"This unique California collective utilizes a forward-thinking philosophy and strong musicianship [with] an infectious beat and piercing vocals that will send you clamoring for a computer to find more sounds.”
- Rolling Stone Magazine
Demos
ORIGINAL SONGS WRITTEN
Always, Beyond Your Lies, Blades of Rain, Blue Boy Crying, Blue Dream, Breaking Free, Brother, Bullet and the Blame, Can You Tell Me Why, Carolina, Centered On You, Channelize, Corroding in Shame, Courage Upon Us, Descendants, Detour, Deep Water, Eve’s Desire, Evolution Awaits, Fallen Lover, Feeds the Day, Feel, Fly, Fool for A Day, Fragments, Free Mind, From The Moment, Heaven’s In Need, How You Left Me, I Want More, Isn’t That The Way, It Was More, Kingdom Run Wild, Lady Night, Lifting Slowly, Light of Dawn, Light of Love Part 1, Light of Love Part 2, Light of Love Part 3, Lonely Road Home, Lonely Romance, Love Stung, Love Suicide, Lover Don’t Lay Down, Masquerade of Love, Midnight Calling, Me and My Imagination, My Own, Night Life, Now and for Always, On the Homefront, Paper Cages, Pensive Motion, Phantom Frequency, Praise, Rain Born, Real World, Redeeming Love, Repeat the Charge, Rotation, She Cry’s for Time, Sight Lost, Smooth Walker, So You Say, Soldier’s Sojourn, Something’s Coming, Summer Lush, Talk About Love, The Cure, Try to Listen, Union of Sight, We’re All Still Here, What About Love, What Are You Waiting For?, Where Faith Begins, Yesterday, Yingity Yangity
OUR PHILOSOPHY
Sound: Rich textures are the goal. We love combining acoustic and synthetic elements. While guitar-driven, we like the songs to have a broader open soundscape. Michael’s guitar playing typically consists of arpeggio’d chords, single-note lines, harmony textures, and unique inversions. Christopher’s goal is for layered harmonies to create a thick vocal presentation. Ultimately, our characters represent two distinct identities each with their signature moments throughout the songs. For the rhythm section, we aim for a sound that is harmoniously acoustic/synthetic and can freely move between the two throughout different sections.
Visuals: We believe firmly in the visual aspect of music. Not just in video form but photographically as well. We believe marketing imagery should be approached artistically (as a fashion photographer might shoot). We also desire to have a photographer document creative and unique moments such as in the studio, on stage, and in unique travel moments. We desire the imagery to be held to an artistic standard and thereby (for the most part) avoiding the “selfie culture”. For video presentations, we aim for a balance between “statement-making” music videos and captures of authentic live performances.
Values: Standing in Waves' lyrical content spans the range of human emotion with an emphasis on love and interpersonal growth. There is also an element of social openness and compassion. We would love for all events and releases to be tied to or benefit a social cause/organization. This also encourages taking our music that would not typically receive such an artist - giving benefits and sharing benefits' awareness.
Performance: We aim for Standing in Waves concerts to be well-produced audio-visual events. This can include video art matching music in timing and theme, transitional moments unique to the live setting (pre-produced visual content and/or musical rearrangements), and genuine audience interaction. (Chris brings audience members onto the stage to sing with him). In addition, we design set lists that diversify tempo, timbre, key, and energy thus avoiding a monotonous performance.
Social: We enjoy the energy of sharing music with people out and about in daily life. In addition to scheduled performances, we use these moments to gather and grow an audience (collecting and sending emails) as well as to generate content for social media expressions. We believe social media posts should be a representation of actual daily moments rather than created simply for their own sake.
DRUMMER
In our drummer, we are seeking someone with progressive rock influences but pop interests. A drummer who loves the occasional odd time signature, tight accents, dynamic buildups, and the use of alternate sounds with electronic trigger pads. Must be comfortable playing with a click/sequence and also improving jams. It’s also a huge plus if this person is a singer and/or songwriter because the most important aspect is having a keen ear for Chris’ vocal performance.
BASSIST
In our bassist, we are seeking a joyful soul. Should this person be in addition to a keyboardist, vocal skills are necessary. This person should also be interested in “alternate” bass sounds potentially using pedals and synths. Guitar skills could be a huge plus a well. If this person comes before the keyboardist, keyboard, programming, guitar, and vocal skills are a huge plus.
KEYBOARDIST
In our keyboardist, we are seeking someone with a producer's mindset. It is required to have a passion for modern synths and pads while retaining a romantic connection to the piano. This person is responsible for the atmosphere of the songs - especially intros and outros during live performances. It’s also a huge plus if this person plays bass and or guitar as our range of songs can require a variety of instruments. Vocals are a huge plus as well.
ART & STYLE
We envision the artistic style of Standing in Waves to be a fashionably classy “supper club” vibe in which our concert arrives as a musical “full course meal.” Artistically, we lean towards rich imagery, double meanings, and an uplifting philosophy of love, compassion, redemption, and honesty. We also greatly value photography and its potential influence. Therefore, we aim for imagery of the musicians to be an integral part of our branding.
AUDIENCE
We believe our music will appeal to people who value character over behavior, experience over objects, and class over flash. These are individuals seeking true emotional connection in their lives, furthering education & life experience, and the occasional need to just get up and dance. Musically, we could be labeled as Prog-Pop. Progressive Rock sounds and elements as the base for conventionally structured songs.
TRADITIONAL MEDIA
There are currently two main avenues for promoting Standing in Waves via traditional media. It mirrors the character difference between Christoper and Michael. For Christopher, this lies in interviews regarding art, philosophy, politics, religion, etc. as well as his involvement in the Travel With Didiayer program. For Michael, his sweet spot is in speaking about guitar equipment, recording, producing, and soundscapes. His experience in the commercial world as well as on Travel With Didiayer avails some great story starting points.
SOCIAL MEDIA
While there is a trend to establish “numbers” for garnering the interest of representation, we believe this can create a false sense of motives. This is where the “character over behavior” theme comes in. Our aim is not to create posts for the purpose of creating posts but rather to have our social media presence be a representation of our actions in the real world. Yes, there is an advertising aspect to it. Yes, fans want to see an organic representation of an artist. So, yes, there is a balance. We believe our strength in social media will reside on Youtube, Instagram, and Facebook. We believe “Shorts” and “Reels” are great places to expose people to pieces of our songs and our aim is to capture these clips from our public interactions rather than the “fancy bedroom” look.
PARTNERSHIPS AND SPONSORSHIPS
We understand the value of alignment with brands in and parallel to our industry and philosophy. Yes, conventionally, endorsements are typically offered as a result of success and public appearance. However, we aim to find brands interested in partnering with us throughout varying stages of our path. While the obvious candidates exist in musical equipment, we believe a clothing sponsor will also be a great “fit” for our brand and imagery. In addition, we aim to partner with social causes such as the IRC, Red Cross, and Habitat for Humanity. We aim to donate a portion of our income to non-profits, perform at fundraisers and special events, and incorporate social causes and awareness into our tours and concerts.