Unsigned Finds: My Dear Disco
How
would you react if someone told you that five pop musicians with matching music
degrees from the University of Michigan, were touring around the country in a
van fueled by...vegetable oil. Say
what?
Yep, that's right. Michelle, Tyler, Robert, Mike and Christian, otherwise known as the electro-dance-disco-pop band MY DEAR DISCO, have been touring around the country in a van running solely on donations of excess vegetable oil from restaurants and supportive fans.
It's not just their unique method of transportation though, which has won this band tons of industry attention. These five have got some seriously radio ready tunes which earned them the title of BMI's Artist of the Month in addition to being named one of the most promising college bands in the country by American Eagle. Perhaps their most exciting accomplishment to date, MDD was recently added to the lineup of this year's famed Lollapalooza festival. Though they're excited about this massive gig, for My Dear Disco, Lollapalooza is just another one of the many, many shows they will play (so far they've already played over 250 gigs in the last two years!).
In addition to forward thinking tunes (and fuel substances!) these five have adopted a fresh new business model. Following in the footsteps of Radiohead who most publicly championed the idea of "pay-what-you-will" music, My Dear Disco has plans to release their next batch of tunes this way as well...with a slight twist of course. "We're actually rethinking the way bands typically release music," says lead vocalist Michelle. "All our music is pay-what-you-will...and instead of releasing another full length album, we're planning on releasing a steady stream of singles. It's an exciting way to get music out into the world because you don't have to sit and wait to finish an entire 60-minute recording -- we can let it out of the gates as soon as we feel the tune is ready for the world." "Replaceable," the band's first single released under this new method (and a serious MUST for any summer playlist) was certainly ready for public consumption as the single has been getting rave reviews since its release this past May.
So, what is there to be learned from the story of My Dear Disco? Well, that history can be made with some hard work, a couple of expensive music degrees, and penchant for writing insanely hooky pop music. Oh, and don't forget about vegetable oil.
HEAR 'EM:
And purchase "Replaceable" by clicking here!
STALK 'em:
LOVE 'EM? Tell us why! What other "unsigned finds" have you discovered?
