Blue Light Effect | Matt Connarton Unleashed

0:00 Speaker 1: There.

0:00 Speaker 2: It is from the ground up by the band Blue Light Effect, and we're gonna be talking with one of the guys from the band in just a moment. Welcome everybody. We have entered our number two New Marrow dose of Matt Connorton Unleashed and we are live from the studios of w m n H ninety five point three FM and Glorious Manchester, New Hampshire. Of course, you can stream the show from anywhere. Go to Matt connorton dot com, slash live for all of your live streaming options, social media links, contact and Fosho archives, et cetera, et cetera.

0:28 Speaker 2: Today is Saturday May second, twoenty twenty six, and we have joined us via WhatsApp Craig Siegel Bomb from the band Blue Light Effect.

0:38 Speaker 1: Hello, Craig, Hey, Matt Holloya, can you hear me?

0:40 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, you sound great. Thank you for joining us. I really like this project a lot, and absolutely I like the positivity too of songs like that and Wreckage is another another really great song. You guys got a bunch of great tunes, but so I obviously will we'll cut right to the really interesting same thing about this project that that kind of hooked. I know Jenny made a comment too when she saw the email because she she's a former EMT, so she really likes first responders. This band has made up are all four of you guys first responders.

1:14 Speaker 1: I'm a former first respondent. I recently retired.

1:17 Speaker 2: Okay.

1:18 Speaker 1: The singer Vinnie is a nurse, and our bass player Justin and our drummer Joe are both teachers.

1:25 Speaker 2: Oh wow, okay, excellent, Yeah, excellent. So how did this band start? Because I was reading something about it. It kind of the pandemic sort of sparked this project.

1:36 Speaker 1: Yeah. So Vinnie and I have been trying to work together on and off for years, and for whatever reason, it just didn't didn't work out. And finally I was working on some music and getting reached out to various singers and I sent some tracks to Vinnie and immediately he had he had, you know, lyrics and melties work that for the songs, and he connected with them immediately. So we started this project, like like you said, during the pandemic, and we finally we did a record. It came out at the end of twenty twenty two, so it took us a year and a half to two years to do it between Vinny and I and Gina Catillo, who was a singer songwriter.

2:20 Speaker 1: She helped us with some writing and producing, and so the three of us wrote the record and we released it in twenty twenty two, and yeah, it just it's been great. We just we haven't stopped since we've We've have so many ideas. We have enough material for another record, but we just wanted to get a song out that it's been so long. We just put From the ground Up out back in March and the March, so it was good. It was a good. It was a long while since we released something, so yeah, but we have we have a ton more stuff coming.

2:55 Speaker 1: So we're just gonna probably do some singles, you know, every couple of months at out singles.

3:01 Speaker 2: Excellent, excellent. And you guys are all are you guys all from the New York area?

3:04 Speaker 1: Yeah, we're all. We're all Long Island based.

3:06 Speaker 2: Yeah, okay, okay, some real New Yorkers here, and you've got I was noticing too, So is this uh is this accurate? Your song wreckage did really well in Australia.

3:18 Speaker 1: Yeah, actually From the ground Up is doing well there too.

3:21 Speaker 2: Good.

3:21 Speaker 1: But does it does a show there in Australia that that's really back in the band and I've been playing us. Yeah. It was went to number one on the on one of the shows there.

3:29 Speaker 2: Oh excellent.

3:30 Speaker 1: Yeah, and records just went to number five last week.

3:33 Speaker 2: There, so oh congratulations, thank you.

3:36 Speaker 1: Yeah. So it's been going really well and you know, we're trying to get some shows. But we're playing actually our first show in about two and a half years. We haven't that's how long its been since we played. We're playing at Montwalk on May fifteenth. We're doing the Montwalk Music Festival. We're doing two shows in one night, oh nok, two different venues, so it's going to be an adventure, but we're looking forward to it.

3:56 Speaker 2: That's great that you're doing a festival though, because something I always tell I say this everybody. Festivals are such a tremendous opportunity because not only does it get you in front of an audience that might not otherwise see you and might not be familiar with you, and you have a chance to really exponentially and very quickly build that fan base up, but also to just the people you meet, you know, the the industry people that you'll you'll meet and the new connections that you can make and uh, there's there's nothing better than a festival.

4:23 Speaker 2: But it sounds like, but you're you've already been working with a heavy hitter, like you mentioned Gina Catillo. Am I saying her name correctly? Now she's uh, how did you come to work with her?

4:34 Speaker 1: Well, she's actually my wife.

4:35 Speaker 2: Oh I'll be okay, Well that's easy then. Yeah.

4:39 Speaker 1: No, she actually she heard Vinnie and I working on the songs when we started the project, and she's like, oh, what's going on here? And as we're working in my studio when she heard us, and she's just like, I want to get involved in this, and she did like and it just went from there.

4:55 Speaker 2: Oh fantastic. So so was she also part of what? Uh? Well, I guess let me ask the question this way. If she wasn't your wife, do you think you'd be doing this? Because I get the impression. I mean she's probably obviously she's very encouraging. You know, she got involved in the project with writing and producing and so forth. But I mean, if it were not for her, do you think you would have pursued this?

5:18 Speaker 1: Oh? Yeah, Vinie and I we were definitely going to do this either way, but yeah, but I think her involvement brought it to another level.

5:26 Speaker 2: Yeah. Oh that's fantastic. Yeah yeah. And then do you guys, I mean this is probably this would be a challenging to do, but do you have any plans to travel to Australia to do any touring?

5:41 Speaker 1: It would, like you said, it would be it would take a lot, be a lot, Yeah, it would, it would it would. I mean we would love to do it obviously, but would it would? You know, if everything worked worked out right, we would definitely definitely want to do it.

5:54 Speaker 2: Yeah, traveling is a little expensive these days.

5:57 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean that goes for anyway. I mean even anywhere, even in the States, anywhere, you know, Oh yeah, anywhere, as long as it's worthwhile for us to do it, you know what I mean.

6:04 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And in terms of the songs I've noticed, I mean there's definitely I use this word a lot, uh in my you know, I'm hypnotherapist and when I'm working with clients, I use this word a lot. But I also find this, this word applies to your music. There's a sense of empowerment, whether whether it's a song like from the ground up, or Wreckage. There's there's really, uh, a very empowering message, and I mean is that important to you? Is that? Is that? Uh? I mean obviously not every song is is like that necessarily right, Well, none of it's I mean not nothing that I listened to is negative.

6:38 Speaker 2: But you know, but there's a song actually, I think there's a duet that you do with Gina if I'm not mistaken where it's kind.

6:43 Speaker 1: Of yeah, there's two on the record, save Us for Another Life and Tempered Yeah.

6:48 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, but but but the overarching theme seems to be one of positivity and empowerment.

6:54 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's definitely that's I mean that Viny writes all his lyrics, but he's yeah, that's that's definitely a conscious thing. Yeah, because there's a lot of you know, hard rock and heavy metal music out there, that's a lot of negative stuff. And I mean we we definitely feel that stuff obviously sometimes sure, we're just trying to go about it a different way. And you know, I think it's it's connecting with people.

7:19 Speaker 2: How do you think, uh, I mean, did your job I mean obviously you know you mentioned you're retired now, but I mean, how does how does your experience professionally influence your music. Do you think i'd because it must in some way, right.

7:34 Speaker 1: Yeah, I guess so, I mean I not consciously, but I guess. Yeah. You know, when I was when I was on the job, I was a police officer. I don't know if I had mentioned that, but I was a police officer. Yeah for uh, but it definitely, you know, like I'd have my days and I would and I don't don't write lyrics anymore. I just write music. So yeah, if I had a rough day, you know, it would take it out of my you know, would write some aggressive music, you know what I mean, or sure or you know, or the other way around, you know, something good weapons and I'll write something pretty and and nice.

8:02 Speaker 1: So right, I guess, you know, I guess it's not it's not a conscious thing, but I guess yeah, now that you're saying that, it probably did.

8:10 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, because I feel like, you know, what we do professionally, uh, you know, in a quote unquote day job. You know, ultimately it shapes so much of who we are, which then of course shapes the music that we make. And and you know, and that's why again I think it's it's great you know that you're the music of the band. Blue light effect is so is so positive. So where does the name come from? I mean, I I assume you know the the but I could be wrong. So you know, my assumption is that blue light has to do with uh with police, but but maybe not.

8:42 Speaker 1: That's it has a lot of meaning to us. Okay, the first was the first waspond or part of it obviously. Yeah. But also the effects of blue light, like on your phones. Yes, that's what it does to your mind. I don't know if you're aware of that, if you've researched that at all, But do a search on what blue light effect can do to your your mind just from your electronic devices and that. And when I when I was on my previous job, I worked for the I worked for a railroad police department, so they would have they still have Longlan Road has blue lights on the platforms and the station platform Oh okay, and it's supposed to prevent somebody's thinking about committing suicide from doing it.

9:32 Speaker 1: Like it does something to your mind. Really, yeah, that's that's I don't know, it's it's just there's a lot of if you look into blue it's it's a very interesting thing. So I we just we just thought that'd be a cool name for the band.

9:44 Speaker 2: Yeah. I like that. No, that's very interesting. I'm gonna have to look that up. I've heard over the years, I've heard things about that, about you know, the blue light and the effect that it has on the brain, but I've never really I've never really read up on it. But you've got me, Uh, I'm gonna have to do that because you've got me very very curious about that now. Yeah, absolutely absolutely so. You so you're gonna be you think for now, you're just going to release release more singles. Will those eventually coalesce into an album perhaps or maybe?

10:15 Speaker 1: Yeah? Maybe, because it just it takes us so long to do stuff. If we did a record right now, we'd be looking at another at least another year okay before it came out. So we just want to put good stuff out there because it's been so long. Yeah, it seems like be the way the businesses these days, singles. Unfortunately. I love the album format, but yeah, the business doesn't seem to anymore.

10:36 Speaker 2: Yeah, there's so many different ways to do it now too. You know a lot of because when I was growing up, it was you know, a band's released albums, maybe occasionally an EP, but mostly albums, and you know, first single would go to radio six to eight weeks before the album comes out. Then the album comes out, and then if if all goes well, maybe there's a second single. But now there's so many different ways to do it. And I've noticed in the last couple of years to a lot of the guests that we have on the show, you know, they they've kind of inverted it where they'll they'll release a series of singles that eventually become an album, but but they want to you know, feed that algorithm and and uh, you know, stay relevant on social media and all the streaming platforms.

11:15 Speaker 2: And it's it's a challenge, but it is really is. But the flip side of that is amazing things can happen, like you could have a lot of success on the radio in Australia, you know, so exactly exactly, So it's it's a remarkable times that we live in that sense. And then is is everything is everything that this band has? Are you the you said you don't write lyrics anymore, but you write all the music.

11:41 Speaker 1: I write the music and Vinnie writes his lyrics and then you know, do you know, come in and throw her two cents in. Yeah, and then uh, that's pretty much you know the other guys that have involved in it too. Yeah, but it's for the most part, it's it's Vinnie and I are the foundation. I'll send him my ideas and then he and then we take it from there.

11:59 Speaker 2: Okay, okay, no, that makes sense. And then what's the live situation, like you guys playing a lot of shows or how's that going on?

12:06 Speaker 1: Like I said, we haven't played a show in Oh wow, this motook gig is going to be cool because we're doing two shows and who knows, it could be our only two shows of the year.

12:16 Speaker 2: Okay.

12:17 Speaker 1: Just unfortunately, I don't know how it is by you, but our our original music scene here is not very good. Okay, So there's not many places. It's a lot of cover bands, which nothing against those guys. I have a lot of friends in those bands. But yeah, it's just it's just infiltrated with cover bands here. There's not a lot of original bands that are able to play shows. There's no event. It's not really the bands, it's the venues.

12:38 Speaker 2: Honestly, Oh yeah, yeah, of course, Yeah, that could be a challenge anywhere. I can tell you that where I am in Manchester, New Hampshire, it seems to there seems to be a cycle. You know, they'll they'll be a period where it seems like there's a lot of great places to play for original music, and then it kind of shifts and you know, the originals kind of get locked out a little bit by all the cover bands, but then it kind of comes around again and it just it's just kind of this endless cycle. I feel like right now there's a lot of places here that are very friendly to uh hosting original music.

13:10 Speaker 2: But you know, but it can change at any moment as as the business exactly as the business often does. But yeah, so listeners that you know, obviously we have a lot of listeners locally, but a lot of people online who and we do have listeners in New York. So I hope that anyone listening who hears this, I hope they come see you.

13:27 Speaker 1: Now.

13:27 Speaker 2: When when is that again? When is that festival?

13:30 Speaker 1: It's a it's a It starts May fourteenth and it goes through the seventeenth. We're gonna be playing on the fifteenth, we're doing two shows. We're playing the mon Talk Project at seven o'clock that the same of the venue, okay, and then and then the other venue is at nine o'clock. It's called Talk ta Uk. So we're gonna have to hustle. We're doing the one show at seven, head over to the other place at nine, bring all of stuff. So that's gonna be interesting. But we're looking forward to it.

13:56 Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, I find situations like that to be excited. You know, when it's like you've got to, like you said, you're gonna have to hustle, you know, but it's but it's all gonna be worth it. So that's that's fantastic. Good good for you you guys. Are you guys are gonna be working hard that night? That's great? Yeah, absolutely absolutely so, Craig, any idea on when the next single will be.

14:18 Speaker 1: Well, we know what it's gonna be, and it's it's almost fully tracked. Okay, a few more things to do, I would say, hopefully hopefully by the summer. Okay, great, yeah, and then we have like we we record, I record everything in my studio and then we have our wonderful mixer, David Cagiano mixes everything does an amazing job. Okay, and uh and we'll get it out as soon as we can. But you know, I right, we just we're right now. We've been focusing on this gig, so yeah, rehearsing, so once the once the show is done, we're gonna finish up the song and then hopefully have that ready for early summer release.

14:58 Speaker 2: Oh fantastic. Well, and it's ready to go. You know we we'd love to feature it here and it'll give us an excuse to have you back on and talk about it. So yeah, absolutely, absolutely absolutely, Craig, Where should people go online? Where's the best place for people to go online to keep up with everything that you guys are doing? Blue Light Effect.

15:15 Speaker 1: Everything, pretty much everything, blue light Effect, YouTube, blue light Effects, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok all that stuff. Yeah, yeah, all the usual places app you know, Apple Music, Spotify.

15:29 Speaker 2: Well yeah, absolutely, yeah. You guys have got it covered, which is which is good. That's what you need to do, that's for sure.

15:34 Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly.

15:36 Speaker 2: I'd like to I will close our conversation with another one of your tracks. I want to play Wreckage again. I really love this song. Anything we should know about this, about this track.

15:46 Speaker 1: Like you said, it's it has a positive message. I just I like people that just interpret things the way that they want to, yes, get you know, get what they want out of it and without giving away too much. And I want to say, like from the ground up is to me is part two of Wreckage, right, this is it's like a two part song in my opinion, that makes sense.

16:06 Speaker 2: Yeah, no, no, that that makes a lot of sense to me. And I'll just say that absolutely absolutely well. Craig Siegelebomb of Course Blue Light Effect. Thank you so much for joining us this morning. We will do it again in the future when you've got the when you've got the next single. We'd love to have you back on. I'm gonna go ahead and hit this track, so we'll let you go for now. But but again, thank you so much and I'm sure we'll talk again soon.

16:27 Speaker 1: Thanks Matt, all right, you got it man.

16:29 Speaker 2: Bye bye. All right. That was Craig Siegele Bomb from of Course a Blue Light Effect. And we will close out this segment with another great track from this band. I really like these guys a lot, and again I do like the positivity. This is called Wreckage. Check this out. This is really good,