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       ROCKWiRED RADiO PROFiLES
PRESENTS:
THE SOULFUL SOUND OF THE ELWOOD JAMES BAND AND THEiR SELF-TiTLED E.P.  MAY 7, 2012
- In
this day and age when so many bands are cobbled out of musicians who
respond to Facebook notices and ads on Craigslist, it’s exciting
and inspiring to find an authentic homespun group like the emerging,
Philly based ELWOOD JAMES BAND. Having established a foothold in
their hometown with over 30 shows and fundraising events for Haiti
Earthquake Relief (Musicians Actively Supporting Haiti) and Breast
Cancer Awareness (the 2011 Walk for the Cure), the group has just
released its self titled five track independent EP. Their
background makes the ELWOOD JAMES BAND feel like a big happy family.
When principals and co-lead vocalists VINCENT VESCIO aka POPPA VIN
(keyboards) and DENNIS JAMES (acoustic and electric guitar) were kids
living down the street from each other, DENNIS’ dad, ELWOOD JAMES,
opened the family basement for all the neighborhood kids (even the
troublemakers) to play in. This is where VINCENT and DENNIS began
shedding as musicians and jamming together. Over the years, the two
played on and off together in different rock bands, parting and
rejoining various times. In 2009, the two partnered with another
veteran Philly musician, drummer DANNY WAGZ, who departed from a
classic rock band to pursue a more original direction, and VINCENT’s
son, bassist VINNIE VESCIO. When ELWOOD passed away, the band was
named as a tribute to everybody’s favorite dad in the
neighborhood.Writing
and performing old school, retro-minded songs from a wild range of
classic influences, The ELWOOD JAMES BAND have a unique challenge
that most new bands searching for a unique vibe would kill for:
trying to define their sound. Their influences include American roots
music, blues, 60’s British Invasion, classic rock, psychedelic
music, alt rock and world music—basically, they like to say,
anything with a good melody, a good rhythm and a message that rocks.
Chuck Darrow, writer for the Philadelphia Daily News Entertainment,
wrote of them: “Sharp, intelligent songwriting and arranging, a
knack for creating music that is instantly familiar but full of fresh
ideas and superior singing and playing--individually and
collectively--make EJB an especially impressive ensemble.”
RELATED LiNKS: CHECK OUT THE ELWOOD JAMES BAND AT FACEBOOK.COM!!! ABOUT THE HOST:  BRIAN
LUSH holds a BA in Creative Writing from the UNIVERSITY OF
NEW MEXICO. He established ROCKWIRED on New Years of 2004 and hasn't
looked back
since. He is currently the host of all of ROCKWIRED.COM's programming
which includes such shows as ROCKWIRED RADIO PROFILES and ROCKWIRED
FREE FORM RADIO. As
program producer for ROCKWiRED.COM, LUSH is hands-on when it
comes to
interviewing and building a lasting rapport with the artists that come
ROCKWiRED's
way. As a youngster, BRIAN LUSH had no idea what kind of seed was being
planted
by reading magazines such as HIT PARADE, HIGH TIMES, SPIN, REQUEST
(remember
that one?) and even ROLLING STONE. "Those were the days before the
internet and being a rock journalist
looked
like the coolest job imaginable." says LUSH "But reading these
magazines had me
imagining that one day I'd be the artist giving all of the clever
answers to
some poor guy with a tape recorder. Well, life has a way of surprising
you.
Now, I'm the poor guy with the tape recorder and asking all of the
questions."CONTACT
BRiAN LUSH
AT: djlush@rockwired.com
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