The Incredible Heat Machine

This Saturday night Preservation Pub is gonna be a little warmer than any other venue in town and it’s all thanks to the return of The Incredible Heat Machine.
This quintet from Murfreesboro, TN has been making routine stops in Knoxville for the last year gaining a small but loyal following for their brand of progressive rock. With influences ranging from the old school (Yes, King Crimson, Rush…) to the new school (moe., Umphrey’s McGee…) the boys have truly developed a sound of their own. To go along with the grit and complex rhythms that come with the prog rock territory The Heat adds in their love of the jamband scene utilizing genre fusion and improvisational segues that might send you on a Bonnaroo flashback. Check out their myspace page for a glimpse at their freshly released self-titled debut. Consisting of Ray Dunham (drums, vox), Jeremy Pinell (guitar, vox), Keegan Pavlovic (bass), Rob Knugg (keys), and John Turner (guitar) the Incredible Heat Machine’s five members all carry important roles uniting each layer of sound into a true musical democracy. A must see for all music lovers in town. Saturday’s show kicks off a 10 p.m. so come early, stay late and dress lightly as it’s sure to be a hot one.
- knoxville520.com

May 31, 2007

The final band of the evening was The Incredible Heat Machine. The Heat Machine took the stage and didn't let up for the rest of the night. The Heat Machine boasts a stellar rhythm section of their own with Ray Dunham on drums and Keegan Povlovic on bass. The band, rounded out with local veterans Jeremy Pinell on lead vocals and guitar, Rob Knugg on Keys and John Turner on guitar, unveiled some new material that all Heat Machine fans should be excited about.

The Heat Machine is a band that’s been around for awhile, and they represent what what makes the music scene in Murfreesboro so special. On any given night you can go out to one of the many venues in town and catch a band that rivals any major act out there today.

Catch The Last Straw and The Incredible Heat Machine together again July 4 at at The Pulse’s Inaugural Independence Day Bash at the Boro Bar and Grill, along with T.H.B., Sky Hi, Penguin, and others. Look for more details in the next issue.
- The Murfreesboro Pulse

Incredible Heat Machine blazing a trail
By KAREN KRAFT
kkraft@dnj.com

The Incredible Heat Machine is no stranger to the music scene in Murfreesboro because they have repeatedly performed at the smoky bars, endured the cheering fans and participated in the late-night jam sessions with other local bands since 2004.

The Incredible Heat Machine has no specific label to go with their wide array of musical talents. They would rather the audience figure it out for themselves as they fulfill their multi-dimensional realm of music on stage with everything they have in order to get people out of their seats and off the walls, making their way to the front of the stage, dancing and grooving all the way.

The music transcends over typical progressive rock bands as they assemble multiple layers of creativity and talent from each member in the band. Make sure to make it to Wall Street on Friday to uncover their music abilities and support local music.

Here's a question-and-session with the band:
Tell me about the band:

Jeremy Pinell on guitar and vocals, Ray Dunham on drums and vocals, Keegan Pavlovic on bass guitar, Rob Knugg on keys, and John Turner on guitar and vibraslap.
What's in a name?

The band name was decided on after much deliberation. One night at practice, Keegan suggested "The Incredible Heat Machine," which happens to be the name of a 1980s space heater.
Sounds like?

The band classify itself as a progressive rock band because it's the closest genre to what they're doing. They play what they think the audience wants to hear, and that can include many genres, such as jazz, experimental, funk or rock. Let it be known that The Incredible Heat Machine does not dabble in the category of emo.
Musical influences?

Rush, Frank Zappa, The Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, The Talking Heads, The Flaming Lips, Led Zeppelin, Blind Melon, Steely Dan, Soul Coughing and Cake, to name a few.
What can people expect?

Fans can expect a high level of energy and originality from live performances. The goal is to constantly improve, and members try to make every show better than the last.
What's the future hold?

The band is thinking ambitiously about the next year. Members plan on playing more shows and spending a much larger portion of their time to promote and market the business that is The Incredible Heat Machine. The final destination is to play music for a living.
Next album?

The next album will be available to the masses in early 2008.
Memberships

The band is a member of ASCAP and owns its own publishing company called Heat Machine Music, which is also affiliated with ASCAP. - The Daily News Journal

Heat it up - Murfreesboro band values ‘a good song’

The Incredible Heat Machine will play Cahootenany’s, 715 W. Walnut St., on Saturday (Contributed / Incredible Heat Machine)


By Doug Janz
Press Tempo Writer
djanz@johnsoncitypress.com

Discuss This Article in Our Forums

The guys in The Incredible Heat Machine admit they’re a jam band — sort of.

“The term ‘jam band’ is a catch-all for a lot of music out there that’s not exactly identifiable,” guitarist John Turner said. “Having that label is sort of a double-edged sword. It does and doesn’t apply to us. To a lot of people, jam bands play fast songs without vocals and there’s a lot of noodling. We’ll improvise occasionally and have long instrumental passages, but it’s not just something on the fly where we don’t know where it’s going. We try to have good songs at the core of what we do, and if we’re going to have instrumentals, we want a good song at the core, not just a wandering jam in some key.”

But these boys definitely jam. They’re a five-piece band from Murfreesboro with Rob Knugg on keyboards; Keegan Pavlovic on bass; Jeremy Pinell on guitar and vocals; Ray Dunham on drums and vocals; and Turner on guitar. They list their sound man, Mike Semich, along with the band members. They call their music “progressive rock” as well as psychedelic, and list Rush, Yes, the Grateful Dead and moe. as big influences, along with Blind Melon, Cake, Frank Zappa, Talking Heads and Pink Floyd.

There’s a big market for jam bands, as evidenced by the festivals and cruises with that style of music in mind. Bonnaroo is one of the biggest festivals that embraced the jam band community from the outset, and the styles of music that fall under that broad genre range from zydeco and blues to country, reggae electronica.

“There is a big, big audience out there for jam bands,” Turner said. “We definitely do our best to tap into that market.”

The group is back in Johnson City on Saturday for a 10 p.m. who at Cahootenany’s, 715 W. Walnut St. Admission is $5.

They’ve played here before, both at Halo and Cahootenany’s, and are building a fan base in Northeast Tennessee. The group has been together more than three years and three of the members came from the well-regarded music recording program at Middle Tennessee State University.

“We’ve gotten a lot out of going to school at MTSU,” Turner said. “I’d say it’s one of the top three programs in the county as far as the recording industry. It ranks up there with Berkeley. There’s a business side to the program and a recording and technical side. So having a band like we have, we’ve been able to immediately put that to use.”

Members of the Incredible Heat Machine handle their own booking, recording, editing, equipment, business matters, marketing — largely thanks to their education at MTSU. It’s crucial to have all the help they can get because Nashville is such a highly competitive music market.

“It’s been like a proving ground,” Turner said. “With 2-300 other bands playing the same venues as you want to play, you have to be able to hold your own.”

They put out a self-titled album in 2006 and are “80 to 90 percent done” with the second one, Turner said. But as they get more gigs, they’re on the road more and free to go into the studio less often.

Things are looking up. Turner said he believes the band has things in place to be successful. Some of the reason goes back to that first and most important thing — good songs.

“At first we were trying to be more technical and do more intricate passages. But now I think our songwriting, our originality, is one of our strengths. We want to sound different from other groups. If anything sets us apart, it’s having good songs that people can sing along to, that stick in their minds.”

For more on the group, visit www.myspace.com/theincredibleheatmachine.
- Johnson City Press

The Boro Bar and Grill will host its Second Annual Freedom Bash. This year’s Friday, July 4, concert features a great group of Murfreesboro rockers.

Come early, celebrate the holiday, and enjoy barbecue, beer, ice cream, rock ‘n’ roll and fireworks.

Here’s a look at the bands playing this year’s Freedom Bash:

The Incredible Heat Machine

The Incredible Heat Machine is a prog-rock jam band grown right here in Murfreesboro. The band cites a diverse mix of artists as influences, such as Pink Floyd, Rush, Blind Melon, Modest Mouse and moe. Their music is progressive, rooted in jam band tradition, but also shows a touch of reggae, electronic and alternative sound. No matter what genre they’re channeling, their music is meant to make you move.

“Our sound is the result of five guys with very diverse musical backgrounds coming together to make something original and appealing,” the band’s guitarist John Turner said. “It’s somewhere between progressive and psychedelic, but at the core we’re a rock band.”

The band features Turner on guitar, Rob Knug on keys, Keegan Pavlovic on bass, Jeremy Pinell on guitar and vocals, and Ray Dunham on drums and vocals.

After coming together in January 2005, the band released their debut, self-titled album in 2006. They are currently working on a new album while playing shows throughout Tennessee and the rest of the Southeast, and are happy to be returning to the Freedom Bash.

“We’re very excited to be playing the Freedom Bash again this year,” said Turner. “We all had such a good time last year and we feel honored to be included on the lineup again. There is such a great sense of community among the bands in Murfreesboro these days, and we jump at any opportunity to share the stage with our friends.

- Jamie Lovett - The Murfreesboro Pulse