Dishwalla : DISHWALLA. A platinum selling, award winning band with a career spanning nearly 2 decades and 5 albums. In 1994 Dishwalla signed to A&M; Records and immediately began their successful launch into the music scene with a rendition of It’s Going to Take Some Time that was chosen as a single for The Carpenters tribute album, If I Were a Carpenter, a live performance on the Jon Stewart Show, and MTV coverage. When A&M; released Dishwalla’s debut album, Pet Your Friends, it lit up the airwaves in 1996 with their edgy smash-hit single Counting Blue Cars. With a gritty attitude and edgy musicianship reminiscent of past musical legends, Dishwalla’s Alt-Rock sound was enough for music fans to crown Counting Blue Cars one of the most requested songs of that year. The track earned them a Billboard Award for “Best Rock Song” for 1996 as well as two ASCAP Awards for “Rock Track of the Year” in both 1996 and 1997, driving Pet Your Friends to sell more than a million copies worldwide. Standing amongst Rock royalty, the band shared the stage with the likes of No Doubt, Sheryl Crow, Cheap Trick, Blind Melon, Lenny Kravitz, Gin Blossoms, and the Goo Goo Dolls, including a signature performance at the infamous Woodstock in 1998. Later that year, the band released its follow-up album, And You Think You Know What Life’s About, and recorded a fresh version of Policy of Truth for Depeche Mode’s tribute disc, For the Masses. Their edgy, yet melodic, signature sound became part of the soundtracks of a generation being featured in hit movies such as Empire Records, Blast from the Past, The Avengers, and in 1999, Stir of Echoes and American Pie. With heavy touring and new releases, the band charted on Billboard with the release of Opaline (2002), the acclaimed live album, Live… Greetings From The Flow State (2003), and their self-titled Dishwalla in 2005. Their songs continue to be included in movies like The Banger Sisters and in TV shows such as Smallville, The OC, and NCIS, Charmed (spotlighted as musical guests) and most recently in 2012, Dishwalla was written into the plot of How I Met Your Mother on CBS. Over the span of their 2 decade-long career, the band has survived the usual drama of personnel and record label changes. Dishwalla’s music helped define the sound of a generation. Their music is timeless, and Counting Blue Cars‘ recurrent airplay on Triple A and Hot A.C. radio are a testament to this. Touted by fans and industry alike as one of the best live bands to come out of the 90′s, Dishwalla is back, and now they have a story to tell.

Stroke9: Although best known for their late-'90s modern rock single "Little Black Backpack," Stroke 9 formed one decade prior in the San Francisco Bay Area. While finishing high school in 1989, singer/guitarist Luke Esterkyn and bassist Greg Gueldner opted to form a band for extra credit. The project was shelved when the musicians left town to attend separate colleges, but Stroke 9 resumed its pace several years later, with John McDermott and Stephen Heath rounding out the lineup. The band self-released a debut LP, Boy Meets Girl, in 1993, followed two years later by Bumper to Bumper. After drummer Eric Stock climbed aboard to stabilize the band's lineup, Stroke 9 signed to Universal's Cherry imprint and preceded the release of their 1999 major-label debut, Nasty Little Thoughts, with an appearance in the Ron Howard comedy EdTV. In a market dominated by platinum-selling teen pop acts, Stroke 9 turned some heads by sending Nasty Little Thoughts to gold status in early 2000. "Little Black Backpack" was the album's highlight, blending a melancholic post-grunge verse with a buoyant pop chorus. The group's relative success allowed them to release two additional records for Universal, 2001's eponymous Stroke 9 and 2002's Rip It Off, before issuing 2004's All In on an independent label. Cafe Cuts: A Collection of Acoustic Favorites arrived that same year, and an all-new collection of songs, Last of the International Playboys, extended the band's shelf life into 2007. ~ Jason Ankeny & Andrew Leahey, Rovi