Artist description three singers, a couple of acoustic guitars, a piano, a rhythm section...and moderate amounts of volume.

Music Style Folk Rock

Musical Influences Ellis Paul, Barenaked Ladies, Radiohead, Dar Williams, Nirvana, They Might be Giants, The Black Crowes, James Taylor

Similar Artists Guster, Phish, Barenaked Ladies, Dave Matthews Band, Vertical Horizon, The Pushstars, Ellis Paul, The Neilds, James Taylor, Moxy Fruvous, Dar Williams

Artist History Following the breakup of the folk duo 'sattelite shifter', 'Dharma Road'(formerly 'agent~D') was formed; By original singer\guitarist Dan Ballinger, in collaboration with singer\pianist Brian Hobart, in the Spring of 2000. Their friend singer/guitarist Justin Brooks later joined the band in the winter of 2001. Hailing from the Berklee School of Music, these three talented, insane, young men plan to save rock and roll from itself....with force if necessary. MWAHAHA!!!

Group Members Dan Ballinger(vocals, guitar) Justin Brooks(vocals, guitar) Brian Hobart(vocals, keys, guitar)

Instruments vocals, guitars, piano, bass, drums, percussion

Albums the "Runback World" EP.

Press Reviews by: Melissa Mattson~ Step into Dan Ballinger’s dorm room, and you will be surprised by how unlike a typical dorm room it actually is. Instead of desks piled high with textbooks, three-ring binders and homework assignments, there is a wide variety of recording equipment waiting to be used. In place of the TV/VCR combo, the common entertainment for college students, there are a number of keyboards, guitars and percussion instruments waiting to be played during anafternoon jam session. Music has been Dan Ballinger’s passion for as long as he can remember. Through many years of practice and hard work, he has carefully crafted what many would consider an incredible musical gift. Now, at the age of 20, he and his band, agent-D, have done what many beginning artists are often afraid to do. They have self produced a CD, and even posted their music on the Internet for the whole world to hear.Ballinger’s interest in music began at home. “My mother and her sister are church soloists,” he said. “Two of my uncles on my mother’s side were professional musicians at one time. On the other side of myfamily, a lot of my uncles were involved in musical theater,” Ballinger added. He, however, began his musical career at the young age of seven, singing in the children’s choir of his church. While the other children were struggling with singing in tune, he discovered his natural ability to not only sing, but also sing well.As Ballinger grew older, so did his desire to pursue music. While in intermediate school, he admired a particular group of students who would walk the hallways of the school holding guitars. “Even if they didn’t know how to play them, they still carried them," Ballinger said. “I absolutely idolized these kids because they looked so cool holding the instruments,” he added casually.Finally, on Christmas of 1994, Ballinger received his first guitar from his parents. “It was really cheap but I didn’t care,” he said. “It was a guitar, and that was all that mattered.” Within two weeks, he was figuring out how to play songs that he had heard on the radio, playing them note for note. Throughout his four years of high school, Ballinger focused mostly on courses pertaining to various aspects of music. In addition, he was a member of several musical groups on his high school campus, including the school choir, the jazz choir and an elite group called the “Madrigal Singers.” “I was the only singer in the group’s 12 year history to be invited into the group, rather than auditioned,” Ballinger said proudly. Outside of school, he began performing with other people, forming bands with close friends. However, none of these groups lasted for very long. By that time, Ballinger had learned to play the guitar, bass guitar, hand percussion and drumset. In addition, he had learned to use his voice as his most valuable musical asset.Ballinger decided in his senior year of high school that music was what he wanted to pursue, and applied to Berklee College of Music in Boston. He was accepted into the highly competitive college, and began his pursuit of music in the fall of 1998.He did not discover his “passion” for music until an encounter with an old friend. “I bumped into a kid I knew from high school who I had played with a few times senior year. I went over to his apartment, and we jammed on some songs that we both knew,” Ballinger said. “He was working on this one song, and having some trouble finishing it. So I re-worked it and finished it for him. The song was called ‘Runback World,’ the first track from my CD,” he added.The two friends formed a band the very next day. “During that time, I saw the music we were creating and heard people’s reactions, not to mention my own reaction to our music,” Ballinger said. “At that point I became passionate as a musician. Expressing yourself, and seeing people enjoy it is so amazing,” he added. Sadly, this band did not last. However, at Berklee, Ballinger met another musician as passionate as himself, named Brian Hobart. The two began playing music together and became quick friends. “When Dan sings and plays, he puts his heart into it,” Hobart said. “He writes songs like crazy,” he added.Catherine Benoit, another close friend of Ballinger, agrees that he is quite passionate about his song writing. “He will stay up all night if he can’t find the right word for a particular song,” she said. “He is a true perfectionist.” Ballinger and agent-D are currently working on registering their CD with a distributor in order for it to be sold in stores. In addition, they have potential performances lined up for the near future. “But right now we are concentrating on rehearsing and getting better atperforming,” Ballinger added with a grin.

Location Boston, MA - USA

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