From Ashes to New ~ Young Talent on the Rise

By SethM

You all know that I listen to a lot of music that bands, artists’ representatives, and record companies send me, but sometimes the greatest discoveries happen more organically, as was the case with From Ashes to New.

Last night I was invited by a friend to meet up in Manhattan and we proceeded to Webster Hall, where Twelve Foot Ninja were playing. Nothing against Twelve Foot, they are a good band, but I had just caught part of their set at Welcome to Rockville and will see them this weekend at Rock on the Range, but it was a band new to me, From Ashes to New, that f*cking rocked!

The band on the first day of recording the EP, November 14, 2013

I quickly learned that the young From Ashes to New had formed just last year and had only a 5 song EP under their musical belts. Nevertheless, they pulled in a good crowd, especially considering that they were the first band on the bill; they also seem to have, and after last night’s performance I can see why, a steadily growing fan base (currently about 25K on Facebook).  Looking around, I recognized a bunch of industry folks in the audience and assumed (and hoped) they were there to check out this fresh, unsigned, band, as most of them cleared out after Ashes’ set.

Taking the stage for a brief 25 minutes, they of course played their entire EP to a crowd that was totally into it ~ and them. During “I Will Show You,” people were even singing along, and that’s pretty impressive when you think of how new the band is and how limited their exposure has been so far (but I’m guessing that will change in the very near future).

So let’s talk a bit about this band with the bright future. Hailing from central PA, Ashes are a six piece band ~ vocalists Matt Brandyberry and Chris Musser, guitarists Dan Kecki and Branden “Boo” Kreider, bassist Garrett Russell, and drummer Tim D’onofrio.

With some clear influences from Korn, Of Mice and Men (whose Tshirt Brandyberry was sporting last night), Skrillex, Incubus and rappers like Eminem, these guys have put together a great sound, but I can’t omit mention of the most significant of all the influences, Linkin Park. From Ashes to New is creating EXACTLY the music Linkin Park should be putting out today. If you’re a fan of early Linkin Park, then you need to click this link to Itunes and spend $5 to hear Ashes to New.

Sure, there are a ton of new bands coming onto the scene every week and you can’t spend money on every one, so if you want to get a taste of Ashes’ sound before laying down a fiver, check out their video for “Stay This Way;” with over 109K views, it is without question helping this virtually unknown band make some waves.

It would be great if we could all make an effort to support upcoming artists who are creating whatever our own personal definition of good music is by seeing them live and purchasing their music, so if you like Ashes but the $5 is a problem, head over to Amazon and get the whole EP for $3.49 ~ that is an incredible bargain for music this good!

The self-titled EP features the following 5 songs:

“Stay This Way”

“Live Again”

“I Will Show You”

“Destruction of Myself”

“My Fight”

All showcase the band’s impressive talent, are catchy but don’t resort to tried-and-true tricks of the trade, and each has an ultimately positive theme.  My favorite of the five is “My Fight” (which was also Ashes’ set opener), but throughout the entire EP the guys have just the right sound and the tracks have good, solid production value.

I had a chance to hang out with Ashes after the show and discovered that they are as down-to-earth as they are talented ~ and found out that they’re in the process of writing so that they can put out a full album.  Whether it happens before or after the album comes out, I’m sure someone will be smart enough the sign them soon…and that we’ll be talking about them a lot more in the future…

Find out more about the band, their music, tour dates (and if you can, catch their show tomorrow night in PA ~ the poster on the right will give you the details!), news, T-shirts, etc. on their website,  follow them on Facebook or Twitter, and use the links earlier on in this article to get their music on Itunes and Amazon as well as watch them on YouTube.  And you can help Ashes to New get a spot on Vans Warped Tour this summer if they win the Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands powered by Ernie Ball and Journeys! Click here and vote them up so that they get a chance to play!

…And when you’re on Facebook checking out Ashes to New, don’t forget to Like and follow Flashwounds ~ and send us a Friend request ~ too!