BIOGRAPHY:
From the beginning Awaking the Fallen has refused to fall into the clichés, and mundane, played out music. They simply will not play by anybodies rules but their own when it comes to their writing. Though they started out and strive to be a solid hard rock band they have ventured outside the boundaries of their genre many times, recording several acoustic songs, and a few club remixes. With every release you can see and hear the transformation and growth that this band has gone through over the last few years.
Awaking the Fallen was started when Jesse Girardi (guitars) showed up for an audition with vocalist’s (Alex Downs) current project. The two had a good chemistry together and decided to leave that project to explore other avenues for their musical abilities. After a few failed projects and short hiatus from playing music the pair reunited in early 2005 to start a new project. In their search for a drummer they came across Kevin Kerr, the rhythmic juggernaut who had just gotten back from a short tour with his former band and was looking for a new challenge. The three rapidly started writing new material, practicing for days on end. A few months later they brought in the services of Brendon Mone to play bass for project. In early 2006 they entered Villain Recording Studio to record a six song EP which they entitled the “Heartbreak? EP”. Unhappy with the way the recording turned out the group booked a month at Minds Eye Digital Recording Studio (voted best studio in Phoenix in 1996 and 2007, the only two years the award was offered) and began writing some more songs to complete a full length record. On October 4, 2006 they went into Minds Eye to lay down the tracks for “Heartbreak?” (their first full length album). On May 5, 2007 they released it to a packed club in Tempe, AZ. Though the group was happy with release they knew they we capable of producing much better music and they immediately started writing a follow up album.
In the months that followed ATF was plagued with hardships and heartache. Two weeks after the release of their album Brendon decided to leave the band to work on a solo project, forcing them to struggle to find a replacement. Jesse tore his rotator cuff and was unable to work, forcing him to lose his house and sleep in their rehearsal space or where ever he could find a place to rest his head. Through their pain and struggles Alex and Jesse grew stronger as musicians and friends, they work together with such fluidity, feeding of each other’s anguish they started to work on their follow up album.
Pouring his heart into his writing Jesse played with pure passion, allowing Alex to feed on the emotion and bleed into the mic. Kevin, also able to pick up on the vibe in the room, masterfully wrote his drum parts. The group wrote 13 new songs in a matter of months. About half way through the writing process they lost their bass player again. During their search for a replacement they found Paul Williams, the very talented and creative bassist who was desperately seeking a new project that could utilize, instead of hinder, his skills. For the first time Awaking the Fallen had a solid line up and their music finally sounded the way it was meant to, complete. So they started the grueling task of rewriting, rearranging, scrapping songs that didn’t meet the cut and writing a few final tracks.
May 5, 2008 a year to the day after releasing “Heartbreak?” ATF entered Minds Eye yet again to record their second album, which they decided to entitle “Dum Spiro, Spero”, a Latin saying which translates to While I breathe, I hope. The album is clearly about the hardships they faced, the loves they lost, and the healing process. They released the album on October 4, 2008 to a sold out crowd, again in Tempe, AZ. Finally having a record they are proud of they have pushed it on anyone and everyone that will listen. The sales continue to grow every day.
With everything that this band has been through, the time and money they have put in, the sacrifices they make every day, and support they give each other in hard times Awaking the Fallen stopped being a band years ago, this is life. These four musicians who all come from extremely different backgrounds have come together to make the music that they want to make and have started a family that grows with every new fan they gain. They have already begun work on their third album, which they plan to call “Battle Hymns and Lullabies” and they hope to release it in late 2009. Look for big things from this family of musicians, they don’t know how to do anything on a small scale.
In recent news Alex Downs was given the Producer’s Choice Award for Frontman of the Year at the 2008 Phoenix Music Awards, and they were first band to receive a nomination for the 2009 Phoenix Music Awards, where they are up for best rock single with their newest song “Till I Die” a remix of “I’ll Stay Here”
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BIOGRAPHY:
