Jacob Acosta







Jacob Acosta's music chronicles a journey with many paths. He has explored the depth of the human condition through song since his first project Race You There in 2008, and has followed that up with more inspiring and soulful music from Roll Acosta in 2009. With his groups he has put out the works 'Acts of Treason' (2009), 'The Dawn EP' (2010), 'Catalyst EP', (2011), 'The Dark EP' (2011) and most recently 'This Dreamt Existence' (2012) with his first producer, John Vanderslice. He has worked as an artist, performing with many other bands in his hometown of Tucson, including a guest musician spot on the 'Truth be Told' (2011) album by the Tryst . Now he embarks on his first journey back to his singer/songwriter beginnings with the upcoming project 'Chants of Diplomacy'(2013). This astonishing performer, delivers a stunning show and a truly passionate musical approach to the human experiene.

The Semester Review






The Semester Review is a pop punk band from Chandler, Arizona formed in August 2011. The current lineup consists of Josh Rockett (lead vocals/lead guitar), Gabe Hernandez (guitar/backing vocals), Cole Stevens (bass/backing vocals), and Austin Cooper (drums). All of the guys come from previous bands that are now defunct. While many of the bands in Arizona focus on the punk aspect of pop punk, the Semester Review's sound is very reminiscent of the early 2000s era, with catchy guitar riffs and vocals focusing on girls, friends, and hanging loose. Even though the music sounds very early 2000s-like, the Semester Review's use of breakdowns evens out the new age of pop punk that many bands toy with today. Although none of the four members are even in their twenties yet, they have shared the stage with bands such as the Story So Far and Man Overboard. Their most recent EP, How to Get to Third Base was released on December 23, 2012 and is available for free at http://thesemesterreview.bandcamp.com.





http://www.facebook.com/TheSemesterReview

ZIROH


ZiROH is a 3-piece instrumental "stoner/rock/metal/prog/jam" band who hails from the sweltering gut of Phoenix, Arizona. The band features Jason Prichard (Daughters of Fission, Fred Green, Vomitus, Grum, & ClownKnife) pummeling the drums, Justin Beemer (Ars Magna, Heroes for Ghosts, & Arc of the Aurora) weaving between bluesy rhythms and atmospheric leads on guitar, and Tony Richey (Giantkiller, Hellrancho, Orthostatic, Nihil, Grum, & Dominion) laying down mega-distorted riffs on bass... Originally conceived in 2008, the band began as a drums and bass rock project, so when ZiROH had enough songs to record an album, they called upon long time friend, Jeff Kahn of the legendary underground psychedelic/black/doom metal band, Skeleton of God, to journey to Phoenix and record guitar tracks for the self-titled EP. After recording the album, Jason and Tony played a handful of shows as a 2-piece, all the while scoping out a potential guitarist. Eventually they asked Justin Beemer if he'd be interested in jamming a few tunes with them and now ZiROH is a solid 3-piece working on a more evolved new album and gracing stages with their energetic, groovy, and intense brand of stoner metal rock. www.myspace.com/ziroh

SKITN



SKITN’s reggae beats and rock edge are an invitation. The five-piece band engages its audiences with laid back energy that creates a party where everyone is invited. SKITN has played with national acts such as Steel Pulse, Pepper, Long Beach Shortbus, Slightly Stoopid, Pato Banton, Half Pint, The Aggrolites, Plain White T's, and Authority Zero. The band’s good-time philosophy – influenced by reggae, rock, island jams, ska, hip hop, and punk – comes to life on stage with Chris Calvo’s guitar riffs and Fernando Hinojosa’s improvisational keyboards and percussion. Scott Hilkemeyer (bass) and Kelly Velasquez (drums) cook up the groove, and Earl Rosales delivers SKITN’s celebratory lyrics with cool, soulful enthusiasm. Slice of the good life songs, like “Late Night Drive,” stick in your head like a favorite song you’ve never heard before. For seven years SKITN has relished showing their guests a good time. But it’s not clichéd rock ‘n roll hedonism. There’s a spiritual element to the party – having a good time is good for your soul. And SKITN’s guests keep coming back – an ever-growing, loyal fan base follows SKITN to the next party. If you’re having a party, KEEP IT SKITN!

Minature Tigers

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Press swoon for Miniature Tigers
All Music Guide
Miniature Tigers may hail from the landlocked sprawl of southern Arizona, but the band's music sets its sights on California, a more appropriate setting for the sun-baked pop songs that comprise this debut...Tell It to the Volcano is a delightfully rare record, one that employs power pop songcraft and lyrical snark in equal measures.

Relix
Tell it to the Volcano is quintessential listening for aimless drives on coastal highways.

Death and Taxes
Miniature Tigers couldn’t have have arrived at a better time. Tell It To The Volcano boasts a collection of well-crafted pop songs, free of pretention and often sung from the perspective of a quirky, lovelorn troubadour.

Daytrotter
The Miniature Tigers are more of a hybrid of the best of the [LA pop] movement, an occasional vaudevillian tone, the soft harmonies of the late Impossibles/Slow Reader and the touching, but brutally honest emotional baggage and concerns of Ben Gibbard doing either Death Cab or All-Time Quarterback. Brand and Schaier slide their voices together to make a conglomeration that sounds like a crystal clear stream with no hurry in it.

LA Weekly
With a captivating mix of quick-witted melodies and sharp-tongued lyrics, the Miniature Tigers are a power-pop animal that’s easy to love.

Popmatters
Tell it to the Volcano is filled with the tunes that lodge instantly in your brain and have you singing along before the songs are even finished...This is fun stuff.

Sentimentalist
Miniature Tigers play stripped-down, simple pop that sounds like summertime nostalgia, warm, comfortable, and fun.

My Old Kentucky Blog
Miniature Tigers play pop music with that earnest emotion (my heart is surely broken and it's all your fault!) that Margot [& The Nuclear So & Sos] brings and blends it with the more upbeat poppy good time sound and solid melodies that Spinto Band always comes with.

Atlanta Music Guide
The lyrics are so charmingly offputting that they can't help but grab attention...That sense of playfulness, of wit mixed with self-deprecation and given over to a killer rhyme scheme, is the thread that ties the album together, even as the band mixes up its instrumentation from track to track.

Spin
Clever, intelligent pop songs come in bunches from this budding outfit, particularly the unshakable “Cannibal Queen”


KCRW
Top 10 best bands of CMJ.


Alternative Press: FOUR AND 1/2 STARS
Staking their claim on the quirkier side of indie pop.


Who are Miniature Tigers?
Hmm, where should we start here? The part where Miniature Tigers stay up all night with Neon Indian, fine-tuning the laser-like synths of their new single, “Gold Skull?” Yeah, that sounds about right. A song Stereogum has the exclusive debut on HERE.

“I won’t forget that experience,” says Miniature Tigers frontman Charlie Brand - who's on Twitter HERE. “I remember the sun coming up and everyone in the room singing along. [Drummer] Rick [Schaier] was almost asleep on the floor as he did harmonies.”

While that part was captured during the Manhattan-bound mixing stages of Miniature Tigers’ second album - FORTRESS which is due July 27th on Modern Art Records through Warner Music Group's Independent Label Group - the rest of the record was tackled at Dreamland, a converted 19th-century church that’s hosted everyone from Beach House to the B-52s. As you might imagine given its location—deep in the woods of Upstate New York—this led to some other late nights, ones that involved abject terror. But hey, that’s what happens when you decide to watch The Shining in a place that could double as a Friday the 13th set.

“That movie put us in a weird headspace,” explains Brand, “so we decided to go nuts on ‘Mansion of Misery’, starting with the drums. We also wailed on the guitars, making everything as loud as we possibly could.” The result is one hell of an curtain-raising cut, as heavenly harmonies and tension-building effects segue into a sudden explosion of crushed cymbals and powder keg chords. So while it’d be easy to draw the usual reference points here (the two B’s: Brian Wilson and the Beatles), something’s a little off about Miniature Tigers’ indie pop presentations, whether we’re talking about the delirious chorus lines of “Bullfighter Jacket,” the hooting and hollering of “Lolita,” or the ’shroom-munching waking dream of “Coyote Enchantment.” And reigning in all the chaos, why, it’s none other than Chris Chu of the morning benders, applying the same widescreen approach that worked wonders on his own Big Echo LP.

“We like to push what doesn’t work sometimes,” says Brand, “and he helped balance that out for us. Chris is also very organized, focused and serious, which is nice, because we aren’t at all.” That’s not totally true. After all, the band’s come a long way since Rolling Stone named them one of MySpace’s 25 best artists in late 2006. For one thing, Brand and Schaier finally have a steady lineup now, rounded out by guitarist Algernon Quashie and bassist Alex Gerber. The band played over 200 dates last year supporting their debut album Tell It To the Volcano with the likes of The morning benders, Bishop Allen, The Spinto Band and then there was the Ben Folds tour where Brand figured out what not to say onstage in front of their biggest crowds yet. “I made a weird joke about being on acid at this college basketball arena,” he says. “I don’t even remember what I was talking about. I was dying up there.” He won’t be any longer.
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Lunar Light Collectors: three guys that remember when 'alternative' was actually an alternative to something without losing love of a nice pop song.

www.facebook.com/pages/lunar-light-collectors/22921873439?v+wall
www.myspace.com/lunarlightcollectors

The Constellation Branch


The Constellation Branch is an indie rock band from Phoenix, Arizona.

Meeting through a mutual friend, The Constellation Branch was formed by singer Jordan Cruz and guitarist Bryce Hill in the spring of 2006. The duo quickly wrote and recorded a few demos the following fall, and armed with these tracks, recruited drummer Stephen O’Sicky in January 2007. The trio went through 6 different bass players in as many months until they finally found bassist Aaron Motley. In July of 2007, The Constellation Branch was complete.

Taking over a year to complete, “The Dream Life, The Real Life, The Empty Glass…” is the debut full length album from the Arizona indie rockers, The Constellation Branch. Recorded primarily in their friends Mom’s house, it features guest appearances by Poem (Matthew Gilbert), Chelsey Nelson (Yellow Minute) and Parker Morden and was produced by Mike Dwyer and James Mitchell.
Get your copy of The Constellation Branch's Latest: The Dream Life, The Real Life, The Empty Glass…