“What am I to build, if my hands are broken, if I’m not the chosen one?” sings Steven McKellar of Civil Twilight on “Story of An Immigrant”, over a lush, dynamic beat that evokes the sounds of his native South Africa while steeped in the band’s everevolving present. The foursome (Steven, his brother and guitarist Andrew, drummer Richard Wouters and Kevin Dailey on keys and guitar) are living proof of what happens when you stop worrying about being the chosen one and make music built on both the roots that grew you and the love that keeps you thriving every day. Civil Twilight’s songs embrace every corner of human emotion, balancing delicate, poetic lyrics with sweeping arrangements that touch all the senses: a phrase to make you think; a rolling drumbeat you can feel in your bones; a guitar vamp as illustrative as a picture; a shimmer of keys whose light can nearly be seen and heard. Produced by Ben H. Allen (Gnarls Barkley, Bombay Bicycle Club, Cut Copy), their third record on Wind-Up is built on this vibrancy, on the permanent dust of a Cape Town youth; on the connection that unites them all as brothers beyond blood and on their new home in America where they pull from the innate, thriving musicianship of Nashville, where they live. When you listen to Civil Twilight, from their self-titled debut, to 2012’s widely lauded Holy Weather to now, it’s easy to understand why the band has topped five million YouTube views and reached historic success with film and television syncs – because it’s music you can’t shake, that translates experience into moments and creates melodies that become imbedded deep under the skin. We’re all immigrants, in some way, and Civil Twilight’s singing our national anthem.

V pleased to announce BACK IN LOVE CITY, our fifth child is OUT NOW 💊💊 https://thevaccines.ffm.to/bilc-album

The official Linkin Park SoundCloud.
https://linktr.ee/linkinpark

In a dark kitchen in the middle of a sweaty night in Las Vegas, all 6’4” of Dan Reynolds is hunched over a laptop, slapping beats on the table and crooning lyrics into a tiny microphone. Before long, he and the other three members of indie rock band Imagine Dragons would be playing “It’s Time,” that same laptop-demo-turned-supersized-anthem, from the roof of a parking garage to a wave of thousands of screaming fans. This song title to the single from their 2012 debut KidInaKorner/Interscope release “Continued Silence EP” is an all too apt descriptor of the band’s hard-earned success—but it’s also emblematic of the deep-seated anxiety Reynolds and the rest of the band experienced leaving behind any realistic expectation of a normal job to do the thing they love most.

A third-generation Las Vegas native, Reynolds is no stranger to the adage “the house always wins,” choosing to pave his musical career with a near obsessive work ethic and hundreds of unused demos rather than roll the dice with the first songs that sprung from his mouth. It’s no surprise, then, that he was drawn to guitarist Wayne Sermon, another founding member of Imagine Dragons. Having practically grown up in a recording studio and graduated Berklee College of Music, Wayne had been practicing his guitar through meals and other socially inappropriate situations as long as he could remember; he challenged Dan in a way that was both uncomfortable and exactly what they both needed. When they began writing songs together and recognized something special was happening, Wayne called up his Berklee friend Ben McKee, who promptly dropped out of school with only a few credits left, moving across the country to play bass for the band. This sort of reckless/genius behavior is typical for Ben, who has an uncanny penchant for spicy food and a suitcase full of unbelievable road stories. More recently, the band was joined by drummer Daniel Platzman, another Bostonian schoolmate who seems way too nice to be playing rock and roll until you actually see him in action.

Several tours and three self-released EPs later, Imagine Dragons had made a serious name for itself, particularly in the west coast circuit. Although their songs vary from nearly whimsical and light to brooding and powerful, listeners are drawn to the inherent honesty in the music. The only rule of thumb for the band, it seems, is to write from a true place; the result is songs that literally run the spectrum of human emotion. Attend a concert, and it becomes clear that the live performance of deeply personal songs has a real effect on people. And the band itself is not immune, as demonstrated when Dan literally passed out into the drum set during a finale song, sending cymbals and drum stands crashing while the rest of the band played on until the close.

Great songwriting is bound to be noticed eventually. As proof that the harder you work, the luckier you get, one of those people who noticed was Grammy winning producer Alex da Kid (Eminem, Rihanna). Alex and Dan began collaborating on projects, and soon the band had developed a relationship with Alex and his team. The alchemy resulting from Alex’s hip hop sensibilities and Imagine Dragons’ anthemic rock is nothing short of explosive. The byproduct of this creative collision is “Continued Silence,” a six song in-your-face sonic grenade that breaks musical boundaries and yet is strangely relatable by its improbably diverse audience.

Despite it all, on any given day when they aren’t on the road playing shows, you can still find Imagine Dragons huddled away in a rehearsal room somewhere, banging out song after song in search of the next perfect track. Like most things in Vegas, the band is angled at going big or going bust. For the sake of those who love great music, we hope it’s the former.

New album ‘is’ out NOW & tour tickets on sale! 💟🎉☮️

The stickiest wombat you will ever listen to. 

YOUTUBE/TWITCH:
If you're wondering about using my music in youtube videos/twitch streams the answer is yes! 
just copy-paste this into the description: "Music by AdhesiveWombat"
(add a link to my soundcloud page as well if you like)

VIDEO GAMES:
For commercial games/projects please contact me at adhesivewombat21@gmail.com
For non-commercial games/projects feel free to use any of my music.

EMAIL:
adhesivewombat21@gmail.com

BIO:
As much as you may be convinced that I am a magical, musical, mucilaginous marsupial,  I do indeed have a human counterpart.  By day I am a full time software engineer, by night  I transform into a game-loving, music-making introvert.

I've been involved with music for a large majority of my life; piano lessons since I was 9, band from middle school through college, and I own (and attempt to play) more instruments than is probably healthy for a normal human.

My introduction to the electronic music production started when one of my friends needed an intro song for his youtube channel, so I found this neat program called fruity loops and made him something (you'll have to scroll pretty far down but it's the one titled "Illegit Intro").   Admittedly, I had absolutely no IDEA what I was doing at the time but it was fun nonetheless so I kept at it and haven't stopped since.  Sadly, the channel never saw daylight but I thought my efforts should be exposed to the public so I started sharing my stuff on soundcloud.  Since then things have picked up a bit and I'm really grateful for how lucky I've been with it.  I really love the community and I've met a ton of good friends and a bunch of awesome people along the way.

I've always had a soft spot for older games so, naturally, my music takes the characteristics of some of my favorite ones.  I don't ever plan to stop making music; I sometimes will change my sound or take a break from it here and there but I am always working on something so don't fret!

If you have any questions for me I'd be glad to talk to you at my email above.

Listen on!

CAKE:
lie

james_schneider is following