* New Compilation CD*

Jadestone, Cuchara, Uncle Mudfish and BIK were selected to perform as part of the ASCAP Presents… Heineken Ampt Music Series. The showcase took place at Universal CityWalk on November 17, 2002. The Heineken Ampt/ASCAP Recognition Award was presented to Jason Ferguson on behalf of Orlando Weekly’s contribution to the local music scene.

Jadestone’s storyboard songwriting, smooth delivery and modern rock sound has, over the last three years, ignited South Florida’s stages and airwaves to become one of the area’s hottest original bands. The seductive voice of frontman Yves Giraud, the passionate guitar work of Gary Titi and the tribal grooves of Steve Quinto, combine to form a unique and modern sound. The band's music has been described as Europop with a transatlantic sound; comparisons have been made to the Goo Goo Dolls, Oasis, and David Gray.

Their live performances have garnered praise from the industry and fans as they reached the semifinals of two national contests, including Bandemonium 2000 which gave them the opportunity to share the stage with Marcy Playground. Jadestone’s talents also extend to the recording studio where they recorded and produced their own CD in 1998, This is America. The year 2000 saw the release of their six-song demo, Transmission, and their latest CD, Altitudes. Songs from This is America and Transmission have played on over 100 college stations across the east coast, achieving several top 30 appearances. Jadestone recently composed a theme song for the Mo&Sally show, a local radio morning show on WMBX (102.7 FM). The band recently had their song “Filthy” selected to be used for department store Burdines’ “Back to School’ campaign. The song will be played in spots running throughout the state of Florida on numerous FM radio stations. They are currently shopping to prospective managers, producers and record labels.

With its spicey mix of rock, rap and organic rhythms, this group of Miami musicians is stirring up the Latin sound, blending African and Latin beats with pop, rock, and hip-hop. Vocal harmonies are layered over electric and acoustic guitar riffs, melodic bass lines and polyrhythmic percussion, all punctuated by haunting horns and bursts of poetry. Cuchara consista of Jay Giron (drums), Joey Cucchiara (vocals/bass), Billy Marrero (percussion), Frank Gonzalez (guitar), and singer/rapper Luis Perdomo.

Over the past five years, Uncle Mudfish wrote, recorded and financed their debut album The Best is Yet to Come, and succeeded in building a strong, loyal fan base in Central Florida, from Cocoa Beach to Tampa Bay. UM also inked a 7-song deal with MTV’s “Road Rules”. With the band nearing completion of their second independent album broken to be released in 2003, Uncle Mudfish’s Clay Stone, Tony Dillen, James Dillen and Scott Perry are busier than ever. They recently completed scoring and recording music as part of a sales promotion for the gaming company Radica to announce “Gamestar” to the USA and Europe. This included a public launch of the product at the Electronics Trade Show E3 and an international TV ad campaign. Uncle Mudfish has been heard on radio stations WJRR 101.1, Real Radio 104.1, XL 106.7 and Kiss 99.9, and they also played the Cotton Club during The Atlantis Music Conference In Atlanta in 2002. They continue to record, perform and pack venues like Orlando’s House of Blues.

Frank Prevaite (lead vocals), Brent Pongetti (guitar), James Granell (bass) and Lane Smith (drums) make up BIK, a four-piece rock band based in Tampa, FL. They have been working very hard since they formed, writing new, original sounding music and practicing their high-energy stage performance. In their short two and a half years, they have had major success with live performances and have managed to build a very loyal fan base. In addition to their high-profile gigs at Livestock in 2000 and 2001, BIK has opened for bands such as Finger Eleven, Fuel and Papa Roach. In 2001, they played showcases at Brownie’s in New York and the well-known Viper Room in Los Angeles. In April 2002, BIK went into the studio and collaborated with Tampa-based rock producer Tom Moris to record their first album, which is tentatively scheduled for release in February/March 2003.

Bill Clennan of Heineken USA; Ampt recipient Jason Ferguson of Orlando Weekly; ASCAP's Ian Burke and Vanessa Rodriquez.

Jason Ferguson is the music editor at Orlando Weekly, which has a rich history in supporting local music. In fact, for the past seven years, they've hosted their own local awards show, Orlando Weekly Awards, proving that the local music scene is vibrant, diverse and overstocked with top-notch acts.

Prior to joining Orlando Weekly, Ferguson was a freelance writer for more than a decade, writing for MTV, Magnet, Entertainment Weekly, Salon, Playboy, Alternative Press and many other outlets. In addition, he spent two years as music editor at Creative Loafing – Atlanta.

He has unhealthy obsessions with David Lee Roth, Sun Ra and Prince. His music of choice includes an eclectic mix of Talvin Singh, Whitfield-era Temptations, S.O.D., Love Psychedelico, Queens of the Stone Age, Lee Perry, Fairuz, High on Fire, Funkadelic, A.R. Rahman, Aceyalone, Ramones, Art Bears, Queen, and Le Shok.

He maintains that he’ll write a cover story on any band that, in 2002, will use the words "metal" or "youth" in a song title, and who view themselves as a "squatters collective" or consider themselves redneck in a non-ironic sense.

Photography: Kevin Kolczynski

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