Act As If

Act As If
Background information
OriginLos Angeles, United States
GenresIndie rock, Indie pop
Years active2010–present
LabelsUnsigned
MembersPeter Verdell
Diego De La Rosa
Sara Lindsay
Tristen Whaley
Derrick Wong
Websitewww.actasifmusic.com

Act As If is an American indie rock quintet from Los Angeles, United States, led by singer/songwriter Peter Verdell.

History

[edit]

After quitting his job in A&R at Drive-Thru Records in 2008, lead singer Peter Verdell began working on his own first full length record, There's A Light, which was released on iTunes in May 2010. Mixed by Nick Baumhardt (Thousand Foot Krutch, The Class of 98), and mastered by Troy Glessner (Death Cab for Cutie, Pedro the Lion), the record was written and produced by Verdell, who also performed all instruments on the record, including: drums, guitars, piano, synths and vocals. Shortly after the release of "There's A Light" an official full band lineup was formed and the band began playing shows around LA including venues such as: The Troubadour, West Hollywood, Spaceland, House of Blues, The Bootleg, Hotel Café, Roxy Theatre (West Hollywood), The Glasshouse, The Viper Room, and Silverlake Lounge.[1][MTV 1]

In an interview with Anti Music, Verdell discusses the meaning behind the music: "I think the general message (and maybe the general theme of our album), is that when things seem to be falling apart, or someone we love doesn't love us back—we can still find light, or joy, or hope—if we choose to look for it."[2]

There's A Light was deemed Fuseworthy by Fuse TV, and Absolutepunk.net has featured tracks from the album on their site.[1][3]

Songs from There's A Light have been featured on Apple.com [Lion OS X Promo video], ABC's Cougar Town, CBS's Live to Dance,[1] and episodes of MTV's The Buried Life,[MTV 2] and Jersey Shore.[MTV 3]

In September 2011, Act As If released a video for their cover of Blink-182's song "'Pathetic", off the band's 1997 album, Dude Ranch. This video soon caught the attention of Blink-182's bassist/singer Mark Hoppus, who posted it on his personal Facebook page.[MTV 1]

In December 2011, the band released a Christmas single, "Sleighbells & Reindeer," featuring Lucy Schwartz and Brian Fennell of Barcelona. The song was featured on ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas countdown and offered as a free download when fans pre-ordered Act As If's new EP "The Iron Is Hot," which came out on February 21, 2012.[4] Since release "The Iron Is Hot" has gained attention from blogs such as Kick Kick Snare,[4] and Kings of A&R,[5] and the second song on the EP, "Oh My My", received extensive airplay on The World Famous KROQ-FM's Locals Only show with DJ / taste-maker Kat Corbett.[6] The music video for "Oh, My My" premiered on MTV.[7]

Songs from "The Iron is Hot" have been featured on ABC's Pretty Little Liars, Nick TV's Degrassi: The Next Generation,[8] MTV's The Real World.

Act As If released their album, Steady on November 10, 2014,[9] and followed up with the EP Lovers Online on September 16, 2016.[10]

Performances

[edit]

Act As If has played with artists including The Daylights, Barcelona, Emery, Everybody Else, and Stacy Clark.[1]

Discography

[edit]
  • There's A Light (2010)
  • "The Iron Is Hot" EP (2012)
  • Steady (2014)
  • Lovers Online EP (2016)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d "Act As If : Bio page". Actasifmusic.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-11. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  2. ^ "Singled Out: Act As If - Act As If News @ antiMusic.com". Antimusic.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  3. ^ "Free Music Friday (6/4/2010)". AbsolutePunk.net. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  4. ^ a b "Kick Kick Snare - Act As If: The Iron Is Hot". Kick Kick Snare. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  5. ^ "Top 8 Emerging Artists - Kings of A&". Kickkicksnare.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  6. ^ "KROQ Locals Only Showcase August 22nd At On The Rox". Kroq.cbslocal.com. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  7. ^ "Act As If 'Oh My My'". mtvu.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  8. ^ "Degrassi". TuneFind. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  9. ^ "Act As If - "Keep Me By Your Side" (audio) (Premiere)". PopMatters. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  10. ^ "ACT AS IF DROPS NEW EP 'LOVERS ONLINE' TODAY". Acentric Magazine. Archived from the original on 20 February 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2017.

MTV sources

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Act As If Biography". MTV Bio. MTV. Archived from the original on October 13, 2010. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
  2. ^ "The Buried Life (Season 2) - Ep. 202 - Songs from the Show - MTV". Mtv.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  3. ^ "Jersey Shore › Songs From the Show › Ep. 226". MTV. Archived from the original on April 29, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
[edit]