Summer Recording pt. 2 and not so good news .. …. .. . . .. …

Nashville is a go and we leave for Nashville in a little over a week. We are getting pumped. Things have been coming together these past couple months. Sent off demos and scratch tracks to the studio, completed final rough draft of front album art. Work on back cover will happen soon. We have also set up a time to meet with Michael Blanton while in Nashville. He was Amy Grant and Michael W. Smiths manager. We are not looking for anything out of this meeting other than just good solid laughs and advice. We have been off doing our own things as of late so we havn’t been together as the band since the end of May. We have been writing new material on our own and when we get back together we’ll see if we can come up with any new for you guys.

That’s the good news. now for the not so great news. Our drummer, Jeff….well, he and our manager. His wife, were in a car accident on the 4th of July. A really bad car wreck that should have been lethal, but miraculously Meagen walked away with a nose bleed while Jeff sustained major cuts and bruises while also breaking his lef in 3 places. He had surgery on Monday the 6th and is at home resting and starting the road to recovery. We are just all thankful he still around with us. We did have the album art kinda set until this happened, but we decided to change it up a bit to honor the brotherhood we have as a band. It’s more than music, it is family. We will release album art shortly. Don’t you worry.

As far as Nashville, we are all hoping Jeff gets strong enough to go with us. Our studio engineer and good friend has a friend named Justin that is going to “fill” in for Jeff on the album. Good thing is that Justin is a qualified drummer. He has been listening to the demo’s and scratch tracks and will mimic and recreate Jeff’s playing in every song. good and bad times all rolled into one. keep on listening…

ciao…. www.leogoesgrrmusic.com

Summer Recording….pt.1

We are all a bit down in the dumps from not being able to jam as of late, but all is good. We three guys are looking forward to a relaxing summer, set aside specifically to record our next yet first professional studio EP. Starting Mid-July we will be in Nashville with the likes of Dan Martinie at “The Martnie Lounge” studio. We are so very pumped to be able to work with Dan, who recently just finished up on the new Mat Kearny album working as a studio assistant.

We also started the first rough drafts of the album artwork for the EP. We have the name of the EP narrowed down and are pumped about the few ideas that have been thrown out onto the table. When the time gets closer, we will sure let you know how it looks.

Leo…

Photos!

Couple weeks ago we had a blast getting some initial promo shots for the band. You know, trying to spruce up the image of our  jam creating machine. We thought we would share some of the laughs with you all.

We are getting pumped about recording next month. Spending time refining the songs so that we can give you something worth while to listen to. Thanks for all the support!

Leo…

Concerts and Friendly Handshakes

There are times when you know something is awesome.  There are moments when you get chills and you realize that what you are apart of is great, awesome, and possibly even life changing.  Even in small quiet moments you can feel excitement and revelation rushes over you that it is just the moment, it is the feeling of joy, of being truly at peace.

We played our last concert with Will on May 15th at the Overflow Building in Edmond.  (Shout out to all of the awesome OCS students that helped us out with set up and the amazing cook out before hand!)  Playing music for us is a centering experience, a truly comfortable circle to stand in.  Not that we enjoy being in the spotlight or being the center of attention.  But we find peace as we  listen to the riff shredding, bass slapping, and cymbal crashing blend into a melodic moment of levity and excitement paralleled only by gut wrenching laughter or a roller coaster’s worth of thrills.  From the highs of  Angela Darling, to the quiet serenity of Depths of the Sea, and finally the drum and guitar jam at the end of Jamie we find ourselves happy and without worry for an hour and a half of life.  Bills, taxes, pressures, and to do lists dissapear as we rock and bring joy.

As the concert ended and the last notes died down I shook Will’s hand to commemorate the event.  I got chills again, knowing it was an honor to play with someone of that caliber but also overwhelmed by sadness as that portion of our friendship had ended and it would now take on a different shape.

So for those that have been to every show, for those who have heard Difab’s catchy riffs and lyrics just once, or for those that will someday come and rock out with us at a show I say thank you.  We do this not for ourselves but for us, all of us!  You, me, and even that guy, yeah even that guy…we love making music.

Will thanks for the laughs and for playing.

Thanks to all those that made our push to Nashville show a success, we look forward to the music we will be able to make in the studio in July.  None of that would be possible without you…thanks guys.

YOU ROCK

Leo…

Sweet Hello’s and Bitter Goodbye’s

There is no easy way to go about changing something that works so well in the first place. It’s even worse when the changes come when there is nothing you can do to prevent or course correct. They are what they are.

Unfortunately, we have to say goodbye to Will our bass player since he is moving to Arkansas to chase the dream of getting a degree. This is the bitter part. Jeff and I don’t want to see him go, since he brought so much energy to the stage and laughter to dull practices. I think that the people who came to see us play only came for Will, cause he’s just so darn good looking. With him gone there so looks what so ever for us. Ha. He will be missed but both us and the fans.

The sweet part is that we will not be with out a bass player at all. Lucky duckling Joe Langer is coming up from the minors to be with us sluggers. He has some work cut out for him, learning all the songs, finding his nitch within the grooves and dishing out the sarcasm just as good as Will. We have faith…

Leo…

4 Months

It’s been about 4 months and were finally starting to gain some momentum. But, first and foremost it is all about the music, the joy of jamming with friends, and singing what the heart feels. With the handful of shows played in the last couple months, we have been labeled as a number of different things. Indie Rock, Indie Jam, “The White Stripes,” “The Decemberists,” “Kings of Leon,” or a Goodness Explosion. Whatever the stab may be, we are not too concerned with being labeled. It’s just music and hopefully darn good music at that. Our tracks and style, well, it is what it is. It’s what we are good at and it’s what we will do. If you like it, dandy!, if not, thanks for at least giving it a listen.

Thanks to all those who have brought us this far and for sending us even further.

Leo…

Leo Goes Grr… Magazine Article

We were interviewed a ways back and the interview has been submitted to Artbeat Magazine. Below is the interview written by Blair Waltman. Enjoy. Leo

Blair Waltman
1-31-09
Leo Goes Grr—submitted to artbeat magazine

It’s hard being the new band. You play an insane amount of shows for small crowds and smaller money, while still trying to find time to write new music, look for more shows, squeeze in band practice, and did we mention this is all probably on top of a regular day job? Starting is not an easy gig. But Leo Goes Grr… is off to a promising start. Mixing folksy flow with the harder rock riffs and playing their first major show Saturday night at the Sweet Surrender Benefit Concert at Oklahoma City’s Conservatory, the group looks like it might survive it’s own opening act.
Manned by Anthony DiFabio, Will Chesher, and Jeff Smith, Leo Goes Grr…has only graced existence since last November, although they’re not complete strangers.
“We’ve been in different bands in the last four years together, through college,” Smith said, motioning to himself and DiFabio.
“Will, he’s kind of come on in November,” added DiFabio. “He was kind of the spur for the change. It’s been very good, very uplifting.”
Also uplifting? The influences for this trio. Drawing from musical forces like Damien Rice, This Will Destroy You, and scores of instrumental tunes, Leo Goes Grr…presents a fun, moving sound that touches on different aspects of life.
“Some of the songs are about girls, some are about our family, some are about different shows on TV,” DiFabio explained, and he’s not kidding. Their song “Reno” is actually based on the now-defunct series “Arrested Development,” hitting on what they so aptly call the Michael-Marta complex. All this is balanced on steady drum beats, charged riffs, and DiFabio’s subversively bittersweet voice. “He’ll write the first part of the lyrics,” Smith explained, talking about DiFabio, the band’s resident lyricist. “Then we’ll just sit around on the floor together, talk and laugh until we figure out ‘Oh, that’s actually really good.’ Then go from there.”
‘Going from there’ has already amassed itself in the form of an EP titled “OK Joe DiMaggio,” six tracks of music recorded sans studio at live shows, done in the heart of indie style: low budget and self-produced.
So what big goals lay ahead of this fledging band?
“I don’t know if building a name has even been an issue,” said DiFabio. “It’s just friends getting together and playing music.”
If nothing else, you have to respect this band for having the purest form of musical passion. It’s not about the cash flow; they play because they love it.
Smith stated, “I’m never more at peace than when I’m just playing with people…there’s no stress to it, it’s just fun.”
With a musical mindset and a rock-meets-folk sound, this fresh group straight from the inner workings of OKC has potential to become something great. Fans of good new music, keep your ears open for Leo Goes Grr…

Snaps of Shots!