THIS IS “BASED ON A TRUE STORY”… THE STARTING LINE by Corine Jurgerson 
Pennsylvania-based rockers The Starting Line will drop by Chicago’s Metro April 17 in support of their forthcoming record, Based On A True Story. Six years ago, guitarist Matt Watts and Mike Golla decided to start a band. After scouring the Internet in search of a local vocalist, Watts stumbled upon the AOL profile of Ken Vasoli. It just so happened that not only was Vasoli a vocalist, but he also played bass. Convenient? You betcha! Emails were exchanged between the two musicians, then drummer Tom Gryskiewicz was added to the mix, and before long, all four guys were jamming together. “For us, it was like nothing we had ever heard before, and we were so proud of it,” Watts described. The band’s unprecedented sound was soon discovered by Drive-Thru records, who signed the guys and kicked their lives and careers into high gear. Vasoli pulled overtime with classes and studying in order to graduate high school early, while Watts pushed to finish his college degree. Graduations completed, the band was free to concentrate on recording and their band. The next few years were spent touring, and developing a fan base. Their first album in 2002 –– Say It Like You Mean It –– was quite successful for these fresh faces on the rock scene, selling over 300,000 copies within its first year of release.  Fans wanted more, resulting in the release of the Make Yourself At Home EP. To feed the frenzied appetite of their snowballing fans, the band kept a solid touring schedule, which included being part of the Warped Tour.
“When we released our first record, I don’t think we came home for close to two years,” said Watts. “That’s where your real fans are, though [on the road]. Radio and music TV stations, tend to forget about a band. They see bands as somewhat disposable. Kids go to shows. Our real fans are the kids that are going to shows every night. We have to be there for them as much as they’re here for us.” Five years later, with two EP’s and two full-length albums under their belts, The Starting Line’s music continues to evolve with each step the band takes. “If you listen to each album, you can definitely hear the maturity from each release,” Watts explained. “The first EP we released was one of those things where we were all excited…we didn’t really give as much thought to the songwriting as we do now. I’m still really proud of it, because it’s the first thing all of us ever recorded and ever released, but after touring and being exposed to so many things that people my age normally don’t get exposed to, you grow up a lot faster than most people. Road years are definitely longer than normal years.” The band’s newest album, Based On A True Story, was recorded at three different studios and was a collaboration between the band and three different producers. “Tim O’Hare did the chunk of the recording at a place called Mission Sound in Brooklyn,” Watts explained. “He was awesome to work with. Tim was very encouraging if anyone messed anything up or the take wasn’t as good as it could be. I find that to be motivating, rather than someone being down on you all the time. His very positive attitude made the four of us want to go to the studio every day, and that was great.” The band also had the opportunity to work with Howard Benson (My Chemical Romance, Head Automatica) and Erik Rachel (Skid Row, Atreyu), whom the band felt brought a lot to the table creatively. A majority of the lyrics were written by Vasoli while the entire band collaborated on working through the melodies and arrangements. Their forthcoming new album explores themes such as relationships and sex, as well as the trials and tribulations that the band has faced when dealing with the recording industry. Based On A True Story hits store shelves on May 10, after which the band will embark on more touring. They are currently headlining a short, month-long tour with support slots filled by such upcoming young bands as Mae, Armor For Sleep, and The Suicide Pact. After Based On A True Story is launched, then it’s back on the road for this summer’s Warped Tour. More at: www.startinglinerock.com The Starting Line perform at The Metro in Chicago on April 17 |
