Local band 24-7 Rocks releases CD
|
“We like to think we might go somewhere,” said guitarist and lead singer Kenny Knight. “We know it’s a long shot, but you might as well have that frame of mind. What’s the use of thinking otherwise?”
The group released its first CD earlier this year, a self-titled, five-song CD which contains all original material. The CD’s Southern rock flavor has a harder edge, sort of a combination of Lynyrd Skynyrd and Kiss. It’s no surprise those are two of the bands Knight says have been major influences.
With the budding success of their CD recorded in January, 24-7 Rocks has been playing at a variety of Midstate clubs. And there are many more to come.
“We’re already got seven gigs lined up right now,” said Knight, who indicated the band is playing at C.J.’s Cantina in Summitville this Saturday night. “We’ve got a lot of offers right now. It’s to the point where the clubs are calling us.”
About two months ago, 24-7 played locally at W.T.’s Place. They’ve also played clubs in Smyrna, Nashville, Tullahoma and Murfreesboro, to name a few.
“You can play Bob Seger all night long and get people to dance,” said Knight. “But to get them to dance to your own stuff, that’s something special.”
Playing music is nothing new for the band which includes drummer Benji St. John, keyboardist John T. Cunningham and bass player Damon Lewis, who just joined the group about a month ago when the former bass player quit. Most of the members have been playing for at least 15 years.
“I played my first club when I was 15,” said St. John, now 27. “The only reason I got in the door was because I was with the band.”
Cunningham has played with bands up and down the East Coast, dabbling in country and pop music in those days. He said life on the road is not the glamorous lifestyle it may appear when your pay from one show is just enough to get you to the next. Cunningham, now an employee at Quality Tool in Woodbury, still hopes his big break is coming, but also realizes it may not.
“We haven’t quit our day jobs,” said Cunningham.
As for the future, 24-7 Rocks hopes to have a full-length CD recorded this winter. The band has distributed hundreds of copies of its inaugural CD, which band members consider a success.
“As for the first CD, we like it and we’ve accepted it,” said Knight. “Our next project we hope will be more laid back with a little more time.”
The first CD took about 24 hours to record at Mix-Fix Studios, a Murfreesboro-based company. At $40 a hour for studio time, the CD cost some $3,000.
When recording studio songs, the first thing that’s finalized is the drum track. The band played each of its songs until St. John hit his beats perfectly. Then he was free to leave. The remaining members then played along to St. John’s already recorded drum track to finish the recording.
As for writing original music, Knight said it can be a painstaking process, or it can be easy.
“Sometimes it can take 15 minutes,” said Knight on writing songs. “Other times I might write a little bit, put it away, and then write a little more. Sometimes someone will say something that will trigger me to think about the song and I’ll write a few more lines.”
Cunningham makes sure to record everything the band does during Tuesday night practices which take place at his house.
“You never know when you might get a good lick,” Cunningham said.
The band says the target date is sometime in November for studio work on its next CD.