With so much going on in the world around us, it's good to know that the independent music community is using their talents to help out where they can. The children of the Songs of Love Foundation can attest to that since the release of Garage Radio's "Best of 2003" CD, an assemblage of Rock, Heavy Alternative and Metal, with a hint of Power Pop ... 19 artists came together with offerings of their music to benefit the foundation, maybe artists you've never heard of, but soon will.

"As I listened I found new reasons to listen again. Obviously Paradox is dedicated to their craft. The mix is great and the power is incredible. Driven by melody and pure adrenaline, these guys are a commanding force in the new music arena."John Foxworthy (Garage Radio) on Paradox - Lame & Languid

Hand-picked from a grab bag of hundreds of bands and solo artists, "Best of 2003" represents all the finest that indie Rock has to offer throughout the US and Europe. From Ireland to Inglewood, the bands on the album are what Garage Radio truly considers their top rockers of last year. And, as GR's first CD project, the anthology devotes 50% of the proceeds to the Songs of Love Foundation, which imparts personalized songs to seriously ill children.

MP3: Blinded By Zeus - See Through You

Before understanding the album one must first understand that the Garage Radio artist make-up is compounded by every genre. Rock was the medium chosen for this particular project and confronted with the task of choosing just 19 artists was a chore in itself for the GR staff. After hours of listening, and close consideration to every facet of the music in their library, they decided on the acts to include in the album.

Blinded By Zeus - See Through You


Kill By Inches - Bomb The City


Fallen From Grace - Catch It If You Can


From The Desk Of Sally - I Told You So


NYC Smoke - The Fallout


Zach Ziskin - Lift


Hanging Francis - Sex and Cigarettes


Paradox - Lame & Languid
Drug Under - Translucent


Large Marge - AbsentMinded Lives


Judge Drain - Burn N Fly


Superna - Cut Off


Immedia - Trippin'


SiOP - Beside Myself


Silent Fate - Torn Open


The Mimsies - American Science


Youth Medium - What That Girl Has


Seasons Of The Wolf - Interstellar
Whirl - Just This Once

"I'm very grateful that Garage Radio has chosen the Songs of Love Foundation as their charity to support. As a result, more children will experience the excitement of hearing their very own personalized song!" - John Beltzer, Songs of Love Foundation

When you endeavor to pull off a project like this, how do you decide what charities the proceeds will go to and how do you pick the bands? It's really an easy question to answer ... the process on the other hand was long and full of hard choices for the GR staff to make. With a whole year of new bands totaling nearly 600, they spent hours listening to tracks before electing those that would ultimately grace the album.

MP3: Paradox - Lame & Languid

"Definitely a mid-90's approach to writing that seems to have influence from bands like Tool, and Filter,"noted Skully from Seasons Of The Wolf. "I really like the extra twist where the music gets phased down while continuing a beat, and then blasts back up in your face again before the end. Nice production guys! The bass guitar and kick drum will rattle your balls, or jugs. Real singing with a bit of the filter/distortion effect thrown in in a couple spots. No growling or rap vocals here ...

"I found that very refreshing as it seems many bands are doing it right now. The mixing and overall Sonics are done nicely and I believe the hook of this song would do well if given proper radio exposure."

Finally, the tracks were chosen on 5 points: originality, "radio-ability," content, composition and production quality. Then came the cause. Songs of Love, an organization of folks who use music to bring joy to the lives of seriously ill kids, seemed the best choice. So the CD was born ... an appropriate gathering of music for an fitting cause.

"We'd been tossing around the idea of a comp CD for some time," stated Mike Foxworthy, Garage Radio's Founder, "It was mostly a matter of gathering the right material and artist interest ... we also wanted to make sure we had a product that would sell. While other companies are asking for bands to pay to be on these things ... we're actually paying the bands!"

MP3: Zach Ziskin - Lift

The acts on the CD were more than happy to be included in the compilation. And why not? From the Punk stylings of Large Marge to the Core energy of Kill By Inches to the ultra Power-Pop of Zach Ziskin, GR's Best of 2003 offers a virtual cornucopia of Rock that promises to be a collection of the next musical influences for a modern generation.

MP3: Seasons Of The Wolf - Interstellar

The compilation was marked up from it's base cost to insure proceeds for the Songs of Love Foundation, however, the artists weren't forgotten. As a not-for-profit organization, Garage Radio will also pay out a royalty to each artist included on the CD. Some of the bands opted to waive their portion of the profit. That money will go to support the GR site.

The bands provided their contact info to include in the sleeve and all of the cover art was done "in-house" by the Garage Radio staff. That, coupled with a collection of all-original music, should make GR's Best of 2003 a killer visual and audio experience.

MP3: Superna - Cut Off

A Little Sneak Preview

GR's Best of 2003 is currently available online for $12.99 retail, with a discount for bulk purchases of 15 or more. 50% of the proceeds go to benefit the Songs Of Love Foundation and the rest goes to the artists on the album. Garage Radio has set up samples of all tracks at their point of purchase. This CD can be bought by CLICKING HERE

"Buying this CD will profit 2 great causes ... children and indie music. We urge everyone to get a copy ... not just for that reason, but because it's just straight-up great music!" - Garage Radio