Centre Daily Times
Title: A BAND'S BATTLE FOR SUPREMACY
Author: Steve McElwee For the CDT
Section: FEATURES-WEEKENDER-LOCAL

Centre Daily Times (State College, PA)
December 7, 2007
Estimated printed pages: 3
Page: 8

Central Pennsylvania rarely comes to mind when one thinks of the hip-hop hot beds across the country. The mountains in the middle of the state do not evoke the rawness of New York City and the coolness of Cali, but a group of three emcees and a sick backing band are attempting to change that. According to its Web site, Audio Imagery is one of the most recognizable unsigned hip-hop groups in Pennsylvania. A win at the Bodog Battle of the Bands would make it official.


Marathon Practice

It is before noon on a brisk Saturday and West Beaver Avenue looks as serene as a Norman Rockwell painting. In the basement of an unassuming house, facing picket fences and families raking the fallen leaves, Sean Cos sits at a computer looking over the hundreds of songs that Audio Imagery has recorded. Finished products, works in progress and beat foundations align the screen in a crisp and organized manner.

Cos opens various folders searching for notes in order! to prepare for the upcoming practice. Amid the scattered instruments and guitar picks, the computer and recording equipment serve as a sanctuary of everything the group holds dear: the music itself. A few minutes later, Jason Browne, better know by his emcee name, Agress, flies down the stairs and begins to set up, making sure everything is set for the marathon practice the group is about to undertake.

Within the next 15 minutes, emcee LP arrives, as does the rest of the band, and the musicians return to their familiar places in the basement.As the DJ equipment, keyboards, drums and bass are being set up, the members joke, laugh and gripe about their upcoming 9-to-5 schedules. Once the levels are checked and the instruments are tuned, Audio Imagery bangs out a four-and-a-half-hour practice, running through the set lists and making sure everything is as tight as the snare drum providing the head-nodding beats.


Keeping an eye on the prize

An iron-man session like this is ! typical for the band, but this time around there is a little more at s take. Sure, Audio Imagery keeps in musical shape for its local performances, but one cannot blame the group for looking ahead to Monday's Bodog Battle of the Bands gig at the Fillmore at the TLA in Philadelphia.

The Bodog Battle of the Bands is a national music talent search (think "American Idol," but not nearly as lame) that showcases the freshest bands the country has to offer. The competition will stop in the City of Brotherly Love next week to break down the brackets and select acts for the next series of shows. In short, there is a $1 million record contract to be won, and after preliminary contests, the kids from State College are holding on to a second-place slot in the Philly-region-band category.


Making some new noise

If a band's live performance guaranteed a win, Audio Imagery would have a running start for first-place finish in the competition. Combine that with the artistic creativity of "Hush," and one would wonder why nobody has signed them. "Some of the p! op music is interesting, but most of the stuff is carbon copied," Agress said. "It's the same regurgitated stuff, and everyone has the same formula."

The cookie-cutter hip-hop and pre-packaged productions that spill from the speakers of any given radio is what Audio Imagery is trying to avoid. "People get signed constantly," Agress said. "They just don't ever amount to anything, which is almost as frightening as not making it at all."

Agress said that because of dwindling record sales, pirating and file-sharing, labels are forced to become more conservative and show greater reluctance when considering signing an artist that creates outside the lines.

When listening to "Hush" or seeing the group live, one can hear some of its influences, but the members put their own unique spin on everything -- an idea, it seems, that many contemporary artists have completely abandoned. LP is the brains behind the reggae and island vibe that will suddenly erupt in the middle of a track. L! P's roots stem from his Jamaican heritage and provide the perfect flavor for a bridge or breakdown on stage.

"Hush" is a record with 20 songs of sexy sounds and thought-provoking lyrics. The music is funky like Prince. The flow of the rappers brings The Roots' "Black Thought" to mind, but at the same time, Audio Imagery easily lays out an OutKast-esque boogie.


State College for life

The Penn State community is familiar with Audio Imagery. The band has played a number of shows downtown and on campus at various events, including THON and Movin' On.
Audio Imagery will never forget its Happy Valley roots. If the group wins the $1 million prize, in addition to getting health insurance, Agress said, central Pennsylvania would be treated to a bash sure to rival a football weekend.

"We would bring the party home to Penn State and give back to all the people who have supported us for so long," he said.

After running through the set list for upcoming concerts, the group members pack up and head their separate ways: work, a long drive to Connecticu! t and, most importantly, a well-deserved nap. The band is not afraid, nor overconfident, just relaxed in the calm before the storm. By the time it passes, we could see Audio Imagery higher than Mount Nittany.