Year : 2015 (AOR Heaven Edition)
Style : Melodic Rock , Pop AOR
Country : United States
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans + Video
Size : 146 mb
Bio:
In a land famous for the Green Bay Packers, beer, cheese manufacturing, and That 70’s Show, comes the earnest melodic rock outfit, Windsor Drive. Taking influence from everything between arena-friendly britpop acts to respecting their altimeters in the seventies and eighties, Windsor Drive has evolved their wide appeal since the release of Meet the Tide – EP (2008) and Bridges – EP (2009). The songs on these initial releases were penned in an old house on a street called “Windsor Drive” snuggled in the small community of Wausau in the north woods of Wisconsin.The roots of the band can be traced back to a friendship that was formed between multi-instrumentalist Kipp Wilde (singer) and Owen Jones (drummer) at Wilde’s father’s church. After high school and years of playing together Jones and Wilde connected with Daniel Sukow (guitarist) and Jon Wasleske (bassist) and the group was born. Kipp Wilde is an artist in the truest sense of the word. From a young age, he self taught himself how to play nearly every band instrument. Wilde thinks, breathes, and bleeds music.After several self booked national tours to support their initial releases and pushing over 15,000 units independently, the band caught the attention of several nationally renowned acts and were asked to support dates with artists including American Idol winner Kris Allen (RCA / 19 Entertainment), Imagine Dragons (Interscope), Ryan Cabrera, and The Rocket Summer (Island). In 2011 the band was personally requested to support the iconic indie rock band Mae on their farewell tour and perform on the popular summer music festival Vans Warped Tour. Coinciding with the tours came the limited edition Under The Weather – EP (2011) release, which claimed them the spotlight on E! News with Ryan Seacrest and a feature on Clear Channel’s iHeartRadio. Most recently in June 2012 the band completed another national tour supporting He Is We (Universal Republic) on the “Give It All” Tour.The past year, the band has focused on songwriting in Nashville, New York, and Los Angeles eventually deciding on partnering with multi-platinum producer John Fields (Parachute, Jonas Brothers, Switchfoot, Sam Sparro, Miley Cyrus) and co-writer Bleu (Selena Gomez, Boys Like Girls, Air Traffic Controller) for their next release. While in the midst of searching for “the song” to defy all songs, with each writing session the band persisted upon finding new ways to push their creative limits. Windsor Drive will be self-releasing this five-song collection, entitled Wanderlust – EP on September 25th, 2012, which will be a precursor to their upcoming full-length record.With Wanderlust – EP, Windsor Drive hope to give new and old fans alike a first glance at what’s ahead for the indie quartet. The second song on the EP, “Sleepwalking”, is a wake-up call anthem for their very-own generation of “slackers”, namely Gen-Y and Millennials. In his own words, Wilde describes the song, “It’s about how people lose sight of who they are and where they want to be. We all come to a point in our lives when we feel like we're stuck in a rut. Some of us get out, but not everyone can escape that state of mind, so they get comfortable, stop taking risks, and no longer pursue the dreams that they held so dear. But I also think it's about how society has changed and how that affects us. TV and music have changed drastically and that has such a strong impact on us. There is such an overload of information and ways of communication, that people get caught up in all the madness and forget about the simple things in life.”As the band gear up for the release of Wanderlust, they aren’t just labeling this as a mere preview of their next full-length record. This EP is a launch pad, a stepping-stone, and an opportunity for Windsor Drive to finally hit the masses with a sucker-punch of excitement. The band hope this little taste of their new collection will leave fans craving for more to come. Just as the band write about craving for more in life as a constant theme in their music; their future can’t come soon enough.
Album:
Coming from the USA are this quartet called WINDSOR DRIVE which international self-titled full length CD is being released by AOR Heaven Records. Windsor Drive are not newcomers at all: formed ten years ago and with various recordings under their belt, the band has already toured all over America and Japan, where they have a strong fan base.Being signed by AOR Heaven you would expect, indeed, an AOR oriented product. And indeed Windsor Drive deliver delicious songs from the lighther spectre of the genre; light poppy AOR with lush melodies, elaborated vocal harmonies and a touch of WestCoast.With many songs sounding like they should be on any ’80s movie soundtrack or charting high if released 25 years ago, this album feels like fresh breeze on your face in a Californian beach.To back up their rock credentials some of the songs were produced by multi-platinum producer John Fields, others by Grammy award winner Stephen Short (Phil Collins) and the rest by power pop master Bleu. But on most the songs on “Windsor Drive” the key is the melody, no matter the background arrangements. There’s soft numbers in the radio-friendly “Wide Eyed At Midnight”, while the gentle poppy-guitar AOR refrain of “Wish Me Well” would be a shoe-in on Chris Antblad’s daytime playlist if given a chance. Windsor Drive have a good line in vocal harmonies as can be heard on “Bridges” and the blissful “Chasing Shores”. I guess you could just about class this album as modern WestCoast AOR on songs like “Sleepwalking”. “Skin to Skin” adds more guitars to the mix with nice synths behind, while the elegant “Fall” will pleast many with its increscendo midtempo melody.”Windsor Drive” are perfect for those who enjoy mature light poppy AOR with a rock&pop sensibility.Just hope AOR Heaven know how to market these guys as they are not like the normal fare on their roster, but I’m sure there’s a strong base of potential listeners for this breezy melodic material all over the continent. It worked for Ole Borud, Stefan Gunnarsson, State Cows, the aforementioned Antblad and many others, all which sold pretty well.These are an enjoyable pack of glorious poppy AOR songs played with heart, rich in elaborated melodies and gorgeous vocal arrangements.
Line Up:
Kipp Wilde – Vocals, Keyboards
Daniel Sukow – Guitars, Vocals
Jon Wasleske – Bass
Owen Jones – Drums
Tracklist:
01. Going Under
02. Sleepwalking
03. Bridges
04. Under the Weather
05. Wish Me Well
06. Skin to Skin
07. In Dreams
08. Wide Eyed at Midnight
09. Fall
10. Everything I Have
11. Chasing Shores
+ Video "Fall" (Official Video)
Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/
