12/23/11

Hey friends. So 2011, the slowest year for our band is finally about to wrap up. Christmas is in a couple of days and we've survived the whirlwind of 2011. 2012 should be a bit more productive for the band, as we'll be writing our 2nd full length album and releasing the new Kickstarter funded 7" titled GIRLS (more on that later).

The new album is going to be interesting because we should be trying some new things sonically. Will we be the same band in sound? More than likely yes. You'll probably get a more drastic flavor of hardcore though. Think loud thumping cave man punk rock. Hardcore for adults if you will. And things are bound to be different as the band line-up is and will be completely different. Danny Baeza (is now playing drums) and Aaron Chabak (is now playing bass guitar) in the band.
We've already played live with this line-up and well, we smoke. It's a good fit and we're more than happy to have the guys join us in this war we won't win.

What happened to Josh and Colby (the other guys)? Well, Josh went ahead and started his own business. Offically, I'd say it's a markerting business. They help other businesses get things printed (promotional items, custom office supplies, etc). Also, Josh is getting married pretty soon now so life's going to be busy for him.

Although this band isn't a full time band and we honestly don't spend every waking hour thinking or working on the band, it does take up some time and some money to be in a band this size. So, it was time for Josh to bid us his farewell.

And as for Colby, he just got married and is in school and working. Pretty much the same thing. Time is precious (and money) and it was just his time to step away. The 2 we're sure will more than likely fill in someday in their respective spots (or record with us again in one capacity or another) but now as it stands, Vultures United is Richy Verdugo, Danny Baeza, Aaron Chabak and Jordan Salazar.

A little bit about the new guys: Danny actually drummed for one of the 1st bands Richy and Jordan were ever in, which was an early version of Vultures United called Grave For The Fireflies (they released a full length titled "Bitten" on Basement Records), which can be found in our online store for $5 (booyah!)
Danny also is the current drummer for Fiction Reform and is one of the first drummers for Bullet Treatment (you'll hear him on the stellar "What More Do You Want" album. Funny enough, before Grave For The Fireflies Danny actually was the drummer for Richy's first band Cut Shallow. Look that shit up! He's been in other bands but we're too lazy to write about them.

Aaron Chabak is normally a guitar player (he's playing bass with us for now) and currently plays guitar for Fiction Reform. He was also in some other bands (and played drums) but we don't remember which ones. Sorry Aaron.

Back to the new record: We're hoping to get it recorded over the summer with a release in November 2012. Right before the end of the world. Wouldn't that be great? It's going to be special for a lot of reasons. Unfortunately you won't find out specifically why until closer to the release date. BUT, to hear where we'll be headed in sound, you may want to checkout the GIRLS EP when it finally comes out. Hopefully that'll be out in the Summer.

We literally will be getting together as a band for the 2nd time to go over the songs and start constructing them. For those of you not in the know, GIRLS is going to be a 7"/Cassette/Digital release which was funded through people who like our band via Kickstarter. The album will also come out in retail stores but inititally, Kickstarter contributers will be getting it on different color variations and waaay earlier than the rest of the world. The EP will not feature any original songs by us. All are cover songs orginally performed by female singers. Should be interesting.

ONLINE STORE: Well, from August to December we had almost everything in the store for a whopping $5. Right now, all prices and inventory is 100% correct (everything's at regular price now). If you bought stuff from us (over the site or at shows), we thank you. We realize we're super low on designs and stock, so we'll be getting a couple t-shirts and probably a hoodie of some sort made in the near future.

Also, keep in mind that in October, for The Fest (10), Kiss Of Death Records released a new EP by us called TO LIVE AND DIE IN GAINESVILLE. We sold out of these suckers pretty fast but we just got some more on colored vinyl. The colors are Green, Aqua Green, Sky Blue, Purple and Moss Green. They're all pretty sweet looking. If you're interested, they're $5 each in the online store.

TOP 10's:

So, we asked eachother what our Top 10 favorite albums of the year were.

Here's what we all said:

Aaron:
Nothington "Borrowed Time" (Red Scare Industries)

Danny:
Nothington "Borrowed Time" (Red Scare Industries)

Richy:
Never answered but we're guessing Nothington "Borrowed Time" (Red Scare Industries) and 400 Blows "Sickness And Health" (Org Music)

*note Aaron and Danny only wanted Nothington on their lists. THAT'S NOT A MISTAKE.

Music nerd Jordan:
1. 400 Blows – Sickness & Health (Org Music)
2. Obits – Moody, Standard And Poor (Sub Pop Records)
3. Retox – Ugly Animals (Ipecac Recordings / Three One G)
4. Nothington – Borrowed Time (Red Scare Industries)
5. The Black Lips – Arabia Mountain (Vice Records)
6. Fucked Up – David Comes To Life (Matador Records)
7. Joyce Manor (6131 Records)
8. Ratasucia – White Noise Pollution (Asian Man Records)
9. Screeching Weasel – First World Manifesto (Fat Wreck Chords)
10. Hunx & His Punx – Too Young To Be In Love (Hardly Art)
REGARDING SHOWS: We probably won't be playing shows until February or March. We'd like to get through this GIRLS record before it hits the 1 year anniversary of people contributing the money to us. So that is goal #1. We do want to play more out of town shows in the Summer though (or earlier). So keep your eyes peeled out for that.

That's it for now. We hope you all have a safe and happy new years and other holidays and thanks for supporting our little band. Be good to eachother.

Listen to:
Crazy & The Brains, Sharks, Post Teens, Young Governor, Omegas, The White Wires, Heavy Cream, Nothington, Summer Vacation, Peach Kelli Pop, Mountain Man, Ratasucia, Black God and Leather.

Love,
VULTURES UNITED