By Amy Coker Pascoe
Immediately following the Rock Star finale, Marty and his band, Lovehammers were signed to legendary music manager Doc McGhee and inked a major label record deal with Sony/Epic. Marty began writing and recording what would become their critically acclaimed debut album, Marty Casey and Lovehammers. The CD was released in January 2006 and Marty Casey and Lovehammers joined INXS on their world tour. Currently, Marty and the band are releasing a DVD titled ...and the rest is history which tracks the lengthy history of the band, a special Hammerjam concert in Chicago, and a new Christmas song titled "Merry Christmas (All Year Long)." The song is available as an I-Tunes Exclusive Single. An independent music video for the song, loosely based on the holiday classic It's a Wonderful Life will premiere online at MartyCasey.org, Lovehammers.com, MySpace, as well as in the new ...and the rest is history DVD.
Fans and critics alike fell under the spell of the sheer power, originality and intensity of Marty's talents. Reviewers sang praises to the cutting-edge sound and thought-provoking lyrics of his self-titled CD, which the Washington Post called "a well-polished hard-rock collection." The eclectic mix of 11 neo-grunge tracks -- including "Trees," "Clinic," "Eyes Can't See," "Call of Distress," and seven other songs -- grab and grip by the willful rawness of their sound and orchestration, which prompted one reviewer to describe the CD as "an experimental collage of different sounds, distinct melodies and diverse production techniques fit together in a way that constructs a bright but shattered mosaic." Just as a mosaic's design is made of small pieces of colored stone or glass, Marty's life is a blend of talent, hard work, tenacity, determination, and total devotion to his art. How else could a kid from Hickory Hills, Ill, who started his own band at 14 and went on to major in Finance at the University of Illinois, skyrocket to fame as a rock singer? And what about the inner strength that allowed him, in the aftermath of Rock Star, to hit the world of rock-n-roll like a rolling thunder? Perhaps the answer can be gleaned from the lyrics of his song, "Casualty," from Marty Casey and Lovehammers CD released in January 2006:
Marty has taken these words to heart. Far from becoming a casualty of a television show, he blazed new trails with his powerfully electrifying performances. "You find new life within old songs and realize that your music is affecting people thousands of miles away from the point of creation," he says. "People all over the world are taking your music and lyrics to heart." Like a customs officer at the Mexican border who, Marty recalls, "recognized me and without saying a word, broke into a Spanglish rendition of "Trees." He said, 'man, I love that song. I sing it to my kids before bed.' He made my year. I never laughed so hard."
That moment, Marty says, sparked an epiphany, which turned his life around all the way back to the music and the band he loved. "It is on the strength of others and a swift ride on their shoulders that I am where I am," he says. "The band was a part of my family and there was no need to run from the precise thing that made me strong. That day I got the initial inspiration for 'Trees.' That song gave us a whole new life." While his fans kept on humming the tune - which took off as soon as he performed it during the Rock Star competition - Marty's life whirled into stardom like a gale-force wind. Touring allows Marty to connect with his die-hard fans - and make new ones along the way - but he admits life on the road can at times be bumpy. "The worst thing is the lack of personal space," he says. "If I can't stretch out physically and mentally, I hibernate in my mind and when I get claustrophobic, I lash out. I am lucky the band and crew are so understanding."
"One of the things I love the most about Lovehammers is how they constantly bash the barriers between performer and audience," gushes Shuckra who attended the band's Hammerjam concert in the Windy City in October 2006. "From singing while walking through the crowd, to pulling kids onstage to sing with them, to hanging out with fans after shows, they do not let societal rules tell them what you can or cannot do in rock and roll. They share their experience with us and we share ourselves with them." The devotion to his fan base is total and genuine. "I care as much about the fans as I do about my career," Marty says. "I've been told that I am too open with them and that destroys the mystery of the artist. I feel the need to communicate anyway. I want to build a community, not a mirage. And I think if I challenge the audience with new sights and sounds, they will make more personal discoveries within themselves."
Marty's on-stage and private personas are as disparate as the songs on his CD. While performing before thousands of adoring fans he is "in your face" brash, bold, and intensely charismatic, whipping the crowds into frenzy with his "mad conductor." He prepares for the rigors of the energy-zapping, high-impact performances by stretching, warming up with a vocal tape, and eating right. "Mentally, I put on my gear and start to transition into the performance mode," he says. "It takes time to get it all together down to the wristbands, and that gives me time to think and take note of how I am feeling that particular day. I try to keep it light mentally because I get so worked up on stage that it is best to chill before the show begins or I risk becoming manic. I think it boils down to finding a nice balance point to leap into the show from." The other side of the balance scale is the enigmatic private Marty, who keeps his personal life out of the spotlight. Those who are close to him say he is low-key, but still intense in the way he connects and communicates with people around him. Described as "thoughtful," and "gracious," he is attentive, witty, quick to laugh, articulate and engaging.
"I don't feel like I am a different person since Rock Star, he says. "Some people presume I am, and they treat me differently now. The challenge is to remain true to who you are even when that foundation gets shifted. You gotta bend and not break." Marty's song, "Merry Christmas (All year Long)" offers a telling insight into the state of his post-Rock Star life and career: And who decides when it's time to fly As he continues to rock, climb, and conquer the world of music, there is no doubt that for Marty it really is Merry Christmas all year long. |