Ward & Sahraei are two girls from Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Ward brings in the electronic, while Sahraei brings pop punk back in scene. They are a mix of indie, electro, pop, & synth. The duo notes “We try to inspire and we are inspired by our favorite bands, like Hellogoodbye, Passion Pit and Vampire Weekend”. The song “Talk” which comes off the EP, has surpassed 3,000 SoundCloud plays in a short time. Ward & Sahraei eventually will be venerated by indie purists.
wardsahraei@gmail.com

Jameson Burt, a singer-songwriter, & multi-instrumentalist who resides in Los Angeles,  is working on a new album with a new band Mount Holly. The band also features Nick Perri who has played for Shinedown, Perry Farrell, and sister Christina Perri.  Take a listen to Jameson’s previously released solo material to get a taste of the band’s upcoming album. Expect raw, rootsy rock ‘n’ roll.
mounthollyband@gmail.com

Valdaway will release their debut album ‘Boom Shake Heartbreak’ in October. To date, the band has released two tracks ‘Beautiful View‘ & ‘Ok‘. The band offers anthemic rock layered with grungy guitars, gritty vocals along with stomps and claps. The album was recorded with acclaimed engineer Dave Parkin (Jebediah, Abbe May). The band began in a small town, South West of WA.  They will hit the road for a string of dates that includes Perth, Albany, Rockingham, Bunbury and Margaret River.
lg@cohenmgmt.com

Phineas T. Barnum, the 19th century American showman and circus owner famously said “There’s no such thing as bad publicity”. Mick Jagger said “As long as my face is on page one, I don’t care what they say about me on page seventeen.”

Businesses can find success through controversy. And while they receive negative press, the businesses attract enough consumers to suggest that the scorn has provided a form of free advertising.

Many industries survive bad press and below are just two examples.

“Robert Smith & Associates is a digital marketing and public relations firm that was started by its namesake in 2000. Smith characterized the business as one where you can make a lot of money, provided you don’t have a big office with dozens of redundant employees.

He said that many members of the media regard public relations representatives as paid pitchmen who don’t believe in what they sell. But his company is doing just fine anyway, thank you very much. “I am between $500,000 and $1 million, with a few deals in place to hit $2 million in 2014,” he said.”

Houston real estate broker Sissy Lappin says she has sold over half a billion dollars’ worth of property. Despite her success—or perhaps because of it, she said, she has had to fight the preconceived notions that many people harbor about her profession.

I was at a conference last month and a man asked me what I did,” she said. “I told him I was a real estate broker and he remarked, ‘Oh, a bloodsucking vampire.’ I hear negative comments about being a real estate agent all the time, about how over 70 percent of people don’t trust us, and we are ranked above politicians but below bankers in ethics. I have developed a thick skin through the years.” (CNBC)

Nearly thousands of bands will migrate to NYC in October where they will perform on numerous stages at CMJ, competing for attention . They’ve booked many shows as possible hoping to gain new fans and that blogs will take notice. We took notice of the Dallas indie rock band Valise. The indie quarter performed alongside Death Cab for Cutie, Local Natives, Family of the Year, and Copeland and will join Macy Gray as direct support for her headlining US tour.
stephanie@thecatalystpublicitygroup.com, matt@thevanguardroom.com