From the burgeoning Phoenix music scene comes a band whose unmistakable sound and flamboyant style makes them, at once, supremely original and strikingly familiar. Comprised of vocalist Chris Donathon, guitar/keyboard player Hector Bagnod and guitar/keyboard player/D.J. Storm Logan, The Medic Droid encapsulate the very best elements of their electronica/new wave forefathers, while simultaneously carving their very own niche in today’s overcrowded, underwhelming music scene.
Formed by Donathon; a masterful painter and visual artist as well as a gifted vocalist; in 2006 on a lark, the positive response to his first single (“Fer Sure”) was staggering. Realizing he stumbled upon something quite special, he enlisted the help of close friends Logan and Bagnod to round out the group. Less than two short years later the band has sold nearly 50,000 singles on ITUNES and has had well over 8 million plays on their MYSPACE page.
Led by Donathon’s instantly recognizable voice and backed by Bagnod and Logan’s original and creative riffs, beats and samples, The Medic Droid’s songs are an amalgam of dance, indie, punk rock and metal. Combining vocal hooks that would make any Top 40 audience salivate, pounding bass and electronic drums, The Droid take listeners on a roller coaster ride of emotion as they beat and finesse their way through sometimes sexy, sometimes brutal, always evocative songs laced with equal parts heart, emotion and energy.
What makes their meteoric rise even more special is that their label, Phoenix’s own Modern Art Records, is a label run by musicians, for musicians. Although under the Epic Record’s umbrella, Modern Art is a DIY label with an eclectic lineup and a simple albeit grandiose goal – create a musical revolution in their humble Phoenix neighborhood that before long, the world will be unable to ignore. The leaders of that revolution are The Medic Droid.
Label head Ben Collins speaks of the band’s combination of sound and style and dubs them, “the next Duran Duran.” He also compares his label’s relationship with The Droid to the relationship forged by New Order and their label, Factory Records, some twenty-five years ago.
And although every listener will decide for him or herself who the band is reminiscent of, as their influences are as varied as the colors in one of Donathon’s many brilliant paintings (listed among those influences are Elton John, Michael Jackson, The Beach Boys, The Used, At The Drive In and Roy Orbison), one thing is abundantly clear, The Medic Droid have already and will continue to resonate with fans and music lovers across the globe.
With their first full-length album slated for a mid-2008 release, The Medic Droid and Modern Art Records are braced for even bigger things in the near future. Although if you ask the band, they seem as content playing small venues in front of a few dozen fans and friends as they do in front of seas of thousands. Donathon says, “We kinda just want to make the music we like and have fun doing it. If we get huge world wide that would be amazing but that isn’t our goal.”
For The Medic Droid, Their goal is create the music that they love and with that they’re satisfied. Connecting with an audience, regardless of size, is their sole motivation. They feel that if they do that everything else will work out. However, if they do become the biggest band in the world, nobody, except perhaps the band members themselves, will be even a little bit surprised.
Website
www.myspace.com/themedicdroid
Band Members
Chris Donathon - Vocals.Hector Bagnod - Guitar/Keyboard.
