StarFish

It seems just like yesterday when Ray Leone and his StarFish pals were in Orchard Park singing about his grammy at a 5-year-old's birthday party. But are those days behind us? Will StarFish be getting too big for the occasional local gig?

Probably not, said StarFish frontman Ray Leone (aka "Stingray"), but ya never know!

Last week, StarFish—the local kids' rock 'n' roll phenomenon that refuses to play down to kids and instead introduces kids to grown-up musical styles like rock, punk and reggae but with kid-themed lyrics—officially signed a a record deal with WorldSound Label Group.

Reported Leone, "StarFish has formed a partnership with WorldSound Label Group and we are the first artist signed to their new imprint WorldSound Kids."

WorldSound Kids will be releasing Starfish's upcoming CD Enter Sandbox (Metallica fans will get the reference) on June 1, 2010. "Also," added Leone, "we will release a digital version of our current CD Rocks on March 9, 2010, which will be available on iTunes, Amazon and more."

And, StarFish will have a track—"The StarFish Stomp"—featured on Putumayo Kid's CD compilation Rock & Roll Playground which comes out June 15, 2010, and will be available nationwide at stores such as Barnes & Noble, Borders and Whole Foods.

Dates for the ensuing StarFish World Tour have not yet been announced but Leone says they will be playing dates around the release of the CDs. Personally, I think a mini-Stonehenge set would be perfect for this band's first mega-tour.

StarFish is comprised of Leone, Marc Stern (Starfish alias: "Moose"), Dave Hartkern ("Grateful Dave"), Mark Asch ("Dr. Yes") and Antar Goodwin ("Antfarm").
- Mary Mann - Maplewood Patch

StarFish breaks the kiddy music mold

by Regina Romanaux

StarFish isn't just another kiddie band. In fact, while geared to children, the group's tunes don't lure only youngsters to play air guitars. With fail-safe covers and original tunes, whose lyrics are inspired by fatherhood but whose music pays homage to the Beatles, ELO and Jimi Hendrix, mommies and daddies will be tempted to join the fray. And while there isn't exactly a mosh pit at their shows, these dads are making it their mission to give the next generation a proper education in being part of a rock & roll audience. From lessons in the art of clapping insistently at the end of a show to ensure an encore, to "high five time", StarFish's audiences have a leg up on cool. Treating kids like kids and not like babies makes them want to rock out. - Matters Magazine

“This quintet of Jersey dads make their home state proud with monster-populated garage rock that actually, well, rocks. The hook-heavy opener, “Air Guitar” quotes Cream, Hendrix and Deep Purple by song’s end-clever cues for parents, integrated seamlessly enough to keep the kids dancing."

Brian Braiker - Time Out Kids New York

A kid-centric quintet continues Jersey's tradition of totally boss rock acts.

"To say the children's music has changed a lot in the past 10 years is a massive understatement. Today's great kids' bands don't simplify their music; they write it for listeners of any age, then target their tone and lyrics toward audiences that just happen to wear Pull-Ups. New Jersey's StarFish is a fantastic example of this new wave-ironic, since they play good, old-fashioned classic rock. The opening riffs of "Stop, Drop and Rock and Roll" bring to mind AC/DC. The lyrics to the rollicking "Air Guitar" reference legends like Chuck Berry and Jimmy Page. And the fantastic "Joshua's Treehouse" features a wild keyboar solo, for crying out loud. Nothing about any of it screams "kids music." Yet the same fans who dance to Dora the Explorer somehow rock out to StarFish, too."

- Cookie Magazine