ON THE RISE
ORLANDO, Fla. — Artists can find inspiration anywhere — sometimes art inspires art.
In the case of Florida songwriter Adam DeGraide, electronic art, in the form of video games, has inspired him to gather more than two dozen independent singers and musicians to create great music based on characters in those video games.
DeGraide is the organizer behind the A.D.A.M. Music Project. A.D.A.M. stands for Artists Developing Astonishing Music.
“We’ve used over 25 different independent artists who have appeared on these first 20 songs that will be released by May 5,” DeGraide said. “Right now there’s 15 songs out. It’s been amazing, from all walks of life, all different genres they come from. I have a passion for hard rock, I always have. I’m also a gamer, I play tons of games. I play everything from Horizon Zero Dawn to Mario Brothers. So I really wanted to do a project writing songs about video game characters and I decided on the game Apex Legends because I play it a ton.”
The latest album, released in February, is called “Apex Rising - Part 2,” a seven-track album featuring five different artists and sounds based on 90s hard rock with a modern twist.
“We have a ton of variety and musical experience and musical preferences and it’s a really cool project to be a part of because we’re just trying to make the best music,” DeGraide said. “So we want to make songs in the classic sense of metal, like the way I knew it, the early 1990s but with a modern twist. If you listened to ‘Motherlode,’ we produced that track the way that Mutt Lange would. We approached it as if it was Motley Crue met Def Leppard and then with a modern twist on top of it.”
The first song on the album, a track called ‘I Bring Death,’ has a sound based on some of the heavy metal sound of groups like Avenged Sevenfold and Shinedown from the late 1990s and early 2000s.
“I Bring Death” was written by DeGraide and his friend, Dameon Aranda, from Oklahoma City, and was inspired by the character “Revenant” from the game Apex Legends.
“‘I Bring Death’ in particular is a cool song because I've always loved the Vincent Price, old scary kind of sound,” DeGraide said. “And then I love what Prince did, he said ‘Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to celebrate this life.’ So it just made sense to have a play on that in the beginning with ‘I Bring Death.’ And the character we wrote about, he’s very much like the devil, so when we were doing the song, I told Dameon when you’re singing this awesome, cool, seductive melody, I'm going to mirror you in a whispered demon sounding voice as if it’s in these two demons on your shoulder whispering the lyrics to you. And I feel like we nailed it, I feel like we nailed the feel, nailed the approach. It’s just catchy enough to be liked by people who don’t like heavy metal and it’s heavy enough to be appreciated by those who like the classic sound.”
Damon Aranda’s brother, Gabe Aranda, also contributed to the album as did singers such as Hartleigh Buwick, an actress who is currently working with Sylvester Stallone in the Paramount Plus show “Tulsa King.”
Buwick sings the track “Wrecking Ball” on “Apex Rising - Part 2.”
This EP also features Chris Jackson and Tyler Anderson from a “Lion Named Roar,” Neil DeGraide from “Dirt Poor Robins,” Lacy Saunders from Tulsa, Okla., David LaChance Jr, James Conner and many others who made this music possible.
DeGraide called the A.D.A.M Music Project the “ultimate fan art project,” and said the most important thing for people to know is that they're not stopping with just the Apex video game.
“I’m already recording a new album and I've got songs about Bowser, Yoshi from Mario Brothers, Resident Evil, the Last of Us, Donkey Kong and others,” he said. “The A.D.A.M Music Project is committed to making a massive amount of music about the things we all love to do for fun, which is gaming. The most important thing for people to know is these are serious songs with serious melodies and serious musicians and the music has to stand on its own regardless of the subject matter.”
Follow the A.D.A.M. Music Project on these social media and streaming sites:
Websites:
A.D.A.M. Music Project
Spotify
Youtube
Apple Music
Elvis Presley – ‘Mystery Train’
“My first love was Elvis, no question. In our house, we had a French-release compilation album of his songs called ‘Le Roi Du Rock ‘n’ Roll’. As a small kid, I was obsessed with ‘Mystery Train’. The way Elvis held his guitar like a gun and the percussive way he attacked the strings made me fall in love with the guitar. Many years later, I went busking around Europe on my motorbike with a tent and played my guitar in the streets. But it was all because of Elvis and those early Sun [Records] recordings – and ‘Mystery Train’ in particular.”
Blondie – ‘Autoamerican’
“There was an Our Price on Finchley Road, North London that I’d go to with my older brother and sister. That’s where I bought ‘Autoamerican’ in 1981. Blondie – what can you say? Apart from the fact that as a young boy, it was impossible not to be in love with Debbie Harry. I love the variety on this particular record – it goes through different genres. Years later, I saw Blondie play [in 2013] at a private function in New York with Kanye West. Debbie Harry was still magnetic.”
Queen, Wembley Stadium, 1986
“Queen were supported by INXS. It was before they released ‘Kick’ [in 1987]. I only went because it turned out my friend Kieran’s dad was a big-shot in the music industry and he got four tickets. I was around 17, it was a year after they played Live Aid and Queen were phenomenal.”
The Beatles – ‘Eleanor Rigby’
“All through our early teenage years, my younger brother and I were always at the top of the house listening to The Beatles. ‘Eleanor Rigby’ reminds me of the ‘80s and the views out of our house in London: looking at the grey, rain-drizzled skies. I always felt its melancholy, looking out of the window back then as a teenager. Not that I was unhappy, but I definitely responded to that in music.”
Ever meet Macca?
“I have met Paul McCartney and he was a complete gentleman. At a political party, we were watching the American election on TV and he came up to me and said [Lewis does a pitch-perfect Macca impersonation]: ‘Oh, you understand a bit or two about the TV, don’t you?’. And I just realised he’d seen me on TV and I melted. I went to bed grinning. That McCartney knows who I am is incredible. I was completely tongue-tied.”
David Bowie – ‘Heroes’
“I know 173 other people will probably also have picked ‘Heroes’ for this, but from the opening note, it’s just relentlessly brilliant. It’s the most evocative, triumphant, euphoric song – and unbelievably cool. The second album I ever owned was Bowie’s ‘Hunky Dory’ – and he’s remained a touchstone for me.”
The Rolling Stones – ‘Little T&A’
“I listen to the Stones a lot and I can never get ‘Little T&A ‘ out of my head. Keith Richards is quoted as calling the song ‘dumb’ and that it’s just about rock ‘n’ roll energy. It’s a celebration of carnality, I’m aware of that, but that’s the one that stays in my head!”
Jive Bunny And The Mastermixers – ‘Swing the Mood’
“I can’t fucking hear Jive Bunny again! But I don’t mean that in a pejorative way. When I was in my twenties, I would go out on my own dancing to old-school rock ‘n’ roll at rockabilly nights. Then Jive Bunny came out and cut up my favourite songs into snippets and put them into this endless [novelty] medley. And then it was never off the radio, so I’d have to put it into the Room 101 of music.”
Crazy P – ‘There’s a Better Place’
“It’s an ambient rave tune with a fantastic Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory sample. I’m just that age. I left school right into the dance culture of the ‘90s and that will still always get me up on the floor.”
The Weepies – ‘Gotta Have You’
“It reminds me of moving to LA as a family with my late wife Helen [McCrory]. My daughter was one year old and my son was about to be born. We were living in Venice Canals – and I was filming out there. We had a babysitter who was a 23-year-old roller-skating, already-Botoxed sunny Californian girl. We asked her, are you listening to any good music? She gave us two great bands. One is The Shins but the other was a lesser-known band called The Weepies. That song will always get me going.”
Elton John – ‘Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting’
“I can’t say I do karaoke but I will proudly divulge that I was at karaoke in Fulham Broadway once. I went in there with a friend and I got up and sang ‘Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting’ and I won a bottle of champagne for best karaoke of the evening! Very chuffed I was too. If I was back looking for another bottle of champers, I’d pick it again.”
Talk Talk – ‘It’s My Life’
“I was an ‘80s kid and I liked electronic music. I’ve always loved ‘It’s My Life’ and Andy Hollis’ vocals, as well as its slightly bombastic nature. Life’s what you make of it – seems like a good sentiment to have.”
Damian Lewis’ UK tour begins on October 2. His album ‘Sweet Chaos’ is out now via Thin Red Duke
