Self-titled album from Pete Van Dyk & The Second Hand Band

BLUES rock n roll group Pete Van Dyk & The Second Hand Band have put out their self-titled album.

The release by the Burlington, Ontario, band is accompanied by the video for the single Talk Of The Town. The band describe the video as a "surreal journey through a day in the life of lead guitarist Ed featuring dinosaurs, Jean Claude Van Damme and other strange sights".

Pete told RealSoundsOK: "We recorded in the second story of an old industrial building in Hamilton that was being used as a yoga studio. The majority of the tracks were recorded live off the floor with some dubs for vocals and lead guitar. 

"Tracking live enabled us to capture the energy of our live show and utilize the natural reverb and massive sounds of a wide open room. Our style is a funky gumbo of rock and roll drawing influence from punk, blues, funk, rock and roll and so on, we hope you dig what you hear."

The album is available as Name Your Price at Bandcamp and you can watch the video for Talk Of The Town below. For more head to petevandyk.com

riot nrrd's new release grows in swells

INDIE artist Conrad Sichler - aka riot nrrd - is releasing his new album settle on June 6th.

The Canadian told RealSoundsOK: "It is a song cycle that circles around questions of roots, identity and connection to home.

"The music is being released in waves but you can hear the growing swells on Soundcloud and Bandcamp."

Melissa Bel Q&A

Your name:

Melissa Bel.

Where are you from?

Burlington, Ontario, Canada.

How would you describe yourself?

Pop with a dash of blues, pinch of folk and a lot of soul.

Who are your main influences musically?

The Beatles have always been my No. 1...then there's Aretha Franklin, John Mayer, The Temptations, Gavin Degraw, Mavis Staples...And I grew up singing lots of Christina Aguilera, so she definitely deserves some credit. 

What do you hope to achieve in music?

To sell out stadiums and win Grammys...lots of Grammys. And do a duet with Paul McCartney. To play all around the world to audiences who are there to hear my music. I dream big :)

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

There have been a couple...in April 2013 I played my first shows in London, England, opening for Juno winner Matthew Good. I was quite nervous, but the crowd in London was amazing!! And in November 2012 I won a contest here in Toronto at a showcase called HoneyJam and won a trip to perform at a similar showcase in Barbados. It was actually a dream.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

I don't think anything has been so bad that I'd want to forget it (thankfully!). There have been some less-than-ideal shows and moments for sure, but you always end up taking something out of them and being better for it.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Let's go with C'est La Vie off of my newest EP (titled Don't Forget to Breathe - shameless plug!). I think it's a good marriage of my blues side and my pop side, mixing some contemporary sounds that I'm experimenting  with, and classic elements that I've always loved.

Where can we listen to it?

http://youtu.be/eopgO48YClA

Where can we find out more about your music?

www.melissa-bel.com

facebook.com/melissabelmusic

twitter.com/melissabelmusic

instagram/melbelmusic

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/dont-forget-to-breathe/id645721522

Anything else you’d like to say about your band/music that I forgot to ask?

I can't wait to come back and play in the UK!! In fact I recently got my UK passport (my Dad is British)...so you might just be seeing a whole lot more of me soon :)

New tracks from Pete Van Dyk & The Second Hand Band

SHAKE Me/Plan B is the new 7-inch record from Pete Van Dyk & The Second Hand Band.

It is available for free download with bonus track To The Night from petevandyk.bandcamp.com and will be released on a limited edition 33-1/2 RPM lathe cut - a format the band says "echoes the raw gritty energy of the recording".

Pete from the band - which hails from Burlington, Ontario, Canada - said: "The 7-inch was recorded at our bass player JD’s house. We set up in the middle of his living room and let it roll. JD also recorded the event, as he always does. 

"We thrive in spontaneous situations. By recording on the fly we can capture true moments. Our DIY approach to music gives us the opportunity to not miss lightning in a bottle. When a song is at its peak excitement level we can make sure to capture that specific intensity. 

"Our songs are ferocious, violent, introspective, raw, beautiful, and a great many other things. We want to make sure to not let those details escape."

If you like what you hear, you can find out more about the band in the Q&A they did with RealSoundsOK back in May.

Pete Van Dyk & The Second Hand Band Q&A

Band name: 

Pete Van Dyk & the Second Hand Band.

Where are you from? 

Burlington, Ontario, Canada.

Who is in your band?

Pete Van Dyk - Vocals, Guitar

Ed Van Dyk - Lead Guitar

JD Norwood - Bass & Vocals

Scott Carruthers - Drums & Vocals

How would you describe yourselves? 

Rock and roll of the blues persuasion drawing influences from punk and soul.

Who are your main influences musically? 

The Beatles, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Said the Whale, Townes Van Zandt, the Allman Brothers Band.

What do you hope to achieve in music? 

To have success making real music that we would listen to and be proud of.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

We've had the opportunity to play a lot of cool venues, probably the most interesting being the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, being able to play a stage with that much history that has seen so many great bands was very cool. Also just being able to maintain independence as a band in terms of our writing, recording and releasing of our music.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

A rather unpleasant split with our former lead guitarist.

If you could choose just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Rise the Falling Sun - It is our newest song/release and we just put out a video for us. It showcases our dynamic as a band and is a distillation of our sound and approach to music. We wrote, recorded, produced it all ourselves.

Where can we listen to it?

www.petevandyk.bandcamp.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlGeN5zCqm8

Where can we find out more about your music?

www.petevandyk.com

www.facebook.com/thesecondhandband

www.twitter.com/secondhandband

www.youtube.com/petevandykmusic

Anything else you’d like to say about your band that I forgot to ask?

We take a DIY approach to our music, recording it all in our own studio/rehearsal space, it is engineered and mixed by our bassist, JD Norwood.

New video from Pete Van Dyk and the Second Hand Band

PETE Van Dyk and The Second Hand Band have released a video for their track Rise The Falling Sun.

The rock and roll band from Hamilton/Burlington, Ontario, are offering the track as a free download at http://petevandyk.bandcamp.com/

Pete said :"I’ve always been interested in simplicity. The Second Hand Band likes to produce our music, promote our activities, book our shows, and design our album art. 

"This seems like it would complicate our music-making lives, but it actually makes it easier. There’s no second-guessing, and no pointing fingers at anyone else. Fans ultimately control a bands fate, but by keeping everything straightforward we hope that our intentions remain true and transparent. Frills are for your grocery needs.

"The video for Rise the Falling Sun is a distillation of us as a band. We wanted a video of a rock band. This is what we do and who we are, albeit with more extravagant lighting."

You can check out the video above and keep an eye out in the coming weeks for a Q&A with the band. And for more details visit http://petevandyk.com/