Bryan Mangieri

Ra Ra Riot thrust itself upon the Syracuse, N.Y., music scene as somewhat of an anomaly. The indie-rock group formed over winter break and lined up a show at a Syracuse University architecture ball in January 2006 before it had even gathered together for a single practice, violinist Rebecca Zeller said. LOCAL SHOWS ACCLAIM “A […]

Despite signing a publishing deal and moving to Nashville, Tenn., in 2006, Luke Dick hasn’t broken ties with the band he left behind. Returning to the state a few times a year, the singer/songwriter occasionally rejoins Oklahoma City’s Redbud Revival, reuniting the roots-rock band’s original lineup.  Although only together for two proper albums ” “Sweet […]

Nada Surf emerged in 1996 when alternative rock ruled the airwaves with the ironic ode to high school, “Popular.” The band found a modest hit in the song, but trends changed a few years later, and Nada Surf lost favor alongside power-pop counterparts like Fastball and Superdrag. However, the trio endured, releasing four albums since […]

Illinois grunge band Local H will play in Oklahoma City Friday. Although it would seem easy to dismiss the duo as such, Local H is far more than a one-hit wonder. Sure, the group may be best known for its alternative-rock hit of the late Nineties, “Bound for the Floor,” a song which elevated the […]

Illinois rock band Deconstructing Jim has two sides: ” one that displays a knack for catchy, uplifting numbers to hum along to, and ” the other, which wants to pull the listener beneath, into the dangerous undertow. Vocalist and guitarist Jeff Julian explained how the band operates as a unit despite having two singers and […]

Perhaps if not for the tough times, Slow Car Crash front man Omarr Escoffie’ still would be singing about wizards and dragons. The Los Angeles musician joked that his first song attempt featured that type of imagery due in part, he said, to influences by bands like Iron Maiden. But Escoffie’ reaped the rewards of […]

Rock ‘n’ roll just might save a language that is in danger of dying out. The man that made this part of his mission is American Indian recording artist and Grammy winner Robert Mirabal. “In the Blood,” his 12th release, features songs in English as well as Tiwa, the indigenous language of Mirabal and his […]

The eclectic, roots-rock-flavored music of Derek James takes style notes from singer/songwriters like Jack Johnson and John Mayer, and rings of rock ‘n’ roll bands like Coldplay. Interestingly enough, most of his new album “Stray” was written in the basement of a family’s home in a New York City suburb, where James worked as a […]