
RadioSLCC, Salt Lake Community College’s student-run online radio station, hosted a star-bound hard rock band from Seattle, WA on March 26 called The Adarna, for a special live interview and tour of the Center for Arts and Media (CAM) music recording and television broadcast studios at the South City Campus.
The interview was the inaugural episode for the serial talk show “Master Insights, The Creative Spirit,” that airs Wednesdays from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and is hosted by Michael Hawker.
“[The Adarna] were great. One of the best interviews I have ever hosted,” says DJ personality and co-host “Cinders” (Cindi Hunter). Cinders has formerly produced radio shows and worked with well-established radio personalities Doug Fabrizio and Doug Wright in the past.
The Adarna were in Utah for four performances last week, including stops in Salt Lake, Ogden and Logan, and part of a larger 2014 national college campus tour that will ultimately lead the band to the east coast this summer and a return through the intermountain states. Their return trip back to Seattle might bring them again to Salt Lake at the end of September or early October.
Four members of the five-member band visited RadioSLCC to share their insights as musicians for the station’s listening audience. Will Moore (the band’s frontman and lead vocal), Jeremiah Hazel (bass guitar), Murdock (drum) and Neal Winter (guitar), who most recently joined the band for their current tour, all appeared on air.
The fifth, Andrea Jasek (guitar), one of the original founding members, did not make the interview in hopes of recovering from an acute case of bronchitis that worsened following the band’s prior night’s performance at The Dawg Pound in Salt Lake City. Her recovery, aided by emergency room treatment at an area hospital, was enough to perform later that night at Mojo’s in Ogden.
“We had a round of mild bronchitis going around,” says Murdock.
“Because we are a band, we share everything,” added Moore.
The Adarna, is a phoenix-like mythical songbird from Filipino folklore.
Everything they do in managing the band, from song-writing to relations with media, is carefully considered and given utmost professionalism.
“[The Adarna were subject to] the rather infamous ‘YouTube Screw’, where their video for their single ‘Sugar’ was taken down for getting 20,000 hits in a week; a move [made] because the band was wrongfully accused of using spamware to generate numbers, and no band like them could have that many hits, according to YouTube,” says R.G.B. Robb, a Salt Lake City-based music beat writer in attendance for the radio interview.
“[The Adarna] got so large on their own, it caused a big stink,” says Robb.
Robb points out, however, that despite the mixture of setbacks and successes, it is these experiences that allow the band’s character to shine through.
“The Adarna are dedicated to remain true to their music, their roots and not [allow themselves] to becoming a rock cliché,” says Robb.
The Adarna offered advice and tips for student musicians who may dream of becoming nationally successful. Open communication and critical review, giving space to reflect internally and allowing each person a voice to express are key factors, as is spending time together socially without talk about music, evenings they term “band nights.”
“A lot of bands don’t study themselves,” says Moore.
“We will be in rehearsal and something isn’t going right, and we know who it is; we point it out right away,” says Murdock.
The Adarna label their brand of hard rock music “Jet City Rock,” in homage to the supersonic image of Seattle, known for being a center for aircraft production.
“We all got together, and of course, we are all passionate about music, and all from very different backgrounds, but we wanted to play rock music, and that’s really hard to describe. There are all these different genres, and everyone is dialed in. What I wanted was just something to call it. It was different to me—I don’t know if that comes across,” says bassist Hazel.
“We decided to just make a style of music that just makes a lot of sense to us, and we needed to put a name to it because we weren’t seeing anybody else doing it,” says vocalist Moore.
Their music is edgy and pounds with high energy, yet remains melodic, tight, and palatable for both intelligent listening and broad radio play. Those who enjoy hard rhythmic guitar riffs get plenty as well. Their energy is transferred to their on-stage performance, adding what they call a very “interactive” connection to their audience.
“Ideally, the whole room should be the stage, and I want everyone involved,” says Hazel.
One recent change was expanding The Adarna’s original four-person lineup to five, by adding Winter for more guitar play. The addition allowed Moore more room to sing freely around the stage, connecting with audience members and shift his guitar playing to Winter. In turn, Winter has quickly become a positive addition for The Adarna.
“The point was to release The Adarna 2.0; more dancing, less me playing guitar, more someone else playing guitar,” says Moore. “It was something we all thought about over the winter break…in being objective [about us].”
“I’ve been in Salt Lake City for 17 years,” says Robb. “[The Adarna] quite honestly provide one of the best live shows for the range and area they are at right now.”
Following the on-air interview, The Adarna toured some of the special studio facilities of the CAM. Stephen Sue, who instructs the Music Recording Technology program, led the group through the music recording studio, control room and the film viewing and editing theater. Tyler Smith, who instructs television broadcast and video production program in the Communication program, guided the group into the Mass Communication Center’s [MCC] MCC-TV control room.
Look to the online Globe edition and MCC-TV, as well as RadioSLCC, for full interview casts. For The Adarna music, videos, products and tour information, please visit www.theadarna.com.
Funny!
No actually, from left to right is RGB Robb (music correspondent), Will (The Adarna vocalist), “Cinders” (Cindi Hunter, Master Insights’ co-host), “M.C. Hawk” (Michael Hawker, Master Insights’ host and RadioSLCC disc jockey), Murdock (The Adarna drummer), Neil (The Adarna guitarist), and Jeremiah (The Adarna bassist). Everyone is standing in the SLCC Music Recording Studio at the Center for Arts and Media, South City Campus.
I think that might be Heisenberg.
Who is the guy in the hat??? Is he the band manager???
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