Artist description The debut ArmsBendBack EP "Even Though I'll Hurt You" is an exercise in progression. Passionate and sincere, abrupt and crushing, the music delivers the aggression of post-hardcore right alongside an uncanny pop sensibility. The opening track "Watermark" is both heartfelt and punishing, a standard that remains constant through the duration of the CD. The urgency of guitarist Carson Slovak's abrasive riffs are complimented as Mike Coasey's vocals melt from melodic to primal. The pure, raw energy of the music reveals itself entirely by the third track, "Terms and Conditions." The unforgettable opening guitar line is only a precursor to what happens when the song kicks in. The closing track "Dystopia" is definitely an emotional climax, as the song drives a heavy, paced-out chorus into a soft breakdown and then explodes again into a completely new realm of expression. ArmsBendBack prove themselves as a raw, new talent and "Even Though I'll Hurt You" is testament to that fact. The five-song EP destroys and rebuilds, wounds and heals. ArmsBendBack is here to annihilate. CD Extras: Enhanced CD data including the "Watermark" music video, interactive menu and link to website.

Music Style Alternative / Hard Rock

Musical Influences Deftones, GlassJAw, Cave In, Incubus

Similar Artists Deftones, GlassJAw, Cave In, Incubus

Artist History I reached my arm across to where Mike was sitting on the bed and handed him the yellow legal pad. We had been trying to come up with names for our project all night and it just wasn’t happening. It was July 2001 and we were sitting in an apartment in Philadelphia. He looked at what I had written on the legal pad and a smile crept onto his face. “That’s it,” he said. “That’s the name of the band.” What we were to soon realize was that this was the beginning of something that would consume our lives for every day following. A month before that night, Mike moved into my apartment in center city Philadelphia and I had bought a cheap Pro-Tools setup and installed it on my computer. When Mike moved in, it was like pouring cement into a creative void that had frustrated me since I started recording my own music. Things clicked. We began writing songs and recording demo sessions onto Pro-Tools with me performing all the instrumentation and Mike writing all the lyrics and performing vocals. As our sound progressed, so did our seriousness about the project. Soon, we were both walking to work everyday with our headphones on, repeatedly blasting our own music, listening carefully for imperfections in the mix. The music was abrasive and emotional, aggressive and sincere. We knew we had something special on our hands. By the time we moved to a new apartment in January, the project was pretty much full time and has been ever since. Mike and I now had at least seventeen songs under our belt and we singled out the ten we felt were the strongest. We packed up the car and drove to Lancaster in hopes of getting a chance to play the music for Chad, who has been my friend and neighbor for a number of years. Chad is a producer and plays guitar for the legendary rock band +LIVE+. Mike and I saw a good chance to get an honest opinion from not only an industry professional, but also a friend who isn’t known to sugar-coat things. Chad went a step further and offered to come on board as producer. With Chad on our team, we chose the five best songs and hopped on a plane to Chicago with the intent of tracking live drums. Dave Suycott, the drummer for the Chicago band Verbow, was brought in and he threw down some of the heaviest drumming I’ve ever heard. The following month was spent sitting in Chad’s studio in Lancaster, editing the sessions, re-recording guitar parts and basically massaging the tracks until we had a cohesive work on our hands. After traveling to San Francisco to oversee mixing, We returned to the East Coast having contacted a few people to start playing the music as a full band. For this we enlisted the help of Brad Sloan on bass, Andy Solodky on rhythm guitar and Andrew Kegerise on drums. When we all finally got together, we clicked instantly. Ever since, we have been translating the music into a powerful live show. Looking back, it’s odd to think that the last year has gone by so quickly. I can vividly remember that first night in my bedroom when Mike and I were racking our brains and scribbling possible names for our band on a legal pad. A lot has happened since then. We’ve refined our sound to the point that’s it’s something different, something new, and we continue to grow as songwriters each time we pick up our instruments. All of these things - the people who’ve helped us, the long recording sessions, the hours of work and dedication and the pure, raw energy of the music itself – coalesce into the single phrase I wrote on the yellow legal pad that night: ARMSBENDBACK.

Group Members Carson Slovak - Guitar Brad Sloan - Bass Andrew Kegerise - Drums Andy Solodky - Guitar Mike Coasey - Vocals

Instruments Guitar, Bass, Drums, Vocals

Press Reviews Arms Race BY KRISTY REEL Lancaster Intelligencer Journal Friday, September 13, 2002 Carson Slovak and Mike Coasey know the advantages of contacts in the music business. Afterall, the duo’s first CD was produced by Chad Taylor, guitarist for the rock band Live. Slovak and Coasey are the founding members of Armsbendback, a band which Taylor believes could be the next band from the Lancaster area to break into the national music scene. Almost a year ago, Slovak and Coasey recorded a demo CD in their Philadelphia apartment. Slovak did the instrumental work; Coasey provided vocals. Slovak contacted Taylor, his longtime neighbor in Lancaster, who agreed to listen to the demo – with minimal expectations. “Rarely do I find anything that interests me remotely,” Taylor said. “I was expecting a young band demo, something that was amateur, but what I received was something that completely blew me away.” From the initial listen, Taylor invited Slovak and Coasey to Chicago to re-record five of their best demos with live drum tracks by Dave Suycott. He later took them to San Francisco to have the demo professionally mixed by Karl Derfler, engineer for No Doubt and the Dave Matthews Band. Upon completion of the updated demo, Taylor advised Slovak and Coasey to find musicians who could help them perform the music for a live audience. Andy Solodky, Brad Sloan and Andy Kegerise united with Slovak and Coasey in July and have been intensively practicing ever since. Solodky travels from Lancaster to Philadelphia four or five days a week to practice, Sloan commutes from Reading and Kegerise recently moved from New York to Slovak and Coasey’s apartment. Slovak will become a part-time student in the fall at Temple University, where he will be a sophomore majoring in film and media arts. Solodky is withdrawing from University of Kentucky for the next year in order to devote his time to the band. Taylor said Slovak and Coasey’s song-writing ability is the strongest aspect of the music. “Their sense of pop and their ability to harness industrial-sounding music is what makes them unique,” he said. “They have the prowess to write songs that are catchy. That’s something every other band in the world doesn’t have to offer.” The band’s goal is not money or fame, said Slovak. Solodky agrees. “We just want to become really tight on all the music,” he said. “ We’re looking to start setting up as many shows as possible in the area so we can create a fan base and have people fall in love with the music.” Although the demo CD was produced by Taylor, Slovak said the bottom line will never be, “This is the band that Chad Taylor produced. The bottom line is the music,” he said. “Knowing the right people can help, but it’s not like we’re handed a magic passport to fame. Chad wouldn’t have even considered picking up our project if not for the strength of the music.” The band will be performing Saturday at the Chameleon Club. From there, the quintet will make efforts to get its music played on as many radio stations as possible – and then begin shopping for record labels. “Talent and determination is the magic combination,” Slovak said. “Anything we accomplish will be because we didn’t give up.”

Location Philadelphia, PA - USA

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