A congratulations is in order.
For more than two years friends, fans and family have been anxiously holding their breaths waiting for an announcement that Boulder’s best rock band, Rose Hill Drive, had signed to a label. There were a lot of close calls and even more speculation, but this month all of those folks finally exhaled (as opposed to all of us, who simply continue to inhale).
Rose Hill Drive’s manager, Brian Schwartz, first let the surprise be known when he appeared before the New Year’s Eve shows, where Rose Hill performed Led Zeppelin I in its entirety, with trimmed locks. (The band and its manager had made a pact long ago that none of them would cut their hair until a deal had been inked.)
But Schwartz, one of the kings of suspense, did not let the cat out of the bag then, and kept even close insiders at arms’ length as the final details were hammered out.
In mid-January, however, it was finally announced that the band has signed a multi-faceted deal with Megaforce Records and with local family SCI Fidelity.
Schwartz was careful to point out that the signing in and of itself is not that big of a deal and that the band’s first release will be the real triumph.
The band immediately went into the studio after New Years and laid down the tracks for the as-of-yet untitled album, which should be out in late spring or early summer.
With Schwartz’s sentiments in mind, it may be true that Rose Hill Drive has yet to win the big game, but they have scored a major touchdown and for that we applaud, or more appropriately, pump our fists in their direction.
I still remember clearly the first time I heard Rose Hill Drive — late one night nearly three years ago, driving home from a concert when a friend said they needed something loud to stay awake. “I have no idea what this is, but it’s supposed to be loud,” I told him, as I slid the band’s first demo/EP into the player. We sat there dumbfounded as the band’s “In the News” cranked through the system’s feeble speakers, and I immediately became a fan.
Since then, I have seen the band grow musically as if someone was pouring major amounts of Musical Miracle-Gro on them daily. I’ve been around to see their early gigs where few people knew about them, to seeing sold out shows every time they play the area. It’s been a pleasure to watch and we at The Marquee can’t wait for the future chapters of this band to unfold before our eyes.
Congratulations gentlemen! We wish you all the best. You deserve it.
We’ll see you at the shows.
