Musician's Guide and Directory
James Pedigrew
February 2001
That hard part of writing an article like this is that, if a band we are profiling sucks, we would be required to say how much we like them. So far, we've never had to sink to that level of deceit, and luckily for us and our readers, this month will be no exception.
Somnia is a damn good rock and roll band. Listening to the group's music, you can hear an early '90s influence -- some Pearl Jam here, a little Live there -- but unlike many of today's pure rock bands, this group is not trying to play watered-down versions of classic grunge rock. Somnia is a power trio that performs melodic, guitar driven, no-jive rock music.
Guitarist Mike Heeley, drummer Mike Lowder, and vocalist/bassist Aaron Popp formed Somnia in the summer of 1999. They have spent no time messing around since then. it's been non-stop action for the threesome in the short time they've been together.
The boys have made a name for themselves gigging all around town in such venues as Mississippi Nights, the Firehouse, the Hi-Pointe, the Galaxy, the Side Door and a host of other places. Somnia won the grand prize* of $1000 at the inaugural Extreme Radio 104.1 Battle of the Bands. The froup has also had some bitchin' opening gigs as well, warming up for Everlast at the Firehouse and for Unified Theory (a group formed by former members of Pearl Jam and Blind Melon). Somnia recently had a big throw-down at the Galaxy to mark the release of its debut album, (not to scale).
(not to scale) is an impressive first effort that showcases the strong songwriting of the band. It opens with the up-tempo, dense rocker "Bring the Pain", then moves into more mellow territory with the next few songs. The acoustic song "Purpose" is especially striking as an intense haunting song featuring nice harmonies and a subtle string arrangement. then "Alls Well That Ends" brings the album back into force with a classic rock-style riff. All in all, there's not much to quibble about on (not to scale), but at times the band's talented members seem hesitant to let loose.
*Second Place. First place was "White Label".
That hard part of writing an article like this is that, if a band we are profiling sucks, we would be required to say how much we like them. So far, we've never had to sink to that level of deceit, and luckily for us and our readers, this month will be no exception.
Somnia is a damn good rock and roll band. Listening to the group's music, you can hear an early '90s influence -- some Pearl Jam here, a little Live there -- but unlike many of today's pure rock bands, this group is not trying to play watered-down versions of classic grunge rock. Somnia is a power trio that performs melodic, guitar driven, no-jive rock music.
Guitarist Mike Heeley, drummer Mike Lowder, and vocalist/bassist Aaron Popp formed Somnia in the summer of 1999. They have spent no time messing around since then. it's been non-stop action for the threesome in the short time they've been together.
The boys have made a name for themselves gigging all around town in such venues as Mississippi Nights, the Firehouse, the Hi-Pointe, the Galaxy, the Side Door and a host of other places. Somnia won the grand prize* of $1000 at the inaugural Extreme Radio 104.1 Battle of the Bands. The froup has also had some bitchin' opening gigs as well, warming up for Everlast at the Firehouse and for Unified Theory (a group formed by former members of Pearl Jam and Blind Melon). Somnia recently had a big throw-down at the Galaxy to mark the release of its debut album, (not to scale).
(not to scale) is an impressive first effort that showcases the strong songwriting of the band. It opens with the up-tempo, dense rocker "Bring the Pain", then moves into more mellow territory with the next few songs. The acoustic song "Purpose" is especially striking as an intense haunting song featuring nice harmonies and a subtle string arrangement. then "Alls Well That Ends" brings the album back into force with a classic rock-style riff. All in all, there's not much to quibble about on (not to scale), but at times the band's talented members seem hesitant to let loose.
*Second Place. First place was "White Label".