MySpace.com - Opium Symphony / Official Page - Dallas, Texas - Rock

In an age where the radio is dominated by predictability and the current trend of homogenized rock, the Opium Symphony is unafraid to offer rock music transcending the times.

The idea that ‘rock and roll is dead’ has long been repudiated – although the form that rock has taken has varied greatly since its inception and what many consider its peak in the mid 1970s. While comparing current bands to 70s icons is often a fruitless venture, every once in a while a band emerges that carries the swagger, idealism, and – most importantly – the quality songs to be considered worthy of that mantle.

Opium Symphony is one of those bands.

Hailing from Dallas, Texas, the band brings the Texas attitude that bigger is better – bigger hooks, bigger riffs, and bigger personalities. This combination is on display on Opium Symphony’s debut EP release “Flu Sessions,” eight songs rife with distorted guitars, pounding rhythms and soaring choruses. The band – vocalist/guitarist Kellen Ross, bassist J.D., guitarist Troy Schmidt, and drummer Leigh – also has a gift for dynamics, which gives their songs a surging, cascading sound. Standout tracks include PrettyRichBeautiful, an opus against empty materialism; God or Money, a catchy hook-ladden tune reminiscent of the best of Queens of the Stone Age; and Stars and Stripes, an irresistible track full of potent anger and ironic lines like, “my mother taught me one thing you never trust a man wearing stars and stripes.”

The four-piece has also has big ideas, like a tour advocating a boycott of the 2008 Presidential Election. The “You Don’t Deserve My Vote” Tour 2008 is a rallying cry to a generation of disenfranchised citizens, railing a system that continually fails to deliver. As Kellen Ross says, “Too often it seems voting is our only chance to have a voice. We believe that it is time that we remind ourselves and our government that we are THE voice. We want to encourage people to boycott the 2008 Presidential Election to make it known that we are discontent. The point of retracting our vote is simple. It unifies us in this cause. It has become apparent that only extreme measures will force them to listen to what we have to say.”

This idea, while on its surface may seem apathetic, is anything but to Kellen and Opium Symphony. As Kellen continues, “We are not a political band, but we are citizens of this country much the same as everyone else. It doesn’t take a politician (or a political band) to recognize that times call for a change, and that is why we are launching this Counter-Campaign Tour, You Don’t Deserve My Vote 2008. This counter campaign, backed with the solid tunes and a dedicated and growing fan base, will see Opium Symphony raising awareness while committing to great music. With the spirit of the 60s and the musical influence of the 70s, the generation born in the 80s and raised in the 90s is spreading good music and a “question everything” attitude into the new millennium, and Opium Symphony is leading the charge.

By: Jason Peterson

Mucho love from the guys at the Opium Symphony

Until next time... Keep the sabbath holy, and the stereo evil...

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