By Tracy Dietlin
And the winner is Hollace. That was the announcement made 2 weeks ago when Fortune Finder Music Group held their 2nd Annual “Summer Showdown: Battle of the Bands” at The Hood in Palm Desert. It was tough competition between the 3 bands that made the finals which also included Thr3Strykes and Blackwater, but Hollace walked off with first place and a cool $1000.00 check.
The band is comprised of: Alex Antonio (vocals), Frank Michel (lead guitar), James Hollis Eaton (rhythm guitar) Shawn “Stretch” Fisher (bass) and Josh Ballard (drums). From the moment they took the stage they held the audience in the palm of their hand. Frontman Alex Antonio’s vocals were spot on with dynamic range as he worked the stage with moves similar to Axel Rose, but never an imitation. The band as a whole, were tight and never missed a beat even though drummer Josh Ballard had just gotten out of the hospital with pneumonia. Hollace is a high energy, melodic rock band with radio-ready songs and catchy hooks that will stay in your head long after you hear them.
It’s been an interesting road for these 5 guys. While they prefer to focus more on the future and not talk much about their previous bands it is important for the readers to know a few facts. Ballard, Eaton and Fisher have all been friends since high school and currently all live together in Ballard’s home, which also serves as a home recording studio and practice space for the band.
Eaton is married and travels back and forth to Reno where his wife and 16 year old daughter live. Both have been very supportive of him trying his hand at a music career here in the valley. “She’s been fantastic. Without her support I wouldn’t be able to do this,” commented Eaton.
Back in the early 2000’s, Ballard and Eaton were in the band Wasted Sobriety. Moving forward to a little over 3 years ago, Michel had met Giorg Tierez through a Craig’s list ad to form a band, which they called Burning Bettie. Ballard came on and then Eaton and Fisher. Things were ok for a while, however the band parted ways with Tierez only a few weeks before they won the “Best Rock Band” award at the CV Music Awards this past May.
Michel says he was ready to call it quits early on until Ballard came on. “Giorg told me he had an awesome drummer coming on and the first time I heard Josh I was blown away by his skill and professionalism so I decided to stay.”
“It just wasn’t working out with Giorg,” says Ballard. “But we prefer to talk about the future and not the past. We’re not here to talk bad about anyone or hold any grudges. We’re here to make music.”
During that same time, Hollace frontman Alex Antonio, was having difficulties with his band, Deadend Paradox. “I just wasn’t feeling it anymore when I would go to practice. I hung out a few times with the guys from Burning Bettie when Giorg wasn’t there and we jammed a bit and we were all like ‘Wow! Did that just happen?’ But we never thought anymore about it,” shared Antonio, during a recent group interview with Hollace. “Then when they parted ways, things just happened organically.”
Michel goes on to share, “It’s just a really good fit with Alex. His vocals are amazing. He just came in right away and started putting lyrics to our music and we were able to put out a 3 song demo in no time.”
The band currently has 12 songs finished and several others in the works and that’s with them only being together for 3 months. I definitely see this band destined for big things. Their show that night at The Hood was full throttle from start to finish and I agree with Michel that Antonio has some amazing vocal chops to go with his confident showmanship as a frontman.
“When I was with Deadend I was always playing guitar and singing,” said Antonio. “With Hollace I decided to put down the guitar and just sing and perform and I’m glad I did.”
And by the audience’s reaction that night I think all the ladies are glad he did too. Everyone loves a charismatic frontman that can also deliver a powerful vocal range. All that would be for nothing without the solid musicianship of the rest of the band. These guys are taking this serious and carve out time to practice on a regular basis at least twice a week.
“Everything came together with Hollace so fast it’s almost scary,” said Michel. “But we really feel that we have something that is rock solid. We really want to define a new generation of rock. We feel our style is unique and we want to put our own stamp on it.”
Check them out on Facebook. Follow them on Twitter @hollaceband
Music: www.reverbnation.com/hollace
Booking: hollaceband@gmail.com
Photos By Scott Pam Photography
www.scottpamphotography.com
It is with a heavy heart that I share that on Monday morning, Sept. 7, James Hollis Eaton’s 16 year old daughter, Alana Sheri Davison passed away. I received the call from a devastated Josh Ballard late Monday night. He and Fisher had been her Uncles all her life. Both Ballard and Fisher were on their way to Salt Lake City at the time of me writing this to be there to support their best friend James during this horrific time. Our thoughts, prayers, hugs and support go out to James and his wife Brook and their family.
