Secondhand Serenade 'A Twist In My Story' album

Secondhand Serenade's new album A Twist In My Story is set for a February 5th, 2008 release on Glassnote/East West. Produced by Danny Lohner (Nine Inch Nails, Angels & Airwaves) and Butch Walker (Avril, All American Rejects), A Twist In My Story is the follow up to Seconhand's self produced acoustic debut Awake and features Secondhand Serenade aka John Vesely playing with a full band for the first time on record.

"One of the things that amazes me about this album is how much development it portrays, yet how organic it all came together. There's lots more to hear this time around but the recording process was still very natural. I think that feeling will come across to the fans." John Vesely, Secondhand Serenade

Secondhand Serenade was MySpace's #1 unsigned artist with over 27 Million plays and over 268,000 friends for 6 months until he was signed to Glassnote Records at the end of '06. Glassnote (an affiliated label of Warner Music Group's Independent Label Group) re-released Secondhand Serenade's debut acoustic record Awake February 6th and it's climbed as high as #3 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart while scanning over 85,000 copies to date and selling more than 240,000 digital track downloads.

2007 was a great year for Secondhand Serenade: Secondhand received great support from MTV ("First Look" on TRL, Big 10 Rotation, Discover & Download), Yahoo (Winning 'Who's Next??', "Maybe" was #1 on Lauch's Adult Alternative station for 6 months), AOL and Music Choice. He performed his hit single "Vulnerable" on Late Night w/Conan O'Brien, guested on Donnie Deutsch's "The Big Idea" and toured the country with bands like Plain White T's, Hawthorne Heights, All American Rejects and Good Charlotte. Billboard's take on 'Vulnerable:' "The emotional intensity conveyed in lead John Vesely's voice connects with universality and conviction. Let your guard down and fall in love with the first of many aces on stellar full-length Awake." The New York Post named Secondhand Serenade the #3 Hottest Celeb On The Web this past April.

biography
Over the last few years, the music industry has evolved in a way which allows the common man with extraordinary talents, to rise above the sea of similarity, and stand on his own as the voice of a generation. A generation that is fueled by heart, emotion, passion and determination.

And that man has come to surface as Secondhand Serenade…

Born into a family of musicians, John Vesely has taken the gift he was instilled with, and shaped it into his own. With the help of his father, a professional jazz musician for over 20 years in the Czech Republic, he started getting into music around the age of 12. Playing bass for 8 years, he was a member of numerous Bay area bands ranging in style from ska and hardcore to rock and pop. But it wasn’t until he picked up the acoustic guitar that he finally found his true calling. “I switched to guitar when I met my wife. She wanted me to play her a song, but I didn't have a band at the time and serenading her with a bass guitar was out of the question” Vesely said.

Once he began writing his own material, John scraped up the money for 8 days of studio time and went in to record the 10-track album, known as Awake in the summer of 2005. Armed with a superior vocal range, a mind blowing sense of harmony and heart wrenching lyrics, he was able to walk away with an acoustic album that would prove to be the groundwork for the start of his career. When it came time to chose a name, he decided to go with Secondhand Serenade in an attempt to stay away from the typical singer/songwriter image. “It's everything I would want in a band name and more. It basically sums up what I do. I write my songs about events and feelings that occur in my life, and I sing the songs to my wife. Everyone else gets the Secondhand Serenade.”

While some artists may fear the rawness of playing with just an acoustic guitar, John welcomes the honesty it comes along with. He claims “In some ways a band is more powerful, but in other ways there are things you can do with one voice and one acoustic guitar that you couldn't do with an army of musicians behind you.” It only seems right that an artist with this mentality begins to spread his wings.

With his eyes set on conquering a fan base, John put together a MySpace page and started playing out in his area. As the number of listeners at his shows began to grow, so did his on-line fan base… in a BIG way. In just a few months time, Secondhand Serenade would shoot to the #1 position of all unsigned bands on the widely popular site. Simultaneously, he would become the only unsigned act to have a CD in the top 100 alternative albums on itunes. While that seemed exciting enough, he also released a few demos on Yahoo! Launch, which would soon claim the #1 position as well, on the Adult Alternative station. This time, he was not beating out other unsigned acts, he was competing with the cream of the crop, and winning. Months would go by as Secondhand Serenade claimed the top of the chart over such names as John Mayer, Nickelback and Evanescence. Not used to seeing this kind of reaction, industry insiders began to wonder… was it actually possible for an unsigned, one man act, with nothing more than a self-produced acoustic album, and the help of no one but fans, to post numbers that were superior to artists on major labels? Artists with millions of dollars spent on promotions? For Secondhand Serenade, it was not only possible… it was reality.

As 2006 began to wind down, John’s career was in full swing as he stepped to the next level. Having made the rounds to major labels in New York and Los Angeles, a deal was eventually signed with Glassnote Records, a brand new label started by respected industry veteran, Daniel Glass. As Glassnote’s first official artist, the team immediately went to work mapping out the next year for Secondhand Serenade, along with the help of Warner/Independent Label Group.

2007 now looks to be an eventful year as well. With 2 new songs added to Awake, Glassnote/ILG released the album to retail on February 6th. MTV quickly jumped on board and filmed a 3 minute news package on him called “You Hear It First.” In addition, a video was shot with Frank Borin (director for Red Hot Chili Peppers, Good Charlotte, Eminem) for the song “Vulnerable,” a fan favorite. It was quickly added to MTV’s “Big 10” and “Discover & Download” series. This year will also provide Secondhand Serenade an opportunity to see his fans from all over the country. Having recently played SXSW, and a co-headlining tour with Monty Are I, numerous other tours are currently taking shape, including a support slot on Hawthorne Heights run of the U.S. John anticipates giving his audience from coast to coast, a firsthand experience. He will also see the studio again soon as another release is being planned for later in the year. Stay tuned… Secondhand Serenade is invading the hearts, minds and airwaves of the world.

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Secondhand Serenade - A Twist In My Story

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