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O.A.R.

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O.A.R.

Of A Revolution (or O.A.R.) is an American rock band consisting of Marc Roberge (vocals & guitar), Chris Culos (drums & percussion), Richard On (lead guitar & vocals), Benj Gershman (bass guitar), and Jerry DePizzo (saxophone, guitar & vocals). Due to massive online distribution over campus networks, the band has become a college hit, with many songs relating to the bandmembers' personal lives at Ohio State University.

Background

The band was founded in 1996 by Marc Roberge and Chris Culos, who then each recruited Richard On and Benj Gershman. The four of them graduated from Thomas Sprigg Wootton High School in Rockville, Maryland, then moved to Columbus, Ohio to attend The Ohio State University. While at Ohio State, they met Jerry DePizzo, from Liberty, Ohio. Without any formal marketing or advertising plans, news of their songs such as That Was a Crazy Game of Poker, City on Down and Night Shift spread by word of mouth alone. The band played as many shows as they could despite the price, extending from the fraternities and sororities of Ohio State through any audiences that cared to take them on. This exposure paid off. Their third album Risen debuted at #11 on the Billboard top internet sales chart. The following year in 2002, their fourth album Any Time Now debuted at #156 on the Billboard Top 200 list. On October 5, 2006, a press release declared that O.A.R. had officially sold in excess of ) 1.2 million albums over their career.[1] The band attributes much of its popularity to the taping and subsequent trading and downloading of their live shows.

The band performs the theme song for the ABC show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. During a two-hour special that aired on December 11 2005, they provided a streetside concert, including a live performance of "So Much" the Extreme Makeover Home Edition theme, in front of the newly redesigned Los Angeles Free Clinic.

On January 14 2006 OAR reached a new peak of popularity by drawing roughly 18,000 fans and selling out New York City's famed Madison Square Garden, which earned them a review in the NY Times. O.A.R. continues to grow in popularity. Their music videos "Love and Memories" and "Lay Down" have been featured on VH1 and MTV respectively, and they played three nights at the Gorge with the Dave Matthews Band. After having "Love And Memories" as their first "real" radio hit, "Heard The World" was named in September 2006 as their second single off "Stories Of A Stranger". "Heard The World" has been top 10 on many Maryland/D.C. radio stations as "Love And Memories" still gets consistent air play.

O.A.R. performed at the 2006 Major League Baseball All Star Game in Pittsburgh during All Star Sunday, singing one of their top hits, "Love and Memories". They also performed at a rally to benefit Darfur in Central Park on September 17, 2006.

O.A.R. in 2006 also received their first "official" award. O.A.R. (Of A Revolution) received a "Woodie" from MTV. Their video "Lay Down" won the Woodie for streaming video. O.A.R.'s acceptance speech can be seen on the MTV website.

After many rumors and much speculation, O.A.R. made a return trip to the famed Madison Square Garden (MSG) on Saturday January 27 2007, being supported by Gomez and Matt Nathanson. This show closed out their 2007 Winter tour which started in Ohio only a few weeks earlier. The concert is viewable at MSN for free. (Video of concert)

In a message to their fans, Jerry DePizzo, the band's saxophone player, announced that they are currently working on a new record and should be ready early 2008 and they are really excited about it. Marc Roberge also stated on 27 December 2006 that they have over 20 new songs written and in the works.

It has been announced that the January 27th concert at Madison Square Garden will be released as a DVD/Double Live CD. The expected release date is June 5, 2007.

Members

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

[Compilation Name (Year, Song Title)]

Singles

Year Title Chart Positions Album
Pop
100 		Modern
Rock 		Adult
Top 40 		Adult
Tracks 		Adult
Recurrents
2003 "Hey Girl" - - 26 - - In Between Now & Then
2005 "Love and Memories" 98 30 18 17 2 Stories of a Stranger
2006 "Heard The World" - - - - - Stories of a Stranger
2006 "Lay Down" - - - - - Stories of a Stranger

Notes

  1. ^ Press Release (2006). "O.A.R. Makes History With Over 1 Million Sold" marketwire.com (accessed October 6, 2006)

Official

Other

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