Reax Music Magazine Presents:
Mr. Bella

Mr. Bella will be headlining the November Reax Magazine concert at the Orpheum.  For those who may not already be a fan of Mr. Bella, they are a local four-piece hard-rock group made up of ErinMarie on vocals, Amir (bass, keys, backing vocals), Noah (guitar), and Jesi (drums). 

REAX:  What do you sound like?
ErinMarie Xian:  We play heavy rock.  I don’t sound like a baby or anything, you know… Lots of girls have these computer-generated vocals. I have a really strong voice, so that’s what we work around.  I’m not crazy about pop music.  My greatest influence is Bif Naked.  We’re both from British Columbia.  She’s my biggest, but my influences come from so many places.  If you looked at my iPod, you would just shake your head; Toto came on the other day.

REAX:  How do you feel about the Tampa Bay music scene and how has it changed since you started?
EX:  There used to be a lot more going on around here.  When I was still in high school, I made sure that I went to as many shows as possible.  Every single week that’s all I did.  I wanted to get out there and have people recognize me and know I was supporting them…and in turn they would support me.  Our good friends always come out to see us.  There are just not that many shows anymore.  It used to be that there would be a show every night at the State Theatre and you would see all your friends at the same time.  You never had to call anyone because you knew where they were going to be.

REAX:  Why do you think this happened?
EX:  I don’t know where the void started.  I think part of the reason is how bands stopped promoting themselves.  Myspace is a great way to get your band known around here.  People everywhere hear about you.  For instance, when we played a show in Jacksonville we sent out a ton of bulletins on Myspace to get people who haven’t heard of us to come out.  We always do this when we play in different cities.  A lot of bands miss the boat on that.  It is the best possible way to get people out to see you.

For more information and songs from the band, visit: www.mrbella.com