Nowhere To Hide

Rock. “Trip-60’s” style…..Wanna take a ride?
RANDORI – “Trip”

Something has been missing. And with the album, “Trip”, that which was lost, or at least in the very shortest of musical supply, has been found. A rediscovery of guitar-driven hard rock infused with melodies seldom heard since the “REVOLVER” days. An ambitious, modern blend of style and substance…sprawling, yet intimate, with a restrained fragile subtext. Angst expressed in honest, age-old rock terrain for a fresh era. Randori’s music is designed to transport, wake you up, then make you dream. With a creative heavy hand, the band loudly proclaims that anything lost can be found again. And to hear it is to believe it.

Randori, the brainchild of New Jersey natives, vocalist/songwriter, Jason Pascoe, and multi-instrumentalist/writer, Mike Ian, was formed in January 2003. Drawing from extensive, combined club and studio backgrounds, distilling elements of the great Rock ‘n’ Roll pioneers, they snake through rock riffs tinged with Alternative and classic Brit Pop…influences they learned first hand. Pascoe ran some hole-in-the-wall glam and punk clubs in the Philly area (“dives”, which rent and overhead eventually killed off), while Ian helmed engineering and production at a state of the art recording studio. With bands constantly coming & going…live and in-studio…the two decided to form their own.

Randori’s sound is one of sparkling pop melodicism. There’s an ability to fuse the comfortable “I’ve heard that before” feeling with unique songs and arrangements that, at times, vibrate and startle. Clever yet deceptively simple musical layers present the listener with immediacy and something new to discover with each listen. (“There is more here than meets the ear”; Kenny Johnston, Grammy-winning engineer, Lauryn Hill/“Miseducation”.) Lyrically, there’s a sense of loss and dislocation; backstories dramatic enough to overwhelm the music, but they don’t. The forlorn melodies intertwined with melancholy somehow leave the listener satisfied. Frailties are captured dead-on, yet with a fleet ease we welcome. Epic rants are delivered with the quietude of Pascoe’s vocals.

The point is made effectively by the standout anthemic track, “Your Life”. It’s the realization that we are all too aware of the limited time we have to enjoy this life. Be present, now, and for the moment. Then see what you leave behind “Before we fade away…”. From the melodic “Wonderful You”, a smoothly textured, neo-traditional “Trip-60’s” rock tribute, to the drop-dead “Surprise Me” track, with an irresistible, sly hook that magnifies the anxiety and apprehension that lurk in any sentient person. From the organic, spontaneous “I Think You Should Know”, to the “turn off your mind” dreamscape of “Surface”, where risky intimacy flows through several moods. The “Trip” album shows Randori armed to the hilt with an arsenal of front and center showstoppers- - Pascoe and Ian stretch their vision, passion and commitment.

A regional tour supports the “Trip” debut CD (mastered by Adam Ayan at Gateway Mastering), with the full band. The additional members, new and seasoned, top off and round out the sound. It remains no bulkier or less direct than before. They’ve done a number of well received, well reviewed northeast and mid-Atlantic venues. Club headliners and concert openers. A fan base includes a large mailing list and high internet interest (CD & merchandise sales, and preview streaming at several sites including the official Randori website.) And key airplay & retail sales have begun for the indie CD (Voidfree.) Randori, with Pascoe on lead vocals, and Ian on lead guitar, are now energized with Atlanta native, Peter Wilkins, for bass, Philadelphian, Tony Iannuzzi, for drums, and second guitarist, Johnny Rock. (Wilkins and Iannuzzi were the rhythm section for several collectives, which drops in a new squib of color for Randori.) The live show captures & enhances the CD experience. Now it all comes together in a 5-guys-in-a-rock-band way.

With “Trip”, Randori has proven to have “The incendiary potential to set the rock world aflame” – Romeo King, Ambiance Magazine, CD Rev.

Scorching incandescence? They’ve struck the match…all you have to do is listen and enjoy. Take the “Trip”!