us. I mean we just couldn’t be happier.

AWAY-TEAM: Yeah, I think you’ve got a hit on your hands here…So you guys have been touring alot, as you’re kind of known for, but you guys just played “Rocklahoma” this weekend, how was the reception there? I know “Rocklahoma” is traditionally more of an 80′s glam and metal festival, how did you find the reception there for a band such as yours?

SCOTT BARTLETT: It’s funny, we were kinda warned about that before we got there, so you can either cry about it and look for excuses, or you can just go out and rock extra hard.  And I like to think that’s what we did because the crowd was actually very receptive.  Ya know, everybody loves the classics, and everybody loves the 80′s, that’s an awesome era of music but, ya know, music does keep on evolving.  So for any festival it’s good to… you know because they still had that element… I mean they still had Cinderella and ZZ Top, so basically they just expanded it because they’re trying to widen the demographic, so I’m completely supportive of that, and I think we rocked it.  I think the crowd dug it.

AWAY-TEAM: I understand you guys have been playing a few of the new songs as well.  What’s been the most well received of the new songs? Also, does that kind of showcasing play into what becomes the next single? Or how does that selection process go?

SCOTT BARTLETT: Well, there’s alot of different ways of looking at it.  You have a lot of people to please.  Ya know, how do you predict what song the fans are gonna like the most?  Then you have radio, who is basically what made this band do what it did by spinning “Addicted” , and so ya know we kinda feel like we’d been bold with that one, and so we’re constantly trying to do it again.  I don’t think there’s any particular process that works, it’s just thank God for us we have an album with 11 songs, and conceivably 11 singles.  I mean, obviously we’re not gonna do that, but there’s something for everyone.  When we play live, we just put our heart and soul into every one of the songs, and people always seem to dig it.  But we have radio support right now for the single “Stupid Girl (Only in Hollywood)”, so because of the familiarity with that song, that seems to get the best reaction.

AWAY-TEAM: When I’m really digging an album, I tend to get a song stuck in my head.  After playing them night-after-night, does that ever happen to you with any of your own songs?

SCOTT BARTLETT: Ummm yeah, but then it just becomes uh, I mean you gotta think with some of these songs like “Addicted” we’ve been playing it for four years so… we’ve played it so many times, it’s like ,you know, it’ll get stuck in your head, but you kinda wanna forget about it…

AWAY-TEAM: (laughs)

SCOTT BARTLETT: You really don’t want to get sick of your own music, like when you play it night-after-night-after-night, I mean the only blessing is that your playing it to different crowds, so they’re still just as excited.  So that element of excitement stays up, but no, I try my best not to let our own music get stuck in my head ‘cuz I think I’d go crazy. (laughs)  That’s not to say it’s not catchy, ya know Saving Abel definitely has a catchy kind of sound to it, and I think we owe alot of that to our producer.

AWAY-TEAM: Yeah, Skidd Mills is a great producer.  I was talking to Andy Brewer (Taddy Porter) about working with him a couple weeks ago.  I’m gonna talk to you a little bit about that conversation later on too.  But, let’s talk about some of the songs on the album.  The first track “Tap Out”, it seems to be fairly obvious it was kinda written as an anthem for MMA (Mixed Martial Arts).  Were you guys specifically asked to write a song like this? Or was it more of a “Hey, this would be kinda cool..” and hopefully somebody in the MMA arena will pick it up?

SCOTT BARTLETT: I think it was just initially, we had the riffs, and then we were just thinking about it.  I mean we all watch MMA, we’re definitely into it, we were just thinking about, ya know we don’t have any of those songs that are just angry.  We started just throwing out words and just kinda thinking of a way to parlay that into a song, and umm, no, nobody asked us to do it.  We’re not really one of those bands that would be asked to do that sort of thing, because we’ve got so much radio support.  They usually look sort of “off the beaten path” , ya know, more hip, for lack of a better term.  Saving Abel is kinda confusing like that, because we’ve commercialized ourself, which ya know is a great thing, but then when it comes to people that are looking for more obscure, heavy songs… we’re not that band.  Which again, is a blessing and a detriment, but we gotta roll with what works best for us.  We know how to write a kick ass rock song, I know that.

AWAY-TEAM: You talk about already having the riff for that song, I thought I detected a little bit of Iron Maiden in the opening of that.  Is that correct? Are you guys Maiden fans?

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Yeah, I used to cover “Run to the Hills”.  I was in kinda like an All-Star session guy band in Memphis, we did some Maiden and some Kiss, it was more of a joke then anything, we called ourselves “The Circus Bears”.  And whenever we did “Run to the Hills” we had five guitarists on stage, and when the riff started like “dun-di-di-di-di-di-di-di-di-di-di” we would all gallop…

AWAY-TEAM: (laughs) That’s pretty cool.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  But yeah, we definitely love some metal over here at Saving Abel.

AWAY-TEAM:  You gotta rip that back out sometime. (laughs)  I’d love to see you guys all galloping out on stage, even minus a couple guitars, it’d still be pretty cool.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Yeah, I’ve been trying to go as a Centaur for Halloween for the last few years… it’s just kind of expensive, and the costume’s kind of tough to figure out.

AWAY-TEAM:  (laughs) Now the uh, title track “Miss America”, that kinda completely threw me for a loop, it’s not at all what you expect it to be about.  Nonetheless, it did make me feel proud to be an American.  Tell our readers a little about the inspiration behind that.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Well the song itself is more-less a play on words, it’s not about “the pageant”, it’s about our soldiers that are overseas missing America.  “I miss America, my Miss America”, the song itself actually chronicles three different perspectives of what it’s like being a soldier overseas… it’s like ya know, you can be a son who’s fighting and writing back to his father, you can be a husband writing back to your wife, or you can be a father writing back to your son.  And it tries to look at it from all three of those vantage points, and either way, now that we’ve gone overseas and been there, we know what it’s like for each and every person… they all miss America.  But they’re fighting the good fight for what we believe in as Americans, and ya know making it so that we have the freedom to play rock-n-roll music, so this album is for them.

AWAY-TEAM:  Ya know, that’s something that I really found to be kick-ass, because alot of bands, um not so much any more, but in recent years have kind of been ya know, bashing the government and this and that but forgetting, you know, that we have troops over there risking their lives for us and it’s good to see someone like yourselves putting something out as kind of a “Thank You”.  Ya know just to let ‘em know that they’re not forgotten, and give ‘em a little support… so that’s great to see.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Dude who cares if you’re a Republican or Democrat, I don’t even like to go there.  Ya know it’s not really that relevant at the end of the day when you’re talking about it, because we’ve got Americans over there trying to stay alive for the sake of Democracy.  So… it doesn’t matter who you vote for… just Support the Troops.

AWAY-TEAM:  At the end of the day we’re all Americans.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Yup.

AWAY-TEAM:  The first single, “Stupid Girl (Only in Hollywood)”, is that kinda based on the same girl as “Addicted” and some of your other songs?  I mean, what’s the story behind this chick…

SCOTT BARTLETT:  It’s kind of a cool little twist too, um, we had just gotten back from The Grammy’s, we weren’t nominated or anything but, we were invited to go to the parties and everything and ya know we’re kind of a humble southern rock roots band from Mississippi, and ya know I live in Memphis… Hollywood and L.A. isn’t exactly our scene, it’s fun, but ya know alot of the people, ya know “climbing up the list”, ya know “social climbers” trying to be in the right place at the right time for probably all the wrong reasons.  And we took that concept, which isn’t just prevalant in L.A., but because it’s like the hub of music, and star, and glitz and glamour…so we took that concept and we applied it to, ya know Jared (lead singer Jared Weeks) is a big fan of Marilyn Monroe, who was not a “Stupid Girl” by the way, and one of her most famous quotes was “A wise girl always kisses, before she’s kissed; leaves before she’s left; and forgets before she’s forgotten”.  It’s basically about a girl that goes out there to make it in the industry, and it’s just basically warning her not to fall victim to the pitfalls of that industry.

AWAY-TEAM:  Right.  Okay, so back to the whole “Addicted” thing, I mean ya know that was the song that kind of broke you… maybe I’m wrong, but it seems like a lot of the songs may be about this same girl.  It seems there was kind of a major love/hate relationship going on there…

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Well, see the beauty of it is, ya know we all write alot about girls obviously, and I mean that’s one of the more prevalant concepts that you see in songwriting, and there’s always a love interest somewhere.  We’ve all been through those relationships, and we all write lyrics, so it’s definitely not all about the same girl.

AWAY-TEAM:  That’s the beauty of music, you can take what you want from it.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Exactly, and then ya know whoever listens to it can take from it,  can take from it whatever they take from it.  It doesn’t matter what the artist’s intention was, as long as whoever’s listening gets something cool out of it.

AWAY-TEAM:  So, as I told you before, I was speaking with Andy Brewer (lead singer of Taddy Porter) recently… he told me a little story about you guys…

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Uh-oh.

AWAY-TEAM:  (laughs)  He couldn’t remember where it was, so I’m gonna give you a chance to fill me in on that, but he said that uh, you guys were supposed to stay in a hotel that was rumored to be haunted, and uh, he didn’t name any names but he said that you guys were a little too scared to stay there?  You wanna give me your side of that story?  (For Andy’s side of the story click http://www.away-team.com/rock/2010/05/taddy-porter-brewer-of-fine-american-swagger-rock/)

SCOTT BARTLETT:   I don’t really remember that.  We’ve stayed in our share of quote-unquote haunted hotels, but if you’re scared you can just get drunk and pass out in there, ya know.

AWAY-TEAM:  (laughs)

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Hopefully you wake up.  (laughs)  I honestly don’t remember that.  I don’t know what he’s talking about, should I?

AWAY-TEAM:  I don’t know. (laughs) I don’t know, like I said he didn’t go into details, he just said “I couldn’t remember where it was… but man those guys are superstitious, and they were afraid to stay in this hotel…”

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Well there had been a couple of hotels, like you know there’s that one where Jeffrey Dahmer did his thing… but we’ve stayed there like four times, I mean…

AWAY-TEAM:  Like you said, just get drunk and pass out.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  (laughs) Yeah, I mean that’s all we do anyway.  Why bother changing for a bunch of ghosts?

AWAY-TEAM:  (laughs)  Yeah, just give ‘em a beer…  Well hey Scott, thanks for your time buddy.  I don’t know if you got a chance to check out my review of your album, but the album is killer.  I know it’ll do well.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  Dude, I appreciate it.  You know we’re all a little nervous, but excited, so ya know, especially from somebody that actually reviewed the album and knows what they’re talking about.  That means alot.  Thank you.

AWAY-TEAM:  I mean, I’d only tell you the truth, and I’m really digging it and I think you’ve got something on your hands here.

SCOTT BARTLETT:  (sighs in relief)  Thank you…thank you so much…

AWAY-TEAM:  No need to be nervous anymore…(laughs)

SCOTT BARTLETT:  I’ll just go do what I do best man.

AWAY-TEAM:  Get drunk and pass out? (laughs)

SCOTT BARTLETT:  (laughs)  Yeah, after the show.  I like to think I rock first, then I get drunk and pass out after.  (laughs)

AWAY-TEAM:  Well hey bro, hopefully we’ll catch up again if you guys make it here to Florida.  I don’t know if that’s on the agenda yet, I haven’t seen it but…

SCOTT BARTLETT:  We’ll definitely be down there this summer.  Stay up on the website for the latest info.  http://www.savingabel.com/

AWAY-TEAM:  I surely will.  Thanks again, it’s been a pleasure.

SCOTT BARTLETT:   Likewise.  Later bro.

“Miss America” hits stores this Tuesday June 8th.  Saving Abel is currently on tour with We Are the Fallen, American Bang, and Taddy Porter.  For more tour info, as well as merchandise and music, visit http://www.savingabel.com/main.aspx

Thank you to Scott Bartlett for so graciously giving me his time, and a special thanks to Julie Lichtenstein and Steve Karas at SKH Music for making this all possible.

Virgin Records

Rating:  8 out of 10

Saving Abel first burst onto the scene in 2008, with the hit single “Addicted” off of their eponymous Gold Record debut.  Now they return with their follow up effort, “Miss America”, and it appears lady liberty likes platinum.  The band from Corinth, Mississippi appears to be traveling straight down the trail fellow Mississippi natives, Three Doors Down, have blazed for them, and frontman Jared Weeks and company come out swinging this time around.

The album starts off with the catchy “Tap Out”, an anthem destined to make it’s rounds with the gladiators of the octagon, and then quickly reminds us of who they are, with the all too familiar “It’s not who you know, but who you blow” tale “Stupid Girl (Only in Hollywood)”.  The status quo continues through the next couple of songs, including the catchy acoustic ballad “The Sex is Good”, which could easily be a sequel to the quintet’s most successful hit “Addicted”. Things start to pick back up with “Missippi Moonshine”, which is destined to become a fan favorite, it’s definitely one of mine.

The album’s climax, however, comes with the title track; when you first see the title “Miss America”, the brain tells us it’s just another story of “a man scorned by a woman whorin’”, Saving Abel had something much diferent in mind.  Being the red-white-and blue blooded American that I am, I was struck with pride when I first heard “Miss America”, a patriotic number told through the letters of one of our hero soldiers.  It was refreshing to see another band showing some sympathy and support for our troops, instead of the typical politically motivated war songs.

As if they didn’t already throw us a big enough “curve ball”, the guys really start to play with your mind in “I Need You”.  Just when you think you’ve got their M.O. pegged, they hit you with lyrics like “I need you, like the Sun needs the Rain” (OK, does the Sun need the Rain for natural balance?, or is it similar to U2′s ‘like a fish needs a bicycle’?), and “Who needs who? Baby, I need you.”  (Do you need me, to play your fucked up head games, or do I need you with all of your inadequacies because I can’t say no?).  Once you’ve gathered your senses, Saving Abel throw you one more mind fuck with the liberating break-up hymn, “Hell of a Ride”. Are we truly rid of the soul-sucking nymph whose been fueling hit-after-hit since 2008?  Only time will tell.

There is one thing, the present time can tell however, and that is this album comes highly recommended.  In fact, the only thing keeping me from giving it a complete 10, is the “heard it all before” subject matter.  But all-in-all Saving Abel has proved, there’s no sophomore slump here.  “Miss America” hits shelves on Tuesday, June 8th.

Virgin Records will release Saving Abel’s MISS AMERICA on June 8, 2010. The follow-up to the band’s breakthrough debut has reached critical mass via strong support at radio, adds at key video channels, and a world tour that has been underway for three months. The lead single “Stupid Girl (Only In Hollywood)” is flying up the rock charts, currently bulleted at 19, while the accompanying video is in rotation on MTV2.

In front of the imminent release of MISS AMERICA, guitarist Scott Bartlett shares, “There is always anticipation when it comes to the release of a new record. You’re nervous, excited, and vulnerable. The key is to remember that this is rock and roll and those emotions don’t matter once the record is done. We roll the dice and the game begins. We couldn’t be more proud of the way it turned out. Now it’s up to the public. Get ready.”

The quintet continues their current world tour which has, over the past several months, touched down in India, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq (via a USO / Armed Forces Entertainment tour of the Persian Gulf), extensively across the U.S., and in the middle of the Pacific Ocean aboard the USS Carl Vinson as the vessel returned from Haiti. Previously announced appearances on the current run include Erie, PA (5/19), Poughkeepsie, NY (5/20), Hartford, CT (5/21), Rocklahoma (5/28), El Paso, TX (Balloonfest 5/29), Lafayette, LA (6/05), Boloxi, MS (6/25), and Springfield, MO (6/27). On June 30 in Kansas City, MO, headliner Saving Abel, will hit the road with direct support act We Are The Fallen, and openers American Bang and Taddy Porter. The itinerary includes appearances in:

6/30 KANSAS CITY, MO KC POWER & LIGHT DISTRICT
7/02 WICHITA, KS THE COTILLION
7/03 GREELEY, CO INDEPENDENCE STAMPEDE (SA ONLY)
7/05 CALGARY, AB THE BACK ALLEY
7/06 EDMONTON, AB UNION HALL
7/08 VANCOUVER, BC THE RED ROOM
7/10 SEATTLE, WA SHOWBOX
7/11 SPOKANE, WA KNITTING FACTORY SPOKANE
7/12 PORTLAND, OR WONDER BALLROOM
7/13 BOISE, ID KNITTING FACTORY
7/14 RENO, NV KNITTING FACTORY
7/18 TEMPE, AZ TEMPE MARKETPLACE
7/20 AMARILLO, TX MIDNIGHT RODEO
7/21 SAN ANTONIO, TX SCOUT BAR
7/23 DALLAS, TX PALLADIUM BALLROOM
7/24 HOUSTON, TX WAREHOUSE LIVE
7/31 DUBUQUE, IA COUNTY FAIR (SA ONLY)