Poets & Pornstars Announce New Singer

POETS & PORNSTARS ANNOUNCE NEW SINGER:

July 30, 2008

Another day of utmost importance has arrived! Today you meet the new singer of Poets & Pornstars!

But first, a brief reprise from our last newsletter:

As most of you know we began this year in search of the one person, male or female, who could become the new voice of Poets & Pornstars. To say we found our search “challenging” would be an understatement.

During our quest we spared no expense, left no stone unturned, and left no bottle of anxiety-alleviating alcohol un-drunk. ALL of this in an effort to bring ourselves and you THE individual best suited to carry on what we had started and to help manifest our new musical vision. To that end, we feel we more than succeeded.

LADIES AND GENTELEMEN, LOVERS AND DIEHARDS, SEX NINJAS ONE AND ALL, WE ASK THAT YOU PLEASE JOIN US IN WELCOMING…MR. JEREMY ARIC!

To suggest that Jeremy Aric was “Born to Rock” might at first seem yet another attempt at Rock n’ Roll boast and bluster. But a closer look at the singer-guitarist’s background reveals a life defined by a passion for music and an undying dream.

The child of a musician mother and audiophile father, Jeremy developed a fascination with music at an early age. He spent most of his youth perusing and plundering his parents’ music library, usually without their guidance…or awareness. “Whenever my parents would go out, I would blast the stereo with records from their collection: old 45 singles from the 50’s and their 33’s of The Beatles, Hendrix, The Mamas and The Papas, The Who, the Grease soundtrack, many others.”

With each passing year it became evident that music would play a more significant than normal role in Jeremy’s life. “I started writing songs when I was eight. I didn’t know anything about ‘making music’ then, so I would use my Mom’s typewriter and write words to the melodies I heard in my head.”

But it wasn’t until he discovered a single special song that he knew for certain he would devote his life to creating music: “Before I started playing guitar I was a really frustrated little kid. I had an awful temper, smashing video game controllers and stuff like that. But one day I heard Guns n’ Roses ‘Patience,’ and I was mesmerized. It was then that I decided I wanted to play guitar. From that moment on I knew what I wanted to do.”

As Jeremy’s skill on the guitar grew, so did the depth and breadth of his musical interests and influences. From Jane’s Addiction and Seattle’s “Grunge” scene to Bach and Debussy, Miles and Coltrane to Classic Rock and even the Wu Tang Clan, Jeremy allowed his ears to absorb every sound they would. His openness to all music would serve him well when songwriting began to matter the most.

Aric’s high school and college years, spent studying guitar privately and performing live locally, culminated in his earning a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts degree in Classical Guitar from the University of Wisconsin. But family and musical ties were not enough to keep the Chicago native from leaving the Midwest. “A voice inside me kept telling me to move to LA. It just felt like the place for me, like that was the place where it would happen. As for the voice, it wasn’t exactly like ‘If you build it they will come.’ Just every time I thought about it, something inside me said ‘Go to LA.’ So, I listened.”

Upon his arrival in Los Angeles, Jeremy secured a job at a recording studio. But it wasn’t long before he realized: “I wanted to be on the other side of the glass, MAKING the music, FULL-TIME.”

Despite enjoying some success playing guitar and singing backup in several bands, and in fronting a band he founded, Jeremy’s career eventually stalled. “ALL I knew at that point was that I had to keep going with music.” After finishing a short tour as a sideman, Jeremy was informed by his ex-bandmate and good friend Eric that his friends Poets & Pornstars were looking for a new lead singer. Jeremy knew of Poets and had been looking for an opportunity to sing lead again in a band.

In an ironic twist that even screenwriters who draw their stories and inspiration directly from the Sunset Strip couldn’t dream up, Jeremy had already auditioned for Poets one year to the month BEFORE they would ask him to join their band.

In the Spring of 2007, Jeremy’s friend and then current bandmate, the aforementioned Eric, married Poets super-fan, Alex. At the reception, Alex requested an impromptu performance from Jeremy. Only too happy to grant the wedding-day wish of his good friend’s new bride, Jeremy obliged.

What Jeremy DIDN’T KNOW was that the Poets were in attendance at the very same wedding. And his performance was not lost on them. Dave recalls: “I remember watching this guy stroll confidently to the front of the party, pick up an acoustic guitar, and proceed to knock everyone dead with rousing renditions of The Beatles ‘Oh, Darling’ and a second song he had composed himself. And I remember asking myself ‘Who IS this guy?!'”

Needless to say, when it came time to choose a new singer, none of the Poets had any problem recollecting the day Jeremy played “Wedding Singer” and blew everyone away. They still requested and received a formal audition, but when they had found out originally that Jeremy was available, it was already a done deal.

WE WILL SEE YOU AT THE ROXY ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 8TH!

Courtesy of www.eonline.com