BLUE LABEL RECORDS Honors Our Presidents With An Evening Of Great Local Music At Hip Laguna Beach Nightspot Club M On Sunday February 18th Featuring Performances by Blue Label Artists TEN WEST and ANTHEMA
In honor of Presidents Day weekend, Blue Label Records is hosting an eclectic evening of indie rock, hardcore and pop by local heroes Ten West and recently signed rockers Anthema , at Laguna Beach's Club M on Sunday, February 18th. Festivities will kick off at 8 p.m with a set by Red Fox and the Standard Ox featuring guest appearances by Jon Ogden of Ten West and Don Welsher of Anthema. Ten West's mellow grooves will follow, with Anthema providing a high-octane nightcap of screeching guitars and theatrics. Best of all, you don't even have worry about calling in sick to work on Monday morning thanks to the holiday.
Blue Label Records is an up and coming Independent label founded by legendary keyboardist producer Ronnie King , and veteran manager Sean Couevas , in order to capture the magic taking place in Orange County's blossoming homegrown music scene. The duo met while Couevas was recording tracks for Ten West's self-titled debut album. Ronnie just happened to be recording in the booth next door, and fell in love with Ten West's signature sound. Soon after Blue Label records was launched, and two more acts, Anthema and In Silence, have already been signed to the rooster.
Ten West have been off to a successful start since signing with Blue Label Records. The quartet recently released their self-titled debut album, and dropped their single “amazing” to Triple AAA and Pop/Rock Radio Outlets. Earlier this year, Ten West won the regional for Best Pop Band in San Diego at the L.A. Music Awards. They are also regulars on the Orange County club circuit, playing such venues as The Sandpiper Lounge in Laguna Beach, Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest and Hogue Barmichael's in Newport Beach. Tour plans are in the works for 2007.
Over the past two years, the three piece Anthema—lead vocalist and guitarist Don Welsher, rhythm guitarist and vocalist Chas Trowbridge, and drummer Matthew Longstreth—has become something of an institution in the O.C., drawing a loyal following of fans to venues including The Galaxy in Santa Ana, Detroit, the Tiki Bar in Costa Mesa, as well as The Troubadour, El Rey Theater, and Viper Room in Los Angeles. Anthema is currently in the process of mastering their as yet untitled debut album, which is set to be released to online and brick and mortar outlets later this year.
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CONCERT RECAP :
WHO: Blue Label Records' Ten West , Anthema as well as Red Fox and the Standard Ox
WHERE: Club M - 680 S Pacific Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, California 92651
WHEN: Sunday, February 18th, 2007 @ 8pm
DETAILS: $10 cover; all ages till 10pm
FAMED POP, HIP-HOP AND MODERN PUNK PRODUCER/KEYBOARDIST RONNIE KING
LAUNCHES BLUE LABEL RECORDS ,
AN ECLECTIC INDIE LABEL DEDICATED TO BOTH QUIRKY AND MAINSTREAM ROCK ACTS
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“The Billy Preston Of His Generation,” Who Has Produced, Recorded or Toured With Mariah Carey, KC & JoJo, 2Pac, Rancid, Joykiller and Offspring,
Partners on Exciting New Venture with Veteran Band Manager Sean Couevas, Publisher Jay Warner, and Omni Entertainment
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“Amazing,” The First Single and Title Track From Laguna Beach, California Based Mainstream Rockers (and L.A. Music Awards Regional Award Winner) Ten West,
Drops To Triple AAA Radio on Halloween; The Album Hits Brick and Mortar and Digital Outlets November 14
One of the busiest, most requested (and bootlegged!) keyboardists and producers in pop, hip-hop, alternative and modern punk over the past 15 years, Ronnie King —co-founder of the currently launching L.A. based independent Blue Label Records --somewhat understates himself when he says, “Sometimes I feel like this generation's Billy Preston. Just as he was called The Fifth Beatle, I've always been the fifth guy in every band, the icing on the cake, the secret sauce, the guy who's less famous but who puts the sounds together.”
King's ever-expanding resume runs wildly eclectic, from the most mainstream of pop artists (Mariah Carey, KC & JoJo, Tyrese) to the hottest pop-thugs (2Pac, Thug Law, Coolio, Snoop Dogg protégés Eastsidaz) and the metal inflected punk of The Offspring, whom he toured with from 2003-2005. Known for his trademark sound on Analog Mini-Moog, he also toured with Rancid and was a member of L.A. punk supergroup The Joykiller.
“When I was on tour with The Offspring, I spent a lot of time talking business with (lead singer) Bryan (aka Dexter) Holland, who also owns Nitro Records,” says King. “I realized that I was giving so much away by finding and producing bands, then letting them go and hit the streets to find their fame and fortune. The idea of running a label was always in the back of my mind, and things came together quickly when I met Sean Couevas , I started producing the band Ten West , which he manages, and we decided to form the label.”
Their co-venture, Blue Label Records, launches this fall with Amazing , the first release by the Orange County, California based pop/rock band Ten West. Earlier this year, Ten West won the regional for Best Pop Band in San Diego at the L.A. Music Awards; they are currently up for Best Indie Artist of the Year for the entire competition.
Described spiritedly by Couevas, who is also their manager, as “what might happen if Dave Matthews, Matchbox 20 and Jack Johnson had a love child,” Ten West's debut will be available on download sites (via Select-O-Hits Distribution) and in stores November 14. The debut single “Amazing” ships to Triple AAA radio stations nationwide on October 31; on October 14, the band, led by lead singer Jon Ogden, is shooting a video for the song in Laguna Beach.
Prior to his involvement with King, Couevas was a five-year Air Force veteran who worked in various capacities (first selling merchandise, then tour managing, finally managing and sometimes producing) for bands like Baltimore's Can't Hang, and Long Beach's Bargain Music. While in the military, Couevas—who grew up in a very musical environment with a mother who was pals with legendary icons like Patch Adams and Wavy Gravy—created a makeshift studio in his barracks and recorded tracks for his fellow servicemen.
He first met King when King was playing keyboards for Pepper and Couevas was tour manager for their opening act, Bargain Music. They didn't collaborate, however, until Couevas was in a studio at Laguna School of Music, getting ready to record the popular Orange County based pop/rock band Ten West. King was next door, working with Nick Hernandez of Common Sense, and the sound engineer for both projects suggested that Ten West bring in an outside producer for the album.
“Ronnie loved the few tracks he heard, and our initial plan was to only do one song,” says Couevas. “But he got so into it that he immediately wanted to do the whole album. He realized Ten West would be easy to find a big audience for, so we started talking about pooling our resources and starting a label that we could launch with Ten West. Ronnie is a talented and versatile musician and producer, and he was happy to learn of my strong ear for talent, plus my ability to secure financial backing.
“Breaking Ten West is our major focus as we launch the label,” he adds. “The key to longterm success will be signing great artists and building a small core of them to give our full attention to. We want to give really good bands a good chance to get out there and do well on an independent level. The idea is to be a one stop shop for bands and musicians, taking care of everything for them, from promotion and distribution to music videos, an in-house publishing company, and of course, full scale production services by Ronnie himself.”
King's longtime publisher, Jay Warner , President of National League Music, has signed on to be Blue Label Records' resident publishing company. Quarterbacking the distribution, radio promotion and marketing efforts is Omni Entertainment, who set up the distribution deal with Select-O-Hits. Steve Pina , CEO of Omni, says, “We're looking for big things from the label and their first artist, Ten West. Ronnie King's track record in the business is unique, and we're big fans of his work with everyone from 2Pac to Offspring. We're excited to partner with such an exciting creative force. We also think that Ten West's music taps into a growing resurgence in interest in what people used to call ‘soft rock,' a trend profiled in Spin Magazine recently as a fascinating ‘Rebirth of the Uncool.' We're doing heavy radio promotion as well as interactive marketing with myspace.”
For King, who will also use Blue Label Records as a platform to release his own solo projects (his last was The Muse in 2004), the new label presents another unique challenge right off the bat: producing and marketing a band whose sound is more mainstream pop than almost all of the others he has ever worked with.
“After so many years behind the scenes, I'm really excited to be a businessman in the music business,” he says, “and I'm looking forward to using the resources I've acquired over the years to help make it happen. It's a great opportunity to finally be a player on the independent scene. It's a great idea to launch with Ten West because their appeal is so broad and their sound so strong and viable, but as the label becomes more established, who knows? I can bring in my punks and thugs, too. I love my street level music, and believe that punk and hardcore are different sides of the same coin. But we're willing to work with all sorts of artists and be as eclectic as possible.
“People like us start indie labels to create an environment where artists have the opportunity to make the music they want to make,” King adds. “We plan to bring our expertise to the entire process, from making the recordings to marketing them and sharing them with the world. I want Blue Label Records to be known as a company that deals with the music industry in an honest and integrity-driven manner.”
