On November 12th, one of the biggest shows in Durham this fall will be taking place at The Music Scene with MuchMusic Discovered’s Brighter, Brightest along with Lifestory:Monologue and special guests Chasing Amee & more!

It’s going to be one huge party with more than a few familiar faces in the crowd....and we want you to be there!

LiveMusicTO & Brighter, Brightest will be giving away 2 VIP Passes, which includes:

- Pre-entry to the show
- Meet in greet with the whole band 
- Autographed poster from the band
- WATCH THE CONCERT....STAGE SIDE!!!!

HOW TO WIN:

Step 1) Post the “November 12th Event Poster” (which you can download here) as your Facebook profile display photo

Step 2) Include the following in the caption:
- A link to the Facebook Event Page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=260375117337523
- A link to Advance Tickets Page: http://www.ticketscene.ca/events/5279
- And most importantly, why you deserve to win THE ULTIMATE BRIGHTER, BRIGHTER EXPERIENCE!

Step 3) Post your Facebook profile link (or direct link to your display photo) on the LiveMusicTO Facebook Page to qualify: http://www.facebook.com/LiveMusicTO 

Fans who have the most amount of “likes” and uber amazing comments on their Facebook photo will win this contest! Good luck to everyone and see you guys on November 12th! Winners will be contacted via Facebook message Nov 10th at 11PM.

LiveMusicTO chats with Gavin from The Heights.

1) Where did the name "The Heights" come from?

The Heights actually comes from an episode of The O.C. where Ryan and Marissa share their first kiss at the top of a ferris wheel. Ryan is scared of heights but when they kiss the fear kind of disappears. The name definitely has romantic quality to it, as well as it serves as a way to pay tribute to a great show that occupied a lot of our teenage years. 

2) How long have you been together as a band?

The band first started out as a solo project of mine back in June. I went into the studio and recorded everything with Adam Fair. Nick came to most of the sessions to keep me company, cause we've been friends since we were in diapers. He really dug the music and i asked him if he wanted to be apart of it. The solo thing is cool and maybe i'll do it again someday, but i just love being in a band. Its a different atmosphere for sure. I'm proud of my songwriting but I love when people add to it, as well as if i can build on their music. So when nick was in we recruited Colin to play bass. He was apart of the In Lights team and an amazing musician. Then we found Matt through Nick, after he had taken out original promos. We found out how incredible a drummer he is, so we asked him to fill that missing spot. So we've been a full band since around July, which would make that 3-4 months. 

3) What have been some of your biggest accomplishments so far?

Our biggest accomplishment so far would be being on the Jake and Amir DVD. We're all avid fans of Jake and Amir, and we have been for years. So to be asked personally by them to record a song for their first ever DVD was an incredible experience. 

4) What is your favourite song to perform live, and why?

This is a tough one. Personally, it would be Difficulty in Honesty. That song gets the least amount of love from people because of the style, which is a shame. But i love some of the guitar licks and it makes it a ton of fun. I think its the only song we've played live so far where i get a guitar solo, so maybe thats it. 

5) How would you describe your fans?

The fans are amazing! Its cool cause unlike my old band who had a lot of hometown fans, The Heights have more international fans. There is a guy doing a vocal cover of 'Forever Night' on youtube and he's from the states, we had a girl and some friends make a music video for us from Denmark, we're getting invites to play in Pennsylvania. It's intense! Everyone hopes for fans like this but no one ever expects it. We're deeply in love with all of them.

6) What are you most looking forward to in 2012?

Well we start production on a new EP in January, which will go along something very secret and special were planning. 2012 will be the year of creativity for us. The new EP will have music written by the 4 of us as a collective unit, so you can rest assured that it will be amazing. 

7) What is your favourite venue to play in Toronto?

As The Heights we've only ever played Hardluck, which was a cool intimate venue. My old band played at the Mod Club, and the sound there was amazing. 

8) Where is your favourite spot in the city to hangout as a band?

We, like many will agree, love Sneaky Dees. We go there quite often. Though, we did just discovered through a friend a place a few doors down from sneaks that serves $10 mini pitchers of mix drinks. So we'll see soon who the new favourite is. 

9) What has been the craziest fan moment to date?

It would have to be the Denmark music video. It's still hard to believe that people would go through all that time and effort for us. Amazing. 

10) For people seeing The Heights for the first time on November 12th, what can they expect? 

You know how they say weed is a gateway drug? Well we are the weed of country music. We aren't exactly country music but more of a gateway into it. Therefore, people should be prepared to get into a new type of music that they may not have had experience with before. Hopefully they'll get addicted.

PART 1:

Neil Young once said – upon first hearing Nirvana – that “every once and a while a wave comes along that’s so unbelievable and every one goes, did you feel that?” To which I want to say: old man take a look at my life I’m nothing like you – I’m aching to feel that. Grunge was really the last time the world was hit with a wave of rock & roll that powerful and those of us from generation Y were either too young to remember, or missed it completely.

If your wondering where all the good rock & roll bands are, don’t worry they’re on their way. With the state of the music industry today looking much like it did in the mid 1950’s – when the tug-of-war between major and independent labels first ensued – we have finally come full circle.

This is the glorious golden age of digital technology. Sure we live in an oversaturated, media ridden, desensitized to everything world, but this is an incredible time to be alive because the Internet has given indie artists the world over an unprecedented kind of power over their craft, and we are starting to see a new generation rise to the occasion.

In the 1950’s, it was the independent labels not the majors that ultimately thrust rock & roll into mainstream American consciousness. At the time the major labels were still pushing the pop crooner’s who had carried them through the war years, but the problem was that post-war America was a much different place than the one that they remembered. People had developed new interests, attitudes and ideas about life, and with most busy starting the families that they had put on hold for so long, the music simply not longer fit.

The Baby Boom of the late 40’s to mid 50’s brought about the rise of the teenager as brand new category of consumer.With uniquely potent tastes and incredible buying power, this was a generation growing up and trying to find their identity in the aftermath of the most catastrophic war in world history. These kids didn’t want to share anything with their parent’s generation; they wanted something new that they could relate to, and something that strictly belonged to them.

At the time, tensions surrounding racial awareness in America were at an all time high. Rhythm and blues, which was typically regarded as being black music, and country and western music, which was typically regarded as being lower class white, were still considered “marginal” sounds. Like the people who fell into these categories, the mainstream regarded this type of music as belonging on the outside. However, the independent labels ­– many of which had originally sprung up during the twenties but fell to the waste side during the depression years – quickly began to recognize a budding interest from youth audiences in this new sound and were able to visualize a cross between the two.

The independent labels of the 1950’s had the creative vision, the necessary foresight, and the gut-instinct to jump in just as things began to gain momentum. With teenagers curiously compelled to partake in the new sound, look, and dance crazes that followed, what became termed “rock ‘n’ roll” quickly took over the airwaves and took on a life of its own.

Today, some 60 years later, we are again verging on a similar situation in terms of the power independent labels and artists have over influencing the sound of popular music. For the past twenty years or so, we have been witnessing the steady decline of the “old music business model.” This of course refers to a business that essentially maintains control over everything from the production and distribution of an artist’s music, to the marketing and promotion of the artist itself. Today, that model no longer exists in the same capacity because the inception and integration of the Internet into every inch of our daily lives is slowly putting the power back where it started, into the hands of independent artists.

Today, as we stand in the midst of yet another generational shift, we can see that independent artists have more power over their craft than ever before. The Internet is the new vehicle of the masses, and indie artists coming up right now have the ability to control almost all traditional facets of the music industry from behind the comfort of their home computer. The game has changed, and while things are still very much in a state of flux, we are absolutely coming up on a new age in popular music.

PART 2:

Part of the downfall of the traditional music business model has been the lack of money fronted by major labels as investments for the development of potential long-term artists. In recent years, we have begun to see the market flooded with disposable pop music that generally targets the tween (9-12) and young teen (13-16) audiences.  Due to things like the decline of the CD, labels are no longer making the same kind of money they used to and tend to play it safe by putting their money down on artists that they know will generate a quick return on their buck. Whether that is at the cost of “quality” is a matter of opinion.

What has happened over the past couple of years is that everything has become pop music and pop music has become multi-generational (I.e. both teenagers and their parents are now listening to the Tiao Cruz’s of the world). While this makes for both a strange musical atmosphere and market place, it certainly isn’t the first time in history that pop music has crossed generations this way. The good news is that it tends to eventually generate such an extreme sense of boredom and frustration from the youth generation that it sparks a wild and fiery moment of revolt and release. That is exactly what happened in the 1970’s to eventually spawn the punk movement.

By the time 1975 hit, the spirit of the 60’s was already over a half-decade-old, and what was left over was merely residue of a former time. Kids growing up in the 70’s – who were to young to participate or be influenced by the hippie movement and the psychedelia of the 1960’s – were still waiting for a sound that was distinctly theirs. Perhaps both the industry and the fans were confused as to where to go next after the 60’s happened, but what came as a result was more and more hokey pop music. As Jon Savage notes in his article “We Have Lift Off,” in the September issue of MOJO Magazine, the pop came tied in with the disco era stuff, and the chart toppers of the time were greatest hits albums from artists who had made their name a decade before. Pop was extremely multi-generational during the early-mid 70’s, and with almost no surviving counter culture or underground movement taking place in the U.S. or U.K. at the time, “real-time teens felt disenfranchised, restless and disengaged.”

It took some time to bubble up from the underground, but tensions finally mounted in ‘76 and the world was slapped in the face with punk rock. Bands like The Ramones out of the New York CBGB scene and The Sex Pistols out of the U.K., epitomized a new generation of disillusioned and pissed off youth, who longed to belong and who were ready to shake things up by making the rock & roll music they wanted to make.

Punk was really the ultimate in DIY expression, and paved the way for countless other independent movements in the years that followed.  Fast-forward to today and we are seeing a musical atmosphere strikingly similar to that of the mid 70’s, only this time we are seeing a whole new crop of young Independent musicians rising up and using the Internet as a tool to reclaim rock & roll as their own.

The atmosphere of a digital world is fast paced and oversaturated. Things are naturally here today and gone tomorrow, and that has become the digital life cycle. Being a reflection of the times, pop music has taken over the airwaves in a whole new way. There is an incredible void in rock & roll music right now, and everyone can feel it. But, there will be more rock & roll bands because while a lot of people think Gen Y is a lost generation – and who knows maybe we are – we are also believers with a fire in our bones.

We are a generation yearning for the kind of music that speaks to and for us, and that has the power to move people. We want rock & roll with that barebones essence that creeps up on you, sends chills up your spine, and reminds you that you’re still alive.

Rock & roll has finally come full circle, and we are on the brink of something spectacular here. We have returned to a time where independent artists hold the conch, and that means something. Rock & Roll isn’t dead, this is its second coming, and we are about to see a whole new generation of musicians refocus our attention on the human experience of rock & roll and slap us in the face with the weight of our own emotions.

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By: Juliette Jagger of www.rockrollandwrite.com

If good things come to those who wait, The Artist Life is overdue for a windfall.

Such an adage may be a mild cliché elsewhere but when it comes to this four year-old pop-influenced punk rock quartet, the axiom has never rang so true. After two highly-acclaimed EP’s (2007's Living and 2008's Let's Start A Riot), the Toronto, Ontario-based outfit has endured a legacy of trials and tribulations in striving to complete their debut full-length Impossible (Underground Operations).

“It felt like this album was never gonna come out,” sighs Blackwood with a sense of relief. “I'm a patient person but I'm also stubborn as hell and this has been an adventure. We've been writing over two years, busting our asses to create this record. The hurdles in achieving it are unimportant, though. What matters is that it's ready.”

Maintaining the barbed glory and steely rhythms of its predecessors yet branching out to incorporate invigorating elements, Impossible is leaps and bounds beyond the already-stunning strength of Let's Start A Riot; easily the most accomplished, aggressive and comprehensive work from The Artist Life to date. 

“We're still raw and anthemic but the choruses are even bigger,” Blackwood beams.

[...] Listening to the raucous power, emotional intensity and fiery delivery on its entirety, one cannot deny that The Artist Life has gone over each aspect of the album with the best fine-toothed comb possible. Blackwood and Richards penned an impressive 30 full songs before paring down to the 11 that would eventually comprise Impossible.

While the heavy lifting is clearly on the shoulders of The Artist Life however, Blackwood asserts this feat is due in no small part to the determined assistance of producer Greig Nori (Hedley, Sum 41) and Jesse Colburn (Avril Lavigne). Tirelessly driving the band to attain their best, their input was crucial in ensuring Impossible was nothing but the finest moment The Artist Life could possibly render, hence its foreboding title.

“At the end of the day, it felt like the album was impossible to write. You work so hard and think you've nailed it but then they say, 'Sorry guys, it's not there just yet.' They pushed us to the breaking point. I was like, 'I can't write that chorus again! I've already written it five times!' But at the end of the day, they both believed in us and motivated us to surpass what we thought were our limits.”

“Even when we were recording, Nori was taunting us,” he continues. “I'd be doing vocal takes and he kept saying, 'Not quite, man. I need more from you.' I was so angry, I felt like punching something. That's when he'd say, 'Record that again now.' When I was done, he was like, 'That's it! That's the take!’ That anger and angst really helped because I think you can hear a sense of passionate frustration on the album. He knew exactly what he was doing.”

Applying that charged, aggressive approach to all aspects of the album, Blackwood also reveals that The Artist Life's lyrical drive has burgeoned on Impossible. Refined and matured, the quartet has more to offer than simple teenage angst.

“There are songs about relationships, politics and everything in between.  Two years of writing and growing as a person can really change you. The lyrics are poignant and meaningful.”

Featuring tracks such as punk protests “Working Class Revolt” and “Steel City” with their call-to-arms for underdogs oppressed by dominating corporations, emotionally-charged “Find You,” “I'm Not The Same Anymore” and their playful reminiscence of youthful folly as well as a title track inspired by personal turmoil, Impossible not only features a more aware, pointed The Artist Live but compels listeners to action; to revolution and the support of the populace.

“We're still a three-chord, punk rock ballad band,” Blackwood declares. “but we've introduced a broad diversity into our style and approach now, even with songs that have acoustic twists. We're not afraid to strip away the electricity to bring in that raw, unassisted edge. Some of the best songs are written that way. It keeps things fresh and exciting.”

Garnering ravenous support while road-testing these songs on such diverse tours as with up-and-coming popsters Stereos, melodic hardcore gurus A Wilhelm Scream and even old school politi-punks Anti-Flag, Impossible is a testament to The Artist Life's abilities, expansion and duration, all of which culminates in the broad influence and dynamic vastness of Impossible.

Essentially, while The Artist Life paint with broad strokes and cover vast territory on Impossible, they haven't indelibly and unrecognizably altered the original canvas we have come to know, expect and adore from them. In fact, they've made it even stronger, prevalent and impossible—pun intended—to ignore.

“We're digging deeply with this album,” Blackwood beams. “It's about giving kids something to do, giving them a message and being a voice for them. We're not gonna settle, we're gonna challenge ourselves. There's depth; layers to Impossible. We're excited for fans to hear all of them and realize this is the best The Artist Life record. It's as honest as it can get from blue-collar guys like us.”

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Text/photo courtesy of Underground Operations
Catch The Artist Life perform "Impossible" from front to back on October 15h in Toronto! More info HERE.