Like a phoenix, The Rising have sprung from the ashes of another – in this case, from another band, EXIT. A pop/rock band (with country/Americana influences), The Rising are from Belfast Northern Ireland, and are named after the group’s collective favourite Bruce Springsteen album (a major influence on their sound).
EXIT were a four-piece band applauded by Kerrang magazine for their “enormous, stadium-seeking choruses” and sound “as outsized as a monster truck at Kwik-Fit”. Similarly Classic Rock magazine declared, “You can imagine watching this band on stage in a 20,000 seater arena with the crowd singing along to every word.” EXIT represented Ireland in the UK finals of US label Bodog Music’s search of the world’s best unsigned group. They finished 8th. Supporting such legends as Starsailor and Aslan on the live circuit, EXIT certainly looked like a band on the up and up.
But things change, and the band decided they wanted to make music that was more refined, less overt-rock and more subtly pop – and so The Rising was born. Now trimmed to a three-piece, they comprise Tristan Harris on vox, Chris Logan on guitar, and Andy Morgan playing bass. Chris added mandolin and banjo to his instruments – they’d changed a lot.
Debut album Coming Home, recorded in Belfast and Los Angeles and released on Renegade Maverick Records, was engineered by several producers, including Grammy Award winner Hank Williams, who’s known for his work with Keith Urban, Brad Paisley and Taylor Swift. The album was released in August last year with lead single, “Still Coming Home to You” released the month before.
You can catch The Rising at Whelans, Dublin on April 19, where they’ll be supporting Sasha McVeigh and Sonia Leigh. Tickets available here.
Things are moving swiftly onwards for The Rising, with their latest single about to be dropped. Watch this space.
[youtube http://youtu.be/uBaYS7vH-yw]
