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To hear Marty Casey & Lovehammers' single "Trees," please Click Here Rock Star Runner-Up Marty Casey and His Band Lovehammers Sign With Epic, Release New CD
By Dale Kawashima Marty Casey had already been established as a singer & songwriter in the Chicago music scene for years, with his band Lovehammers. His group self-released four CDs which sold a total of 25,000 units, they packed local clubs with their shows, and their concert DVD Live/Raw reached #1 on the Billboard Music DVD Chart in 2004. Yet despite these achievements, Casey yearned for greater music success and notoriety. So in the summer of 2005, he auditioned (along with 15,000 other entrants) for the CBS-TV talent show, Rock Star: INXS. Although he ended up as the runner-up to winner J.D. Fortune, Casey was able to showcase his skills to a worldwide audience, which led to offers from several labels to sign him and his band. Ultimately, Casey & Lovehammers (which includes guitarist Billy Sawilchik, bassist Dino Kourelis and his brother, drummer Bobby Kourelis) signed with Epic Records, and the band’s new album, Marty Casey & Lovehammers, has just been released. Casey’s journey to fame began in spring 2005, when a friend told him about the Rock Star: INXS regional auditions, which were held at the Chicago club, Schuba’s. “When I found out about the auditions, I decided to give it a try,” explained Casey. “It was a personal challenge for me, to step outside the band (which he’d formed when he was 14) and see what I could do. I went to Schuba’s for the audition, and I sang two original songs and played guitar. It went well, so I was then asked to learn some INXS songs for the next audition.” This was the beginning of a lengthy, comprehensive, audition process that Casey undertook. “Early on, I had two auditions in Chicago, I had phone conversations with the show’s staff, and background checks were done on me,” he said. “This [turned out to be} the process of the producers narrowing the list of contenders down to 75 people. Then I was flown (as one of the 75) to Santa Monica, where I stayed for nine days. Every day I sang or took a test, which consisted of four hours of psychological analysis. I also met with the band and the producers.”
Finally, Casey was selected as one of the 15 finalists who would compete on the TV show, which began airing in July. He performed both original songs that he wrote, plus classic rock covers such as ‘You Really Got Me.” Notably, it was his own song “Trees” which received a strong response both from the judges and from the audience, and became a #1 download on MSN.com. During the show’s finale in late September, it was J.D. Fortune who was named the winner and new lead singer of INXS, with Casey being the runner-up. However, the members of INXS announced on TV that they had great news for Casey - that they wanted him to be the opening act on the upcoming INXS concert tour. Casey knew immediately that this would be a huge break for him and the Lovehammers. Soon after the show’s conclusion, Casey & Lovehammers began to be courted by major record labels, and they also signed a management agreement with Doc McGhee (who manages KISS, Hootie & The Blowfish, Chris Cagle and others). By the end of October, the band decided to sign with Epic Records. “We really liked Epic, and we liked the fact that Pearl Jam and Incubus had signed with the label. Epic also signed INXS, so it seemed the right place for us to be.” Upon signing, the group quickly started working on their album for Epic. It was decided that half of the album would consist of older songs from the band’s previous releases. Some of these songs were reworked, or re-recorded, to fit the band’s current production and sound. The other half would contain new songs, such as “Trees” (which is the group’s new single) and “Casualty.” The band recorded most of the album with producer Marti Frederiksen (Aerosmith, Mick Jagger, Bo Bice), and they also worked with producers Mitch Allan (who co-wrote “Casualty” with Casey), Steve Albini (of Nirvana fame) and Johnny K. Within just two months (November & December), the new album was completed. Now with the release of their CD Marty Casey & Lovehammers, the band has hit the road, performing to large audiences as the opening act for INXS. “The tour with INXS has been phenomenal,” said Casey. “They’ve been treating us like gold. Also, we’ve been getting rave reviews, and our song (“Trees”) has been #1 on iTunes.” The band will be touring North America with INXS until March, and then there are plans for additional tours in Australia, Europe and Asia. Casey took a moment to reflect on how amazing the past six months have been for him. “It’s been an incredible experience being part of the Rock Star show, and releasing our new album on Epic,” he said. “Another great thing from being on Rock Star, is that I’ve had the opportunity to work with other top songwriters. Collaborating with writers such as Mitch Allan, Jeff Trott (Sheryl Crow’s writing partner) and Marti Frederiksen, has been a great new way of working. Besides writing songs for the Lovehammers, I’m now co-writing for other people’s records. I love performing, but I’m also excited about further developing my songwriting, and co-writing for other artists’ projects.” Special Feature: Streaming AudioYou can listen to streaming audio of Marty Casey & Lovehammers' new single "Trees," by clicking one of the links directly below:
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