Music Monday: Redcast edition
One of my most daunting tasks while working for Destiny is writing band biographies. It's especially hard when you've never even heard of the band before, let alone their music! It was a matter of transcribing first impressions into words in a matter of minutes, or hours in my case. After a few e-mail exchanges and a few streams of their MySpace music...I managed to update Redcast's bio quite well. (Note: Someone penned a really lengthy, poorly written one before me. I basically did a lot of deletion, adding, rewriting, and revamping.)Growing increasingly agitated at the pessimism of the EMO movement and the overriding dark vibe coming from indie bands of his generation, 20-year-old Seth Brock—lead singer, keyboardist and chief songwriter for the fresh-faced Portland, Oregon based trio Redcast--is excited about injecting a much needed dose of retro pop musical sunshine into a pessimistic landscape. Recorded and produced by well known Portland engineer, mixer, and producer Bart Hasema, brothers Seth (age 20), guitarist Jarrod (25) and bassist/violinist Darren (18) put their own fresh, contemporary twists on the joyful, old school vibe of their chief inspirations, 60’s British Invasion and California bands like The Beatles, The Monkees and The Turtles on 2007’s debut recording The Redcast EP.
While most kids born in the Eighties grew up on grunge and hip hop, the Brock Brothers were old schooling it from the get-go, being exposed to the classic rock their dad played years before they were born when he was a young DJ. Seth’s admiration for the Leslie organ sound that was so integral to The Turtles influenced its incorporation in some rough demos he recorded in his early teens on a simple eight-track recorder, having the chance to bring the spirit of classic rock legends to the modern indie music scene. He and his brothers became motivated to pursue music as a potential career when Seth played some impromptu idealistic, romantic early tunes for a crowd of less than 30 people and received an overwhelming response. “I got up and started pounding them out on the piano, and before long, everyone was singing along like these were songs they had known for years,” Seth says. “I thought, wow, I could get used to this.”
While we are no strangers to the trending trios of brothers, Redcast ventures into unseen territory, bridging the gap between what we listen to and what our parents listen to (Skope Magazine) by being once described as the modern day Partridges by PlugInMusic, with clean-cut 60’s focused indie rock with a commercial bounce that is delivered believably. Considering the peppy, jangly guitar driven tone of “Hopeless?” the title may seem slightly ironic—but one listen to the lyrics and it’s clear that the Brock Brothers’ incredible sense of romance shines through. “I’m always writing from personal experience,” he says, “I make no apologies for focusing on the sunny side of life and with my brothers. Redcast is determined to connect our generation to a classic vibe where this sort of feeling was everywhere.”
Their self-released EP caught the interest of Seattle-based indie record label Destiny Worldwide (The Scene Aesthetic, The Real You, Moneta) in early 2009 and have been vehemently writing and recording new music, preparing for a new, fully-fleshed out and explored full length with a tentative early December release. However, Redcast shows no shortage of the honest, melodic continuation of the influenced early Rock ‘n’ Roll forefront by additionally releasing a second EP to tide us over before the anticipated December full length. “We really want people to listen to these songs, relate to them and feel happy. Nothing drives me crazier than watching EMO kids taking the best years of their lives and refusing to look anywhere but the dark side.”
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