Joy Electric is the brand label for a series of electropop/synthpop productions by Ronnie Martin. Martin began producing music under the Joy Electric name in 1994, after the demise of Dance House Children, a band Ronnie was in with his brother Jason Martin of Starflyer 59. Starflyer 59 bass player and Velvet Blue Music owner Jeff Cloud joined Joy Electric from 1996 until 2002. Joy Electric is currently a solo act.
Starflyer 59 is an American alternative rock band from Riverside, California that was founded in 1993 by Jason Martin, brother of Ronnie Martin of Joy Electric. While Jason Martin has written nearly all of Starflyer 59's songs, the band has included a number of different musicians over the years, including Jeff Cloud, Frank Lenz, and Richard Swift. The band's sound was initially identified as an outgrowth of the shoegaze movement of the early 1990s, but the band's music has gradually evolved to the point of little resemblance to that of its early days.
Talking Voice vs. Singing Voice is an album by the band Starflyer 59, released in 2005.
Jason Martin is a musician from Southern California. He is best known as a member of the indie rock band Starflyer 59, one of the first bands to sign with Tooth & Nail Records.
Fold Zandura is an alternative rock band from California. They released four albums between 1995 and 1999, plus one white 7" vinyl. Each album was released under a different label. The two premier members also founded the industrial band Mortal. Their songs are "love songs and praise songs" according to Jyro. Though they are presently involved in other projects, Fold Zandura's website maintains that "the band's not officially dead".
Old, the seventh full-length album released by Starflyer 59, was released on Tooth & Nail Records in 2003. A majority of the lyrics of the songs on this album revolve around the theme of growing older, and the album reintroduces Starflyer59's rock-oriented sound.
Leave Here a Stranger is the sixth full-length album by Starflyer 59. Unlike most contemporary albums, it was recorded and mixed in mono as opposed to stereo. Leave Here a Stranger was listed in Los Angeles Times among the Top 10 albums of 2001.
I Am the Portuguese Blues is the eighth full-length album released by Starflyer 59. With this album, the band returned to its past in multiple ways. The band's earlier albums had been characterized by loud guitars, but later albums saw the band progress to a softer sound, incorporating keyboards. I Am the Portuguese Blues saw the return of the sound from earlier albums, as the band was stripped just to Jeff Cloud on bass, Frank Lenz on drums, and Jason Martin, the only person to perform on all of Starflyer 59's albums, handling guitar and vocal duties. In addition, the album has a monochromatic cover, similar to those of Starflyer 59's first three albums. Many of the songs on I Am the Portuguese Blues were written years earlier as demos for an album to follow Americana. They were eventually scrapped, as the band decided to take a different musical direction for The Fashion Focus. The old demos were refined and combined with several new songs for I Am the Portuguese Blues. In regards to the title of the album, Martin, the band's frontman said,
"I thought the title was odd. There are a couple of proper blues riffs‚ on there, but mainly it is just a rock and roll album – no tricks no gimmicks.... And, oh yeah, I'm Portuguese."
Jeff Cloud is an American former bass guitar player for rock band Starflyer 59. He joined the band after the album Americana had been recorded, and remained a member until after the recording of the album I Am the Portuguese Blues. From 1996 until 2002, Cloud was member of the electropop/synth-pop group Joy Electric. Cloud currently fronts his own band called Pony Express and has owned and operated an independent label called Velvet Blue Music since 1996, touting bands such as Fine China, Map, and Frank Lenz.
Frank Lenz is a drummer from Southern California who has done work for many bands and artists, including Richard Swift, The Weepies, Everest, Pedro The Lion, Starflyer 59, Lassie Foundation, Duraluxe, Map, Charity Empressa, and his own solo work.
Tubeway Army is the debut studio album by the English new wave band Tubeway Army, released in 1978. Its initial limited-edition run of 5,000 sold out but did not chart. When reissued in mid-1979, following the success of the follow-up Replicas (1979), the more commonly known cover art featuring a stylised portrait of Gary Numan was introduced. This release made No. 14 in the UK Albums Chart.
Open Fest is now called the Bennett Alliance Music Fest. The jazz and folk festival is held annually in Rochester, New York. Open Fest was formed in the summer of 2003 by saxophonist Daniel Bennett, Andrew Cloninger, and Rich Oppedisano. The vision of Open Fest was to create a platform for diverse musical groups to perform. From traditional Taiwanese performer Yi Chen Chang, to synthpop guru Joy Electric, Open Fest quickly became a format for new music. Other artists to grace the Open Fest stage have been saxophonist Daniel Bennett, national recording artist George Collichio, and folk sensation Courtney A Streb.
Ryan Curtis Clark is an American musician who also has performed under the stage name Maven. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the Christian metal band Demon Hunter, which he co-founded with his brother, guitarist Don Clark. He was also the frontman for Christian metalcore band Training for Utopia along with being one of the guitarists for Focal Point. He is featured on Zao's The Lesser Lights of Heaven DVD and Mark Salomon's Podcast, Never Was.
My Island is the tenth full-length album by Starflyer 59. It was released September 12, 2006 on Tooth & Nail Records.
The Brothers Martin are an indie rock band from Riverside, California consisting of brothers Ronnie Martin and Jason Martin. Musically, they incorporate elements of both Joy Electric and Starflyer 59 : electropop and shoegazing, while modern rock and 1980s new wave are also a central influence.
The Brothers Martin is the self-titled debut of The Brothers Martin, a band consistent of brothers Ronnie and Jason Martin, founders of Joy Electric and Starflyer 59, respectively. It is the brothers' first collaborative effort since 1991's Dance House Children and somewhat of an amalgamation of both artists' musical influences.
Jared Michael Colinger is a songwriter and musician based in Tennessee. He has recorded with Frank Lenz, Josh Dooley, Jason Martin, Ronnie Martin, Mike Perez, Laurel Dye, Alwyn Wright, Ina Veli, Brianna Brandy, and Ginger Murphy. Originally in Eastern Tennessee he moved to the west coast in early 2007 to tour more and continue his recording. From 2004 through 2007 he was marketed, distributed and managed by ALLALOM Music.
Neon Horse was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed by Mark Salomon, Jason Martin and Steven Dail. They were previously signed to Tooth & Nail Records with whom they have released two studio albums. Neon Horse's sound has been described as a being influenced by the music of the 1980s.
Andy Warhol's Velvet Underground featuring Nico is a compilation album of the Velvet Underground released by MGM Records in 1971 that features selections from the band's first three studio albums. Originally released as a double LP, the cover artwork and inside gatefold sleeve feature imitations of Andy Warhol's paintings of Coca-Cola bottles, but are credited to other artists on the back sleeve of the album. The album was released in the UK to capitalise on the interest from Warhol's Pork.
Josh Kaufman is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, composer, arranger and engineer based in Brooklyn, New York. He is a member of the collaborative ensembles Muzz and Bonny Light Horseman. He was previously a member of the band Down Home Souls.
