October 7, 2011
The Lowell
I’m with the band
profiles
Psychedelic riffs rock fans By Henry Hammel
M
anifesting the music scene through the rare sounds of psychedelic rock, the student band Comodo Complex has burst onto stages all over the Bay Area. The four seniors came together for the first time last winter in drummer Ben Fischer’s basement. “We ended up writing our first song that day,” Balboa High School bassist Ian Arnold said. Their first song, “Passerby,” captures feelings of watching a girl walk by and wondering what “might have been.” The songs are written by Spencer Owings, from Ruth Asawa School of the Arts. The four friends are Owings on guitar and vocals, Fischer on drums, Lucas also on guitar and Arnold on the bass. The band has had four shows so far, including one in Dolores Park and one at the Starry Plough nightclub in Berkeley. “Playing on stage is definitely very different than practicing,” Fischer said. “During practice there are certain points when I will play things that are not part of the song, and then the band will play off of it, and we create something new.” The band adopted their name after deciding to solely play psychedel-
ic rock. “Comodo Complex” is inspired by the Italian word comodo, referring to a music style of moderate tempo. Lured by its energy, the band sees their rock music as an art form and a distinguishing factor. “I enjoy psychedelic rock because for me, it is much more emotional, thought-provoking and metaphorical,” Fischer said. Because the members attend different schools, Comodo wComplex fans span the city. “Most of our fans are people that like new indie music,” Fischer said. The band alerts their fans of upcoming events on their Facebook page. Since its formation, Comodo Complex has made tremendous strides and is on the brink of debuting its first album. “On Oct. 22, we will release a six-song self-titled album,” Owings said. The album, composed of all original songs, was recorded at The Complex Recording Studio. “We will be selling it at our self titled album show on Oct. 26 at The Complex Recording Studio,” Owings said. Already getting exposure in the local scene, Comodo Complex hopes to invade the rest of the music world. “Having an ac-
tual album recorded in a studio will really help us with publicity,” Fischer said. Owings added that building an online fan base is in the works. “We are also considering iTunes and Amazon.” To produce high quality music, the band spent two months mixing their songs.“The first day was exciting because it was a new experience for me,” Fischer said. “I had never been in a professional studio before.” When a track is laid down in the studio, the song is recorded instrument by instrument. “First the drums were recorded, then the bass was added, then the background guitar, lead guitar, and finally vocals and effects,” Fischer said. Being in a band is more than just a hobby to the members. “I want playing with Comodo Complex to be my career,” Arnold said. “But even if we do not get enough fame for it to be our jobs, being in a band would still give us experience in the music business.” Though not sharing the level of The Beatles’ fame, these musicians enjoy the same camaraderie as that group’s early days. “I like playing shows and hanging out with the members,” Owings said. “Being in a psychedelic band gives a lot of creative freedom.”
Acoustics group blends classical instruments with novel melodies Daniel Green
By Daffany Chan
I
n an era of synthetic and electric sound, this ensemble breaks the trend. With self-arranged covers of OneRepublic’s and AJ Rafael’s songs already on their repertoire, this new group has been transforming popular music hits into pure, acoustic tunes for the public to enjoy. The collaboration began when seniors Calvin Hu and Kenny Leung spontaneously decided to meet up one auspicious summer day to do what they love — play music. They notified their many friends, and to their surprise four other musicians showed up, according to guitarist and lead vocalist Leung. “We decided to just have a huge jam session,” he said. Among the unexpected guests were several seniors: violinist Samuel Hong, cellist Nick Tam, harmonizers Arnrow Domingo and Tenny Zeng, and even sound editor Chris Lee, who came equipped with professional recording devices and is also the photo editor of the newspaper. The group of friends quickly became a six-member ensemble. All the members have extensive music experience: Hong and Tam play for the school’s Symphonic Orchestra; both Domingo and Zeng sing in Advanced Choir; Leung plays the piano and guitar. Hu, who is both in choir and Symphonic Orchestra, uses his perfect pitch, ability to identify notes, and music theory training to compose the cover scores. Arranging and playing music comes naturally for the ensemble. Combining the instrumental sounds to convey a feeling is “like writing an essay,” according to Hu. “Our music generally has the lighter, acoustic feel we like to cover,” Hu said. “But if we wanted to go for more intense, heavy music, we’d just bring in some bass and beats.” Their playing appears effortless, but the recording process is long and grueling. “It’s definitely no walk in the park,” Lee said, who had never recorded music in a professional setting before. Each vocal and instrumental track must first be recorded individually using a studio microphone, then compiled using Garageband to sync and edit. Within a day,
Chris Lee
the recordings are ready to be shared online. Now, almost two months in, the ensemble still has regular jam sessions. The first cover, “Secrets” by OneRepublic, was uploaded on Facebook and garnered raves. Though the group was originally intended to be a summer hobby, friends and listeners wanted to hear more. Drawing musical inspiration from none other than Youtube-based singer-songwriter AJ Rafael, whom Zeng and Leung met at a concert, the group aspires to one day also go viral. Their music is currently based on the music-sharing site SoundCloud, but they see Youtube as an outlet to more listeners. Besides the recordings, the group wants to perform live. “We’re looking forward to hopefully playing in the talent show,” Hu said. Although the musicians are excited to see what the future holds, they currently focus on covering more songs. Experimenting with diverse genres of music, they will even introduce rappers into future covers. “It’s a truly rewarding process to work with other talented musicians,” Leung said. Pleased with the results and positive responses to their hard work, the group often reflects on how a spontaneous collaboration has turned into something so much more, according to Hu. “We will always just be friends who do what we love,” Zeng said.
Band seizes the moment with eclectic playlist Photo courtesy of Seize the sound
By Kai Matsumoto-Hines
W
hat started as a two-man band has rocked its way to what is now known as Seize the Sound. When sophomore guitarist James Uejio and sophomore bass player Walter Cardillo met in middle school, they realized they had something in common: their passion for music. The two decided to combine their talents to form a band in 2008. “We just started playing songs together, most of which were from our favorite band at the time, Blink 182,” Uejio said. As the dynamic duo rocked tunes such as “All the Small Things,” three new members, guitarist Tano Brock and lead singer Shane Bannon and drummer Alejandro Santana gradually joined, thus solidifying the group into a formal band. “I was over at Walter’s house one day and James came over and we all started playing together from then on,” sophomore guitarist Tano Brock from Lick-Wilmerding High School said. Networking around the Bay, the band was invitied to play at events from school shows to local fairs. “Our first gig was at Woodside International High School back in 2009,” Uejio said. “My friend was hosting the benefit concert and wanted us to perform.” The boys expanded beyond school settings to share their music, securing a spot at the Portola Street Fair about a year ago and performing at the Inverness fair in northern Marin on April 12. While playing music in front of people, the fun started to outweigh the fear. “Of course we were nervous, or at least I was,” Cardillo said. “Performances are always exciting, especially when you know that you’re playing your original material.” However, people sometimes do not recognize the full potential of a young band, and some venues are exclusive. “There aren’t many opportunities for teenagers to get gigs,” Uejio said. “There are many bars to perform at, but unfortunately we are underage.” The band’s music has evolved and expanded. “We started playing Blink 182 songs because their songs are really easy to learn,” Uejio said. Now the band’s main songwriters, Uejio and Brock, draw influence from a variety of songs and musicians, thus broadening their playlist. “Anything we listen to will affect what type of music we write,” Brock said. From the soft piano tunes of “Going on” to their upbeat “With you,” the band has a wide range of music to offer. “Unlike most bands that have songs that sound similar to each other, our songs have different tempos that make each song sound unique,” Uejio said. “We currently have about 15 to 20 original songs.” Once again, the band is experimenting with a new name. “At first we came up with ‘carpe diem,’ the Latin phrase for ‘seize the day,’” Uejio said. “We then decided to change our name to Seize the Sound.” However, the name does not appeal to all members of the band, so it is still under discussion. “When we thought about it, the name doesn’t really sound like it would be good on an album cover,” Brock pointed out. The boys believe that the band would not be where it is today if not for parental support. “The reason I got into music is probably because of my parents,” Brock said. “If my parents weren’t musicians I probably wouldn’t be this into music.” Being in a band with five good friends gives them a special connection. “I’ve known these guys for almost five years,” Brock said. “I can be myself and not have to worry about embarrassing myself.” If you have not had the opportunity to see the band live, there may be a chance coming up soon. “I’ve been talking to the band teacher, Mr. Wagner, and he said he would let us play at the Jazz Pops concert,” Uejio said. To check out Seize the Sound, you can go home and “like” the boys on their own Facebook page, which at this point has approximately 150 followers.
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