Siversun Pickups.....

Welcome to the Friday installment of Simple Man Music. As you all know today is the day that we preview the most requested artist or performer from the past weeks requests. As I am also sure that you all are aware Joy wrote about our interest in Indie Music and Musicians. Well today’s post is not only a reader request but an interest in an Indie band named Silversun Pickups. Luckily for us this band has been on our radar for some time and we are happy to finally feature them.

The Indie rock band Silversun Pickups is from L.A. California. The members of this band all knew each other and were friends. They had performed with each other in other friend’s bands as well as together on previous occasions and were originally known as A Couple of Couples. Since their formation Silversun Pickups has released EP’s called Pikul, Remixes, Live Session, and The Tripwire Session. They have also released two full length albums called Carnavas and Swoon.

These releases have given birth to some great singles too. “Lazy Eye” and “Well Thought Out Twinkles” came off of the Carnavas album, while “Panic Switch” is the first single released off the album Swoon and there’s No Secrets This Year is the follow up single. These singles as well as all of the tracks on both albums showcase a diverse group of musical influences that make up this bands musical style. Some of their influences are The Smashing Pumpkins, Velvet Underground, and Sonic Youth.

Silversun Pickups has also toured with Australian band Wolfmother, Snow Patrol, and OK Go. In addition to that they have played the Coachella Music Festival in Indio California with Morrissey. Silversun Pickups has toured Ireland and the UK as well where they opened for the Foo Fighters in Edinburgh and Dublin. On their European tour they opened for Kaiser Chiefs. All the while they have gone about the business of creating great music and perfecting their craft.

The current line up for Silversun Pickups is as follows:
1) Brian Aubert on guitar and vocals
2) Nikki Monninger on bass and vocals
3) Joe Lester on keyboards
4) Christopher Guanlao on drums
5) Former member Llama Kennedy on rhythm guitar is featured on some of the bands tracks.

I would really recommend that you all give this band a listen to they have some great stuff. I for one also look forward to seeing and hearing more from these great musicians in the future, because I honestly feel that they have a future. After all with their great sound and songwriting skills I am sure they will only get better with time. I hope you all enjoy these videos.

That’s all for today, but Simple Man Music will be back next week, so have a great weekend CIAO4NOW!!!!!

Indie Music - Why We Love it and Plan to Highlight It

As Tim has mentioned here in his opening post on Simple Man Music, no genre is off limits. We plan on dealing with all kinds of music on this blog, and we really want to highlight some of the Indie music out there. Many people are not totally familiar with Indie music and what it is all about, so I'd like to talk to you a bit about this music, why we love it, and why we plan to highlight if often.

"Indie" is the term that basically is an abbreviation for Independent music. It's not a specific genre of music (which many people seem to think) but basically encompasses all types of music distributed by independent labels instead of by major labels. It can also refer to music that is recorded and distributed by the artists themselves. Some of the big names in music today have first started in Indie music and have gone on to sign with mainstream labels. Sadly, some of the bands that have done this have compromised their unique sound when signing with major labels - caving to the pressure of a major label to go mainstream. For this reason many musicians choose to go independent. This way they are able to thrive, play the music they love, and improve the realm of music without being stifled or pressured by mainstream music labels.

Because of the independent that musicians have in Indie music, you'll find that Indie music includes many sounds, styles, and subjects. The musicians don't worry about trying to make their music appealing, but the music comes from their heart…from their passion. This means that Indie bands don't always appeal to the masses, although there are some exceptions. In fact, today more and more people are becoming fond of the Indie sounds being put out. Some people feel that this allows them to get their music on an "organic" level.

Today with all the technology out there, Indie music has risen even more in popularity. Artists can easily record their own music at home and use the internet to get it out to thousands. Some popular Indie musicians have started out this way, using YouTube and MySpace as venues to get their music out to the public. Many have gone on to be very successful.

"Indie" music is not a style of music. It is actually a mindset. This mindset that musicians have to preserve their music the way they want it - essentially preserving their musical footprint on the sands of time. It is this mindset that is the reason that we love Indie music. Here we are all about the heart and soul of music, no matter the genre. You'll find Indie musicians in every genre of music and we plan to highlight some of them in the following weeks.

Just a few of the Indie bands that we have discovered in our own musical journey and search include groups like Black Gold, LIGHTS, Silversun Pickups, and Band of Horses. Of course these are just a few of the many Indie bands out there. We plan to introduce some of them to you over the next few weeks, so stay tuned for some great Indie bands coming your way.

P.S. Don't forget to get your requests into us for Friday's reader's choice day. You can do this by emailing, leaving a comment, or IM'ing one of us.