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They are armed with black, gray and white ensembles, bringing endless energy to the stage and into the audience. un:armed creates a dark moody sound with catchy hooks through songs of love, lust, heartbreak and our political misfortunes. They play their hearts out and make you move to the march of an army of melodies and beats.
Bands that follow the principle of equilateral triangles are rare commodities in the music scene these days, but un:armed is an exception. Each one of these three shades of black, or if you are an optimist you might say shades of white, play an equal weight in the performance. You'd expect nothing less than a balanced and energetic show from them.
Doug's vulnerable yet expressive vocals remind me of Muse's Matthew Bellamy's eerie and thrashing voice and stage presence, and he experiments with pitch shifting in an unorthodox fashion. He leads the dark and multi-layered song structures with his full-Brit overdriven guitar tone and occasional but dramatic feedbacks.
Some drum sets are just lucky to be alive, Derek's is one of them. His beats are powerful, and he is in complete control – fully aware of what each song needs and able to fulfill them. He's a chameleon on the drums, ranging from the heaviest of heavy to the softest of the soft. He is the backbone of un:armed, and the seemingly choreographed swirl that his arms whip up is almost trance-inducing.
Four strings, but with more force than eight, Stage takes swinging leaps into the ubiqiitous chord voicings, treating the room to a boom that is less follow and more lead. He is one of L.A.'s musical treasures and we love watching and hearing him. His vocals add to the dimensionality of the songs and this Stage's stage demeanor is nothing to be missed, he stands confident and in-charge.
un:armed was formed in early 2006 from a collective vision of brothers vocalist and guitarist, Douglas and drummer Derek Gledhill with a later addition of bassist Bryan Stage. The band blends alternative rock, progressive rock, and heavy metal to rock your pants off. I prescribe a dose of un:armed at Safari Sam’s in Hollywood on Aug 30 2007, also you can pay a virtual visit to them on myspace.com/weareunarmed
By Nazanin Arandi
**Article viewable at:
http://blogs.laweekly.com/play/live-in-la/unarmed-at-the-echo-827/ - LA Weekly
Discography
UN:ARMED EP (2007)
Photos
Bio
Light. Dark. The shadows in between. White. Black. Gray. Such is the human condition. The Los Angeles based Indie Rock trio UN:ARMED draws their inspiration from the well of anguish that results from traveling within these shades of life. Vocalist and guitarist Douglas Gledhill, drummer Derek Gledhill and bassist Bryan Stage create a dark and haunting, yet powerful sound that interweaves contagious hooks with lyrics of loss and despair that make the heart long for better days and allow the mind to wander between the extremes of morality and existence.
UN:ARMED began in 2006 when Douglas, formerly of L.A. favorite Fractional, joined with brother Derek, the former drummer and founding member of Smile Empty Soul (Lava/Atlantic Records), to create music that is both introspective and insightful. As the sound matured, the brothers decided to add Bryan of L.A. based Diamonds Under Fire to complete the sound. With their lineup solidified, the band quickly entered the studio to record their six song EP and began hitting the L.A. club scene.
UN:ARMED has performed at all of the leading venues in Los Angeles including The Troubadour, Spaceland, The Echo, Key Club, Viper Room, Knitting Factory and Safari Sam's with some of the best bands in the city including, Nico Vega, The Valley Arena, World Wide Spies, Manic, Dead Sara, Middle Class Rut and Low vs. Diamond. Their single 'Talk Talk' has been featured on KROQ's Locals Only show in Los Angeles and the band has toured throughout the Southwest spreading the gospel that is UN:ARMED. In their short time on the scene, the band has gained a loyal fan base and has created a live show that is not to be missed. As the LA Weekly writes, "They are armed with black, gray and white ensembles, bringing endless energy to the stage and into the audience... They play their hearts out and make you move to the march of an army of melodies and beats."
The band can be found on the web at www.myspace.com/weareunarmed.
For booking and other information, contact UN:ARMED at weareunarmed@yahoo.com
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