Today I am going to be talking about a Rock band that I have written about before. HDR! Joe Mora, guitar and vox, Amy Tung, Bass and Vox, Johnny Lord , Drums. This band is one of the hardest working bands in LA today. Their perseverance over the past few years is beginning to pay off.
Let me explain. For one HDR has been on a warpath to play shows and good shows at that. Insisting on playing with other good bands in the scene and bringing in bands from out of town they are really starting to stand out as a leader in the rock community. Quoting bassist Amy Tung “one of our goals is to create a scene in Hollywood, we have a great core group of bands that we play with, we support them they support us. Our fans get to see other great bands and their fans get to check us out. The old saying, there’s strength in numbers is so very true, yet so many bands can’t quite see that”.
HDR just recently released a full length album, WE ARE HDR. This gem was recorded LIVE to tape. Not many bands do that anymore in these days of Pro Tools. The Album starts off with a bang and never let’s down. To put a album on these days and be able to listen to the whole thing through without getting bored says a lot for this group. Solid writing and catchy songs are what this band is known for.
HDR recently opened for Bad Religion 4 times. That’s a feat worthy of mentioning. Another noteworthy accomplishment is them getting ‘Wide Open’ (a song off their new album, We Are HDR) in the Matt Hoffman Evil Knievel tribute that aired on MTV during the Jackassworld MTV 24 hr Takeover. They also had their video for the song Thailand (from the EP ‘Make A Wish’, Produced by Rick Kosick) played right after the Matt Hoffman special on MTV!
Future plans for this band? “Continuing to play as much as possible” says Amy Tung. They have a tour coming up with Super Giant from Albuquerque to prove that.
If you haven’t seen this band live you are missing out on something special. Expect to have as much fun being in the crowd as HDR is having on stage.
Oh yeah another amazing point if that was not enough, you can catch the HDR Jazz Trio playing a couple of Jazz sets down at La Cita , on Hill St between 3rd and 4th on Mondays during April. Trust me when I say that HDR is at the top of their game right now and it will pay off for them in 08.
HDR the band is a dream come true in the music world of today, talented musicians that are incredibly down to earth people. Check them out on the web at myspace.com/hdrtheband.
