The Underhills

...the best collection of honest sentiment and songcraft in an American album/band in 15 years. - J.L Howe, Producer/Sony Animax

Philadelphia's The Underhills mix John Mellencamp's sincerity with a bit of modern Goo Goo Dolls' sensibility. Add in a little of Ed Kowlczyk's vocals and their “The Road From Here…” makes Adult Alternative Contemporary sound like a compliment, rather than an insult. These boys are earnest, and that's the first thing you hear in David Rossi's impassioned vocals. Paul Toland's succulent lead guitar work, especially the clean tone noodling on “Dreams American” and the riffage of “1000 Years,” is precise to the point of drawing blood. There's some kind of shtick about the lead singer and guitarist being brothers, but who knows what that's about (there's no genes shared, but maybe they just mean musical family?). Who's really going to worry about that when the songs are so hooky? This is rock aimed right at the heart of the '90s alt-rock crowd that loved R.E.M., Live, and Toad The Wet Sprocket. If you like those bands, you'll definitely like The Underhills. It's serious-sounding rock that's easy to sing along to, and they throw in a little acoustic sensitivity every once in awhile to keep the girls into it. Adding up on the cool points, they include a couple of remixes at the end of the CD as a bonus. If you liked pop music when real people played real instruments, then get this disc.

~Mike Huberty / Maximum Ink Music Magazine
- Maximum Ink Magazine

"...a pop-rock quartet from the Philadelphia area who are on the verge of breaking out." - The Phoenixville News

"The Underhills are looking to climb the charts".

By Pete Kennedy, Trend Editor

Dave Rossi is just getting over a bit of cabin fever. He's back in front of local audiences like MilkBoy Coffee in Ardmore and Steel City Coffeehouse in Phoenixville after a long time in the studio.

"It took us a year to get the new album recorded and mixed," he said. "We missed performing". He and co-rockers Paul Toland on vocals and lead guitar, Harry Doyle on drums, and Mitch Cojocariu on bass make up the rock/pop music group "The Underhills". Since returning to a full performance schedule, they've been playing at festivals, like the 2007 Millennium Music Conference in February and getting cuts from their new album "The Road From Here" onto mix tapes.

Their good fortune has arisen from their versatility in playing different musical styles in different environments, form the Main Line to New York City. They also credit a resurging and vibrant local music community. "I like the acoustic venues because it lets (our) songs breathe a bit, but afterwards we try to get back to the harder stuff. We can easily go from The Grape Street to some of the singer-songwriter coffeehouse...with close to 3 sets of original music," said Rossi.

The name comes from when Toland and Rossi began writing and performing together a decade ago. They took on a now defunct stage persona of a pair of twins by the name of Underhill because of their similar appearance and voices. After spending a bundle to rent studio time for their previous album "Dawn", Rossi decided to invenst in a home studio this time around

It took a while, but the band was able to learn to use the production equipment, and the latest mixing software allowed them to work with far-away professionals. "A lot of people helped me with this album from across the world" Rossi said. "Paul Russell, in Singapore, helped me remix it and our producer, Jim Howe, lives in Washington D.C."

While playing gigs is the ideal scenario for The Underhills, they are also seeing how other bands are remaining independent of major labels and still being successful. That might mean writing songs, helping to produce other bands, or working the distribution end of the business.



With so much on the horizon, and even though most of the next album is written, they're in no rush to depart the stage. - Pete Kennedy / The Trend

"...Wow, this CD blew me away" - PA Musician Magazine

...The band has an ability to capture a pop sound in one song, then country in the next, then a heavier guitar driven sound the next. The dual vocals of Rossi and Toland compliment each other extremely well. The vocals are backed by two of Philadelphia’s most well-regarded musicians: drummer, Harry Doyle and bassist, Keith McCrary.

The band has worked on recent compilation projects with Charles Foskett (Elvis Costello and members of the Beatles) and Christopher Moon (Prince). Six of the twelve songs on their new album are featured on 13 nationally released compilation projects, including A Texas-sized SXSW Compilation, 2006 Indie Most Wanted, and Best New Bands of 2006.

The first single off of the album, “So Far Away” has been receiving air-time on radio stations in Philadelphia, New York, LA, Montana, Utah, West Virginia, Arizona and Minnesota. The song has an edgy rock sound with smooth vocals that blend perfectly with the guitar riffs and drums.

They’ve recently showcased at the 2007 Millennium Music Conference and were accepted to play at one of the rival South by Southwest festivals in Austin, TX in 2007. They also showcased at the 2007 Midpoint Music Festival in Cincinnati, OH on September 29.

Their album puts a somewhat modern twist on a classic-rock sound that makes it fun to listen to. Keep an eye out for what The Underhills do next. For more information on the band, visit their MySpace page at www.myspace.com/underhillsmusic.

- by Stella Accardo, Campus Philly

Making jaunty, jangly Pop Rock laced with tranquil melodies and precise harmonies, Philadelphia's "The Underhills" are a brotherly act, featuring a pair of twins on vocals and guitars. Born on a dairy farm, the two moved around the country looking for their niche in the music biz. They both ended up going on spiritual quests, dabbling in freedom fighting, and NRA spokesperson-ing. OK...so all that's a big fat lie, but that's what it says on their myspace page. Very funny guys. I guess next you're going to tell me you're not 101 years old??

If you dig the Everly Brothers raised on Toad the Wet Sprocket, you'll definitely dig this... - City Beat / Cincinnati

"...an outstanding display of modern rock with powerful beats and harmonizing vocals and A GREAT band to see live!!" - Origivation Magazine

...The Underhills, upbeat modern rock reminiscent of Live, is an absolute pleasure.

- The City Paper

The Underhills were selected to represent Pennsylvania after weeks of auditioning hundreds of local artists in that area. Their creativity, unique style, and razor sharp edge for crafting consistently strong originals made them an easy choice. Their submission was among the very best of all songs submitted and was selected to be on the coveted "#1 - RED ALBUM" (one of three albums in the collection) by a large panel of independent judges. As a producer/writer with over 10 million records sold, and the producer who discovered Prince I know great talent when I hear it ... The Underhills are an "over the top" talent with a bright future ahead ... I suggest you get their autographs now!"

~Chris Moon, Moonsound Records

- Chris Moon / Producer for Prince / Moonsound Records