New York City native, Emily Warren, has been breathing music since the day she was born. Already vigorously writing songs and singing by age eleven, Emily shocked everyone around with her incredible knack for making music. In January of 2009, the quirky 16 year old singer/multi-instrumentalist decided she was ready to take the stage. She didn’t have to look far to find Eric Sullivan(Guitar/Keyboards), Gab Bowler(Bass) and Etienne Bowler(Drums); longtime friends of her older brother.

Together, they formed Emily Warren & the Betters.

Welding the Betters’ strong knowledge of afro-reggae and synth-dance music with Emily’s deliciously-rhythmic song style, the band generates tunes filled with beat-beatin’, sweat-inducing grooves held together with sweet, unforgettable melodies that chill you to your bone.

Following in the footsteps of such classic artists like Otis Reading and Eddie Floyd and building on the sounds of modern artists like Mayer Hawthorn and Jamie Lidell, Jay Stolar has been reborn as a man of soul. His smooth vocal delivery mixed with his band of brimstone , The Birds, create a volatile cocktail.

I met Jay Stolar of  Julius C when they were on tour with Apollo Run. When it came time to do a side project, Jay came to me with a few songs and his vision for the project. I got it immediately and into the studio we went.

Flutter sweetly like a stroll down a country lane. Mimic the grieving tempo of a New Orleans funeral march. Drive to the beat of a thousand angry voices. This sound – a haunting piano, urgent guitars, and John McGrew’s tenor, at times both innocent and corrupted – calls to mind Jeff Buckley and Tom Waits in the same refrain while flirting with indie contemporaries such as Antony and the Johnsons and Beirut.

Apollo Run has built a reputation of being a band you have to see to believe. Their high energy and earth shaking live performances bring together a fusion of ultra tight vocal harmony, unforgettable melody, manic highs and gut-wrenching lows. The confluence of John McGrew, Jeff Kerestes, and Graham Fisk generates a palpable energy within a unique frame.

The last weekend of February 2009, the boys from Apollo Run came and stayed at my house, ate my food, drank my whiskey and layed down seven incredibly fierce tracks. Over the course of the next four weeks we completed all seven songs from soup to nuts.  Over the course of the last year, we have been completing more and are gearing up to release the first of three consecutive EPs.

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