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Sunday mail - 12th December
ROOSTERS SINGER CROWS
They notched up a no.7 with their debut single - but Rooster are more excited about shaking off the pop comparisons.
The hot rock outfit - Nick Atkinson, Luke Potashnick, Dave Neale and Ben Smyth burst on the scene with Come Get Some in October and were immediately lumped in the guitar-wielding-boy-bands like Busted and McFly.
But singer Nick Atkinson, 24, reckons people are realising they're a real rock band. He said: "We were even compared to Maroon 5 - that's just silly. Now more and more people have heard us live and realise the guys in the band are s*** hot and musically we're about as far from Busted as you can get.
"We don't do the bubblegum skate stuff - we play proper rock music. We fall between cool guitar bands and commerical stuff.
"Music should be melodic and energetic - and your ears should be bleeding at the end!"
The Guardian
The first phone-in concert
Rooster herald new era of technology by broadcasting gig live by mobile
Laura Barton
Wednesday November 3, 2004
The Guardian
In 1985, Live Aid provided the largest satellite link-up and TV broadcast. Ten years later, in 1995, the Shamen performed the first-ever internet gig. Last night, it was the turn of the rock upstarts Rooster to make history when they became the first band in the UK to broadcast a gig live by mobile phone.
At 9pm, some 300 Rooster fans were expected to flock to the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London to see their heroes perform a 45-minute set. At the same time, up to 1,000 customers on the 3 mobile network were watching the very same concert on their telephones.
Live music broadcasts are billed as one of the major enticements of third generation - or 3G - mobile technology. 3, which already provides 1.2 million customers with 3G services in the UK, is quick to point out that last night's broadcast was something of a dry run. "It's to prove we can do this," said a spokesperson. "We thought, let's try it, let's see if people want it."
There is encouraging evidence that this is precisely the type of service mobile customers want. Having already revived a weary music industry with the ringtone market, mobile phone companies are now offering customers a range of downloads including the top 40 videos and an array of new releases. In the last 18 months, many 3G users have enjoyed "micromoments" - downloads of five minutes of music videos.
Increasingly it seems this will be the battleground on which the music video wars are fought. "Last week we had the world premiere of Robbie Williams's new video, which was exclusive to us for a week," the 3 spokesperson said. "In olden days the exclusive went to Top of the Pops. Now, more and more record companies will be coming to the mobile phone companies, and the companies will be competing for those exclusives."
Rooster, a London-based four-piece, were chosen because 3 is already in partner ship with their record label, BMG. Rooster are one of the label's most hotly tipped young acts, with their potentially lucrative combination of boyband good looks and an eminently palatable style of music they have termed "griff rock".
Already they have notched up a top 10 hit with their debut single Come Get Some. 3's spokesperson admitted: "They're quite good-looking young guys, so it made sense to have them on video."
The broadcast, aimed at 18-25-year-olds, was trailed on the band's website, as well as 3's own phone-based news and entertainment channel. Users saw a message from the band and a video of their single, before being urged to sign up for a free pre-gig reminder. On the eve of the concert almost 10,000 people had signed up.
Ten minutes before the gig was scheduled to start, those 10,000 users were sent an SMS which invited them to visit a "virtual box office" where they could pay £5 to view the gig. Only the first 1,000 customers were admitted, but for the next week a live video performance of Come Get Some will be downloadable, as will a free highlights package.
The broadcast relied on four cameras and a vision mixing desk in situ at the ICA. Technicians mixed the broadcast on screen, while continually assessing the outcome on mobile handsets. 3 admits the quality of the broadcast would largely depend on the user's handset.
Before the gig, Nick Atkinson, 24, Rooster's lead singer, was feeling relaxed. "We've been on tour for the last three weeks," he said, "but this obviously feels a bit more exciting because it's history in the making."
The nature of the concert had affected some elements of the performance, however. "We're not allowed to wear white or black, we have to wear something colourful, which isn't really me," said Atkinson. "We won't be doing any special moves, we'll just be doing a lot of jumping about ... But it'll just be big, lairy, aggressive songs to leave people with their ears ringing."
Wembley Arena
West London rockers Rooster are brave boys. They don’t even attempt to fit into any of the current ‘scenes’. Instead they’ve taken it upon themselves to be fresh and different and thankfully, they execute it beautifully. Having started writing together ‘to see what would happen’, it soon became obvious to Nick Atkinson (vocals) and Luke Potashnick (guitar) that the chemistry between the two both on a musical and a personal level was exceptional. They are now being dubbed one of the brightest new hopes for 2005. An intensive period of writing and recording ensued, from which the first single, ‘Come Get Some’ appeared. With a killer hook and a grand canyon-sized chorus, it sets the standard for the rest of their album – about which Music Week commented: ’The swagger of Oasis with Aerosmith riffs…This debut is the freshest thing to happen to rock for a long time.’ Praise indeed! But well earned too. Let them prove their worth when they join the Popworld line up this December.
HMV
September 2004
West London rockers Rooster haven’t bothered to try to fit into any of the current ‘scenes’ that are currently infecting the capital. Instead they’ve taken it upon themselves to breathe new life into the tired old bluesy rock of the 70’s with the immense ‘Come Get Some’. A hook filled, riff heavy power anthem, ‘Come Get Some’ is a cocky introduction from one of the brightest new hopes for 2005.
“The swagger of Oasis with Aerosmith riffs…This debut is the freshest thing to happen to rock for a long time.” Music Week
Barfly Club Review 1
West London band who seem to be all over the telly at the moment, TOTP; CD:UK; Popworld, you name it they're on it. "Rather than rocking out like the headbangers, we want to get a sort of bouncing thing going - there's a definite hip hop component in there," so says guitarist Luke Potashnick's whose reference points are most definitely Page, Clapton and Paul Kossoff's taut, heavy bluesy-rock sound. Singer Nick Atkinson calls upon Aerosmith and Guns 'N' Roses. "It's all about the big chorus," he says. "You mustn't be afraid of the big chorus. For me, music is something that you want to sing along to. You want to get people involved on every level." Absolutely right. Debut single 'Come and Get Some' out soon. This band are gonna be huge.
Barfly Club Review 2
You may have seen them on CD:UK. You may have heard them on your radio. You may not get into this gig cos it’s sold out. Lucky for you we’ve gone and booked them again in just over a week’s time. Don’t make me tell you a third time.
Barfly Club Review 3
Nick and Luke met at school, but the bands history stems after their days at University, when they met in London and decided to form a band. They knew drummer Dave from previous gigs and bass player Ben after putting an advert in Kerrang. Apparently the name Rooster originated from Nick's lucky bet on a horse called Rooster Booster. Their sound has been described as 'groove driven riff based rock' and they say what is fundamental to their music is a big chorus, a rock drive and big guitars. There is a lot of seventies influence in their music, like Primal Scream (Rocks Off) and Lenny Kravitz within their sound. Tickets are sure to sell out fast so get them soon to avoid disappointment.
All Barfly reviews taken from www.barflyclub.com
City Showcase
Featured Talent Biography
Rooster
Category: Music
Rooster Rooster is Nick Atkinson - vocals; Luke Potashnick - guitar; Ben Smyth - bass/backing vocals; David Neale - drums
There has never been a shortage of bands who talk big. But it has been a long time since a young, new group has come along with a rock'n'roll heart as big as that of West London band Rooster.
Singer Nick Atkinson, 24, and guitarist Luke Potashnick, 22, went to school together in Eastbourne, where their paths crossed from time to time. But it wasn't until they were both living in London that the pair got together and began writing material with a view to starting a band. Luke was by then studying for a degree at the London School of Economics, while Nick was at University studying English and Drama. Both of them had been obsessive music fans for as long as they could remember.
The reference points for Luke were the classic English rock guitarists: Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin, early Eric Clapton when he was in Cream and the Yardbirds and especially the mighty Paul Kossoff whose intensely emotional style was a cornerstone of Free's uniquely taut, heavy rock sound. "That's what I'm calling upon rather than any of the 1980s stuff," Luke says. "I've played since I was 11 and as I got older I realized that the faster stuff - although you can play it - it just doesn't mean anything. Jimmy Page was one of the faster players that actually made sense on a musical level. But Kossoff - that's what really does it for me, and I want to pass that on to other people through my playing."
Nick's influences, meanwhile tended towards the more populist rock of Aerosmith and Guns N' Roses. "It's all about the big chorus," Nick says. "You mustn't be afraid of the big chorus. For me, music is something that you want to sing along to. You want to get people involved on every level."
Where Luke and Nick come together is in their enthusiasm for Velvet Revolver, the band featuring Slash and ex-Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland. "That is an awesome album," Luke says.
Having started writing together "to see what would happen", it soon became obvious to Nick and Luke that the chemistry between the two both on a musical and a personal level was exceptional. "We pretty quickly decided we should get a band together," Luke says.
Drummer Dave Neale, 19, was recruited from the wilds of Cornwall where he had played percussion in band that Luke had become involved with on an earlier visit down there. "He just had a really perfect sound and a cool stage presence," Luke says. "He doesn't over-play, but he really has that weight in his sound, where it counts." Meanwhile, bass player Ben Smyth, 19, was recruited through a small ad in the rock press. "Here was this young guy who was a lot better than he should have been for his age," Luke says. "He sings backing vocals, which is what we wanted. And he's got a big five-string bass. He needs it for the stuff we're doing."
The band settled on the name Rooster when Nick came home £250 richer after putting a bet on a horse called Rooster Booster. While the band is now ready to come racing out of the traps, all four musicians have put in many years learning their craft, playing live and walking the walk. It was Nick who was initially spotted singing in a previous band by Hugh Goldsmith. Goldsmith wasn't too impressed with the group, but remembered the skinny singer with the raucous rock'n'roll voice and the long floppy fringe. So when Goldsmith was setting up new Brightside label, he called up Nick. Not long afterwards, Rooster became the first act to sign to Brightside/BMG.
An intensive period of writing and recording ensued, of which the first fruit is a single, 'Come Get Some'. Typical of the Rooster sound it is hard and heavy in an old school way, but with a modern feel and a nimble melodic touch. "Rather than rocking out like the headbangers, we wanted to get a sort of bouncing thing going," Luke says. "There's a definite hip hop component in there."
The individual members of the group have all had many years of experience on the live circuit. Now with the line-up completed and an album's worth of songs written they have started gigging in their own right. The effect on the concert promoter Simon Moran, who came to check them out at one of their first shows at the Water Rats in King's Cross, was instantaneous. Halfway through the gig he turned to the band's manager and asked them to play at this year's V Festival. The band are also topping the bill at the "City Showcase" at the Borderline on September 7.
"We want to bring back classic rock," Luke says with a big grin. "No modern, young bands are really trying to do that any more. We want to remind people of the craft and the spirit and the sheer excitement of music that not only works in your heart and in your mind but blows you away out there on the big stage. There's a lot of 16-year-old kids that have missed out on the 1970s and the kind of great music that was around back then. They might not have heard Hendrix or anything, but they love rock tracks. If anyone hears us and gets into Zeppelin or AC/DC as a result, then that would be a huge thrill for me. "Whether it's writing, recording, gigging or whatever, there isn't any one aspect of this that we don't enjoy, and that we don't throw ourselves into with 100% commitment," Luke says. "We want to be doing this for a long time."
(biog facts provided by artists or representative - correct as released for City Showcase August 2004)
Vitaminic review
New Music Now Review
Come Get Some’ is instantly addictive, with a killer hook and a grand canyon-sized chorus. Typical of the Rooster sound, it is hard and heavy in an old school way, but with a modern feel and a nimble melodic touch.
Biography [supplied by artist]
Singer Nick Atkinson, 24, and guitarist Luke Potashnick, 22, went to school together, where their paths crossed from time to time. But it wasn't until later on that the pair got together and began writing material with a view to starting a band. Luke was by then studying for a degree at the London School of Economics, while Nick was at University studying English and Drama. Both of them had been obsessive music fans for as long as they could remember.
The reference points for Luke were the classic English rock guitarists: Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin, early Eric Clapton when he was in Cream and the Yardbirds and especially the mighty Paul Kossoff whose intensely emotional style was a cornerstone of Free's uniquely taut, heavy rock sound.
The band settled on the name Rooster when Nick came home £250 richer after putting a bet on a horse called Rooster Booster. While the band is now ready to come racing out of the traps, all four musicians have put in many years learning their craft, playing live and walking the walk. It was Nick who was initially spotted singing in a previous band by Hugh Goldsmith. Goldsmith wasn't too impressed with the group, but he remembered the skinny singer with the raucous rock'n'roll voice and the long floppy fringe. So further down the road, when Goldsmith was setting up his new Brightside label, he called up Nick and asked him what he was up to. Nick said he was working with Luke in a new band. Not long afterwards, Rooster became the first act to sign to
Brightside/BMG.
Manchester online Review 1
Thursday, 23rd September 2004
FEISTY new rockers Rooster may look mean and moody types on this photo. But we can assure you that the four-piece band are far from miserable, having met up with them recently for a night of karting mayhem at Daytona Racing in Old Trafford.
Now music fans will get the chance to find out exactly what the lads are like for themselves, when they play Manchester as part of their first UK tour.
The rock-loving foursome - whose catchy debut single Come Get Some is released in October - play The Roadhouse on Monday, October 25.
Having already gathered fans from TV appearances on Top Of The Pops and T4, the band's career looks set to explode over the next few months. So catch them while you can...
Rooster play The Roadhouse on Monday, October 25. Tickets are £5 - to book, call 0161 832 1111 or visit the website below.
Taken from: www.manchesteronline.co.uk
Manchester online Review 2
Manchester music
single reviews
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Monday, 11th October 2004
reviewRooster - Come Get Some (Brightside/BMG)
3star
Lawrence Poole
A FAN of Aerosmith, but sick and tired of having to look across the pond to satisfy your music tastes? Then this West London four-piece could be the band for you.
Drawn together by a shared passion for Velvet Revolver and Tyler and the boys, as well the Brit rockers who made it big over there in the '70s, Led Zep and Clapton, vocalist Nick Atkinson and guitarist Luke Potashnick set about making some bombastic rock 'n' roll all of their own.
Enthused with the success of The Darkness in bringing back stadium rock, Rooster are all about the big chorus apparently and Come Get Some certainly possesses one of those.
We'll have to wait for the LP to see if they fulfill Music Week's claim of them being the 'freshest thing to happen to rock in a long time' though.
Taken from: www.manchesteronline.co.uk
TOTP
Review 1
ROOSTER - 'COME GET SOME'
Twenty-something Londoners and former students Rooster hit upon their name after singer Nick won £250 on a horse called Rooster Booster. Now it's time to have a flutter on their debut single. And the lads come racing out of the stalls with this swaggering, riff-heavy slice of rock and roll. Essentially, these fresh-faced, good-looking lads are bubblegum cock-rockers, sanitised and freshly scrubbed versions of their filthier, druggier American counterparts like Velvet Revolver. In spite of that, there's a lot to enjoy here. The tune is instantly addictive and there's a Grand Canyon wide chorus you can see coming a mile off but if the words 'big' and 'chorus' were dirty words, Noel Gallagher would have been out of a job years ago. Highly enjoyable and much, much better than Jet, naturally.
3/5
Review 2
Rooster ROOSTER - 'COME GET SOME'
Twenty-something Londoners and former students Rooster hit upon their name after singer Nick won £250 on a horse called Rooster Booster. Now it's time to have a flutter on their debut single. And the lads come racing out of the stalls with this swaggering, riff-heavy slice of rock and roll. Essentially, these fresh-faced, good-looking lads are bubblegum cock-rockers, sanitised and freshly scrubbed versions of their filthier, druggier American counterparts like Velvet Revolver. In spite of that, there's a lot to enjoy here. The tune is instantly addictive and there's a Grand Canyon wide chorus you can see coming a mile off but if the words 'big' and 'chorus' were dirty words, Noel Gallagher would have been out of a job years ago. Highly enjoyable and much, much better than Jet, naturally.
Review 3
Rooster 'Come Get Some'
These twenty-something Londoners and former Uni students hit upon their name after singer Nick won £250 on a horse called Rooster Booster. You see, they took a gamble and won. Now they have the second highest new entry of the week at No.7 with their debut single to coincide with a current UK tour. But remember kids, cockfights ARE still illegal.
Review 4
Rooster 'Staring At The Sun'
These twenty-something Londoners hit upon their name after singer Nick won £250 on a horse called Rooster Booster. The gamble paid off. Their debut single 'Come Get Some' reached No.7 and no doubt the lads will have a flutter on this. Oh, and remember to use protective eyewear while staring at the sun kids.
BBC
Review 1
Rooster
A powerful quartet playing melodic indie-rock.
Review 2
03 November 2004: Rooster make music history
The new boyish indie band on the block, Rooster, have made music history, by becoming what's thought to be the first ever band to broadcast a concert live on video mobiles.
Hundreds of people across the country paid a fiver last night to watch the gig down the line from London.
Taken from: www.bbc.co.uk/radio1
Review 3
Rooster Rooster
Wake up to the sound of Rooster this Christmas. Their new single 'Staring at The Sun' will be storming the charts in the new year and you'll be able to catch the boys on the road around the UK. Nick, Luke, Ben and David have been playing in bands for years but only started gigging around the country together last summer.
They even became the first group ever to broadcast a concert live over a mobile phone network, when they played in London this November.
The boys are aiming to bring back stadium rock, and with their female following, affectionately known as the Rooster-ettes not far behind, something tells me they will!
All taken from the BBC website.
Pop Justice
The best single released this week is 'Mary' by Scissor Sisters. VS's 'Make It Hot' comes a close second for reasons covered last week (great tune, video in a crop circle, it's like an Usher single but not fronted by the biggest prick in pop, etc etc), but everything else is blown out of the water this week by the towering authenticy of Rooster.
Seriously, Rooster have to be the most authentic band of the last thirty years.
Indeed, if you go to Rooster's site (at Roosterofficial.com) you can immediately see how authentic they are - because they've put some 'film grain' effects over their pictures. Says Luke Out Of Rooster:
"There's a lot of 16-year-old kids that have missed out on the 1970s and the kind of great music that was around back then. They might not have heard Hendrix or anything, but they love rock tracks. If anyone hears us and gets into Zeppelin or AC/DC as a result, then that would be a huge thrill for me."
You see, viewers, Rooster's brilliant music is REAL. It's just totally unmanufactured. It's RAW. It's EXCITING. It makes you realise that pop is rubbish - and that's Rooster's genius. Because they're not just authentic: they're educational.
Kids don't know anything, you see. Like Luke says, "a lot of" 16-year-olds missed the 1970s. (In fact here at Popjustice we'd even go so far as to say that all 16-year-olds missed the 1970s, except perhaps the 16-year-olds who are older than 24.) But now the idiot children who buy singles by artists like Duncan James & Keedie can experience the thrill and excitement that only authentic music can offer.
Looking at the Popjustice CD collection, it all suddenly seems so meaningless. It's just as well Rooster are around, isn't it? It makes you wonder how we ever managed before.
Taken From www.popjustice.com
Sneak
October 04
ROOSTER
Come Get Some
***
If they'd spent as much time on the song as they have on plugging the band, it might have been a bit better. Nick's gorge though!
V Festival
Rooster
V Festival (Staffs) 2004 review
26/08/04
Have you played with the ‘Randy Rooster’ yet? It’s an online game by Rooster’s label used to promote them. You have to ‘interact’ with all 10 hens as quickly as possible. Considering that he is the randy rooster – you can guess what I mean by interact. Until today this was my only experience of Rooster.
Another question. What’s your average bassline? You just follow the root notes and play some low frequencies that give a bit more oomph – right? Maybe, but that’s not how it should be.
From Randy Rooster, which uses their new single as a backing track – you are expecting to see a band that will fill your ears with meaningless pop. That turns out not to be the case.
Rooster walk out on stage to a crowd of less than twenty. It’s not surprising – nobody has heard of them and this is their first ever festival performance.
By the time that their new single is played live, you realise that Rooster are a force to be reckoned with – not the pop act that one might assume from their online game. They have basslines that leave you wanting more and energy that would put Battersea power station to shame.
Leaving the crowd in pure awe, the set finished with a man to my side saying ‘they will be the best band we see all weekend’. He might just be right.
Reviewed by Guy Powell
With thanks to Rooster2004 More
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