We recently got the chance to catch up with a cover band with a twist from close to home. Sound Tower can fill your every musical need, from Cee Lo to Buckcherry. No matter who you like, you're sure to find it when you go and see Sound Tower. Take a look at what we found out about them and the Sound Tower Faithful in this interview with George from the band!
S&Em:We know that you’re a local cover band that is taking over Massachusetts
by storm. How did you get your start?
ST: The early seeds of
Sound Tower were planted in 2009. Back
then we were a heavy metal cover band and only played a handful of gigs at bars
not even operating today. We lost our
bass player and guitarist within the next year.
It wasn't until the summer of 2010 that the band really began to take
off. We switched our cover song
selection from metal to pop-rock and dance favorites, added guitarist Jack
Crowley, and it was onward and upward from there. At first it was tough to get bookings being virtually
unknown, so we played every little bar that would have us. We built up our name in the Wareham and outer
Cape Cod region, and from their got bookings at bigger clubs and bars.
S&Em: You seem to play a lot of holiday events (Halloween bashes, Thanksgiving
Eve events), what time of year is your favorite to have a gig? Why?
ST: Believe it or not,
summer is the best time of year for us.
There seems to be endless opportunities available and of course the Cape
Cod area is loaded with extra vacationing tourists. A packed room is always a great time. That's not to say a small room sucks. We play the same show to a packed house as we
do to a room with a handful of people.
There's just something about the crowds energy that the whole band can
feed off of. Needless to say when the
fall and winter brings the slower times, it's good to have a holiday show
because people are more likely to go out.
S&Em: From all the pictures on your site, it looks like you have a good
following and some pretty awesome fans. How involved do your fans/followers
get?
ST: Let's face it, a band
is nothing without its fans and our fans really surprised me from the get
go. We have a good handful of people
that follow us to 90% of our gigs, even ones far from where they live. That's not easy when your fan base aren't
young kids with lots of free time. Our
core fans love to dance and sing along with their favorite songs and of course
we encourage it. Those that really move
on the dance floor get the coveted "Sound Tower Dance Beads." When the 3rd set rolls around a couple of our
fans come on stage to sing backup vocals.
It's usually the same people, but we allow for newbies to come up
too. We focus on being interactive and
being part of the show is part of the fun.
S&Em: We see that you call your fans the Sound Tower Faithful. Who came up with that
ST: After seeing the same people coming to shows again and again, even people that weren't already our friends, I got to thinking these guys are really faithful to us. I thought the Sound Tower Faithful was kind of catchy, but I had a few other choices and also asked our fans what they thought they should be referred to. I let the fans choose which name they liked best on our Facebook page and the STF was born.
S&Em: These Sound Tower Dance Beads sound like they can lead to some
interesting stories. What is the most interesting thing someone has done for
beads (anything like Jerry Beads?).
ST: Well, there intention was to get people up on the dance floor, but
there have been a few ladies that confused them with MardiGra beads. Not that the band minded at all.
S&Em: Looking at your current set list, you seem to have a very diverse style!
You cover bands and artists from Lady Gaga and Taio Cruz to Buckcherry and Def
Leppard. How would you describe your bands style?
ST: I would describe our
style as a "live iPod." Most
people have and iPod or similar device that contains all the music they like
from every genre. You throw it on
shuffle and you hear, rock, pop, hip-hop, R & B, country, and more one
after the other. That's us. We also try to focus on the most recognizable
song by that artist.
(S&Em Note: Live iPod sounds like fun to us!)
S&Em: What is your favorite song from your set to play? What gets people up
and moving the most?
ST: Overall, anything 80s
gets the crowd going, but there are two songs they go absolutely crazy for;
Fuck You by Cee-Lo and Crazy Bitch by Buckcherry. Go figure.
We close the night with Buckcherry and it's by far our favorite.
(S&Em Note: We saw Buckcherry over the summer. You can't go wrong with Buckcherry!)
S&Em: Is there a song that you just dread playing because you’ve played it so
many times?
ST: For me personally
it's Down Under by Men At Work. I've
been singing that song since my first band back in 2002. Every night we usually have a cut some songs,
but Down Under never seems to be one of them.
S&Em: August was your two year anniversary as a band. How have things changed
from 2010 to now?
ST: In 2010 we were four
guys just getting to know each other. It
wasn't like we were close friends since high school that put a band
together. Just getting to know each
other personally and musically was a huge advancement. Everyone knows what to expect from everyone
else. We are so much tighter and in
synch as a group today. No one is
nervous. Everyone knows their part. In addition we're booking new and bigger
clubs, have a better grasp on how to book clubs, and our fan base has grown
bigger than we ever expected in just two years.
And we went through three bass players.
S&Em: Of all the members of the band, who do you think has grown the
most?
ST: I'd have to say it's
me. Jack, Greg, Brandon, and Tim (former
bassist) had all been playing in bands for decades, since they were kids. I had only been playing for 7 years when
Sound Tower started, and in the beginning I was a guitar player. I had to not only learn my songs, but create
a stage presence, keep the crowd involved, and manage my sound equipment. I was quite green when it came to all of
that. In addition I book the majority of
the shows and I can't tell you how much of a hassle that was in the beginning
with no experience. It can still be a hassle
today, but now I know what to expect.
S&Em: We see that you do have an original song out. Can you tell us a bit
about it? What inspired it? How has it gone over with the STF?
ST: "Do You Feel
Alright?" is about a night out with
Sound Tower and the STF. Our fans
inspired it. It seemed only natural to
have sort of an STF anthem. Jack wrote
the music and hook, I wrote the lyrics.
The chorus has a call and response element to it in which we ask the
crowd "do you feel alright" and they respond "hell
yeah!" At our local shows the fans
quickly picked up on their part in the song.
For away gigs it's a little more challenging. We released the single to radio and PIXY 103
plays it on their Homegrown program. It
can be streamed for free on our website.
S&Em: Should we expect more originals soon?
ST: We are working on
another original, maybe two. We're not
looking to be an original band, but you're not going to get any radio publicity
with a cover tune.
S&Em: You say that Wareham is “always a great show.” Is it your favorite
location to play?
ST: I grew up in Wareham. I also work in Wareham. A lot of the people I grew up with are still
there. In the beginning I actually
avoided Wareham. I have a rather
prominent job in town and I really didn't want to mix work with play. When we were having trouble getting bookings
I said we'll it might be time to go where you know people. I grew up playing pool at The Fan Club so I
knew the owner. They usually had bands
once or twice a year. Once we played
they loved us so much we got a monthly gig.
A new bar had just opened up in town around the same time called Piper's
Restaurant & Bar. They crowd was an
entirely different kind of beast. It was
about energy, having a good time, dancing, and just no worries. Piper's is where Sound Tower really made a
name for ourselves. Piper's is where the
Sound Tower Faithful was born. What's
really interesting is that Piper's and the Fan Club have their own crowds. It doesn't matter that we play one this week
and the next two weeks later. Each venue
is packed with it's own crowd, and very few cross over. Sometimes we'll play a show at a new venue
and the crowd will be dead or non-existent, but we know that when we return to
Piper's or the Fan Club, it will always be packed and on fire.
S&Em: How did each of you start off as musicians? Who inspired each of you the
most?
ST: Guitarist Jack
Crowley started off as a kid and was inspired by Queen, Kiss, and Led
Zeppelin. He went on to play in different
bands and released 5 indie releases under his own name. Drummer Greg Humberd played drums as a kid
and played in numerous rock bands over the years, even opening up for the 80s
hair metal band Trixter. Greg is
influenced by Neil Pert. Bassist Brandon Brothwell played air guitar for 4
years as a kid before his mother finally bought him one. He played in different
bands growing up and his major influence is Led Zeppelin. Growing up I was the kid who sang along to
the radio, sang in church choir, and school chorus, but never pursued playing
in a band until I was older. I took up
the guitar when I was 27 and joined a band a year later. We lost our singer so I filled in. That fill-in turned into a permanent position. I sold my guitars to form Sound Tower as I
had no PA gear, and remained on vocals from there. My influences are quite diverse; Rick
Springfield, Joe Lynn Turner, Alice Cooper, Megadeth, and Styx.
S&Em: Where do you get your song ideas from now? Is it a band decision or
based on how many people request a song? (Maybe both?)
ST: It's a mixture of
both. We try to incorporate as many fan
requests as possible, but sometimes they don't understand how complicated the
song is, that it's out of my vocal range, or that no one else would know the
song but them if we played it. We get
ideas from the radio and what's hot on the charts or on iTunes.
S&Em: What is your favorite part of being a band?
ST: For me it's the
stress relief for all involved. Music is
very therapeutic for the listener and the performer. Let's face it, Monday through Friday can be
quite the stressful days at work. When
Friday night rolls around you want to relax, have a good time, listen to your
favorite music, and forget about your worries for a while. If Sound Tower can help you do that, there's
nothing greater.
S&Em: Have you done shows with any other local bands? If so, who? If not,
would you like to in the future? With what bands?
ST: There are some places
where playing with other bands can be helpful and other times where it is a hindrance. When you’re on a bill with 12 other cover
bands, which can be the case in the Cape Cod region, it's tough to get
noticed. We try to avoid these
situations. If it's just you and someone
else, it can be quite fun. For Halloween
local metal act Whisley Throttle opened up for us. I even sang a song with them. Dave and Scott have also sang a song with us
at past shows. We split a charity show
with Groove Juice last year and sang a couple of songs together. I like when two bands can come together for a
good jam.
(S&Em Note: Sammie's uncle is the drummer for Groove Juice, now known as China Shop Bulls, and she grew up with most of the people in that band. Small world!
S&Em: What is one of your biggest challenges as a band?
ST: Booking new clubs are
always a challenge. Some give you a few
gigs to try and build a crowd for them.
Others give you one shot and that's it.
Their mentality is that you and only you have to bring them a huge crowd
right out of the gate. What they don't
understand is that takes time and it's a combined effort. Both the bar and the band need to share in
the promotion of the show and both should be expected to bring people into the
club. Honestly, the more you book a good
band, the more the word is going to get out.
S&Em: Do you find that people are more or less receptive to the fact that
you’re a cover band?
ST: I have found that in
South Eastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod, people only want to hear cover
bands. They want to hear material they
know and love. There is a place for original music I suppose, but the consumer
ultimately decides.
S&Em: What is up and coming next from Sound Tower?
ST: In two years we have
logged more than 150 shows, so we're hoping to keep the momentum going into
2013. We look forward to expanding our
reach to new clubs, adding more songs that you know and love to our set list,
film a video for our first single "Do You Feel Alright?", and getting
our first EP of original music released.
S&Em: If a band/artist was to approach you and ask you to exclusively cover
their songs, what band/artist would you hope that would be? Why?
ST: I bet each member of
the band would have a different answer and it would be based on their influences. Jack and Brandon would say Led Zeppelin, Greg
would say Rush (or Kiss), and I would say Rick Springfield. I know, nobody wants to see a Rick Springfield
tribute band.
S&Em would like to thank Sound Tower for this great interview and for their extreme patience with all of our delays/technical difficulties. Everyone be on the lookout for Sound Tower and (if you're old enough) go check them out when they play near you!
You can find more information out about them on all of their sites:
