SolSpeak

A resounding 100% stay! See Heidi and Frank "stay or go" for more info. - Heidi and Frank morning show

This friday 12/7/12 at 9am!!! - SolSpeak music

This friday 12/7/12 at 9am!!! - SolSpeak music

Congrats to SolSpeak for the HMMA Award nomination featuring the video "Million Miles Away" - HMMA Awards

Congrats to SolSpeak for the HMMA Award nomination featuring the video "Million Miles Away" - HMMA Awards

MVN and Twin Palms Restaurant have teamed together to find the hottest new sounds in the Pasadena and Foothills Region and our first "Catch the Rising Stars" are a group of local musicians that have a unique fusion of international music that can be described as the "new Santana" sound.
SolSpeak's six members combine a rich and deep blend of powerful sounds with their own personal raw emotions. Three of the band members are professional firefighters that carry the same intense emotion to the stage as they do when saving lives. Julian Singelakis, lead guitarist, resident of Duarte and member of the L.A. Fire Department, along with Vincent Madrid, lead vocalist, professional massage therapist and artist, lead the newly formed band including Monterey Park firefighter Drew Respicio on rhythm guitar, L.A. firefighter Gilbert Quintana on percussion, tennis instructor Matt Herrera on drums, and percussion and electronics with Danny Contreras on bass.
"World Pop" is how they describe their eclectic sounds of rock, dance, jazz and R&B that use different Latin, Indian and African rhythms. Their appeal ranges from young professionals to baby boomers that are fans of world music and sophisticated in their musical tastes. They appeal to listeners that seek a broader sound of music that evokes inner emotions, thinking and not your typical food fed music hype.
Adrenaline is what makes this band rock and jam, and as you listen to the music, your adrenaline pumps up as well.
So, if you are looking to hear the latest and hottest sounds, come down to Twin Palms Restaurant on Wednesday, June 28 at 9 p.m. and listen to the "new Santana" sounds from SolSpeak. Admission is free, and you can listen to SolSpeak this Sunday on Charter Cable Channel 3 at 10 a.m. on "Face the Foothills" or 24/7 on our webiste at MVN.TV. - Steve Tobia, MVN Magazine

See July issue in "The Magazine Weekly Insider" (attached) - The Weekly Insider

See July issue in "The Magazine Weekly Insider" (attached) - The Weekly Insider

Pasadena's Solspeak is a band with heart. Three of its memebers are paramedic firefighters by day and the entire group performs to benefit various community groups. Solspeak will be donating 10 percent of all its CD sales this year to United Pasadena Teachers and California Teachers Association for perfoming arts programs and teacher aid. When they perform at Sierra Cup in Monrovia on Saturday, they will present an acoustic family-friendly show that will benefit local schools.
Solspeak includes lead vocalist Vince Madrid; vocalist, guitarist and electric sitar player Julian Singelakis and drummer and percussionist Matt Herrera, both of Monrovia; vocalist and guitarist Andrew R. Respicio of South Pasadena; percussionist Gilbert Quintan of Claremont; and vocalist and bassist Woo Salazar of Los Angeles. The band's most recent effort is the self-released "Bittersweet."
"The best thing I keep hearing over and over is our sound is like the new, heavier Santana with a pop edge," Singelakis said. "We call it world pop rock with an infusion of Latin rhythms."
Singelakis grew up in Pasadena and played drums in the marching band and orchestra at Pasadena High School.
"My father was a studio guitarist so it was in my blood," he said. "I started playing guitar when I was in sixth grade and I started writing songs and learning basic chords."
He went on the study music theory and guitar performance at Musicians Institute and the Dick Grove School of Music. He is a paramedic fireman with the Los Angeles City Fire Department who likes to ride his Yamaha YZ450S motorcycle in the Fire and Police Motocross and Glen Helen Grand Prix.
"You should see my x-rays from all these years of racing," Singelakis said. "I think I've broken almost as many bones as Evil Knievel."
Singelakis was in a number of bands before he formed Solspeak, which has seen its fair share of members. Respicio and Quintan have been solid in the lineup for the past eight years.
Singelakis is the main writer for this group. He puts his ideas on MP3s and sends them to Respicio and Salazar as they take turns singing lead for Solspeak and writing lyrics.
"We get together as a band, rehearse and we'll have maybe three or four different songs that month that we like and we pick the one that we think is the most positive and energetic and would sell the most CDs for us," Singelakis said.
The band went through a dark period 10 years ago, when the majority of their songs were wrought with angst, but today they strive to be upbeat and positive.
"We try to do insightful, passionate music,: Singelakis said. "We're really dedicated, just like being a fireman, it's the same kind of dedication with the music. These guys all have families and they have these crazy fireman schedules and they still arrange to take the days off to get out there together and play and they get to enjoy the people."
Quintan is also a Los Angeles City Fire Department parmedic; Respicio is a paramedic with Monterey Park Fire Department. Herrera, a tennis instructor and studio drummer, and Salazar, a career musician, understand that the firemen sometimes need to "talk shop."
"When we're ready to play, it's about Solspeak and being in that whole groove of being on stage and taking yourself away from the work, the grind we do," Singelakis said.
Solspeak hopes to snag a record deal and we are working on a new album. While the band would like to open for larger acts in large venues-such as its gig with the Radiators at the Key Club in Hollywood- Solspeak will continue to do local performances. A spring show at Twin Palms with Luxury Lifestyle magazine is planned to raise money for area schools.
"We're trying to do positive music and inspire people and kids, especially," Singelakis said. ""We're giving them the gift of music, whereas in the job of fireman or paramedic, we're giving them the gift of life sometimes. There's nothing more rewarding, but it's so tragic sometimes. The music takes - By Michelle Mills (626)962-8811 x2128