Bands

Mote is excited to announce the release of their debut album, Defying Ephemera, available on all major streaming platforms April 22.

This album demonstrates the talents of four college students: Ella Kasper, Jackson Galati, Chris Graff, and Fiona Celli. The group met on the campus of Binghamton University and have taken the local scene by storm; performing everywhere from college dining halls to moldy basements, yet bringing the same artistry and intensity to each performance. Defying Ephemera was recorded in nearby Johnson City with recording engineer Michael Micha at Abandoned Studios. Oli Bochenek and Will Person are also featured on the album.

Although not originally written as a concept album, Mote realized the songs Kasper and Galati brought to the band, when organized a certain way, did tell a story. The album starts with the promise and potential of young love, yet quickly devolves into heartbreak. As the album continues, the listener is brought into a world of anguish and confusion, culminating in the unhealthy longing expressed in the final track.

While the lyrics alone will take the audience on quite a trip, the instrumentation of these songs demonstrates the innovative nature of Mote. It would be hard to pick one genre to label this whole album. The umbrella of “alternative” does apply, but there is more going on here. Some songs are beautiful and melodic; employing elements from shoegaze and indie music. A song like “Clinomania” is a perfect example and is a crowd favorite to sing along to. Then there are the more abrasive punk inspired tracks, such as “I’m Lost”, that get live audiences jumping and moshing like mad. However, there are some songs on the album that push the conventions of rock music with their elements of the avant-garde. Most notably is the piece entitled “The Epistemic Limit”, but this can even be said about the title track.

Mote’s first gig following the release will be Saturday, April 23, at WHRW’s Moefest. They have several gigs in Upstate New York lined up before the semester ends including April 29 at the Bundy Museum in Binghamton and May 6 at Club Odyssey in Oneonta. Over the summer, Mote will be playing at various locations around the New York Metro Area.

The group began when vocalist Matthew Wetter met up with guitarist Nick Leon for a jam session. The two began work on the track "Innocence." They both noticed the flow and ease of the writing process together. The next day Matt met up with guitarist Mike Matisz for another jam session, this was the birth of the song "Water." Realizing the similarities in styles and the natural flow with the guitarists, Matt met up a third time for another jam session with Nick and Mike. The three built up an original set of songs over a few months. The core was formed was formed but a solid rhythm backbone was still needed. Matt heard from a relative that a musician in tonawanda was available. Shortly after the group learned that the next member, Ryan Nogle would be that backbone. Ryan then recommended Tyler Keller, a long time friend, to fill the bassist position. Soon after, it was off to record. The group made a few changes to their original songs and released their debut demo, and so it begins...

Downstroke is one of Toronto's premier Showbands and as such has been performing at special events, clubs and corporate functions since 1996. Our professional eight piece group with two lead singers (Male & Female), horns, and a full four piece rhythm section will keep all patrons young and old, happy and entertained. Along with the great music our shows have costume changes and choreography to round out the visual effect. Your client list contains a variety of prominent businesses and venues in and around Greater Toronto and southern Ontario. Corporate clients include IDC Canada, TD Canada Trust, Pratt & Whitney, Medieval Times, Venture Steel, Goldcoast International, Tektronix Canada, Symantec, & Vision Canada plus others. Along with these clients Downstroke has been invited and regularly participates in many local and international festivals including the Toronto Winterfest, the Canadian/USA Friendship festival, and both the Toronto & Burlington Ribfests. We perform locally for your general fan base at "A Class" venues in Toronto, Brampton, Burlington & Hamilton on a regular basis.

If you can for a moment, take the concepts of the vocal and song writing style of Seamus, forged with the special ambiance influence of guitarist, Nadeem Ahmed, and times that by 10 fold, with the brilliance of members like, Charles, ?Trey? on percussion marking in as the most unique drummer around in New York with his intricate jazz style and Charles Javier, playing bass/strings, ?a music theory minister?, at the age of 16. "You can come to a plane where 4 musicians from 4 different worlds, within worlds, within lovely long Island, have come together to shake up the levels and send this world into a tail spin... That's where you'll find Apophenia...disaster zones are sort of a collection of memories for us...but sometimes accidents are quite beautiful when you bump into the right walls and forced to stop, look around and unwind