I really have no idea where to begin. For years I have gone to shows. I have played in garage bands covering songs from Ride the Lightning and Peace Sells, like all garage bands did in the early to mid eighties. I have followed the Grateful Dead for a couple different summer tours. I have dove off of a stage while some of the pioneers of punk played on. Bands like Agnostic Front, the Exploited, and the Circle Jerks. It’s a cliché to say “I love all music” but unfortunately I live that cliché. I don’t discard any music. For someone to tell me that a certain style or genre sucks is a little frustrating. When I got my first gig writing concert and album reviews with Indyconcerts, I told them that I would do any show they needed me to do. I never got the opportunity to cover outside of my requests, but I would have been happy to. All music is nothing but an experience of the senses and feelings. It’s like being a roller coaster junky and wanting to ride every roller coaster you can.

I wish you could hear the music the way I do. Every note, every lyric. I can’t force that on anyone. All I can do is describe it to the best of my recollection and ability. I hope that it makes you wish you were there. I hope it makes you want to see the band if they were still on their way to your city. I hope my reviews of  albums  will make you want to purchase them. I hope that my interviews will let you see anf feel a little bit more of who the artist is, and what it takes to get to where they are and where they hope to go.

I can’t list any set of bands that I listen to. The list would be too long. Before I had the means to buy my own music I mostly listening to Abba. Seemed to be a favorite of the parents at the time. Then, back in the day a company called Columbia House would give you a mail order deal. You send them one penny and they will mail you 11 albums of your choice. After that you have to order one album every month until you cancel your membership. That was huge. REO Speedwagon, Cheap Trick, and AD/DC were my share. Of course mom took AC/DC away after she heard me listening to “Big Balls”. But it was all it took to push me in the right direction. I headed towards glam rock until someone played me the Ramones and the New York Dolls. I went harder and heavier with each punk and hardcore turn I took.  I kept a maturity though and did not close myself off from other genres. I can listen to the Beatles and go straight into Slayer on the next song.

I bought a skateboard and a guitar right around my twelfth birthday. My guitar talents were good but definitely not great. I learned quickly that I would not be a musical legend. So in time it comes to this, Music Underground. This website is my contribution to the music world. I hope you enjoy it.

Let’s say it together… “EE-bull-hawk.”

I graduated from Ball State University in Muncie, IN with a degree in journalism, and have since moved across the country to sunny California and back to Indianapolis. I currently pay my bills as a publicist.

Born and raised in southern Indiana, country music and classic rock was all I heard growing up. I, however, started rebelling against the general population by listening to Incubus, Korn, Deftones, Limp Bizkit (yikes!), Lit, and Sum41 in junior high school, just to name a few. My musical interests have since remained in the rock genre, but have expanded to metal, alternative, punk, rockabilly, and, yes, just a little emo.

My favorite shows I’ve attended include:

1. Deftones, Indianapolis 2016
2. Lollapalooza, Chicago 2008
3. A Day To Remember & Rise Against, Indianapolis 2012
4. Against Me!, Indianapolis 2014
5. Incubus, Evansville, IN 2002

Other than writing, I thoroughly enjoy White Zombie espressos from Monon Coffee Company, collecting Converse All Star “Chuck Taylor” sneakers, sampling the newest Indianapolis microbrew, and spending time with my super awesome friends (human & 4-legged).

I constantly get razed by friends for carrying two drinks at concerts to cut down on time wasted while aimlessly standing in line. Frankly, I consider it a science, and anyone who complains about trying to dance with a drink in each hand really shouldn’t be dancing in the first place.

Growing up in Columbus, Ohio, I took my talents only a few miles away for college and went to The Ohio State University (which is pretty much a given in those parts). After listening to nothing but classic rock, radio rock, country, and what would be considered terrible rap music, I was exposed to metalcore and hardcore by my roommate. These newly-discovered sounds led me to expand my interest in metal as a whole, which still lasts today. From there, I eventually found a love for jam bands, bluegrass, electronic music, and everything in between.

Within a year of receiving my degree in Civil Engineering, I moved to Indianapolis for a new job, and it’s where I’ve now called home for over two years. Living and working downtown, you can find me dancing with the hippies, bumping shoulders with the metalheads, and frequenting both jazz and blues bars. Not exactly your stereotypical young professional in the corporate world. Outside of my love for all things music, I am a diehard sports fan who appreciates fitness, impromptu adventures, and exploring the outdoors.

Some of my favorite artists include:
–Umphrey’s McGee
–Clutch
–Mastodon
–Gojira
–Lettuce
–Led Zeppelin
–Tauk
–The Revivalists

I tend to stand out with my short stature, long blonde hair and big smile, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. In truth, it keeps me from being overcome by my shyness. I used to think that maybe I was meant to be a weather reporter, but it appears that life has taken me to a different opportunity filled with some of my favorite things. It seems like just yesterday I was standing in the crowd wondering what concert photography and doing interviews would be like, and here I am!

I recently graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in Conservation Biology, and though I have excelled in school, I have always craved a creative outlet. Whether it is drawing, writing, or photography, music seems to be the inspiration keeping everything together.

In high school I started to frequent small venues like The Clubhouse to support local bands. I loved my purple hair, studded belts, and ceiling full of band posters. My mom was and still is my trusty show sidekick; we make quite the memorable pair—most believe us to be sisters. Although we both love music, I think it started mainly because many shows involved moshing and a wall of death, but I have a knack for making new friends who happen to keep me safe. I did have my nose split open at a show once, although it was not as valiant as I would have hoped. Looking at and listening to those same bands now, it has been wonderful to see them grow over the years, play the music they love, and receive the recognition they were driven to achieve. It is being a part of that journey that makes me especially excited to be a part of Music Underground.

I definitely found my love of music through my parents; we once had an entire wall filled with CDs which I still think was quite a feat and probably behind my diverse taste in music. My cherubic appearance may lead one to think otherwise, but you can find me listening to music with acoustic melodies to face-melting guitar solos. I am very open minded and willing to lend an ear. I tend to listen to anything at least once, though I must admit Rap and Country are not my usual favorites. The first show they took me to when I was very young was The Aquabats at The Nile Theater and the first CD I ever bought was The Killers Hot Fuss. Since then, my collection of mementos has grown from CDs to band shirts, autographs, drumsticks, posters and more which have been added to my parent’s collection in the game room.

Some other random things I enjoy include: animals, reading, playing soccer, MMA, snowboarding, drinking tea, dancing in the rain, dessert, opening a new CD, fortune cookies, Comicon, collecting artwork, antiques, drawing on shoes, traveling, scuba diving and hugs.

I am 22 years young, born and raised in Mesa. I fell in love with music before I even knew how to read! It happened when my mom played records from Michael Jackson, The Beatles, Neil Young, and Kim Karnes that broadened my spectrum of genres and opened my heart to various styles of music. Today I embrace such passion by continuing to listen to bands from the 60s to now; that means Led Zeppelin to Lana Del Rey to Swedish House Mafia. I am not musically talented myself so I make up for my lack of skills by enjoying live shows, festivals, and photography. I am attending Mesa Community College and hope to finish my associates degree within a couple semesters.

I have been going to shows and concerts since I was in 7th grade. The first concert I went to without my parents was when I saw Panic At The Disco! at the Mesa Amphitheater. I was 13 years old. I have seen so many great bands at that arena, it will always be a close-to-home venue. I have seen Bassnectar, Rusko, Relient K, and T. Mills at the Marquee; another one of my favorite places to see live concerts. I went to California in October of 2012 to experience Nocturnal Wonderland, an Insomniac company, electronic dance music  festival. A few months before that I enjoyed my first time at summer 2012 Warped Tour. As you can tell, I am into many different genres and enjoy them all the same! I hope to open your eyes and ears to different sounds as well. :) I am very proud to be a part of this amazing website.

As a 22-year-old college student, it is sometimes difficult to find a creative outlet in between work and class. This is my opportunity to contribute my love of music to the world. Raised in Yuma, I moved to Tempe to go to Arizona State University while also trying to explore the local music scene. I was raised mostly on punk rock, but my tastes have expanded to include the several variations of punk, metal, folk, indie, and hip-hop/rap.

When I lived in Yuma, I was very active in the local punk scene while playing in two different punk bands over the years. I spent almost every weekend at local shows with friends, whether it was in back yards, parks, or one of the several short-lived venues at the time. Moving to Tempe has given me the opportunity to dive into a much larger scene where it seems like there are new bands and new people everywhere. Music has always been a main focus for me on a therapeutic level. I spend most of my time either listening to music or talking about music, so writing for Music Underground is my chance to really do something that I enjoy doing while also contributing to the world of music.

Some of my favorite bands include the following:

• Propagandhi
• The Menzingers
• Iron Chic
• Cayetana
• Timeshares
• Spraynard
• Into It. Over It,

I’m 23 and a born New Yorker living in San Francisco. I’m an artist, musician, and graphic designer and recently graduated from California College of the Arts with a degree in painting and drawing. Music has always been a huge part of my life, but it wasn’t until I was 12 that I started playing guitar and drums, myself. It was just one year after that I participated in a battle of the bands. While I sung at that event, I didn’t really start singing until I was 17. Now I make music with my boyfriend and have a record collection that ranges from The Beatles to Daft Punk.

My passion for music isn’t just in playing it, though. It influences all of my art. My paintings are all about concert experiences and song meanings. My first concert was Green Day and, after that, I went to shows pretty much every weekend through my entire time in high school. Sometimes I went to multiple shows in one weekend. Going to concerts is one of the most inspiring things to me.

I like all genres, the most recent concerts I’ve been to are Bastille with Ella Eyre, Justin Timberlake (don’t judge it was amazing), and Bear Hands with Fenech-Soler. I’ve even been the only girl at a country concert wearing Chucks and all black instead of boots and plaid.

Music is my boyfriend (who I’m cheating on with the boyfriend I live with) and Music Underground will let me continue dating music and tell all of you about all of our fantastic dates we have together.

How’s it hangin’ McFly?

My name is Simon Peter Miller. I am a California native that sadly, yet out of the necessity of my situation, moved here to Arizona back in late 2008. I am currently attending ASU and studying Digital Culture and French Language & Literature with the hopes of becoming an international sound engineer/music producer. Though writing is fun and basically a hobby of mine I love (along side drawing/painting), it takes a back seat to music in a significant way. As you can probably tell, I love music; but one thing you probably can’t tell is how dear it is to me. It has saved me in many different ways, caused me to connect with others in a manner that couldn’t have been accomplished very diversely and is my passion in life. I find it to be a way and outlet of worshiping and meeting with God (with the right kinda music in mind); as well as being the perfect medium for handling every aspect of life. I don’t care if it’s dealing with anger, loneliness, self-confrontations, sex, the loss of love, the lack of love, sublime joy or something to just help pass the time. Music can heal all wounds and connect all exhortations of mental wealth to people of all nations and backgrounds, so long as you are willing to let it do so.

From this little bit about me, you can see how glad I am to talk to all of you about music. In a gesture to do the best that I can to enlighten others of the music that peaks my interest and helps to keep me together in composure, I will be doing some write ups on all the shows, bands and albums that I can muster up to accomplish from my busy schedule. All I ask of you in return is to give ’em a read, enjoy what’s been said or let me know how to improve my wording of such. I am a humble man, so please, be honest for it will help me to improve. Thanks for lending your attention my way for the duration of your reading, it is more appreciated than you will probably ever know.

– Simon Peter

If the picture to the left is any indication, I like my concerts and music a little wild. My hope is that some of you fine readers are curious what concert this is and my even greater hope is that some of you have already properly guessed the photo depicts the aftermath of a GWAR show.

While GWAR is by no means my favorite group I think they represent what I look for in a band quite well. They may not have the most original or polished music, but their passion is palpable and their live show is unlike anything else I have ever seen. Oh they’re also completely obscene and hilarious, which just so happens to tickle some extra parts of my lizard brain.

So, what do I look for in music? It’s all about balance friends. I like energy, passion, production appropriate to the style of music, originality and sincerity. I can definitely forgive one element when another is strong. For example, I can overlook some cheeseball lyrics so long as the riff is memorable or gets my head banging and fist pumping.

Did I say headbanging? why yes, yes I did. The music after my heart is typically going to be heavy metal of various persuasions. My middle-school days were dominated by rap, which was fine, but then I heard “Chop Suey” and “Down With the Sickness” leaving me no choice but to follow the left-hand path. My average playlist today makes those songs sound like lullabies, but hey you have to start somewhere.

As I mentioned I like balance, so I can’t allow blast beats to shatter my ears all the time. I also love 70’s rock, a little jazz, a hint of classical and really just anything bizarre that makes me scratch my head. I even own a polka record for god’s sake.

I look forward to sharing my dark, strange world with you all. I’ll let this Lamb of God quote act as my invitation to any music fans curious about the heavy stuff:

“Take hold of my hand for you are no longer alone. Walk with me in Hell!”