Interview: Jason Vena and Garrett Lunceford of Acceptance

Acceptance
Adam Grundy

Recently I was able to schedule a Zoom call with Jason Vena (vocals) and Garrett Lunceford (drums) of Acceptance to discuss the importance of their debut LP, Phantoms, turning 20 years old this year. The band is currently supporting the anniversary of their landmark record with a fall tour and a great re-record of the album that features several incredible guest artists on it. Pre-orders for the Phantoms 20 vinyl are on-going here via Equal Vision Records.

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Review: X Ambassadors – VHS (X)

Adam Grundy

In all of (the recently-engaged) Taylor Swift’s wisdom and cultural impact, arguably the biggest shake-up in the music industry was the idea of re-recording music to take back ownership of the songs that an artist has written. Never being strangers to hopping onto a great idea, X Ambassadors are gearing up for the release of VHS (X) this Friday, a faithful re-record of their debut LP that features a plethora of re-imagined versions of their biggest hits. VHS, I thought, was a bit bogged down/packed with too many interludes and voice memos that broke up the overall flow of their debut, but VHS (X) trims the fat, and focuses on what X Ambassadors are capable of creating today. Given the band’s 10+ years experience that have come from touring the world since their original version of VHS graced the world in the summer of 2015, this re-record does much more than just claiming back ownership of the songs that Sam Harris, Casey Harris, and Adam Levin created on their debut, it accentuates X Ambassadors core strengths as a unit moving forward.

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Arturo Joins Fenix TX

Fenix TX
Jason Tate

Arturo of Audio Karate will be joining Fenix TX as their new singer. Their first show together with be November 1st at The Glasshouse.

This is extra special for me because when I was 16, I saw Fenix TX live several times, and seeing Latinos up on that stage made me believe “if they can do it, I can do it.” That inspiration stuck with me and pushed me to keep chasing music.

Now, to be fronting the band all these years later feels surreal and full-circle.

Arturo Barrios
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My Life In 35 Songs, Track 23: “Can’t Smile Without You” by Barry Manilow

My Life in 35 Songs
Craig Manning

I’m finding it hard leaving your love behind me

It was the one time in my life where I could reasonably describe myself as a “working professional musician.”

I’ve made passing mention of it a few times in this series, but during my college years, for three consecutive summers, my primary job was working at the local dinner theater in my hometown. The space was an old movie theater that had been converted into a wedding and event center. A catering company operated out of a building on the same property, and they’d struck up a deal with a local entertainer to put on three shows per week at the venue to help bring in customers and sell a shit ton of food and alcohol. Most of our customers were in or nearing the retirement age bracket, and most of the songs we performed were hits from yesteryear, to make sure we were appealing to that demographic. We switched up the show theme and the setlist frequently across those three years, and songs fell in and out of rotation. But the one song I sang at almost every show we ever did was “Can’t Smile without You,” a ‘70s pop hit made famous by Barry Manilow.

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