Later Days
Encyclopedia
Later Days is an American rock band from Naples, FL formed in 2001. The band consists of vocalist and guitarist Mike Wassef, bassist Robert Curtin, and drummer Derrick "D-Rock" Peltz.
s and played shows throughout South Florida, many with good friends and contemporaries Fake Problems
. This period culminated with the release of "I've Got My Fingers Crossed, But I'm Not Holding My Breath" in 2003, which was recorded at Skylab Studios in Gainesville, FL.
of Something Corporate
and Jack's Mannequin
.
The band toured on this release for the next year, playing with acts like Black Light Burns
, Horse the Band
, Foxy Shazam
, and Forever the Sickest Kids
at places ranging from small venues to ones as big as the Masquerade in Atlanta, GA. In the Summer of 2005 the band was chosen to play on the Ernie Ball Stage of the Vans Warped Tour
at Vinoy Park in Tampa, Florida
.
. The album was quickly chosen for sale at Hot Topic
stores nationwide, and Alternative Press dubbed them "damn good in our book".
After this release, the Naples Daily News
described Later Days as "writing and performing rock songs that would make party-boys Blink 182 envious." Soon after, CSTV selected Later Days from over 2,000 submissions as their top collegiate band and sent them to Reno, Nevada
to perform at the Collegiate Nationals Musical Festival. While there, the band recorded an interview with skier Johnny Moseley for his show on Sirius Radio Channel 28 The Faction.
and the Florida Department of Health
to incorporate drummer Derrick Peltz's inspirational anti-substance abuse story into the setting of a rock concert. They took their act to middle schools across the state, receiving great reviews. The program is active and currently plays throughout the Greater Los Angeles area.
, and in three months emerged with the break-out "Don't Forget the Name". They used their connections with Home Grown
bassist Adam Lohrbach and News Years' Day
singer Ashley Costello to bring her into the studio to record guest vocals. The band relocated to Los Angeles full-time to support it. Therecordrebellion.com called it a "crowd favorite" with "catchy riffs and lyrics" and an "upbeat tempo."
, El Rey Theatre
, Whisky A Go Go
, Troubador and a sold-out show at the Knitting Factory
. In 2010, Los Angeles based radio station KIIS
FM named Later Days the winner of their Taco Bell
Breakout Star contest where they won $10,000 and a spot to play their annual Wango Tango
concert. From a video submission Later Days was picked to perform in the semi-finals at Universal CityWalk
and then went on to win the finals one week later. After their performance at Wango Tango, online music blog "I Am Pop Culture" featured them as a band to keep an eye out for calling them, "great entertainers" and "really exciting to watch on stage." Noted Upstate New York blogger Jeanie DiNapoli from Times Union (Albany) called their KIIS win "the big break they have been waiting for." Their single P.C.H. (Hustle This Place) is currently in rotation on KIIS.
On April 9, 2011, they garnered over 100,000 online votes to win the LA Kings Live Music Nights contest to become the first act to perform live music during the intermission of an LA Kings
game. It marked the fourth time they played the Staples Center
in less than a year.
, placed the song P.C.H (Hustle This Place) as the theme for VH1's reality show Saddle Ranch. The song about the Pacific Coast Highway includes the chorus "Let's have fun tonight, let the cops come and pick a fight, we're gonna hustle this place until everybody knows our name." The show is based on the Sunset Strip
restaurant called Saddle Ranch in Hollywood, CA.
In August 2011, singer/songwriter Mike Wassef got invited to join as a member of the Screen Actors Guild
, as he appeared as a principle performer in a nationally-run television advertisement for T-Mobile
.
Early Years
The band formed in 2001 in Naples, FL. For the 3 years, they released numerous demoDemo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
s and played shows throughout South Florida, many with good friends and contemporaries Fake Problems
Fake Problems
Fake Problems is a four-piece American rock band from Naples, Florida. They released their first album Spurs and Spokes. They released their second album, How Far Our Bodies Go, on Sabot Productions on April 27, 2007. Their third record, It's Great to Be Alive, was released through Side One Dummy...
. This period culminated with the release of "I've Got My Fingers Crossed, But I'm Not Holding My Breath" in 2003, which was recorded at Skylab Studios in Gainesville, FL.
Catch This Epidemic...
In 2005 the band recorded with Jim Wirt at 4th Street Studios in Santa Monica, CA and Ameraycan/Paramount Studios in North Hollywood, CA, releasing a five-song EP, featuring guest piano parts from Andrew McMahonAndrew McMahon
Andrew Ross McMahon is a singer/songwriter. He is the vocalist, pianist and primary songwriter for the bands Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin; he also performs solo.-Early life:...
of Something Corporate
Something Corporate
Something Corporate is an American rock band from Orange County, California, formed in 1998. Their current line-up includes pianist and vocalist Andrew McMahon, guitarist Josh Partington, bassist Kevin Page and drummer Brian Ireland....
and Jack's Mannequin
Jack's Mannequin
Jack's Mannequin is an American rock band formed in 2004, originally hailing from Orange County, California. The band began as a side project of Andrew McMahon, the frontman for Something Corporate, and is composed of guitarist Bobby Anderson, bassist Mikey "The Kid" Wagner, and drummer Jay...
.
The band toured on this release for the next year, playing with acts like Black Light Burns
Black Light Burns
Black Light Burns are a rock band fronted by Wes Borland, of Limp Bizkit. The band's original studio lineup consisted of Borland, Danny Lohner, Josh Eustis and Josh Freese. Their debut album Cruel Melody, was released on June 5, 2007. The band released a covers and b-sides CD/DVD combo package in...
, Horse the Band
HORSE the band
Horse the Band is a band from Lake Forest, California who are best known for their 8-bit Nintendo-influenced sound combined with metalcore. Frontman Nathan Winneke once described their sound as "Nintendocore".-Biography:...
, Foxy Shazam
Foxy Shazam
Foxy Shazam is an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, formed in 2004. The band is composed of lead vocalist Eric Sean Nally, guitarist Loren Turner, pianist Sky White, and bass player Daisy. Later, trumpeter and back-up vocalist Alex Nauth joined, and Aaron McVeigh became the band's permanent...
, and Forever the Sickest Kids
Forever the Sickest Kids
Forever the Sickest Kids is an American pop punk band from Dallas, Texas, who have yet to be signed to a new label after the closure of Universal Motown Records. In issue 228 of Alternative Press, the group was named the number one underground band in the "22 Best Underground Bands". Their first...
at places ranging from small venues to ones as big as the Masquerade in Atlanta, GA. In the Summer of 2005 the band was chosen to play on the Ernie Ball Stage of the Vans Warped Tour
Warped Tour
The Warped Tour is a touring music and extreme sports festival. The tour is held in venues such as parking lots or fields upon which the stages and other structures are erected. The BMX/skateboarding shoe manufacturer Vans, among others, has sponsored the tour every year since 1995, and it is...
at Vinoy Park in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
.
I Heard They're Getting Huge
The band returned to the studio with Jim Wirt to record the follow-up "I Heard They're Getting Huge". Two of these, "Shake It" and "Everything," were then mixed by multi-platinum Grammy-nominated producer David BendethDavid Bendeth
David Bendeth is a multi-platinum award-winning record producer. Born in London, England and then moved to Toronto as a teenager, He has worked with acts such as Paramore, Papa Roach, Killswitch Engage, In Flames, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Underoath, Breaking Benjamin, Cavo, Taking Back Sunday,...
. The album was quickly chosen for sale at Hot Topic
Hot Topic
Hot Topic is an American retail chain specializing in music and pop culture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music on CD. The majority of the stores are located in regional shopping malls. The first Hot Topic store was opened in 1988 by Orv Madden, who retired as CEO in 2000...
stores nationwide, and Alternative Press dubbed them "damn good in our book".
After this release, the Naples Daily News
Naples Daily News
The Naples Daily News is the main daily newspaper of Naples, Florida, and Collier County. Its main competitor in this region is the Fort Myers-based News-Press, out of neighboring Lee County to the north. It is owned by Ohio-based Edward W. Scripps Company, who bought it from the founding Collier...
described Later Days as "writing and performing rock songs that would make party-boys Blink 182 envious." Soon after, CSTV selected Later Days from over 2,000 submissions as their top collegiate band and sent them to Reno, Nevada
Reno, Nevada
Reno is the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The city has a population of about 220,500 and is the most populous Nevada city outside of the Las Vegas metropolitan area...
to perform at the Collegiate Nationals Musical Festival. While there, the band recorded an interview with skier Johnny Moseley for his show on Sirius Radio Channel 28 The Faction.
Later Days Decisions
Instead of booking a normal support tour in dive bars and nightclubs, the band adopted Patrick Coleman to play bass and founded the motivational speaking campaign Later Days Decisions, in a move that has been described as "pop-punk Mother Teresa". The group teamed with SWATStudents Working Against Tobacco
Students Working Against Tobacco or SWAT is the shared name of independent groups across the United States who work to educate and unite students against the alleged manipulation and targeting of youth by tobacco companies. Each division of SWAT is managed independently from state-to-state.The...
and the Florida Department of Health
Florida Department of Health
The Florida Department of Health is responsible for protecting the public health and safety of the residents and visitors of the State of Florida. It is a cabinet level agency of the state government, headed by a State surgeon general who reports to the Governor...
to incorporate drummer Derrick Peltz's inspirational anti-substance abuse story into the setting of a rock concert. They took their act to middle schools across the state, receiving great reviews. The program is active and currently plays throughout the Greater Los Angeles area.
Don't Forget the Name
In 2009, the group entered the studio with producer Steve EvettsSteve Evetts
Steve Evetts is a music producer who has produced music for Alesana, Poison the Well, A Static Lullaby, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Sepultura, Symphony X, Saves the Day, Lifetime, Kid Dynamite, Story of the Year, Every Time I Die, Earth Crisis, Still Remains and Our Last Night.-Partial...
, and in three months emerged with the break-out "Don't Forget the Name". They used their connections with Home Grown
Home Grown
Home Grown was an American rock band formed in 1994 in Orange County, California. They released three full-length albums and several EPs before disbanding in 2005. Their music is often characterized as pop punk, lyrically favoring humor and silly or satirical subjects.-Formation:Home Grown was...
bassist Adam Lohrbach and News Years' Day
New Years Day (band)
New Years Day is an American rock band formed in 2005 in Anaheim, California and currently recording for Hollywood Waste Records. After building a reputation through promotion on the social networking website MySpace, the band released their debut EP in 2006. Their debut album My Dear followed in...
singer Ashley Costello to bring her into the studio to record guest vocals. The band relocated to Los Angeles full-time to support it. Therecordrebellion.com called it a "crowd favorite" with "catchy riffs and lyrics" and an "upbeat tempo."
Wango Tango & The Los Angeles Years
In January 2010, the band recruited Paul Martello to play bass. The foursome played multiple shows at The Canyon ClubAgoura Hills, California
Agoura Hills is a city in Los Angeles County, California, and has the ZIP code 91301. The population was 20,330 at the 2010 census, down from 20,537 at the 2000 census. It is located in the eastern Conejo Valley between the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains. This city on the Ventura...
, El Rey Theatre
El Rey Theatre
El Rey Theatre is currently a live music venue in the Miracle Mile area of the Mid-Wilshire region in Los Angeles, California. "El Rey" means "The King" in Spanish....
, Whisky A Go Go
Whisky a Go Go
The Whisky a Go Go is a nightclub in West Hollywood, California, United States. It is located at 8901 Sunset Boulevard, on the Sunset Strip.-History:...
, Troubador and a sold-out show at the Knitting Factory
Knitting Factory
The Knitting Factory is a music venue and concert house with locations in Brooklyn, Boise, Reno, and Spokane. The club originally specialized in jazz and experimental music and has expanded to showcasing all genres of music, performing arts and comedy....
. In 2010, Los Angeles based radio station KIIS
KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM is a Los Angeles, California, USA-based radio station with a partial Top 40 musical format. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications. KIIS is also simulcasted on KVVS in Rosamond, at 105.5 MHz...
FM named Later Days the winner of their Taco Bell
Taco Bell
Taco Bell is an American chain of fast-food restaurants based in Irvine, California. A subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., which serves American-adapted Mexican food. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, other specialty items, and a variety of "Value Menu" items...
Breakout Star contest where they won $10,000 and a spot to play their annual Wango Tango
Wango Tango
Wango Tango is an annual day-long concert produced on by local Los Angeles radio station KIIS-FM. The concert series has been staged at various venues around southern California including Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Verizon Wireless...
concert. From a video submission Later Days was picked to perform in the semi-finals at Universal CityWalk
Universal CityWalk
Universal CityWalk is the name given to the entertainment and retail districts located adjacent to the theme parks of Universal Parks & Resorts. Originating as an expansion of Universal's first park, Universal Studios Hollywood, CityWalk serves as an entrance plaza from the parking lots to the...
and then went on to win the finals one week later. After their performance at Wango Tango, online music blog "I Am Pop Culture" featured them as a band to keep an eye out for calling them, "great entertainers" and "really exciting to watch on stage." Noted Upstate New York blogger Jeanie DiNapoli from Times Union (Albany) called their KIIS win "the big break they have been waiting for." Their single P.C.H. (Hustle This Place) is currently in rotation on KIIS.
On April 9, 2011, they garnered over 100,000 online votes to win the LA Kings Live Music Nights contest to become the first act to perform live music during the intermission of an LA Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
game. It marked the fourth time they played the Staples Center
Staples Center
Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles...
in less than a year.
Other Success
In April 2011, television producers Bunim-Murray, creators of such popular reality shows as The Real WorldThe Real World
The Real World is a reality television program on MTV originally produced by Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray. First broadcast in 1992, the show, which was inspired by the 1973 PBS documentary series An American Family, is the longest-running program in MTV history and one of the...
, placed the song P.C.H (Hustle This Place) as the theme for VH1's reality show Saddle Ranch. The song about the Pacific Coast Highway includes the chorus "Let's have fun tonight, let the cops come and pick a fight, we're gonna hustle this place until everybody knows our name." The show is based on the Sunset Strip
Sunset Strip
The Sunset Strip is the name given to the mile-and-a-half stretch of Sunset Boulevard that passes through West Hollywood, California. It extends from West Hollywood's eastern border with Hollywood at Harper Avenue, to its western border with Beverly Hills at Sierra Drive...
restaurant called Saddle Ranch in Hollywood, CA.
In August 2011, singer/songwriter Mike Wassef got invited to join as a member of the Screen Actors Guild
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
, as he appeared as a principle performer in a nationally-run television advertisement for T-Mobile
T-Mobile
T-Mobile International AG is a German-based holding company for Deutsche Telekom AG's various mobile communications subsidiaries outside Germany. Based in Bonn, Germany, its subsidiaries operate GSM and UMTS-based cellular networks in Europe, the United States, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...
.
Discography
| Date of release | Title | Produced By | Mixed By |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | I've Got My Fingers Crossed, but I'm Not Holding My Breath | Skylab Studios | -- |
| 2005 | Catch This Epidemic... EP | Jim Wirt | C.J. Eriksonn |
| 2007 | I Heard They're Getting Huge | Jim Wirt | David Bendeth David Bendeth David Bendeth is a multi-platinum award-winning record producer. Born in London, England and then moved to Toronto as a teenager, He has worked with acts such as Paramore, Papa Roach, Killswitch Engage, In Flames, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Underoath, Breaking Benjamin, Cavo, Taking Back Sunday,... (Select Tracks) |
| 2009 | Don't Forget the Name | Steve Evetts Steve Evetts Steve Evetts is a music producer who has produced music for Alesana, Poison the Well, A Static Lullaby, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Sepultura, Symphony X, Saves the Day, Lifetime, Kid Dynamite, Story of the Year, Every Time I Die, Earth Crisis, Still Remains and Our Last Night.-Partial... |
Steve Evetts Steve Evetts Steve Evetts is a music producer who has produced music for Alesana, Poison the Well, A Static Lullaby, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Sepultura, Symphony X, Saves the Day, Lifetime, Kid Dynamite, Story of the Year, Every Time I Die, Earth Crisis, Still Remains and Our Last Night.-Partial... Mastered by Alan Douches |