Fate has served I WAS TOTALLY DESTROYING IT well. The members of the 5-piece power-pop band from Chapel Hill, NC found each other searching for a new creative outlet as all their previous bands were imploding at precisely the same moment. Determined to try something different, these veterans of North Carolina indie rock acts like Sorry About Dresden and Strunken White embraced their love of 70's icons such as Tom Petty and Elvis Costello, 80's new wave artists such as The Cure and Kate Bush, and 90's stalwarts like Superchunk and That Dog - and founded the hook-heavy IWTDI Rock Machine. Dueling lead vocalists and songwriters Rachel Hirsh and John Booker harmonize lyrics that belie the sweet, sunny suggestions of their upbeat melodies, inviting you to listen in on their conversations about self-loathing, fear, and intimacy. Backed by a powerful rhythm section (drummer James Hepler and bassist Joe Mazzitelli), and the soaring lead guitars of Curtis Armstead, I Was Totally Destroying It have yet to slow down in the nearly 5 years since the band's inception.

Prolific as they are driven, to date, IWTDI have released 3 full length albums (2007's S/T, 2009's Horror Vacui, 2011's Preludes), 2 EP's (2008's Done Waiting, 2009's The Beached Margin - collected on a limited edition 12") and a 7" single (2010's Get Big), which includes a towering cover of their favorite song from the 1980's: "In A Big Country" by Big Country. Immediately following the release of Preludes in April 2011, IWTDI migrated to Minneapolis, MN to record Vexations at the legendary Flowers Studio with producers Joshua Cain (from Motion City Soundtrack. Credits include: Metro Station, Sing It Loud) & Ed Ackerson (from Polara. Credits include The Jayhawks, The Replacements). Vexations, 12 brooding yet beautiful compositions, is new territory for the group- a pseudo-concept album loosely based around Stephen King's Dark Tower series. The band is calling it their best work to date, with lyricists Booker and Hirsh tapping King's epic adventure for inspiration and context and using it to convey stories and emotions relative to their own lives. The music twists and turns in new directions as well- the band fully harnessing their moodier, gothic tendencies and even winking at unexpected inspirations such as Cocteau Twins and Brian Eno -but never abandoning their previous pop sensibilities.

With a handful of national and regional tours under their belts, IWTDI show no signs of letting up anytime soon. Having shared the stage with Motion City Soundtrack on multiple occasions, as well as other highlights such as playing the grand opening of the Raleigh Amphitheater with The Connells in front of 4,000+ attendees, performing as the main support for Joan Jett in 2009 in front of 15,000+, and shows with some of their biggest influences- Superchunk, The Get Up Kids, Cursive, Thursday, Conor Oberst, Polvo, Billy Bragg - I Was Totally Destroying It have become a seasoned, pitch-perfect live act. They hope to see you in your town soon.

Other accolades include "Come Out, Come Out", from the album Horror Vacui, being featured prominently in a massive television ad campaign by Vivo, Bazil's largest cell phone service provider, in 2010; performing to a capacity crowd at the Team Clermont 2011 SXSW showcase; appearing on Guided By Voices tribute album, Sing For Your Meat, alongside The Flaming Lips, Thurston Moore, Crooked Fingers, Elf Power, Superdrag, and more; Being named one of The News & Observer's Great 8 of 2008; Onion AV Club's list of "Memorable Band Names; The Independent Weekly's "Best Songs Of The Year" 3 years in a row; The Daily Tar Heel naming Horror Vacui the second best NC album of 2009 (behind The Love Language), and more.

So far in 2012, IWTDI have seen two exclusive features from Alternative Press, performed again at Austin's SXSW music festival, licensed songs for television spots and a handful of independent films, and had their music video "Control" featured on MTV.com, as well as in rotation on The Cool TV network. All of this leading up to a very busy summer/fall touring in promotion of Vexations, due 8.21.12.

The Company We Keep was born between analog memories and digital realities. Members, Brian Southall (The Receiving End of Sirens), Justin Pierre (Motion City Soundtrack), Branden Morgan (Misery Signals) and newly added singer Haden Brightwell, come together from all over the country to create this signature sound. Using modern technology as a voice, "TCWK" blends a mixture of glitch drums, warm synths, and haunting pianos with a wall of distorted guitars, massive drums, and a powerful voice.
Following the release of their 2012 EP, as part of the Making Moves 7" series (Mad Dragon Music), TCWK embarked on on two tours which included the Alternative Press Showcase at South By Southwest, select dates on the Vans Warped Tour and a some dates in support of Armor For Sleep in conjunction with their reunion/farewell tour.
Following the tours, the band added new lead singer Haden Brightwell. Haden rounded up the line up perfectly, and added a new dimension to the core sound of the band. Morgan added "Haden brought a new life to this band. She has a style and charisma that is infectious, and she has the voice that we needed to drive us to a new level".

With 3 members dispersed around the Midwest, and now introducing Alabama native Haden Brightwell, The Company We Keep are all but conventional in their approach to creating a song. Southall has spent the last 2 years emailing ideas back and forth with Pierre and Morgan, leading up to February of this year. The members came together in Milwaukee to mold their ideas into a finished product in preparation for their debut LP.
Brian Southall sums up Justin Pierre's contribution to the project nicely: "Justin is an integral part of everything that makes up this band. He and I write every song together. We wish he could join us for the live show, but that can't be the reality since we plan to tour full-time and he clearly already has a full-time band!"

TCWK will move into Flowers Studio in Minneapolis, MN in March to begin tracking with producer Ed Ackerson. "Ed was a pretty easy choice for us. He definitely understands the sound we hope to achieve", said Southall. "He already has roots in that world to teach us an even better way to pull it all together".

The Record's story is one of growth and adaptation. Starting as a home recording project in fall 2010 in Carrboro, NC, The Record released The Things You Can't Forget in May 2011 and played local and regional shows as a two-piece acoustic act in summer 2011. Half a dozen lineup changes later, The Record flipped the minimalist acoustic approach on it's head, reappearing in April 2012 as a five-piece group with two guitars, bass, keys and drums. Shortly after, they released their sophomore effort, Party Monster, in June 2012 and continued to play regionally in support.

The fall of 2012 saw The Record release their third EP, Seirenes, and shift to a four piece lineup. The current lineup -- Sean Spollen (vocals/guitar), Tyler Drake (bass), Will Hendrick (vocals/keys) and Robbie Duncan (drums) -- is playing tighter than ever before. Drake's straight-ahead rock bass style meshes perfectly with drummer Robbie Duncan's hard-hitting style, never straying too far from Duncan's bass drum foot. The band also took the opportunity to incorporate dueling lead vocals by Spollen and Hendrick, who harmonize and exchange lines. The Record still delivers their unique blend of 60's pop, blues, rock, and punk in an indie rock package, but they've also found a slightly heavier edge.

The Record has been featured on 88.1 WKNC Local Beat, NBC 17's Sessions at Studio B, UNC's Resound Magazine, New Music Inferno, and Indie Rock Playlist.