On The Make
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| On The Make | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Winchester, MA, USA |
| Years active | 1999 - present |
| Genres | Alternative Rock/Alternative Metal |
| Members | Joshua Feblowitz Glenn Marmon Eric Steinhauer Will Szabo |
On The Make is an alternative rock/alternative metal band from Winchester, Massachusetts, a small town in the northern Greater Boston area. They blend melodic hard rock with harsher metal elements, such as heavy breakdowns, occasional screaming, and low tunings (often using 7-string guitars). Although they come from a very active musical scene in Winchester, they are one of few heavy rock bands from the town, most of the other bands being punk or jam bands.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Middle School Years
The band began in June of 1999, when then-middle schoolers Joshua Feblowitz, Alex Mandeville, Glenn Marmon and Will Szabo first played together in Alex's basement. At the time, all the band members were relatively new to their instruments, so band rehearsals were more of just a fun way for everyone to practice their instruments.
In early 2000, the band became more serious about writing original music. At the same time, On The Make parted ways with guitarist Alex Mandeville, and continued as a trio, practicing in Will's bedroom. During 2000, the band wrote several songs, and even attempted to record demos of some of these songs (the tracks "Lose You" and "Real" found their way online) despite never playing a live show.
On The Make played their first gigs in 2001, starting with a talent show at McCall Middle School in March, where the band stole the show with an instrumental rendition of "Real". June of that year, the band played their first proper gig at Winchester's annual Town Day festival.
[edit] High School Years
The hotbed of activity from On The Make (thus far) happened when the band was in High School. They played numerous gigs, including small club shows, Battle of the Bands shows, local benefit concerts, and coffeehouse gigs. In 2002 at Winchester's "Rock For Youth" battle of the bands, they became the first freshman band in years to make it into the final round, where they also sold an untitled 5-song EP. This was a show in which they also opened for popular bands Relient K, Element 101, and Mercury Switch.
In May of 2002, the band wrote the song "Slip Away" with guest guitarist Eric Steinhauer. After performing that song (and a cover of Creed's "My Sacrifice") at two shows in June, he was asked to join the band. He did, and the band relocated their practice space to Steinhauer's carriage house.
In 2004, after a disappointing finish in that year's Rock For Youth competition, the band finally got the time and determination to do what had been a long time coming: finish a full length CD. Titled "Beautiful", the 15-track LP was recorded in two and a half months and was finally released on June 8, 2004. After the album was finished, the band relocated their practice space to the guest room in Glenn's house, where much of the album was recorded.
That summer, Josh, Glenn, and Will played numerous acoustic shows. To complement these shows, they quickly recorded a 13-track acoustic CD called "Acoustic Antithesis" and sold it at shows.
In 2005, On The Make played what were easily their best shows. In June 2005, a two song EP was quickly recorded and handed out for free at a large Winchester gig on June 3rd. This was also the last time On The Make has performed live.
[edit] Current (College Years and Beyond)
Though it has been over a year since On The Make has played live, the band is not dead. However, having all members of the band be off at college makes it harder for there to be much activity. The members of the band do still practice on occasion, and hope to do more live shows and recording in the future. Down time with the band has let its members take part in other projects, such as Josh's solo project, and Glenn's involvement in the college band "Steel Reserve".
[edit] Discography
[edit] 2002 EP
The first CD ever released by the band was a 5-song EP, featuring three demos and two live songs. 50 copies of the CD were made for a show the band played in June 2002, and all were sold.
[edit] Beautiful
On The Make had been writing and recording for a full length LP since December of 2000, and the project finally came together in March of 2004. Most of the recording (the guitar, bass, and vocals) was done in the guest room of Glenn Marmon's house (a room that would soon after become the band's prominent practice space). The recording was finished in about two and a half months, in which most of the band members completely ignored schoolwork to finish tracking. Glenn Marmon mixed the album near the end of May, and the CD was then replicated by Oasis CD Manufacturing. The first copies of the album arived in Winchester on June 6, and the band sold several copies that night at a gig they weren't even playing in. The album, entitled "Beautiful" was "officially" released on June 8, 2004.
The CD contains some songs (such as "It's Coming Down" and "Sensory Deprivation") which were written as early as 2001, while some others (namely the trilogy of songs that ends the album) were written during the recording process itself. The album cover is a picture of a blood splatter with a white flower in the foreground.
[edit] Acoustic Antithesis
During the summer of 2004, On The Make played several acoustic shows. These shows were mostly very laid back performances by Josh, Glenn, and Will, and although an official member of the band at the time, rarely was Eric involved. The shows received a positive response, so an acoustic CD entitled "Acoustic Antithesis" was recorded and released in a matter of days. The CD consisted of 13 songs. Two of them were acoustic versions of songs from "Beautiful", and the other 11 were an interesting mix of brand new songs and old songs that the band hadn't played in years. Some were experimental, including three piano based songs. Two of these songs were later reworked by Josh and included on his solo project CD, "Save The World", which was released in 2006.
Though the CD received a positive response from fans, it gets mixed feelings from the band itself. The CD is, in some ways, not taken seriously, and Eric is completely absent from it. Although "Acoustic Antithesis" is a full length CD, "Beautiful" is often considered the band's only official album. Some of the acoustic songs have stayed in the On The Make repertoire, such as "Wholesale Aquatic Suicide", which, despite it's less than serious title, has been played at non-acoustic gigs a number of times.
[edit] I Like Free Stuff EP
In 2005, the band wrote its first new songs since finishing "Beautiful". Two of these songs, "Tuesday" and "Bones", were recorded and burned to several CDs, which were passed out for free at the band's June 3, 2005 show.
[edit] Members
- Joshua Feblowitz - vocals, keyboard, guitar
- Glenn Marmon - bass, guitar, backing vocals
- Eric Steinhauer - guitar
- Will Szabo - drums, guitar, backing vocals
[edit] Former Members
- Alex Mandeville - guitar
[edit] Other Musical Projects
[edit] Joshua Colin
Joshua Colin is Joshua Feblowitz's stage name for his solo pop piano project. Josh has played piano and keyboard for years, and in 2006 released his first LP, entitled "Save The World". Two of the songs on the record are reworked versions of songs that were also released on On The Make's acoustic LP, "Acoustic Antithesis". Josh's solo live shows are often done as just Josh and his piano, but he also sometimes plays with a drummer and bassist. (At the release party of "Save The World", bass was played by On The Make bandmate Glenn Marmon.)
[edit] Steel Reserve
Steel Reserve is a metal band made up of Jeff Taft, Scott Borchert, Brad Heacock (brother of American Head Charge singer Cameron Heacock), and On The Make bassist Glenn Marmon, all of whom attended Connecticut College during the 2005/2006 school year. The band played mostly cover songs, but also wrote some original material.
[edit] The Dirty Penguins
The Dirty Penguins was a contemporary of On The Make, founded by Alex Mandeville a number of years after he and On The Make parted ways. The band consisted of Alex Mandeville, Josh Burdick, Austin Rogers, and Tom Casserly.
