Taking the sounds of soul bathing them in the cleansing waters of the punk rock they grew up playing, Tracer Bullet has created a sound entirely their own.

One part manic energy and one part street soul the boys howl out a message designed to cross genre boundaries. With consistently danceable rhythms and high energy melodies Tracer Bullet paints a musical picture that will bring to mind the fantasy of watching Wilson Pickett sing with The Clash. So rub the sleep out from your eyes and Lookout! Here comes Tracer Bullet!

Empire State Express is a power trio hailing from Chicago, with Chris Steele on vocals and guitars, Tim O’Donnell on bass and Derrick Martens on drums. Their music combines whipsmart songwriting with high-energy, neo-classic rock & roll in a series of controlled explosions. ESE’s first EP, “Land Speed Record” harnesses the band’s core momentum, taking the listener on a joyride through the city’s darker quarters. Their latest single, “Revolving Doors” sends up the music business and crams in all the energy and songmanship that make ESE shows a blast.

We play like we have played forever. We play in debt to a message. We come with passion and embrace a hard edge. And we do it all.. with a little style.

The Buckshot Hounds are : Aaron T Heindel – rhythm guitar and lead vocals; Jason Hiland – lead guitar and vocals; Andy Sivwright -drums; Ted Yi -bass guitar; Chris Bartley – keys and vocals.

Having laid a foundation on a sound that blends the stories and songwriting of country and folk with the grit and punch of blues & good old fashioned rock-n-roll, The Buckshot Hounds have carved themselves a place to stand where few have stood before them. Basically, five hicks playing some kick-ass rock & roll. Hope you like it.

Cellar Rats was formed in 2012 after Cesar Ocampo met Greg Stark and Dario (Wallace) Sanchez after performing a show with his then-current band, Ramona’s Revenge. The original lineup consisted of Cesar on drums, Greg on guitar, and Wallace on vocals. After a few shows, the band brought in Eric Olivo, Cesar’s former bassist in Ramona’s Revenge, to fill in on bass. Cellar Rats played locally in the Chicago suburbs for about a year before Cesar left the band for personal reasons. One of Eric’s friends, Zach Damit, was then brought in on drums. The band began to grow their audience and perform at various locations farther away from their hometown before releasing their first 5-track EP in November, 2012 titled Spacebar.

2013 was a great year for the band. They played 23 shows at favorite local venues such as Reggies, Ashbary Coffee House, and Mike’s Luv ‘N’ Music, while reaching out-of-state audiences in Indiana and Iowa. Greg Stark, the band’s guitarist at the time, left the band in August due to differing opinions regarding the band. However, he helped significantly with the recording process of their upcoming album. Katelyn Correa, a friend of Eric’s, was invited to the band after Greg left. Katelyn took over on bass, and Eric switched to guitar. In October of the same year, they released their first LP, You And Me.

At the start of the new year, Cellar Rats was invited to play Thursday Night Live, a weekly live radio show hosted by Northeastern Illinois University. However, it was difficult for the band to play as many shows as they did the year prior due to lineup changes and differing schedules between the band members. In July, Wallace left the band to pursue other opportunities, and Cellar Rats was without a vocalist until October. Tom Bogdan, another friend of Eric’s, was interested in acting as frontman for the band, and played his first show in February of 2015.

Cellar Rats is now working on creating new songs and merch, playing more shows, and finalizing the tracks for their next EP, which they hope to release in the summer of 2015.