🎸 RICHMOND VA: UNIQUE TALENT & SKILLS W/ UNHEARD OF 🎸

RICHMOND VIRGINIA: Everyone knows that the capital city of Virginia is also the capital of art and music in the South. Richmond is a constant home for amazing and talented artists, with new groups emerging each year to take various music scenes by surprise. Many famous bands and artists are proud to call Richmond home, including metal bands Lamb of God, Gwar, and hip-hop/rap artist Skillz to name a few.  

Keeping the tradition alive is the next new dynamic duo that is already well established in the Richmond music scene. Now they are looking to take things to the next level.  

We here at Hoodie Goodies took the time to sit down with Jeremy Hook and talk with him and his colleague Seamus McDaniel about their new project Unheard Of and the story behind it.  

WHO ARE JEREMY HOOK & SEAMUS MCDANIEL?

Jeremy Hook is an established performer and composer based in Richmond Virginia. Jeremy is currently the guitarist for instrumental progressive rock band Epiphany. His music background includes studying at both Berklee College of Music (Music Composition Major) and Virginia Commonwealth University (Music Performance Major). During the day, Jeremy works as an audio engineer for Shattered Glass Studios (www.shatteredglassstudios.com) and for the Passion Academy as a music instructor. Jeremy is driven by his passion for the art and craft of music creation and performance.

You can check out Jeremy’s professional portfolio on his Internet Movie Database page listed below:   

• Independent Films and Scores (IMDB) - https://www.imdb.com/name/nm9874786/ 
   

Seamus McDaniel is a talented classical guitarist with a degree in Music Performance from Virginia Commonwealth University. Seamus writes, composes, and produces for the band Retrosphere while also performing as a secondary Guitarist for Epiphany.

Jeremy & Seamus 

HOW JEREMY & SEAMUS MET, AND THE BIRTH OF A BAND:

The two both met while studying classical guitar at VCU. Jeremy was very impressed with how skillful and gifted Seamus was with the instrument and genre. Not only that, but what really impressed him was that Seamus wasn’t even taking the class… Rather, Seamus was volunteering and just playing around during his free time!  

“Naturally I had to introduce myself to Seamus, I thought he’d be killer to play music with!” Jeremy laughs.  

It turns out Seamus was looking to join a new band. Jeremy offered Seamus an audition and he blew everyone’s expectations out the water. This became the start of Seamus’ involvement in Epiphany of which he is now one of the key elements of!  

One of the key aspects of Jeremy and Seamus relationship is that they both challenge each other musically, and as a result, they grow as musicians from the healthy sport-like competition between them. This leads to their dynamic synergy and sound which is constantly evolving.  Both Jeremy and Seamus are influenced by EDM, Hip-hop, and Rhythm music. Their main goal is to escape being simply labeled as performers with a background in hard rock and metal, but to cultivate skill in other styles of music they are unfamiliar with. Jeremy and Seamus both desire to become well-rounded and wholesome musicians capable of blending genres. To them, their musical career goal is mastery of their sacred craft.  

EPIPHANY AND RETROSPHERE:

Both Jeremy and Seamus are members of existing bands in Richmond Virginia.

Jeremy & Seamus are both members of Epiphany

When we asked both about how their bands influenced their new group they responded,

“Both Epiphany and Retrosphere gave us the foundation we needed as musicians. It allowed us to form strong collaborative partnerships which is a valuable skill and process for us to learn early on in our careers.”

Jeremy and Seamus’ role in Epiphany and Retrosphere was also essential for the duo’s progress by giving them an opportunity to perfect their creative process and production process.  

 “A big focus of this project was to think outside our normal instrumentation and write music for instruments we are not fluent or native in.” says Jeremy.  

“We think all musicians should try and write music for a variety of genres and styles. As a musician you shouldn’t be afraid to experiment… not just within your niche but outside it as well!”  

When we asked Jeremy how Unheard Of would sound in comparison to the group’s previous projects like Epiphany and Retrosphere he replied,

“Our current fans will definitely recognize the sound and style of our other music. Listeners will hear a lot of the same type of rhythm and melody that we exhibit in Epiphany and Retrosphere. Unheard Of will definitely sound like ‘us’ but it will also incorporate new elements of production we have been studying and experimenting with.”  

 

Epiphany is a well-known local band with a large fan base in RVA

Ultimately, it’s all about creating fresh perspective in a saturated genre that is filled with many bands playing the same sounds and styles. Epiphany was Jeremy and Seamus’ freshman project for their career, representing their first real undertaking in the music scene. Unheard Of represents their elevation to the next level as sophomore artists in Richmond.  

WHY CREATE UNHEARD OF?

Jeremy and Seamus felt many of their other musical projects were limiting their ability to achieve this goal. As metal and rock musicians, they felt they were being confined to a “box”, and they wanted to find different ways to creatively express themselves through music. They had to invent a new project to do this.  

With this latest venture of theirs, Unheard Of, their creative approach is to bring music theory and classical composition techniques to popular music and electronic dance music production methods.  

Jeremy & Seamus are ready to change the game! 

“I want to combine and blur the line between electronically produced music and instrumental music. This is completely an experimental project; I am not defining my sound to one genre here.” Says Jeremy while strumming his fingers rhythmically in the air. 

Unlike their other bands, Unheard Of will be heavily focused on performing and collaborating with other talented musicians, much like a producer would. They want to reach out to other local Richmond area musicians and feature them on songs.  

“We want to do something that capitalizes off of our skill and knowledge, while also leaving room for new blood to pitch in. The worst thing you can do as an artist is to try to fit into a box. By performing frequently and featuring different musicians on tracks, we hope to stay as far away from the box as possible.”  

This is part of where the inspiration for the name of the group comes from, as Unheard Of is a call-to-arms that seeks to spotlight other local talent and bring the local scene to the forefront of popular music.  

🎶 YOU CAN CHECK OUT THEIR TEASER MUSIC VIDEO ON YOUTUBE BELOW: 🎶

DON’T FORGET TO FOLLOW UNHEARD OF ON SOCIAL MEDIA! SUPPORT THEM BY LIKING THEIR PAGES LINKED BELOW!  

Unheard Of will be releasing its first album this upcoming summer with their debut performance getting ready to announce within the next few weeks.  

If you are a fellow musician and are inspired by Unheard Of and their story, please feel free to contact them! The group is currently seeking auditions for additional live performance members as well as musicians looking to collaborate in the studio.  

FB: https://www.facebook.com/UHOMusic/ 

IG: https://www.instagram.com/unheardofband/?hl=en 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/UnheardOfBand