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Everyone's talking about Talking to Walls...
After four records in as many years, Talking to Walls has evolved, as Play Magazine has described, into the "world's first coffeehouse arena punk band." After a couple of years of slugging it out in a variety of venues around the country as a soloist, singer/guitarist Brian Kelly found himself landing third place in a competition at the esteemed Downtown in Long Island, New York, amid a showcase of full bands. The 2006 release of "Naked" finds Talking to Walls solidified into a band with drummer Matt Krupa (cousin of the late Gene Krupa, the pioneering drummer for Benny Goodman), bassist Peter Shindler and guitarist Mike Puccio. What started as a solo project now finds four individuals contributing to a common vision. The Waterbury Republican-American said that "listening to Talking to Walls is like peeling back layers of paint. Inch by inch, one finds a past. The influences ...(are) like a Who's Who of late 20th century rock."
The songwriting is the kind that keeps you up at night with headphones on - but only after being on your feet at the sweat-drenched live show. "Loose, quick-tempo chord progressions recall the sloppy splendor of The Replacements; quieter moments bring to mind a more mature Dashboard Confessional," continues the Play Magazine article. Or, as the New Haven Register described, "Talking to Walls makes Cure-influenced pop songs laden with dark charm." Despite the heavy, emotional musical influences, the band is not above admitting (and occasionally covering) the music they grew up to - 80's hair metal and pop. Talking to Walls makes artistic integrity fun.
What is causing the media attention surrounding Talking to Walls, including three full-page feature articles and more the week it was released in their hometown? Mastered at the same studio as David Bowie & Nirvana, "Naked" boasts of seven "well-constructed rockers" (Hartford Courant) which have garnered the band consistent airplay and press. "(Naked) charges out of the gates with "Cut Out", a tune with a simple yet effective guitar part, propulsive drumming, a smooth dynamic build...bursts into a coda that actually feels like it belongs..." (New Haven Advocate). One track, "You walked across a field of dandelions," was re-recorded from their previous album, and "...goes through a complete transformation, replacing an engaging, yet solemn and stark tune with a keenly arranged, multidimensional epic." (The Register).
The album caused producers at MTV in late 2006 to come, unsolicited, looking for material for their shows in development, gained Kelly an endorsement with Godin Guitars, and the band a sponsorship with Spectraflex Cables for their video for "Cut Out".
With a schedule planned to keep them busy playing and promoting along the East Coast and beyond, Talking to Walls will be committed to the vows of poverty and chastity that go along with being an unknown touring band...
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