I don’t remember how to write regular Music Monday posts since I’ve written concert reviews for the past 5 weeks, so bear with me.
Last weekend, when I saw The Maine, I mentioned seeing Nick Santino. Before Nick went solo, he was the lead singer of the relatively short-lived but still great band, A Rocket to the Moon.
Eric, Nick, Andrew, and Justin.
During their five official years as a band (2008-2013), they released two full-length studio albums (starting in 2006, Nick released a couple of EPs under the ARTTM banner): 2009’s On Your Side and 2013’s Wild & Free (which was on my top 10 list in December).
It’s hard to classify ARTTM – they’re a little rock & roll, a bit country, a tad alternative, a dash of indie, and – if you listen hard enough – a pinch of pop punk. They were also capable of writing really sad songs, for example, one of my personal favourites, “Like We Used To”:
Will he love you like I loved you? Will he tell you every day? Will he make you feel like you’re invincible with every word he’ll say?
I’ve seen them twice: in 2011 for the On Your Side headlining tour, and then again when they opened for The Maine last June. They put on a fun show – not all their songs are as sad as “Like We Used To” or “Ever Enough” (which is at the bottom of this post). One of the first songs I listened to was “Life of the Party”, which, like the title suggests, is in fact a good party song. Or “Give A Damn” (which is where the post’s title comes from), or – if you’re looking for a lullaby – “Baby Blue Eyes” which I like singing to my nieces even though none of them have blue eyes.
I’m not entirely sure why ARTTM broke up. I think I was too busy flailing around screaming “WHY?” to fully comprehend their break-up statement (actually, I just re-read it and it still doesn’t give a solid reason). I think it was mostly wanting to branch out, make different music, maybe even take a break. I haven’t really kept up with the other band members, but like I mentioned, Nick has gone solo, I imagine Justin has gone back to focusing on his pre-ARTTM band, Brighten, Andrew’s probably drumming for someone else, and Eric seems to spend a lot of time on Twitter, but hasn’t mentioned anything about new music.
It’s always sad when a band breaks up, but at least ARTTM released a great final album and tried to tour as much as possible before calling it quits.
How could we know without searching? Is it ever enough?
*single tear*
bellsiebooks 