Machines Are People Too
Machines Are People Too
Want an escape from the family on Thanksgiving Day? Dance off those T-Day pounds off at Rhythm & Brews with Machines Are People Too, Elk Milk, and Deep Fried Five’s Sideproject—Dilly Power! A lot has been going on with Chattanooga’s rowdy pop outlet MRP2, as they have been working heavily behind the scenes touring and working on new material. The band is set to record their new album at the end of the month and it is expected to come out sometime in 2012.
Things are happening with the band that not a lot of people know about. For starters, they are beginning to gain traction by being picked up by reputable booking agencies and management companies. I got to ride along to one of these shows in Murphy, NC, and seeing how new fans react to their shows is magical. It’s like seeing somebody open up a present for the first time and not expecting the awesomeness that will be unveiled upon opening it.
Progress has been good to MRP2 and all the hard work has paid off extensively. Earlier in the year, the band got picked up by agents at APA Talent & Literary Agency, which represents a large, diverse range of clients, including bands, musicians, comedians, and speakers. APA’s client list includes acts such as Boombox, Robert Plant, Public Enemy, Rise Against, Flogging Molly, Paul Oakenfold and Run-DMC, just to name a few. This has helped out the band tremendously when it comes to tours and shows this year, and aided them to secure some really good tours and gigs.
This fall, MRP2 has toured with Philadelphia-based band The Movement on different dates throughout venues in the Southeast. The band has gotten opportunities to play at venues like The Orange Peel in Asheville and The Masquerade in Atlanta. Another big gig the band got to play through the agency was a Greekfest in Tuscaloosa, AL, opening up for G. Love and Special Sauce. There the band played in front of 6,000 new fans and got the opportunity to show Alabama how Chattanooga gets rowdy. Shortly thereafter, MRP2 got the chance to play Next Big Nashville: Soundland opening up for Foster the People, Cults, and Reptar.
After Soundland, the band took off to tour in different cities, playing Cincinnati, Milwaukee, Lexington, St Louis and more. While in St. Louis, the boys at MRP2 got to play with one of their favorite bands, Miami Horror. The way their booking agency has been helping them out is tremendous—and you can tell that they will be able to continue to grow next year.
The band never forgets their roots while on the road and always gives major props to the place where they birthed their creative baby. MRP2 has taken some other bands, such as Elk Milk, on the road with them. A band like Machines Are People Too gaining traction like this is great for Chattanooga because it is wonderful to see bands help each other out and spread the word about how much creativity is waking up here in the Valley.
One of the biggest things to happen to MRP2 this year was being picked up by Red Light Management. This is a large management company that helps artists build themselves up by being their networking guide. Red Light helps artists find different services that will benefit the musicians as they grow, such as licensing songs (TV, movies and commercials), music attorneys, labels, booking agencies and more. What’s so big about this is that Red Light has helped build up some of the biggest household names in the music industry, including Pretty Lights, Dave Matthews Band, Alicia Keys, Les Claypool, Gogol Bordello, Drive-By Truckers, and Dinosaur Jr. The manager dealing with MRP2 specifically has helped manage The Black Keys and is currently working to help MRP2 build their name.
Come out and enjoy some rowdy music at Rhythm & Brews this Thanksgiving! One of our favorite bands is growing—and the Chattanooga family needs to celebrate the success that these boys have experienced this year.
Machines Are People Too, Elk Milk, Dilly Power
$8 • 10 p.m. Thursday, November 24
Rhythm & Brews, 221 Market St.