Atlantis Blueprint

"You guys obviously know what you're doing. I really like the songs, Adam and Brad compliment each other upfront, the energy is great between the three of you and overall I think you're awesome! Great job guys."
- - Edwin (Multi-platinum recording artist)

"I love the fact that you guys are a three piece that sounds like six! I don't want to hear 4 songs, I want to hear 40. Adam you're a great guitar player, you're an excellent front-man and I think you guys are fantastic!"
- - Darrin Pfeiffer (102.1 The Edge & Drummer for Goldfinger)

”Passion, electrifying energy and substance bring
the presence of Atlantis Blueprint to the stage with
full recognition.”
- - Brandie (Artistic-Tendency.com)

A novel concept: shuttle-your-own-crowd. As The Horseshoe welcomed two busloads of temperature-defying fans from Barrie, two words came to mind, frigid and dedicated. Steeped in that hard rock spirit, Atlantis Blueprint delivered a sharp-edged set of riff-savvy anthems coloured by funk-jazz overtones, reggae-tinged stomps, and power-ballads. No strangers to touring acts in Barrie (opening for Finger Eleven and Arkells) this four-piece are spreading an ever-growing buzz with strong songwriting and upbeat live energy. And always looking for new audiences to bring along for the ride. - lonelyvagabond.com

Atlantis Blueprint is ‘coming home’

Thursday June 25 2009 By Adam Martin-Robbins




Atlantis Blueprint is getting set to make its local debut.


The band, which is comprised of Orangeville’s Raul Ponce (drums) and Brad Barnett (bass) plus Barrie-based frontman Adam Skinner, is playing in town at TJ’s Hangar Sports Grill Saturday, July 25.


“I love it, we’re finally playing at home for the first time,” said Ponce, who was born and raised in Mexico but moved to Orangeville about 10 years ago. “We have a lot of family and friends in town and they don’t get to see us because we play a lot in Toronto, Barrie and Hamilton.”


Atlantis Blueprint formed just over a year ago when Skinner placed an ad online seeking fellow musicians to form a band.


“I was in a band previously, Rustic Motif, and we disbanded,” said 25-year-old Skinner. “I posted an ad on Kijiji saying I was looking for musicians.”


Ponce responded almost immediately by taking one of Skinner’s songs and adding bongos to it. Ponce then called up Barnett, a friend from work, and told him they were looking for a bassist for their new band. He jumped on board.


Barnett’s ability to quickly pick up a tune impressed Skinner.


“He can barely remember his name, but he learned nine songs in one day,” he said.


Those tunes cover the spectrum from reggae to jazz and ska to funk.


“Basically, we play what sounds good to us,” said Ponce. “If we’re halfway through a song and feel it should be reggae, we switch it up.”


“Basically, we’re rock-based, but we switch it up,” added Skinner.


Despite being together for such a short time, the band has already performed more than 22 shows and recorded a seven track EP. They’re also well on their way to recording their first full-length, 14 track album, which they’re hoping will be available sometime in August.


“We’re trying to do as much as we can on our own,” said 32-year-old Ponce. “Because we’re just starting up as a band, there’s not much funds.”


Skinner, who is a full-time musician, has been doing a lot of mixing and recording himself, as well as pounding the pavement to get word out about the band.


That diligence has paid dividends to date. In early May, the band opened for Grady — Gordie Johnson’s (Big Sugar) new band — at the Mansion in Barrie.


Their performance at that show caught the attention of someone at Rock 95 who contacted music promotions company REMG, which then signed them up.


Now they’re getting tons of play on Rock 95, said Skinner.


Along with the Grady show, another recent highlight was winning an Indie Week Fight Night battle of the bands contest guaranteeing them a spot at the upcoming Indie Week music festival.


But they expect to top both of those experiences later this summer. That’s when they’ll be playing with the likes of Colin James, Thornley and Finger Eleven at Rockstock in Barrie on August 15.


“It’s going to be sweet,” said Skinner. “The Trailer Park Boys are hosting.”


The band’s quick rise is likely due in part to their many years of experience playing and performing.


Skinner, who is a self-taught musician, has been playing guitar since he was seven and drums since the age of 10. He also played drums and sang in Rustic Motif for eight years. Barnett, 25, started playing as a teenager and has been in close to half-a-dozen bands since he was in high school. Ponce, who’s been playing for 17 years, has some formal training — he studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Mexico — but credits a lot of his musical talent to his father.


“My dad is a music writer, producer and songwriter,” he said. “All of my music comes from my dad.”


Those are skills he’s hoping to pass along to his own children, he added.


It can’t hurt that the boys from Atlantis Blueprint have also clearly gelled on a personal level — constantly ribbing each other and cracking jokes throughout the interview.


But the bandmates say what really catches people’s attention is their “high energy” show.


“Basically when (people) listen to our CD they’re like, ‘Wow you’re not like your CD,” said Ponce. “We consider ourselves very energetic when we’re performing.”


Local fans can checkout Atlantis Blueprint Saturday, July 25 at TJ’s Hangar. The band will take the stage around 9 p.m. There is a $5 cover charge.


For more information, or to check out their tunes, visit www.myspace.com/atlantisblueprint.

- Adam Martin-Robbins

A blueprint for a successful year

Wednesday June 24th 2009 by Leigh Blenkhorn


Atlantis Blueprint has had quite a year.


They have opened for April Wine and Grady (Gordie Johnson's band, formerly of Big Sugar), are set to perform at ROCKSTOCK in August, and will help Barrie folks celebrate Canada Day.


“It’s been a pretty crazy year,” said singer/guitar player Adam Skinner. “We’ve had a lot of people in the music industry giving us good feedback.”


Up next for the band is a performance at Barrie’s Promenade Days celebration on July 1.


“Barrie has really been supporting us, whether we are playing at The Mansion, or at the festivals, like Celebrate Barrie, we’ve got a lot of support from fans here,” Skinner said.


Skinner, who had performed in other local bands in the past, started looking online for other musicians to form a new group. Percussionist Raul Ponce and bassist Brad Barnett answered the call.


“Brad and Raul live in Orangeville so there’s been a lot of driving involved,” Skinner said. “We’ve put 80,000 kilometres on my car in the last year alone.”


The trio, all from different musical backgrounds, came together to create a unique sound.
“We have this upbeat, ska, reggae, rock sound, but there is a lot of Spanish and Mexican influences,” Skinner said. “We have some creepy melodic hooks. There are a lot of classical scales, with this dark Arabic feel.”


Atlantis Blueprint has been busy performing as many shows as they can, winning battle of the bands competitions, and performing for the Toronto Independent Music Awards Best Live Showcase.
“It’s a pretty energetic show,” Skinner said. “You have to come out and see us live to really see what we are all about.


Atlantis Blueprint will hit the main stage at Barrie’s Canada Day Celebrations on July 1 at 4 p.m. at Memorial Square.
For more on Atlantis Blueprint, visit www.myspace.com/atlantisblueprint.
- Leigh Blenkhorn

"Atlantis Blueprint is a three piece band that's rock'n a little ska rhythm in their single 'No Apologies'." - Alan Cross (102.1 The Edge & Exploremusic.com)