If you’re not into the punk/pop rock scene, you may not know who the heck The Cab is. If this is the case, here is a quick bio. They’re 4 guys from Las Vegas, Nevada who released their first album Whisper War in 2008 and have been making beautiful music ever since then. They’ve had a few ups and downs between changing band members and leaving their label, they pulled through and managed to release one of the most inspiring albums I’ve ever heard. So why are they such an amazing band? I’ll tell you. We’ll start at the beginning.
[tps_title] They started from the bottom… [/tps_title]
No, but they really did. Lead singer, Alexander de Leon and friend Cash Colligan started playing music together in high school and putting their demos up on their Myspace page. Yeah, Myspace. Eventually, they brought in two new band members and were complete once they had a guitarist, Paul Garcia, drummer, Alex Johnson and pianist, Alex Marshall. This happened 5 years ago. After playing numerous shows locally, they were signed to a local label called Olympus Records a year later. After they didn’t release any material, they decided to give a demo to Spencer Smith and Jon Walker (then members of Panic! at the Disco) which is pretty freakin’ rad and well the rest is histor. They were signed to Decaydance Records in 2007 right before graduating high school. The rest is history. Well, sort of.
[tps_title] They released their best album without being signed to a record label… [/tps_title]
Alright, so they’ve only released two albums, Whisper War and Symphony Soldier; but Symphony Soldier is a freakin’ masterpiece! They got radio time on their own and resorted to Twitter and other social media outlets to get the word out. The band paid for the album all on their own and pretty soon, Symphony Soldier was on the top 10 chart for iTunes in the US. The fact that they did everything on their own was nothing short of amazing. Good thing their album is THAT good. Take a listen to their first single off the album titled “Bad”.
Advertisement
[tps_title] They’ve changed band members a few times, but still managed to be amazing. [/tps_title]
Shortly after being signed, they switched out Paul Garcia for Ian Crawford who had been playing guitar in Washington, so he moved out of Washington to join the band. 2 years later, Alex announced Ian would be leaving the band, they replaced him with Bryan Dawson who had been touring with Panic! at the Disco as their tour guitarist. A few months later, co-founder of the band, Cash, decided he was going to leave the band as well. Later, the band announced Bryan was going to be a father and he would be departing from the band too. Tough break. A year later, they added guitarist Frank Sidoris and drummer Dave Briggs. Current members of the band are Alex de Leon on vocals, Alex Marshall as pianist, backing vocals and guitar, Joey Thunder on bass, Dave Briggs on drums, and finally Chantry “Chance” Johnson on guitar/cello and backing vocals as well. Together, they are The Cab! Sidenote: All departures were amicable.
Advertisement
[tps_title]Their music videos. [/tps_title]
Though they don’t have many, their music videos are great. The one we just saw for “Bad” is super fun and gives a whole new meaning to sexting. Their other music video for “La La” highlighted concert footage from their co-headlining “Everything’s Fine Symphony Soldier” tour with The Summer Set, and supporting acts He Is We, Days Difference, and Paradise Fears. They featured Hailee Steinfeld in their most recent video for “Endlessly” which was co-written by the fantastic Bruno Mars. Proof that these guys are the real deal! Take a look/listen; the music video is beautiful.
[tps_title]No one else can wear beanies and look THIS good… [/tps_title]
Advertisement
amirite?
[tps_title] Their lyrics… [/tps_title]
Their lyrics really are something else. To some of you it may not seem out of this world, but these lyrics have saved lives. This band has saved lives. There are countless accounts online about how the band saved someone’s life and how grateful the fans are. With words like “they say before you start a war, you better know what you’re fighting for” and countless others, these guys really use their words to get through to their audience.
[tps_title] They get a little help from some big names… [/tps_title]
In case you didn’t know, remember that album I previously mentioned about them not being signed to a label, yet still making it to the top 10 on iTunes? Well, they had a little songwriting help from a few people you may know. For example, the track “Endlessly” was co-written by Bruno Mars. One of my other favorites “Animal” was co-written with Adam Levine, frontman from Maroon 5! They’ve also had the likes of Brendan Urie from Panic! At the Disco and Patrick Stump from Fall Out Boy featured on their first album in the song “One of those Nights”. After they finished their Symphony Soldier tour, they were off touring with none other than Maroon 5! All this without a record label or any executives telling them what to do. Pretty impressive, if you ask me.
[tps_title] The guys have an amazing relationship with their fans… [/tps_title]
It really is unremarkable what these guys do with their fans. If you search YouTube, you’ll find tons of videos of the guys doing Video chats answering questions and even singing snippets of their songs live during the chats! They do Meet & Greets any chance they get, especially at shows, and make the fans feel welcomed and appreciated. Often, they’ll host Twitter Q&A’s and answer any questions the fans may have, they almost always reply, which is pretty great. There aren’t many artists who do that so it’s great to have a band be so humble.
[tps_title] The lead singer loves Disney… [/tps_title]
He loves Disney. Alright, you might not think it’s important that he likes Disney, but it’s really important to me. Mainly because I love Disney. He loves the movies, frequently visits the parks and even has fans meet him at the park when he’s there. Pretty amazing to me. I couldn’t even imagine what I’d do if I got to go to Disney World with Alex de Leon. *pause to daydream*
[tps_title] I’m telling you to…[/tps_title]
That’s right, my last reason you should be listening to The Cab is because I’m telling you to. I love these guys so much, I traveled on a bus for more than 15 hours just to see them in concert. I have all their albums, know all their songs and I’m just a fan. I’ve been following them from the beginning and I know that these guys deserve every bit of success they have. They’ve worked so hard to get to where they are. Give them a chance, listen to their music and then go ahead and comment with your favorites. I guarentee you’ll think they’re as talented as I say they are. They’re passionate about making music and you can feel their dedication and hard work when you listen to their album. In case you were wondering, they are now signed with Universal Respublic Records. Congrats to my favorite boys!
Advertisement