The ARK (Arrogant Rock Kings) have included:
Adam Kronk (drums, percussion), Aaron Noone (harp, guitar, vocals), Alan Black (bass), Ken Gruel (bass), Hannah Fralick (vocals, guitar), Eric Fillip (drums).
Bio written by Kate Hart (Detroit Women, Lucy Mongrel):
Detroit native Mike Vial, luckily wears his heart on his sleeve giving the listener, beautiful, heartfelt songs. Picking up where Duncan Sheik left off, Mike's singing and songwriting reflect not only where he wears his heart, but includes a fierce intellect that helps to create a modern day sound.
Since age 16, early life found Mike playing in prestigious groups, forcing him to quickly develop versatility on the guitar which made him more than just a singer/songwriter. He was not only studying guitar, songwriting, and voice, but in addition, he was going to school to become a high school English teacher. After graduating from WMU in 2003, Mike and Aaron Noon created the Arrogant Rock Kings, an acoustic duo that played regionally quickly building a rabid fan base. As a solo artist, he continued to play the regional area working his way towards his first recording Three Men and a Tiger.
His first CD shows off Mike's virtuosic approach to guitar playing. In his words, "I continuously challenge myself and hopefully the songwriting combined with the guitar work and voice, will lend sophistication to the signature sound that I am looking for."
Some of Mr. Vial's favorite shows have been with the Regional Musicians Guild, the Sunago Gospel band at the Pontiac Silverdome. His instrumental music was used regularly on WTKA in Ann Arbor and his other songs have been played nationwide.
However, Mike's true passion and talent comes out in his songwriting, which is apparent on his first record with producer Marshall Block of Real ii Reel. He has studied under Michigan based, music professionals Trish Mroz, Chris Blackmer, and Ken Andreoni, and Kate Hart.
Mike is currently working on his second release with producer Dan Achen (City and Colour, Feist) and engineer Duke Foster (Broken Social Scene, Josh Ritter) at Catherine North Studios in Hamilton, Ontario, which is due out in 2009.
Mike, I was hoping to stop by to hear you and finally meet you @ The Bean this weekend, but it looks like we'll be in Dearborn doing something. If I'm back early, I'll stop by. Have a great gig. Do you do full band shows? Perhaps we should share the bill somewhere. Best, Bobby
Mike, I was hoping to stop by to hear you and finally meet you @ The Bean this weekend, but it looks like we'll be in Dearborn doing something. If I'm back early, I'll stop by. Have a great gig. Do you do full band shows? Perhaps we should share the bill somewhere. Best, Bobby
Mike, I was hoping to stop by to hear you and finally meet you @ The Bean this weekend, but it looks like we'll be in Dearborn doing something. If I'm back early, I'll stop by. Have a great gig. Do you do full band shows? Perhaps we should share the bill somewhere. Best, Bobby
aha. no problem. and geeze sounds like you had a crazy fun time in chicago. always is.lol deff ill keep in touch and looking forward to hearing new music?! (:
Saturday? I'm so confused, they never told us we had a slot for sure. Wanted to make it, but we were headed back from beaver island, then had another gig saturday. Sorry bout that! Maybe next year!
The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of a garage party sometime around the end of the season formerly known in Michigan as "summer"... gather all the musical friends and see what happens... let me know your thoughts, Mr. V...
Thanks Mike. I find her to be a kind person and her music has depth to it. I could see a big change in her from last summer to this summer. I am fond of the image that is completely white with her name on it. I call it the "Album Cover.
I see that you are busy into September! Good. I guess I had better get off my rear and start playing out.
I can't believe you are playing Crofoot this weekend. I saw Kill Hannah there last year, amazing show by the way. It's a really nice venue. If I remember correctly, The Crofoot has been around since before the Civil War. You can say that history has happen there, how long it has been standing. I just looked it up and Billy Cosby has even done shows there, and I guess Michelle Obama was there last year. I think that is so cool you are playing there. I wish I had money, I would come and see you, but between car payment, and not getting any hours at work, unfortunally, I can't go to any shows.
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