This may be hard to believe, but the Haulix blog is now two and a half years old. We have interviewed hundreds of professionals in that time, and that is in addition to publishing more than two-hundred different advice columns on everything from booking tours to launching a music blog. We feel we have accomplished a lot in our brief digital life, but the one thing we haven’t done is attempt to engage our readers with a contest related to the written word. That is, until today.
November is the month blog editor James Shotwell celebrates his birthday, and when we asked what he wanted most in the world James replied that he simply wanted something good to read. We couldn’t agree more, so for our inaugural writing challenge we’re keeping the rules incredibly simple. All you have to do, and this goes for anyone who wants to participate, is step outside your genre comfort zone and review something you would normally not take time to cover. If you write about metal, find time this month to cover a new pop or hip-hop release. If you love pop, consider spinning the new albums from Handguns or A Great Big World. Heck, you could even cover the new Tim McGraw album, just as long as it’s not something you would typically make time to cover.
Write your best review and submit your finished piece to james@haulix.com, along with a link to other review you have written. We will confirm your submission, adding it to others we receive, and at the end of November one writer will be chosen as the winner. There will be a prize, but for now we are keeping the contents a mystery. We will mail the winner something however, so don’t go expecting the prize to be something stupid like ‘a feeling of accomplishment.’ We like good prizes, so we give good prizes.
Why are we doing this?
Good question.
The simple answer is: We can. The better answer is that after spending the better part of a decade living and breathing music writing we have seen countless talented people fall victim to being unable to write outside their comfort zone. Writers make themselves believe they are only capable of covering one or two genres of music, often tied to their personal taste, and never take it upon themselves to expand their horizons. We feel being able to write about a wide variety of music is key to success in the journalism industry today, so we created this challenge to encourage others to try something new.
If you’re anything like me, you probably started the day by recognizing that the start of a new work week had indeed arrived and then immediately began shaking your fists at the sky in anger. Monday is rarely anyone’s favorite day, and from what I have seen firsthand it feels safe to say it’s the one day of the week some people outright hate. I guess to them the arrival of the work week symbolizes the end of their quote/unquote freedom, and as a result they head into the office/factory/restaurant/store with a negative outlook already on their mind. This leads to bad attitudes, which only makes the experience of being at work worse, and for some reason it also seems to make time slow to a crawl. We’re not about that life, and we hope this post can do the same you that the song contained within it did for us.
I started college in the fall of 2006, which was less than a year after the world experienced the boom of Social Media and we began to recognize the interconnectivity of our lives with technology. Things seemed slower then. Maybe they were, in fact. There was no Twitter, the popularity of texting was still in its infancy, and the careers of young entertainers were still largely developed from gig to gig on the open road. There were one or two Myspace success stories, of course, but most artists were still trying their best to build a fervent following from their hometown out.
Sometimes I think I liked those days more, if only because it allowed artists a little more time to develop their sound and presence before being thrust upon the world at large. Before the age of social media, a bad show was just a bad show. You did your best, and if people weren’t into it everyone would shake their heads and go home wishing things had gone better. It was tough, but it a lot was better than having someone tape that show and post video of it, in full 1080p HD, to YouTube before you even pull out of the venue parking lot. That kind of thing can tarnish an artist’s reputation before they should even be at a point where live show reputation matters a great deal. Not everyone is an arena ready headliner from the moment they pick up a guitar, but for whatever reason the age of immediacy that followed the rise of social media has created a culture that demands perfection from day one, despite several hundred years of human experience and history that tell us most of the greatest creative minds of all time were also, on occasion, absolute disasters.
What I’m trying to say with all of this is that I’m still very much a fan of the long game. I love an overnight success story as much as the next person, but my personal experiences in music have shown me that those who last the longest in this business often did not find success until they had dedicated many years to refining their talent. Flash in the pan success is great, but ultimately fleeting. The people who make a real difference in music as those who toil in the middle, caught between stardom and being unknown, for as long as it takes to get the recognition or opportunity they have worked their entire lives to attain. There is no plateau they seek, only continued progression over time. It’s not about the money or the fame or the success, but rather doing the thing they love to do as well as they can for as long as people will pay them to do so. That’s where the real rewards lie, and that is what I myself hope to find as my career in music (hopefully) continues to develop in the years to come.
It’s with all this in mind that I decided to make today’s Motivation Monday post about eOne’s immensely successful rock group, Pop Evil. Many of you probably know their work, but some of you may not. It doesn’t matter either way, really. You can learn from Pop Evil whether or not you even like the style of radio friendly rock and roll they perform. Their success is not as much about the sound of the music they create as it is their determination to make what they believe is great music regardless of what the outside world told them would sell.
Labels these days don’t always promote the length of time a group has been together, and I have to believe that is due to our obsession with youth and the idea only the young can change the world, but I’ll be the first to tell you Pop Evil spent nearly a decade together before the vast majority of radio rock listeners knew they even existed. The band formed in 2001, but they didn’t receive their first national #1 until nearly the end of 2013. Before then, Pop Evil were just another low level rock band scraping together whatever money they could to get from show to show for many, MANY, years before money and attention came their way. That was okay though, because to them the money and success was always something that would come in time. It wasn’t about being successful tomorrow, it was about working as hard as they could to be they best they could up to, and after, the point when someone other than themselves would give a shit.
When I hear Pop Evil’s music I know the men performing it not only believe in the music, but they believe in themselves. Pop Evil have built a career on doing exactly what they believed was right for them, and through doing so they have developed a dedicated international following that welcomes them with open arms wherever they go. It took a long time to reach this point, but the band never let the length of their journey derail their dreams of staying true to that voice inside their hearts and minds that told them music was their way of life. I’m sure they appreciate the success, but even if it were to go away tomorrow I am confident the band would still be on the road 100-plus days a year, playing for whoever cared enough to see them.
Pop Evil’s new album, Up, hits stores this Friday. The album is filled with potential radio rock hits that I imagine will be very popular with fans young and old, as well as any newcomers who just so happen to discover the band in the months or years ahead. I know you may not be a Pop Evil fan right now, but I challenge you to give the band some time in the days to come. If you look beyond the genre being performed you will see this group, like any real artist or group, are creative people doing their best to express themselves through the medium that they feel best represents them. To hear the music of Pop Evil is to know the members of Pop Evil, and it’s hard to imagine anyone knowing of them and not feeling inspired by their hustle. For over a decade this band has given everything to be themselves, and as long as their is breath in their lungs I believe they will continue to do exactly that, regardless of whatever fanfare may follow. I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine a better way to live life than that.
James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
We know it would take far too long to highlight every client’s new release each week, so we’re going to choose a few select titles each week that we feel everyone should support. These are albums we will be buying ourselves, and we hope at the very least you give them a proper spin before deciding to purchase something else. James may write the column, but everyone at Haulix will have a say in who gets chosen.
Just under a year since the release of their first album with vocalist Bradley Walden, Emarosa have returned to music headlines with an EP of updated songs that will break your heart in two. Versus Reimagined takes four of the best songs from the band’s previous record and showcases them as never before, with piano and acoustic instrumentation taking the place of the band’s largely alternative rock sound. It’s the kind of record you can get lost in, even if only for twenty minutes, and it proves once and for all that this version of the band is the strongest to date. If anyone claims to make it through the new version of “I’ll Just Wait” without experiencing the kind of relationship flashback most believe only Drake can create I might have to call them a liar. This band is great, and this record is one that everyone should make it a point to own.
Detroit’s Dej Loaf has been one of the most talked about young emcees of the past year. It’s rare that a female rapper rises through the various underground echelons without relying on her sex appeal to move units, but Dej has long proven her beauty is just one of many things that make her great. #AndSeeThatsTheThing offers a five song preview of Loaf’s unique sound, sharing both her soft and more aggressive sides, as well as collaborations with Big Sean and Future. “Back Up” is the one track that will find success online without much trouble at all, but in our opinion the entire EP is worth your time and money. In fact, we recommend picking this up and then downloading Loaf’s 2014 mixtape, Sell Sole. Dej is the future of hip-hop, and for a limited time you can experience the best of her catalog for next to nothing. Don’t wait.
Lisa Lampanelli – Back To The Drawing Board (CD/Digital/Stream)
Haulix works with everyone in entertainment, and that extends to performers who fall outside the world of music. Lisa Lampanelli is a comedy veteran with a unique brand of in-your-face humor that never pulls a single punch. People seek out Lisa’s live shows in an attempt to shake off the worries of the week and celebrate the things that make us different in the funniest way possible. Her sixth special, Back To The Drawing Board, is her most personal release yet. Having lost a lot of weight, as well as a husband, Lampanelli is as alive as ever on stage. She tears into weight loss myths, Bill Cosby, dating, and more, all without making a single person feel alienated. If there is a funnier women working in comedy today, we have yet to hear her perform.
James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
We know it would take far too long to highlight every client’s new release each week, so we’re going to choose a few select titles each week that we feel everyone should support. These are albums we will be buying ourselves, and we hope at the very least you give them a proper spin before deciding to purchase something else. James may write the column, but everyone at Haulix will have a say in who gets chosen.
Something about the humid heat of mid-July makes me want to pull the blinds, kill the lights, and lose a day or three while one record spins on a loop a few feet away from me (and my cats, who are no doubt lying at my side). That record needs to be something I can get lost in. An all-consuming listening experience that pulls you in slowly and doesn’t allow you to leave until every ounce of emotion has been drained from your tired bones. When I first heard Run Forever’s Big Vacation EP I knew I had found that kind of album. It’s both catch and hypnotic simultaneously, giving you an excuse to either dance or smoke the day away, and leaving it up to you to decide which is the better choice. If you need an escape this month, let Run Forever be your guide to freedom. Get lost in Big Vacation and watch how easily the stresses and worries of reality begin to fall away, leaving you relaxed and free.
Australia has been a leading force in the development of modern metal music. From Parkway Drive to I Killed The Prom Queen, Feed Her To The Sharks, and now recent Facedown Records signees For All Eternity, the land down under has done more to shape the current state of heavy music than most understand. For All Eternity are still new to the international stage, but their unique approach to metal is sure to quickly win over fans around the globe. I don’t want to undersell the brutality on display, but there is a beautiful orchestration to their label debut, Metanoia, that cannot be praised enough. Amidst a year filled with chug-heavy releases that lack heart and passion, For All Eternity have delivered a crushing, yet gorgeous display of musicianship bursting with emotion at beat. Don’t miss out.
James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
We know it would take far too long to highlight every client’s new release each week, so we’re going to choose a few select titles each week that we feel everyone should support. These are albums we will be buying ourselves, and we hope at the very least you give them a proper spin before deciding to purchase something else. James may write the column, but everyone at Haulix will have a say in who gets chosen.
August Burns Red – Found In Far Away Places (LP/Digital/Stream)
Like most people who grow up in the midwest with a love for all things heavy in rock and roll, I spent many days listening to my mother telling me how all the bands I loved were just making noise. Looking back, she wasn’t always wrong. There are so many artists working in rock and metal today with absolutely nothing to say, but due to technical talent and the right producer they find a way to cling to relevancy in the ever-changing music landscape. August Burns Red are not one of those bands however, and over the course of their career they have continually raised the bar for storytelling and purposeful songwriting for everyone in their scene. Their latest, Found In Far Away Places, is the greatest expression of these qualities recorded to date. From universal messages of hope, strength, and progression, to tracks built from the stories of people facing real struggle in our modern society, there is something powerful to be found in every single song on this record.
Having long proven himself to be a songwriter capable of making you feel as if you could burst with hope one moment, only to make you want to cry the next, Anthony Raneri no longer needs to impress anyone with his music. His sound is a signature craft beer with a reputation for greatness that speaks for itself, and his dedicated ‘cult’ following will no doubt embrace his new solo EP the way they have every single Bayside release since their Victory Records debut in 2004. Ranger and his bandmates may now call Hopeless Records home, but the heartbreaking honesty and whimsical sincerity of his writing is just as ever before. Sorry State Of Mind finds Raneri reflecting on all he has done and experienced through his time in music, and the stories he has to share will keep you entertained all summer long.
Meek Mill – Dreams Worth More Than Money (LP/Digital/Stream)
If hard rock and acoustic solo albums are not your cup of tea, Maybach Music Group member Meek Mill has an alternative offering that may win you over. Dreams Worth More Than Money is the long-awaited sophomore effort from the Philadelphia based emcee, and though it is arriving almost a full year after its original release date Mill has made every effort to ensure the final product was more than worth the wait. From club-ready hits like “R.I.C.O” and “Bad For You,” to lyrical monsters such as “Lord Knows” or “The Trillest,” Dreams Worth More Than Money solidifies Meek Mill as one of the top artists in hip-hop today. He’s able to deliver radio hits just as easily as he can drop a verse that would incite riots in the streets, and on this release he gives us a little bit of everything in one fun, impressively cohesive listening experience.
James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
