Sam's the Hero
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| Sam's the hero | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Virginia Beach, Virginia |
| Genre(s) | Christian punk Punk rock |
Sam's the Hero is a Christian punk rock band from Virginia Beach, Virginia. The group was formed during the summer of 2004 as a one-time-use filler band called "Sons of Noah," a side project of then-existing Christian rock bands Flipside and Solitude. After self-producing a demo in 2005, the band started to gain fan base in their home town of Virginia beach, eventually causing the side project band to surpass the original two bands in local popularity.
Early on, Sons of Noah were fortunate enough to open for a band they consider high on their list of influences, Roper, a band led by former Five Iron Frenzy frontman Reese Roper. Also among the band's listed influences are Blink 182, MxPx, Pennywise, and Slick Shoes. One of the band's other major influences, Relient K, was parodied in a song entitled "We're Better Than Relient K". The song is intended to be a tongue-in-cheek tribute to the long time veterans of Christian rock, with Sam's the Hero even putting themselves down for a lack of "experience, talent and fame".
In 2005, Sons of Noah signed with startup independent record label Raging Storm Records. The following year they released an EP entitled "Don't Talk To J", a project of comedic songs. The project was inspired after a sarcastic verbal exchange with their label CEO, who was pressing the band to finish up work on their full-length disc. As an end result, work on the full-length project was put on hold while the band wrote and recorded a series of songs to parody their relationship. Despite being filled with a number of inside jokes, which are all well explained through narratives between songs, the EP has sold well for the band.
In the summer of 2006 the full-length disc "Unabated Mediocrity" was released, just prior to the band departing for the Cornerstone Festival in Illinois. While at the festival, they played in front of a large crowd on the Decapolis stage, run by former Ghoti Hook guitarist Conrad Tolosa. After leaving the festival, the band continued touring, including spending a number of weeks with The Extreme Tour.
Late in 2006, the band officially changed its name to "Sam's the Hero." The name is a reference to Sam Gamgee, a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.
[edit] Members
- Jeff Riggs - lead vocals, bass
- Neil Donohue - vocals, guitar
- Corey McCook - Drums, backing vocals
- Jon Carolino - Former drummer and backing vocals
[edit] Discography
- Something Else Entirely (EP) – 2005
- Don't Talk To J (EP) – 2006
- Unabated Mediocrity – 2006
