Orange Avenue

ORANGE AVENUE: Finally, the fans for Orange Avenue would get their fix after being so weirded-out by the aforementioned set. The Daytona-based band took the stage waving a huge orange flag with the letters OA embroidered on it and proceeded to rock on. Their songs were incredibly radio friendly, along the lines of All American Rejects and Yellowcard. They also seemed to have a bit of Brit-pop influence similar to Oasis' more upbeat hits.

Frontman Derek Anderson had a great voice and stage presence, while the rest of the band gelled well enough for each member to show off a little bit of their jumping-around skills. It's no surprise they'll be playing the Universal City Walk Plaza Stage almost every night throughout the month of December. They appeal enough to the masses without any kind of shock factors or gimmicks, and are very talented professionals that know how to show a crowd a good time.
- Orlando CityBeat By Alicia Lyman

Meet five guys in a state of euphoria. They're the members of the band now known as Orange Avenue (formerly Breaking Ground) and their band is on the cusp of what looks like a real breakthrough. Their first CD is about to be released Jan. 16 and they're lining up a tour they hope will take them to a new level.

The CD will be named Orange Avenue and late in 2006 they were involved in photo shoots and other pre-release publicity that had them in what we'd call a very energized state.

Orange Avenue is very much a local group - four of them are from Volusia and one from Flagler county - they all went to area high schools.

It all started in 2000 when brothers Sean, drums, and Glenn Sedita, percussion and keyboard, got together with a high school friend, Chris Yetter, guitar and vocalist, and Derek Anderson, who became the lead vocalist and rhythm guitar player.

Jamie Pohl, bass guitarist and back up vocalist, (a former Flagler Palm Coast High School student) came along and Breaking Ground was on its way.

But they did change the name.

Seems that when they did get involved with the record company, the legal eagles took a look at the package and advised the name change. As they explain on their Web site, it turned out there were about eight other bands with the same name.

And where did Orange Avenue come from? They submitted dozens of names, according to the group's drummer and spokesperson Sean Sedita, and Orange Avenue was the name the legal folks have blessed.

Oh, yeah - and in their formative stages they used to rehearse in a place very near Daytona Beach's Orange Avenue, he adds.

They all have fond memories of the area - so Orange Avenue is the name as they prepare for that next step.

Back when they were still Breaking Ground, in more ways than one, they played local venues such as Flagler Tavern, Franks Front Row, Adobe Gila's and Ocean Deck. "These are our hometown venues," Sedita says.

Sedita says they plan to return home to play the old familiar places whenever thay can.

Asked to describe their musical style, Sedita says, "that's hard," but conferring with bandmate Pohl, comes up with "alternative rock," with a positive attitude or pop rock with an edge." He says they pull from all genres, with punk, jazz and other influences mixed in. While becoming established, they performed covers of groups including Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, but they always managed to work in some of their original songs.

Sedita says they all write songs, sometimes they arrive for a session with a complete song in mind and sometimes just an idea and they all work on it together.

"We all have our own studio, so we can work on something at home and then bring it in whenever we're ready" he says.

When they came to work on the CD, they had something like 80 songs to start - the hard part was cutting that down to a manageable number. "It's like we had five years of writing songs built up and 80 songs to choose from. I think many people will identify with the lyrics of our songs," he says.

So, in general, what are their songs about? "About Life."

They've had plenty of the kind of success that attracts recording companies along the way, winning the Florida Motion Picture and Television Association Award(FMPTA) Crystal Reel Award for Rising Rock Stars in 2003 and were crowned champions in the Hawaiian Tropic Battle of the bands in 2005.

They put together a demo, using their own money, and that led to an invitation to play on Lollapalooza in the summer of 2004.

While they gather steam for a wider tour, they played at Orlando's Universal City Walk all through December, but they were scheduled to come home to the Mai Tai Bar in Daytona Beach's Ocean Walk for New Year's Eve. Fans here will find them back again playing at Daytona International Speedway during Speed Weeks.

Meanwhile, the group was definitely in high spirits as they prepared for the CDs release, enjoying every minute as they (hopefully) move into a whole new phase of their careers.

Orange Avenue will be performing from 5-7 p.m. Feb. 10, and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Feb. 18 at the Daytona International Speedway in the Fan Zone during Speed Weeks. Visit their Web site at www.orangeavenuemusic.com for play dates and to purchase CDs.

By Susan L. Wright - Code Red Magazine

Meet five guys in a state of euphoria. They're the members of the band now known as Orange Avenue (formerly Breaking Ground) and their band is on the cusp of what looks like a real breakthrough. Their first CD is about to be released Jan. 16 and they're lining up a tour they hope will take them to a new level.

The CD will be named Orange Avenue and late in 2006 they were involved in photo shoots and other pre-release publicity that had them in what we'd call a very energized state.

Orange Avenue is very much a local group - four of them are from Volusia and one from Flagler county - they all went to area high schools.

It all started in 2000 when brothers Sean, drums, and Glenn Sedita, percussion and keyboard, got together with a high school friend, Chris Yetter, guitar and vocalist, and Derek Anderson, who became the lead vocalist and rhythm guitar player.

Jamie Pohl, bass guitarist and back up vocalist, (a former Flagler Palm Coast High School student) came along and Breaking Ground was on its way.

But they did change the name.

Seems that when they did get involved with the record company, the legal eagles took a look at the package and advised the name change. As they explain on their Web site, it turned out there were about eight other bands with the same name.

And where did Orange Avenue come from? They submitted dozens of names, according to the group's drummer and spokesperson Sean Sedita, and Orange Avenue was the name the legal folks have blessed.

Oh, yeah - and in their formative stages they used to rehearse in a place very near Daytona Beach's Orange Avenue, he adds.

They all have fond memories of the area - so Orange Avenue is the name as they prepare for that next step.

Back when they were still Breaking Ground, in more ways than one, they played local venues such as Flagler Tavern, Franks Front Row, Adobe Gila's and Ocean Deck. "These are our hometown venues," Sedita says.

Sedita says they plan to return home to play the old familiar places whenever thay can.

Asked to describe their musical style, Sedita says, "that's hard," but conferring with bandmate Pohl, comes up with "alternative rock," with a positive attitude or pop rock with an edge." He says they pull from all genres, with punk, jazz and other influences mixed in. While becoming established, they performed covers of groups including Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, but they always managed to work in some of their original songs.

Sedita says they all write songs, sometimes they arrive for a session with a complete song in mind and sometimes just an idea and they all work on it together.

"We all have our own studio, so we can work on something at home and then bring it in whenever we're ready" he says.

When they came to work on the CD, they had something like 80 songs to start - the hard part was cutting that down to a manageable number. "It's like we had five years of writing songs built up and 80 songs to choose from. I think many people will identify with the lyrics of our songs," he says.

So, in general, what are their songs about? "About Life."

They've had plenty of the kind of success that attracts recording companies along the way, winning the Florida Motion Picture and Television Association Award(FMPTA) Crystal Reel Award for Rising Rock Stars in 2003 and were crowned champions in the Hawaiian Tropic Battle of the bands in 2005.

They put together a demo, using their own money, and that led to an invitation to play on Lollapalooza in the summer of 2004.

While they gather steam for a wider tour, they played at Orlando's Universal City Walk all through December, but they were scheduled to come home to the Mai Tai Bar in Daytona Beach's Ocean Walk for New Year's Eve. Fans here will find them back again playing at Daytona International Speedway during Speed Weeks.

Meanwhile, the group was definitely in high spirits as they prepared for the CDs release, enjoying every minute as they (hopefully) move into a whole new phase of their careers.

Orange Avenue will be performing from 5-7 p.m. Feb. 10, and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Feb. 18 at the Daytona International Speedway in the Fan Zone during Speed Weeks. Visit their Web site at www.orangeavenuemusic.com for play dates and to purchase CDs.

By Susan L. Wright - Code Red Magazine

You can call it emo, you can call it rock, you can call it pop-punk, but in the end, pop music is pop music, and Daytona Beach, Florida's Orange Avenue make some really, really catchy pop. Led by frontman Derek Anderson, this Florida five-piece started out in 2007, with a spunky, self-titled debut LP. After sharing stages with acts ranging from Rihanna to All-American Rejects, the band returned to the studio to record last year's excellent Reset EP. And while it wasn't a complete break, or new start, it did represent a decided leap forward in songwriting and production. While their music has the energy of punk, it has the sheen of the best radio pop, calling to mind the likes of Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox Twenty. Anderson has a great way of matching melody to lyrics. And nowhere is this more evident than on the soaring "This Time Baby. - Chris Ryan, MTV Buzzworthy Blog (Oct 08, 2011)

You can call it emo, you can call it rock, you can call it pop-punk, but in the end, pop music is pop music, and Daytona Beach, Florida's Orange Avenue make some really, really catchy pop. Led by frontman Derek Anderson, this Florida five-piece started out in 2007, with a spunky, self-titled debut LP. After sharing stages with acts ranging from Rihanna to All-American Rejects, the band returned to the studio to record last year's excellent Reset EP. And while it wasn't a complete break, or new start, it did represent a decided leap forward in songwriting and production. While their music has the energy of punk, it has the sheen of the best radio pop, calling to mind the likes of Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox Twenty. Anderson has a great way of matching melody to lyrics. And nowhere is this more evident than on the soaring "This Time Baby. - Chris Ryan, MTV Buzzworthy Blog (Oct 08, 2011)

THERE’S nothing this
rock-loving, underwater
octopod loves better
than a drum dynamo with
four fiery, focused limbs
– unless it’s two drummers
with eight. That’s
why The Squid can’t get
enough of bro-bro duo
Sean and Glenn Sedita,
the drum and percussion
backbone behind the
Daytona, Florida fivepiece
rock outfit Orange
Avenue. The stick and
conga/ percussion/keyboard-
wielding pair lock
in tight, trading licks in
the weirdly telepathic
way that only genetically
linked drummers can do.
Big brother Sean is
solidly in the driver’s seat
with a hypnotic tom
groove on “Radio Song”
while little bro Glenn’s
training with rhythm master
Giovanni Hidalgo
shines through on the
world-infused “What’s
Coming Next.” And with
a guitar shredding and
singing dad whose band
once shared stages with
Santana and Stevie
Nicks, it’s no wonder.
Add to that stints at Lollapalooza
and the Daytona
International Speedway,
and The Squid
hereby predicts it’s just a
matter of time before
these guys make their
latest local award, “Rising
Rock Stars,” really ring true. - Drum! Magazine

THERE’S nothing this
rock-loving, underwater
octopod loves better
than a drum dynamo with
four fiery, focused limbs
– unless it’s two drummers
with eight. That’s
why The Squid can’t get
enough of bro-bro duo
Sean and Glenn Sedita,
the drum and percussion
backbone behind the
Daytona, Florida fivepiece
rock outfit Orange
Avenue. The stick and
conga/ percussion/keyboard-
wielding pair lock
in tight, trading licks in
the weirdly telepathic
way that only genetically
linked drummers can do.
Big brother Sean is
solidly in the driver’s seat
with a hypnotic tom
groove on “Radio Song”
while little bro Glenn’s
training with rhythm master
Giovanni Hidalgo
shines through on the
world-infused “What’s
Coming Next.” And with
a guitar shredding and
singing dad whose band
once shared stages with
Santana and Stevie
Nicks, it’s no wonder.
Add to that stints at Lollapalooza
and the Daytona
International Speedway,
and The Squid
hereby predicts it’s just a
matter of time before
these guys make their
latest local award, “Rising
Rock Stars,” really ring true. - Drum! Magazine