tag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:/blogs/welcomeWelcome!2023-12-18T18:57:11-06:00Modern Daybreakfalsetag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/73210902023-12-18T18:57:11-06:002023-12-18T18:57:11-06:00What a Year!<p>Reflecting back on the year 2023 has us feeling really grateful and kind of in shock about all that's happened, how much we've bounced back. We started 2023 with a fresh new logo, which is now on much of our merch options. We fell in love with the simple yet meaningful design. An orchid to represent our desire to grow into something beautiful and some sparkle to add a bit of magic to the design. We were still functionally a duo of Matt and Justin. Then we got right to work recording our EP which got pushed way back due to covid and personnel change in the band. The Music For Love EP turned out great and we can't wait to release our next single for you, “Wake Up”. </p><p>We'd have to say the best thing about this year was the official addition of our two new members Mike and Arthur. With our debut as a 4-piece at the Homegrown Fest, we could tell we had something special. We thank each and every one of you who came out to support the fest. I (Justin) personally was afraid that we wouldn't be able to match the energy we had at Basecamp. Then we landed a gig at Cubby Bear. We gave a performance that left our significant others saying, “Where did THAT come from?” So now we have a new standard. We are committing to give you even more energy during our live shows!</p><p>I don't know. This year felt great and Modern Daybreak has a lot of momentum and ideas for 2024. Once again, thanks to our fans who showed up this year! You really make all the struggles over the years worth it.</p><p>Keep an eye out for news about our single. Our next show is February 15th at Montrose Saloon, so mark your calendars!</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/72181222023-05-30T22:11:38-05:002023-10-16T09:56:52-05:00Homegrown, Here We Come!<p>On Sunday, May 28th we competed in the Road to Homegrown show to see if Modern Daybreak would qualify to be a part of the Homegrown Art and Music Festival. Each act that night was truly unique and talented, which we're sure made the judges' jobs that much harder. The judges had told us two acts were going through to the fest, but after their deliberation, they decided on three. Brad Yeoman had a sweet performance on the acoustic guitar and his personality showed through his lyrics. It was great to get to talk to him after the show! Keep an eye on him and check out his <a class="no-pjax" href="https://open.spotify.com/user/yeomanbrad?si=35fe53ef04364064" target="_blank" data-link-type="url">Spotify here</a>. The other qualifying band, Comin Up, was simply a joy to listen to. They put on a great show and are masters of audience engagement! Keep track of their goings-on on their <a class="no-pjax" href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088353357989" target="_blank" data-link-type="url">Facebook page</a>. Modern Daybreak was the final winner of the night, and we were beyond happy. Thanks to all of our friends and family who came out to support us, you truly made the night that much more special!</p><p>The past few years have been challenging for us as a band, personally and musically. We finally got our shtuff back together and are in a place where we can move FORWARD. Taking action toward our EP (our single is being mastered as I type) and getting into this music fest is exactly the momentum we needed. </p><p>All this to say: MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR JULY 29TH, 2023! Homegrown Fest is such a great event and we would have been there regardless if we were performing or not. Stay tuned for details and how to get tickets.</p><p>Keep it light and keep it bright, y'all!</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/72052942023-05-08T19:29:32-05:002023-05-08T19:29:33-05:00Road to Homegrown Fest<p><strong>FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN BE ONE OF THE FIRST TO OWN AN OFFICIAL MODERN DAYBREAK CAP! </strong></p><p>Hey y'all, it's been a while since our last blog post on our website. Our biggest news is that we have been given a chance to “battle” our way into the Homegrown Music and Arts Festival. I've attended this festival a few times in the past couple years and I fell in love with it instantly and found a ton of super-talented local musicians. The vibes are immaculate. I said to the bandmates at the time: this is where we need to be. Fast forward a few years later and we are finally in a spot to try out for it! Let me cut to the chase:</p><p>The Fest isn't until late July, but the qualifying show for Modern Daybreak is <strong><u>Sunday, May 28th, 7-9:30 pm at O'Neill's Pub in Lombard, IL (</u></strong><a class="no-pjax" href="https://fb.me/e/1aH2okCbM" target="_blank" data-link-type="url"><strong><u>Facebook event here</u></strong></a><strong><u>).</u></strong> The judges will be looking at three things: Performance (duh), promotion (hello!), and attendance. That last part is where you can help! Please consider attending to help us fulfil our goal of playing an awesome festival. If you can't attend, share the event with your friends and ask them to support your pals at Modern Daybreak.</p><p><strong>Now, I mentioned a cap. </strong>We'll be raffling off a brand new MD logo cap for anyone who attends the May 28th show! You'll be the first person outside of the band to own such an adornment. Talk about special!</p><p>In other news, we finished recording our single off our upcoming EP. We just need to polish off the files before we send it to our buddy Marco to be mixed and mastered. Really exciting times!</p><p>Thanks for reading and we hope to see you May 28th at O'Neill's!</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/71183062022-12-05T23:00:54-06:002023-04-25T00:59:09-05:00Whoops, I Fell In Love!<p>Our newest acoustic single has been out for a bit over a week and we love the positive feedback we’ve gotten! “Grocery Store (Acoustic Version)” was kind of recorded on a whim. Justin was doing some recording for another project at our buddy Rj Infusino’s home studio and they had some extra time. Justin had this song in the forefront of his mind, he wanted to record it since he wrote it back in 2020 (peak lockdown loneliness kicked in). Time has been a blur since those times, but we believe the song was recorded late last year? Sure. </p>
<p>Anyway, we were focused on getting our other three singles out - “Goddess”, “Star Crossed”, and “The Real Thing”. It wasn’t until a few months ago that we remembered that Justin recorded a whole acoustic version of “Grocery Store”. We sent that baby over to our friend Marco Obaya to mix and master and voilà, a silly song was born! </p>
<p>What’s next for Modern Daybreak? A sparkly new logo, so keep an eye out for that! We’re also working with some friends to expand our live performances with a drummer and more voices and guitars. In terms of playing live, emails have been sent to a few venues so we can get back into a performance groove. Hope to see you soon!</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/70099912022-07-07T21:12:05-05:002022-11-20T04:47:48-06:00Modern Daybreak Duo<p>We wanted to announce that Modern Daybreak is now a duo. Our dear friend/drummer Omar is focusing on his work as a full time student in a badass engineering program and we are so damn proud of him! Matt and Justin will continue making music and performing as MD, with a few gigs coming up this summer (announcements to come). We appreciate you all and we are ready to take on this change full speed ahead.</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/67282782021-08-26T21:23:18-05:002023-12-10T10:56:30-06:00August 2021 Single "The Real Thing"<p>"The Real Thing" is one of three singles we recorded during the pandemic. Our album is on hold for now, but these songs are going to be really nice for you! We decided to release this song first because it has "the MD sound". Upbeat. Positive. Kind of weird. "The Real Thing" features our good friend Arthur Wolff on the violin. "Sorry guys, I'm a little rusty," he says as he's laying down a one-man orchestra track on a violin he hasn't touched in possibly years. Not to mention a violin solo that transports the listener 7,000 miles up out of Earth's atmosphere. Check out more of his work with his band <a contents="Jacks and Atoms" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/jacksandatoms/" target="_blank">Jacks and Atoms</a>.</p>
<p>We have to thank our buddy RJ Infusino for doing the mixing and mastering. The dude is going places and we love to collaborate with him through the whole process! He knows just what to do to get the track where we want. The three members of our band were never in the recording room at the same time, so we had to have a lot of trust in each other. It paid off. </p>
<p>Please check out our <a contents="newest release" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music" target="_blank">newest release</a> and let us know what you think! Sharing the track with your friends and family would be super rad and appreciated!</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/62911722020-04-22T19:15:19-05:002023-12-10T13:02:59-06:00"Stuck and Stoned" April 2020 Single<p>We released a new single this month. "Stuck and Stoned" is the story of how our singer and guitarist Justin experienced pot brownies for the first time. Let's just say it got a little existential... The recording process was a lot of fun. We worked with our friend Rj Infusino who recorded, mixed, and mastered the song, all for one of his school projects. We loved how it turned out so we decided to release it.</p>
<p>A unique part of this track is the use of some new instruments for us: accordion and harmonica. Matt, who specializes on the bass, learned how to work this beautiful 50 year old accordion and it gave a nice little pad throughout the track. We doubled up on the acoustic guitar tracks, as we recorded the same chords played on two different acoustics. The drums turned out nicely. We actually used Omar's electronic kit and the final drum sound is a combination of two separate kits that were recorded via MIDI and direct instrument cable output.</p>
<p>We hope you enjoy it! Please share it to support us artists. We really miss performing live, so we can't wait to be able to play "Stuck and Stoned" for you live.</p>
<p><a contents="CLICK HERE TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">CLICK HERE TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD</a></p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/62459942020-03-11T20:59:02-05:002023-12-10T10:41:48-06:00Modern Daybreak Flower Power<p>Over the past two weekends, we had the privilege of providing music for Orchids by Hausermann’s Annual Open House. This year is special for them because they are celebrating an amazing 100 years of business. Our singer Justin Wheeler is a fifth generation Hausermann and used to live and work on the greenhouse property through college. Matt and Omar are now honorary family members by default! </p>
<p>The experience was overall a good one. Modern Daybreak played two 45 minute sets and the set list featured music from the 1920s to original songs written this year. 100 years of music to celebrate 100 years of business. We made some new friends and even had a few impromptu guest performers including a singer and some kids who played bongos for us! </p>
<p>We are looking forward to providing music for Wolfden Brewing as they host their fundraiser for multiple sclerosis on Sunday, March 22nd.</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/61991912020-01-31T20:17:13-06:002023-12-10T10:57:12-06:00[Re]Sound [Re]flections<p>On Thursday, January 30th, Modern Daybreak performed at a fundraiser to support Dominican University's Alternative Break Immersion program. This program empowers students to experience a life-changing volunteer trip to different places around the world such as Selma, Tijuana, and Nazareth Farm to name a few. We got to hear the stories of how some of these students helped to rebuild neighborhoods and learn about different systems of oppression and privilege in the world. The event also featured a silent auction, homemade tamales, and a bar. The Wire in Berwyn, IL was a fantastic host for this fundraiser.</p>
<p>Modern Daybreak was the opening act of the night and the music was met with dancing, clapping, and cheering. The good vibes were all there. The second set featured our own Justin and Omar with guest performers (and Justin's long time friends) Kayla Jackson and Arthur Wolff. Both are fantastic musicians. The group covered songs from artists including Ray LaMontagne and Allen Stone. Justin, Kayla, and Arthur sang powerful, emotion-evoking three-part harmonies that reflected the years of friendship between them.</p>
<p>It was an honor to be a part of this annual event and we look forward to supporting the next one!</p>Modern Daybreaktag:moderndaybreak.com,2005:Post/61608072020-01-23T22:08:19-06:002023-12-10T10:50:07-06:00Welcome!<p>Modern Daybreak means new beginnings, keeping a positive outlook on life, and making current, relevant music to connect with people from all walks of life. Our vision is to inspire people to express themselves be kind toward others. Welcome to Modern Daybreak: our truth is yours.</p>Modern Daybreak