Mathew Parnell
Eye Rock Article
Standfirst
Eye Rock Article
Standfirst
Pretentious or just seeing into the future, Distortion takes a look at a young and upcoming band “Eye Rock”.
A four piece band from Liverpool, Eye Rock, consisting of lead guitarist David Short, bass player Jonny Tyler, lead singer Lewis Judge and drummer Danny Quinn, formed in 2008, and are currently hoping to set the world alight with their debut album later this year. “All Ages” is set to be released on the 2nd June 2011 but many of their singles have already been released on iTunes; their first EP will be available to download online in the very near future. Playing in simply a few local pubs and bars, it is certain that the band will definitely be taking the next step and soon performing worldwide in years to come. Their music will be found in all top music stores under the rock genre but unlike most rock bands, these young boys, who have grown up together, seem to have a certain twist about them - their cheeky yet dark sense of humour. When I interviewed the band, they were in the process of writing an additional song to their album, showing their hard working attitude and proving they have heaps of potential.
Eye Rock’s target audience is roughly between 16-30 years old due to their strong and enticing lyrics, influenced by past experiences in their lives, such as the song “Here Without You”. Written by David Short, this song concerns the emotional passing of his grandfather – an unfortunate event that not only affected David but also the other members of the band. Despite the increasing success of their music, the four boys still consider education to be vital and study at various colleges: “We try to practice most days but with college work it can sometimes be a challenge.” Here, Lewis Judge expresses how focused the band is to further develop and expand their music, whilst keeping on top of the obstacles that schoolwork and A-levels can sometimes bring. When asked what their ultimate dream venue would be to play in, Jonny Tyler informed me of his desire to play, or even headline, Glastonbury: “There have been a number of top quality bands that have been lucky enough play at Glastonbury. To be seen as talented enough to be up there with them would be unreal.” Just by listening to the bass player, you could really feel the passion and determination in his voice to get to that stage of success. Four teenagers releasing an album is an incredible achievement that not many 16-17 year olds will have the chance to experience. The youngest member, Danny Quinn, who has only just turned 16, excitedly stated: “It feels amazing to know that your hard work and commitment to music is paying off, and, of course, the money is an added bonus!” With just under a year to wait for their highly anticipated album, there is still much work to be done, but it is widely predicted to be one of the biggest selling debut albums of the summer.
The group of best friends first attracted attention when they met up during the previous summer, putting together a music video for their own song “Glass Vase”. After the immensely positive response gained from uploading this piece to YouTube, the boys were encouraged to continue to produce and upload amateur music videos and recordings. With YouTube being an incredibly popular website worldwide, Lewis explains why the group decided to show off their talents online: “Uploading the majority of our songs onto YouTube gave us a larger, more varied, audience. So many people have reached fame through the site, but our reasoning behind it was so that there would be a wider appreciation for our music.” YouTube provides an extra platform to receive both praise and constructive criticism which would help to further improve the band, and many stars, such as Justin Bieber or Jessie J, have found sensational success through uploading videos of their music.
Eye Rock’s main inspiration is the American rock band, Green Day. Danny explained that this is because “Green Day told it how it was, and they weren’t phased by fame and we learned a lot from their songs. I hope that one day we will inspire a group the way that they have inspired us.” The boys feel that music is a fantastic outlet to express emotions and feelings, and that this was a great motivation for them to form a group and produce music. It was lucky for the four friends to each have a talent that makes them unique to the band.
“My dad had played guitar since he was a teenager, and has been teaching me to play from the early age of about 8 years old,” David announced. “It’s so important to take part in something you enjoy – otherwise you won’t be motivated enough to give it your best shot. I love playing guitar, and I couldn’t imagine anything more exhilarating than working with my 3 best friends.”
It is certainly clear that each individual member of the band is passionate about music. In the future, the boys explain that realistically, they believe they have the potential to support similar, more established bands, like the Foo Fighters, as well as making appearances at smaller festivals such as Wakestock. However, they feel that, given the right opportunities, they could succeed beyond this, possibly holding their own arena tour. “There’s no point in limiting our goals. We need to have dreams in order to keep us aiming that little bit higher each time. We’re allowed to be a little unrealistic. Someone has to headline Glastonbury – why can’t it be us?”
