Head over to our Facebook page to get entered in our biggest giveaway ever! We'll be drawing a winner on January 28th and, if chosen, you can pick from shirts, decals, CDs, download cards, signed drum sticks, custom guitar picks, signed set lists from past shows and MORE! You can enter to win up to 3x per day by sharing a links on the band's FB page. Well, what are you waiting for!?
We are proud to announce that Mark VanWinkle will be our new drummer! He comes with years of on stage experience and has been credited as a song writer as well. He brings a lot to the table and we can't wait to officially start this next chapter of NOWAKE with him on board! Welcome him to the family when you see him!
Thanks for almost 11 years, AJ!
After almost 11 years with the band, AJ decided to step down as drummer. He helped to form the band in 2007 and laid the foundation of what has become NOWAKE. We, as a band and as friends, have had lots of highs and lows and we persevered through it all. His drum work on 2014's "Getaway" and 2017's "An Act of Defiance" will be forever cemented in the band's history. As of late, he informed us that his heart just wasn't into it anymore and that's understandable. We wish him the best in all his future endeavors. Thanks AJ!
With that being said, we have worked hard since receiving this news in October and will be making an official announcement later tonight as we will be playing our next show on January 5th with our newly unveiled drummer. Stay tuned!
We are currently in our annual break BUT that doesn't mean we aren't busy behind the scene on some BIG things coming up! We just released a new logo (see below) in our nowake.threadless.com Threadless shop, we are working on new music (yes, NEW music), we are booking 2019 shows and there are other surprises in store to be announced in the coming months! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to keep up.
NEW ONLINE STORE OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED!
We're happy to announce that we just launched our brand new online store! Everything is priced as low as we can for every budget-friendly rock 'n roller out there. All products have been created by us and there are a ton to choose from. What are you waiting for? Head on over by clicking HERE!
​We receive messages and emails from fans from time to time not only regarding the band for booking, merchandise, videos, etc., but on occasion, we get asked questions more specific. Yesterday, we received one of the latter messages and we feel the need to share it and the response just for the sake of transparency and honesty.
This is Sean. My best advice is to continue to play what you like, but also continue to stretch yourself. I started by playing along with rock songs I enjoyed the most (Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water", Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", etc etc etc), but I kept reading what the best players were doing. I read guitar magazines that showed Zakk Wylde's pedal board and amp settings and who he looked up to as a kid, different exercises that built up my fingers and gave me a feel for the fretboard, etc. Nowadays, you can always just watch other people's videos on YouTube and even view personal lessons as well. As long as you're developing an ear for what sounds good to you and keeps your interest in guitar, it's all good. I have personally never posted a video of myself just playing because, deep down, I know there are million way better guitarists than myself. But, that's just me. I continue to grow and play what makes me happy. In the last few years, I have spent way more time playing riffs that I thought up and finding ways that the band can utilize them as potential songs for us to play. About 20% of the riffs I come up with actually make it to a legitimate NOWAKE song and that's ok. It's what keeps me going. I no longer want to look up other people's songs and try to figure them out like I used to. Although, on the occasion that I do look up a YouTube video or tab on someone else's song, I usually find myself learning more usable styles that, in turn, becomes apparent in my music... so maybe I should spend a little more time jamming along with songs I hear on my Spotify or Pandora stations LOL.
Anyway, keep doing what makes you happy and keep challenging yourself. Have fun!
In a world of flashy guitar videos that leave you feeling like you will never be good enough, just do you. Play what is fun and continue growing in your craft. If you end up like Eddie Van Halen, playing for millions of people in sold-out arenas, great. If you end up being like the rest of us who just enjoy getting together and playing fun songs, perfect.