Black Velvet Deluxe

New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Broad Horizon Records) - Black Velvet Deluxe, blazing hot Los Angeles based sleaze rock band with some great metal skills, announces the release of a fan favorite song, "Paper Gold," on Broad Horizon Records the 'Metal Forever Volume 1' compilation CD due out in April. Josh Lewis, BLACK VELVET DELUXE's demon on the drums, was stoked to be joining forces with Broad Horizon Records.

'The guys over at Broad Horizon Records are the real deal. They go all the way back to the hair metal bands of the 80's and the project manager we are dealing with, Jimi Starr, is a straight up guy.' The greatness on BLACK VELVET DELUXE's guitar, Nate Beck added, 'Anytime you have an opportunity to work with people like we met over at Broad Horizon Records, it makes the outcome that much sweeter.'

Jimi Starr was not expecting the selection process to be as difficult as it turned out to be.
He told Black Velvet Deluxe that it was a grueling two month process before the final selections were made and although they had only intended for each band to be on one CD, Black Velvet Deluxe would have two of their singles on two different CD's produced by Broad Horizons Records.

The 'Metal Forever' CD will be submitted to the AMI Network for possible inclusion in their nationally distributed jukeboxes, and all songs will be made available for purchase through digital outlets such as ITUNES, AMAZON MP3, RHAPSODY, NAPSTER, and EMUSIC. 'Some songs may be chosen by Myxer for possible ring tones,' stated Starr. - Top40-Charts.com

Black Velvet Deluxe, rapidly becoming a sought after indie band in the L.A. area, is honored to have been nominated for a L.A. Music Award for their original song, My Pride, off of their new CD, Sin City Tonight, in the Rock Single category. Lead guitarist Nate Beck invites all Black Velvet Deluxe fans out to enjoy them and their fellow nominees for the L.A. Music Awards monthly showcase on Wednesday, March 24 @ 7:00 pm. The Showcase will be at the legendary Whisky A Go-Go, 8901 Sunset Blvd West Hollywood CA. Doors open at 7:00 PM, with Black Velvet Deluxe taking the stage to perform live at 10:00 PM.

When the drummer for Black Velvet Deluxe, Josh Lewis, received the great news about the nomination, he became even more excited as he learned that some of the previous nominees have included Korn, Everclear, No Doubt, Sugar Ray, Black Eyed Peas and System Of A Down.
"This is a serious honor," said Josh, and we are just stoked to be among those names." Within the music industry, the Los Angeles Music Awards are known as the Grammies for independent artists.

Will I Am from the Black Eyed Peas has said this about the LAMAs, "We will never forget how much the L.A. Music Awards helped us before we got signed. The 2000 event at the Beverly Hilton was a positive experience that seriously influenced our career path." Folk legend Jackson Browne said, "I wish the music industry would embrace independent artists the way the Los Angeles Music Awards does. They do good work."

The Los Angeles Music Awards is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. The awards were established in 1991 by Al Bowman, who was inspired by a discussion he had with Bill Gazzarri, known as the Godfather of Rock and Roll. Gazzarri, often seen wearing his trademark white Fedora hat, was known for helping aspiring musicians get their start in the industry. During their conversation, which took place on March 3, 1991, only three days before Gazzarri's death, he gave Bowman his Fedora, then bestowed upon him the title of "Godson of Rock-n-roll", encouraging him to go forward as the voice of independent music in Los Angeles.

This year the Los Angeles Music Awards will be held Thursday, November 18, 2010 with the red carpet arrivals starting at 5:30 PM, cocktails at 6 PM and then dinner and show time begin at 7:30 PM. The venue is the Paramount Theater on the lot at Paramount Studios, 5555 Melrose Ave. Hollywood, CA
- Top 40 - Charts.com

Billboard Magazine's Discovery reviews BLACK VELVET DELUXE's EP “Sin City Tonight.”

"In Black Velvet Deluxe’s signature track “My Pride,” the Los Angeles-based sleaze rock quartet bellows, “Pushing full speed ahead/Never slowing down.” It’s a fitting mantra for the band’s 2009 EP “Sin City Tonight,” which crashes and thrashes full throttle via a riptide of power chords, rapid-fire verses and lyrics about living fast and loose. Members Sal Acosta, Nate Beck, Carlos Castenada and Josh Lewis offer a combined four decades of road experience, and have played across the country, including SXSW, the Vans Warped Tour and, in L.A., at the Knitting Factory, Roxy and The Whiskey; while “My Pride” was licensed for an online promotion by motorcycle magazine “Rider.” The group’s admiration for Guns N Roses, Motley Crue and Skid Row is apparent in the flop-sweat-inducing title track, in which they reflect, “In Sin City life’s a puppet show/Where the porcelain dolls carry their bags of blow/Some like it high, others stay down low.” The guys slow the tempo on power ballad “Die Today,” about life on the road: “I've traveled a million miles before the light of day/But tonight I'll ride again.” Black Velvet Deluxe isn’t establishing new ground here, but they’re sure having a hell of a time burning down life’s highway."




Black Velvet Deluxe song licensed to national motorcycle magazine, Rider, for their video introduction of Honda's 2010 VRF motorcycle. watch the video http://ridermagazine.magnify.net/video/2010-Honda-VFR1200F-Part-II



Black Velvet Deluxe, Hot L.A. Rock Band, Burning Up College And Indie Radio Charts L.A. rock band Black Velvet Deluxe's song 'Sin City Tonight' reached No 14 on WLFR in its first week of distribution. read more at http://www.prlog.org/10597903-black-velvet-deluxe-hot-la-rock-band-burning-up-college-and-indie-radio-charts.html



Band 'Black Velvet Deluxe' Receives 2010 Los Angeles Music Award Nomination in Rock Single Category read more
http://www.newswiretoday.com/news/65757/




Getting Too Into Indie Rock in 2010: 12 indie rock bands to check out in 2010
“Well, this is the article that just would not be written. It was going to be The Top Ten Indie Rock Bands to Watch in 2010. Yea, except that I had over 50 bands that all seemed worthy of making the list, and no amount of Star-mega-Bucks-coffee-infused-nights at my computer was making the list any smaller. What's an indie rock lover to do?” read more at http://www.musicdish.com/mag/index.php3?id=12574




Black Velvet Deluxe Selected for Inclusion in Broad Horizon Records Compilation CDs. read more at http://www.broadhorizonrecords.com/




Black Velvet Deluxe, L.A. Rock Band, Selected As Artist Of The Month By Red Eye Radio Network Black Velvet Deluxe has received yet another honor close on the heels of being nominated for a L.A. Music Award for their original song, My Pride, in the Rock Single category. Most recently, the L.A. rock band was thrilled to get the news that the Red Eye Radio Network had named them Artist of the Month. read more at http://www.prlog.org/10573798-black-velvet-deluxe-la-rock-band-selected-as-artist-of-the-month-by-red-eye-radio-network.html




Black Velvet Deluxe, Rising Rock Band, In Top Seven Finalists Group At 2010 DIY Music Festival BLACK VELVET DELUXE, fan-pleasing indie rock band, rose up to the cream of the crop with six other finalists out of over 200 entries in the 2010 DIY Music Festival this week in Los Angeles, CA. read more at http://www.prlog.org/10529877-black-velvet-deluxe-rising-rock-band-in-top-seven-finalists-group-at-2010-diy-music-festival.html





Black Velvet Deluxe Gives CDs To Project Lifting Spirits For Wounded Service Members
BLACK VELVET DELUXE always knew that, as a rock band, they would give what they could back to the community, and especially for wounded service members since many of their school friends had entered the military. The band already has plans to play at Wounded Warrior Units in So. Ca. as soon as all the arrangements are made, so it was only natural that they answered this call to send a big box of CDs out to the wounded troops that the members of Project Lifting Spirits will be visiting in March. read more at http://top40-charts.com/news.php?nid=54434&string=black
- various

Take a ride with Black Velvet Deluxe and check out Rider magazine's online video premiering Honda's 2010 VRF1200F motorcycle.



"We are excited to give our fans the unique opportunity to be able to preview Honda's hottest new ride while enjoying the hard-driving MY PRIDE, says Black Velvet Deluxe manager Stacey Marmolejo. This video is a great ride, both musically and of course for hard-riding Honda motorcycle enthusiasts."



Rider magazine has long set the industry standard for driving home sensational footage of road tests and the band is honored to have been selected to back up this video with one of their newest songs. Black Velvet Deluxe's honest rock and roll is a great fit for Rider magazine's elite audience of serious motorcyclists.



Watch the newest Rider 360 video and listen to MY PRIDE, an original new song by Black Velvet Deluxe at ridermagazine.com.

Be sure to select Part 2 of the Honda 2010 VRF1200F Rider 360 video to experience Black Velvet Deluxe's newest hit, MY PRIDE.



When you are done having 'Born to Ride' dreams over the 2010 Honda VRF1200F motorcycle, be sure to head over to Black Velvet Deluxe's revamped website to listen to all four of their latest songs, and learn more about these play-hard, ride-hard, adrenaline addicted musicians.
- Video Rock Music Blog

For most indie bands starting out, paying the rent and keeping the gas tank full to get to the next gig are usually the primary thoughts, and yea, those who have traveled that road can't fault the thinking there. However, for the quartet that calls themselves Black Velvet Deluxe, there is something a little deeper going on, right out of the starting gate. Having just released their first album these guys knew they wanted all future Rock n Rollers to have a chance to play out their dreams, and that is why they decided to give 10% of their profits to The School of Rock Music Scholarship Fund right from the start.

Carlos “Los” Castenada, the band's vocalist puts it this way, “I can't imagine life without music – and it's really hard to teach yourself. Not every kid is an athlete or a strong academic student but every kid deserves the right to experience something they love. With all the cutbacks in funding the arts in public schools, where can kids who are like I was have access to music education?”

Black Velvet Deluxe's guitarist and School of Rock Music graduate, Nate Beck, explained that when he wanted to quit piano and start strumming, his mom made him buy his Behringer Strat copy and amp package himself. “I tried to teach myself how to play but I could only go so far. When my mom saw I was serious, she paid for my guitar lessons, but not all parents can or will do that for their kids. I can't even imagine where I'd be today if she hadn't. Music has been a part of my life all my life. And so has music education. I graduated from a performing arts high school and I studied at The School of Rock Music. It's a great after-school music education program, and I know there were kids there that would not have been able to be there if it hadn't been for the financial aid available, and let me tell you, there were some amazing musicians among them.”

Josh Lewis, drummer for Black Velvet Deluxe, believes every professional musician should be giving back to youth music education in some way. “We have made a commitment to sharing what we make so that a kid's ability to study music isn't dependent on their parents being wealthy.”

“Public school music education just doesn't meet the needs of a lot of kids. I know they're cutting back on funding the arts in public schools instead of athletics because they make money of the athletics program but I don't agree with the decision. So if we can financially help kids who have an interest in music who might not otherwise get to try the guitar or drums or bass – well, that's a good thing," adds Sal “Sal-Daddy” Acosta, the bass player for Black Velvet Deluxe.

"If you think about it, the kids in grade school today will be the bands I'll be listening to when I retire so I guess you could say I have a vested interest in their music education.”

To learn more about this gritty rock band with a heart for young rockers, visit Black Velvet Deluxe. - News Blaze

Well, this is the article that just would not be written. It was going to be “The Top Ten Indie Rock Bands to Watch in 2010.” Yea, except that I had over 50 bands that all seemed worthy of making the list, and no amount of Star-mega-Bucks-coffee-infused-nights at my computer was making the list any smaller. What’s an indie rock lover to do?

So… I shook my criteria up a bit. The band had to have a little something fresh to say, or an attitude that seemed to be just out for the love of the music and the sheer party of performing, and if the money came, “Yea, man, that’s good, too!” I also trimmed up the list significantly by primarily sticking to West Coast bands; however, you will see a group out of Minneapolis that made the cut, simply because there was no-way, no-how they weren’t going to. It is, after all, my list, and therefore I make the rules.

After Midnight Project is based in Hollywood, CA, and is the magna opus of Jason Evigan. He spent 2003 doing a Howard Hughes imitation in his home studio recording songs that spoke from his schizophrenic musical style and his recent heartaches. Feeling adrift, a musician without a band, mourning the meltdown of a two-year relationship, and disconnected from any meaningful type of community, Jason would come home from work around midnight and willingly slaved on into the wee hours of the morning on his music, calling those efforts, “THE After Midnight Project”.

His friends encouraged him to play the songs live so he built a band from the best musicians that word of mouth and craigslist could find. “THE” was dropped from the band’s name and After Midnight Project was born. Jason Evigan is the lead vocals, Spencer Bastian and Christian Meadows are on guitar, TJ Armstrong is the bassist and Danny Morris is the drummer.

Albums out to date for the band includes: The After Midnight Project EP (2005) The Becoming EP (2007) Let’s Build Something to Break (2009)

The band’s song Take Me Home was featured in the PC, Mac and Xbox 360 game “Prey.” A video was also released for the song, which features the band performing Take Me Home in a small room, alongside scenes from “Prey.”

After Midnight Project is on the Vans Warped Tour for 2010.
http://www.myspace.com/aftermidnightproject

The Atomic Outlaws are “Stealin’ back the American Dream…three chords at a time.” These guys put on a stage-shaking, sassy, guitar-loaded kick in your pants show. Yea, they can deliver the real rock and roll stuff with none of the fluff, but they do it during an actual raw, seemingly unrehearsed, “you’re invited” party. Fans come away with comments such as “Hooked like a fish…”

The Tacoma, WA based Atomic Outlaws have been rocking their fan base locally and around the country with their must-have-Red-Bull-pulsing-through-their-veins brand of rock n roll. The band consists of Zak Eastyn on vocals, Pat and Rev on guitars, Rob Z. on bass and Double J on drums. They played the Key Club in Hollywood with LA rockers “Steel Panther” twice to a SRO audience while there were lines of people winding around the corner down the strip.

The Atomic Outlaws influences range from 1970’s punk and “Classic Rock”, 80’s and 90’s rock and AOR music to “Anything with great guitars and a cool melody”.
Check out The Atomic Outlaws at theatomicoutlaws.com.

Black Velvet Deluxe takes you straight back to rock n roll’s pure roots. Great hooks, driving chords and powerful lyrics pay homage to sleaze rock’s pioneers. New fans are mesmerized and die-hard rock fans are intrigued with Black Velvet Deluxe’s commitment to gritty, raw rock n roll.

The band calls L.A., CA home, and is comprised of four exceptionally talented musicians. Carlos Castenada is the rapturous voice leading the crew, delivering a spectacle of unrivaled sensuality on one song and then a knock-you-down with it’s grittiness explosion on the next.

Then there’s BVD’s guitar player, Nate Beck…
On rock guitar, “There’s Good…There’s Better…and then my friends, there’s Beck.”
Nate’s technique pays homage to the pioneers of the sub-genre sleaze rock while infusing the riffs, chords and melodies with the mode of today’s rock music.

Salvador Acosta III (Sal-Daddy) has some serious skills, and as we all know from Napoleon Dynamite, girls love guys with skills! Sal’s bad boy bass sounds are reminiscent of “Poison’s” Bobby Dall and Duff McKagan of “Guns N Roses.” We sure can’t fault the man for going there, can we?

Josh Lewis is the drummer for BVD, and this guy blasts his drums so hard the skins should have a layer of Kevlar on them.

“Rider Magazine” selected BVD’s song My Pride to highlight their online video premiering Honda’s 2010 VRF1200F motorcycle. These guys have their sights on playing at this year's Lollapalooza in August, and I see no reason why they should not be counted among the groups included. The debut album for BVD, Sin City Tonight, will be available in February. Until then, singles can be purchased on their web page.
http://www.blackvelvetdeluxe.com/home.cfm

Cold War Kids, out of college town Fullerton, CA, have some deep music roots that are spread far and wide with diverse influences such as the nearly obligatory Dylan, and blues legend Billy Holiday. You’ll hear it in their unique bluesy indie rock style, and it adds to their magical mystique. The group formed in 2004, and quickly began recording demos in L.A. . Cold War Kids is made up of Nathan Willett at lead vocals, piano and guitar, Jonnie Russell on guitar, vocals and some percussion, and Matt Maust as the bassist, while Matt Aveiro is making sure the drum keeps pounding a rhythm to our brains.

CWK stir their fans emotions with fervent live performances, and released a well-received debut EP, Mulberry Street, in early 2005, appearing at that year’s Lollapalooza, as well. Also that year, they signed with Downtown Records, and the band’s initial full-length album, Robbers & Cowards, was released that fall. Loyalty to Loyalty, which moves in an even slower, bluesy direction than earlier efforts, followed in 2008. The newest release, Behave Yourself, is an EP.
http://www.coldwarkids.com/

Santa Cruz’s Dirty Penny began in 2005 playing covers by the band “Poison,” and then grew to include covers of “Motley Crue” and “LA Guns.” They are a double blink back in time, with their 1980’s Sunset Strip big hair and heavy eyeliner, however, these guys don’t just walk it, they can certainly talk it, as well. Wailing out the ’80s in a hot new way is what these guys do best. Dirty Penny released a debut album in July 2007 titled Take it Sleezy, which includes 12 original tracks.

Their throwback style draws heavily on their “hair metal” roots, however their fans love how roughly they treat their sacred cow influences. Everywhere they show up it just seems like a party has arrived, and they righteously deliver the music to go with the mood. Tyno Vincent is the bassist, Spanky Savage is back there beating the drums into submission, Jonny Prynce is on guitar, and Binge Daniels is the lead vocals for the group. Dirty Penny released their second album, Young & Reckless, in September 2009, which they followed with a 10-week national tour.
http://www.dirtypennysucks.com/

The Fling is a Long Beach, CA based band that blends a distinctive mix of folk, pop, and psychedelic rock to create a sound that is at once both familiar and stunningly fresh. While clearly influenced by the use of three and four part harmonies from such sixties groups as “The Beach Boys”, the group keeps an unexpected and experimental side in the strain of bands like “Grizzly Bear” and “The Pixies.” Their songs can range anywhere from a slow, mind-bending tune to an all-encompassing wall of blazing sound. Constantly developing new ways to surprise their fans with multi-layered harmonies and new arrangements the result is always interesting, and certainly never same old-same old.
www.myspace.com/thefling….

Vocalist Austin Carlile founded Of Mice & Men, originally with “Attack Attack,” and bassist Jaxin Hall, from Auckland, New Zealand. The two recorded the demo, Seven Thousand Miles for What?, and then searched for other members for a month until they met up with drummer Tino Arteaga, of “Lower Definition,” and guitarist Phil Manansala, who was with “A Static Lullaby.” Austin and Jaxin moved to SO CA to join up with the two, and began writing. Eventually, OM&M brought Shayley Bourget from “Chapters” and “Covette” on rhythm guitar, keyboard and vocals. Of Mice & Men have already recorded their debut album to be released in February 2010 and have hit the road with a purple passion. They will be participating in the entire Vans Warped Tour 2010.
http://www.myspace.com/ofmice

Pistol Opera is the wildly fused talents of Eli Braden and Toby Semain, two guys who are intense in their belief that an album should be good from start to finish. L.A. based Eli and Toby write, record, and produce their music almost entirely on their own. Eli is the singer and bassist, and writes the lion’s share of the lyrics. Toby is the guitarist and drummer, although as of yet, not concurrently; he is also the engineer and producer for the band’s recordings. Pistol Opera’s friend Mike Stromsoe steps in to mix the finished product. 2007 saw their debut album.
http://www.pistolopera.com

Scarlet Haze out of Minneapolis, MN is a hard rock, female-fronted band that will take you all the way back to “Tom Petty,” “U2,” “Sting,” “Spiders and Snakes,” “Blind Hate,” “Sammy Hagar,” and “Stone Gods.” Quite an eclectic crew of influences!

They were founded in 2004, and released a full-length album called Out of the Dark in 2005. The Bootleg EP was released in 2007.

Kat Perkins destroys all within earshot with her explosive vocals, and supplies the songwriting skills to the group. Kat shakes some mean tambourine from time to time, also. Casey Smith is often on guitar and Tony Wilson is usually laying down the bass lines. Shane Speltz is always back there on the drums, and provides massive amounts of the bands creative energy. Scarlet Haze opened for “Bon Jovi” at The Target Center in October 2006.
www.scarlethaze.com

Searchlight began in 2005, when lead singer and guitar player Adam Michaels, and bass player Kevin Abdon made the move from Lake Havasu City, “London Bridge is our Claim to Fame,” AZ to Las Vegas to start a band. Shortly after the move to “What Happens Here Stays Here,” they met up with Ricky Torres, who would become their demon on the drums, and guitarist Matt Hopkins.

The band got down to writing some seriously good stuff, and soon garnered the interest of producer, Branden Steineckert (former drummer of “The Used,” and current drummer of the punk legends, “Rancid”). Searchlight then made the short trek to Orem, Utah to record with Steineckert at Unknown Studios. One song that came out of that session was Contagious, which landed a prize spot on the Resident Evil: Extinction soundtrack and was played during the ending credits of the film. In February 2009, Searchlight released their debut album, Until the End and After and began touring the album in August 2009.
http://www.myspace.com/searchlightmusic

The Thermals are an indie alternative post-pop-punk rock band from Portland, OR, that formed in the summer of 2002. Their breakout album, More Parts per Million, was conjured up and then recorded in the tiny kitchen of singer Hutch Harris’s house, on a 4-track cassette machine, with total tracking costs of around ten bucks. A demo of the record was passed from Ben Gibbard, of “Death Cab For Cutie” and “The Postal Service” fame to indie giant Sub Pop Records, who signed The Thermals after they had played just a smidgen of gigs. MPPM was then mixed by “Death Cab for Cutie’s” Chris Walla at The Hall of Justice in Seattle, WA and Sub Pop released the record in March 2003. The Thermals quickly became what is referred to as a power trio.

The Thermals have recently released their fourth and perhaps best album to date, Now We Can See. After saying friendly good-byes to the folks at Sub Pop, the band signed with the iconic Northwest label Kill Rock Stars, and recently relocated to Portland, OR. Lots of naked punked-out energy combined with sterling melodies and thoughtful lyrics keep their fan base blooming. Hutch Harris, Kathy Foster and Westin Glass make up the current members of the band. The band earned some straight-up respect for discovering a fourth chord in pop-punk. (It’s F# minor, for the uninitiated.)
http://www.thethermals.com/home.html

Vains of Jenna was formed in the small town of Falkenberg, Sweden in January 2005. Lead Vocalist Lizzy DeVine and bassist JP White were discussing a new band, and had been checking out guitarist Nicki Kin and drummer Jacki Stone to bring it all together.

During the spring of 2005, Vains of Jenna was offered a chance to play the epic, “Whisky a Go-Go” in Hollywood. They staggered the crowd with their blazing energy, brashness, and total sleaze throwback style. Just a few days later, the band was cutting tracks with former “Guns N Roses” guitarist Gilby Clarke at his Redrum Studios. You don’t want anybody waking you up when dreams like that start coming true…
Tour dates started going crazy-mad and fan bases grew like poppies outside the Emerald City. Don’t take your eyes, or ears, off of this band. Vains of Jenna has the heartbeat of sleaze rock by the main artery.
http://www.myspace.com/vainsofjenna

So, there’s the list, not the standard “Top Ten”, but, as I said, it is my list and they are my rules, right? Comment all you want, please do. I would be really interested to see what bands you come up with that were on my original list, and if you come up with any that I had not considered. However, for now, here are the ones that will live in infamy …at least on this, the only list that really matters…in my never to be humble opinion.
- Music Dish