What: Machina & E-Twinz
When: Tuesday, July 25
Where: Garfinkel’s
Tickets: $5
Machina may cover everything from power rock to soul binding ballads, but no matter how good the good music, getting a new band off the ground and into mainstream radio play isn’t always easy.
Touring is one way to build a fan base. Machina stops over in Whistler Tuesday, July 25 at Garfinkel’s as part of a modest five-city B.C. tour. Machina will also be joined by the power-pop, alternative-rock of E-Twinz.
Another get-your-music-out-there tactic Machina band members are taking is founding their own label site www.rockroyaltyrecords.ca where music from a variety of bands can be downloaded free of charge.
Removing the pressures of record sales, artists are free to produce music without commercial constraints. The more people know their music, the more successful tours become. More tours, more music and so it goes, guitarist Danton Jay says.
"This way bands can build up a fans base," Jay said. "We haven’t officially launched the label. We are just getting artists organized."
Machina is just launching out of the starting gates. The Victoria-based modern rock band of Jay, guitarist Nic Whitehouse, bassist Liz Beattie and drummer Ben Walker has mainly focused on growing a hometown following with regular shows at Steamers and Lucky. The band released their second album, Rented Smile, last September and they are currently working on a new one.
"We’ve really focused our sound," Jay said. "Our first album was all over the place. We’ve got a pretty good flow of more melodic songs and harder songs. The next album has a nice balance of tone and musicality. We’ve been rock the whole time though: lots of guitar solos and driving bass lines."
Machina will also be joined by E-Twinz, another emerging rock band. While the band just released its first self-titled EP, the Vancouver band’s frontman, Carmon Leeson, is a seasoned pro having toured with the likes of Nickelback, 54-40, Big Sugar and Default.
The new E-Twinz EP, independently released in April, spans everything from modern rock to power pop to punk. The single Does Anybody Really Care is currently in rotation on both Canadian and American airwaves.
Tickets are $5.
