Newsletter 9-01-08

Hey Everyone,

Happy Labor Day.

What is supposed to be a joyous day is marred by Gustav. As of this writing (around 1pm on Monday), Gustav has made landfall, but thankfully the damage thus far has been far less than Katrina. Let’s all hope is stays that way, that everyone is safe, and that Gustav heads out to sea.

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Besides the threat of Gustav, I hope everyone has been having a great Labor Day weekend.

Mine kicked off spectacularly with the BlowUpRadio.com Free Concert Series show at Buddie’s Tavern. It was a wonderful night with great performances by Alter Ego, Six To Eight Mathematics, and Kosmic Daydream.

Our next BlowUpRadio.com shows at Buddie’s Tavern is very special. It will be part of BANDING TOGETHER: A BENEFIT FOR THE SPONDYLITIS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

This benefit show and webathon is going to be huge!

Here’s the press release

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Friday October 17th through Sunday October 19th BlowUpRadio.com & ThePenguinRocks.com will present BANDING TOGETHER: A BENEFIT FOR THE SPONDYLITIS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA.

This 48 hour benefit webathon will feature over 50 bands performing live on the internet radio stations to raise money for this good cause. Among the bands performing will be nationally known artists like Brian Vander Ark (The Verve Pipe), Miles Hunt (the Wonder Stuff), and Paul Sanchez (Cowboy Mouth).

“The webathon will be the internet radio equivalent of the Jerry Lewis telethon, only with better music,” says Lazlo, the founder of BlowUpRadio.com and the organizer of Banding Together.

During the course of Banding Together, we’ll be asking people to donate money via a secure on-line section of the Spondylitis Association Of America’s website. As a thank you, everyone who donates during the webathon will be sent a CD.


About the Spondylitis Association Of America (SAA):

SAA is a non-profit organization that was the first and remains the largest resource for people affected by spondylitis. Through their efforts, they help advance education, research and treatment for ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and related diseases. Their interactive website boasts more than 600 pages of content and receives more than one million hits per month. For more than 25 years SAA has dedicated all of its resources to help improve the lives of people coping with spondylitis.


"This is a very personal benefit for me as my wife, Naomi, suffers from ankylosing spondylitis (AS).", says Lazlo, " I have seen the debilitating effects of this disease and the chronic pain and discomfort it causes. This benefit is the least I can do to help my wife, and over a million others who suffer from AS."


The following bands are scheduled to perform as part of BANDING TOGETHER: A BENEFIT FOR THE SPONDYLITIS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA:

Agency, Alex Brumel, Alter Ego, Beatallica, Ben Godwin, Billie Burke Estate, The Break Evens, Brian Vander Ark, Colie Brice, Copesetic, The Crayons, Crewman Number Six, The Cucumbers, Deena Shoshkes, Dipsomaniacs, Echofission, Evergreen File, The Future Kings Of Nowhere, The Heshers, J Stanley, Jim Testa, Joe Canzano, Joe Harvard, John Raido, John Taglieri, Jon Caspi, Jon Dacks, Jonathan Andrew, Joshua Van Ness, Kate Hart, Kevin McGowan, Kosmic Daydream, Matt Colligan, Miles Hunt, New Day Dawn, Paul Sanchez, Paul Zunno, Private Iron, Randy Morning Band, Rich Conroy, Rik Mercaldi, Scruff, Six To Eight Mathematics, Souls Release, Spiraling, The Successful Failures, Synthetic Sympathies, Thomas Martin & Jeanne O'Neill, Tris McCall, Whiskey Flask Revenge!, The Winter Sounds, Zigman Bird


In addition to the webathon, on October 11th a live benefit concert will take place at Buddie’s Tavern (277 Johnsons Lane, Parlin, NJ), which will feature live sets from The Comrades, The Tea & Whiskey, Frank Bressi (of The Chilling Details), and special guests. All proceeds raised that night will also benefit the Spondylitis Association Of America.

For more information on the webathon and live benefit concert, please go to www.BlowUpRadio.com, or e-mail Lazlo@BlowUpRadio.com.

BlowUpRadio.com is an internet radio station and website started in 2000, dedicated to the support of New Jersey's local original music scene.

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If you missed the interviews with Particle Zoo or Bobby Steele (from The Undead) last week on Lazlo’s Den, you can now stream both interviews at wwwLazlosDen.com

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Concert Picks of the Week

Lazlo (BlowUpRadio.com)
Saturday at Keyport's Mini-Park is a day long benefit for cancer reserach. It's a good cause, and there are some great bands playing like The Brixton Riot, Jon Caspi Band, George Wirth, and Joe D'Urso & Stone Caravan.

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And now it's time for this week's Pissed Off!

I watched the Democratic National Convention last week and besides being greatly moved by Barack Obama’s speech, I was moved by something else too.

One of the themes of the convention was "Unity", and it was nice to see the Democratic party come together after the long, and often times vicious, primary season.

Wouldn't it be nice to see that type of unity within our local music scene. I know we all have many differences of opinions on many things, but I think we can all stand together in the fact that we love music. And moreso, we love original independent music!

We may have differences of opinion as to what constitutes good original independent music, and some of you may not despise cover bands as much as others, but the important thing is that we stand together and show our unity for the original independent music scene!

Maybe we should have a Local Music Scene Convention, where for one night, or a series of nights, we could try to have some scene unity. Showcase a few bands each night, from all different genres, and then have 1 or 2 keynote speakers each night speaking about topics that matter to the local music scene.

Of course any such convention would have to give people plenty of time and opportunity to get to know one another, and not just network, but really get to know others within the local music scene.

There is no "unity" as a whole within our scene. There are little cliques with some overlap between some bands, but by and large if you're part of one clique you don't know the other clique, and you may even say you have a problem with the other one being so cliquish, but we are all in cliques.

Even though I get plenty of local CDs from various cliques, there are plenty of people in NJ that aren't familiar with me and what I try to do with my website, and conversely as much as I seek out original music, there are plenty of bands I do not know.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could all try to come together and get to know one another and maybe grow stronger as a scene?

My name is Lazlo and I approve this message.

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That's all for this week folks.

Peace,
Lazlo
www.BlowUpRadio.com