The place they are in now has been a lot of things over the years. It was once a crab shack by some name, then it was a church or something religious, now after a few years it seems that Chiefs is there to stay.

The overall ambiance of the place is nice. They did a great job combining a FULL MENU into a FULL BAR/CLUB scene. One never really completely takes away from the other so to speak. And with places like Dazzlers and Breaktime NOT serving food, this opens the door to many new and happy Anderson party goers.

As of late they had a management change, along with that came a whole host of new things for people to enjoy while being with their friends in Anderson’s nightlife. They now do Cornhole tournaments, Karaoke contests, picture trivia, beer pong and pool tournaments. All of these things bestow upon the victor(s) cash, prizes and/or gift certificates! I don’t think there has been a night I have been up there that they weren’t “doing” something for some kind of prize!

They are also being host to their own APA teams starting September 17th. Along with this it is rumored that they will be getting MORE and NEWER pool tables. While they already have a WEEKLY pool tournament every Sunday night at 8pm, NOW they will have teams from other bars at their location on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The bartenders, staff and management are going ALL IN apparently, throwing in every thing they can think of to make Chiefs Wings and Firewater Anderson’s Hot Spot!

Also, if you sign up at their site using the link below you will get an INSTANT downloadable $5.00 gift certificate! Hey, that’s a good start for an appetizer or paying for all the wings you can eat!

You can find out more info about Chiefs at their new website http://ChiefsOnline.com

With newspapers closing, conventional methods of advertising businesses are looking rather pale in comparison. Although the internet has been around for some time now. It still seems to be a mystery to most how to go about “gettin on it”.

The easiest way for a business to get their cyber-feet wet is Social Networking. Their is MySpace.com, Facebook.com, Twitter.com and of course Anderson’s own SurfAnderson.com .  The most important part of social networking for business use is to tread lightly! Do not join all these places and bombard everyone that “friends” you with relentless and usually useless advertising. They see ENOUGH of that from the sites OWN advertising campaigns.

Your goal here is to “Connect” with current customers and to reach out to NEW customers in a friendly and non-threatening way.  Then when you have enough friends for it to actually MATTER, send them a deal! Make it special JUST for them, don’t send your standard coupon. Make it JUST for them! Reward them for taking the time to CONNECT with you, the business owner.  Since the have opened the proverbial internet door for you, be respectful in THEIR virtual house.

The BIGGEST problem that new Anderson websites have is getting links BACK to their site. Not only will they bring in direct traffic from the site they came from, BUT it also helps IMMENSELY in your site’s search engine rankings. When it comes to getting HIGHER in the rankings, think HIGH SCHOOL! really, it IS a popularity contest. The MORE sites that link to YOUR SITE, the more popular you appear to the search engines… They know these things, they are the eyes and ears of the internet!  So, once your site is done do you time online getting links TO your website from other Anderson SC websites!  For the most part all you do is email the webmaster , call or visit them in person and ask to exchange links with them.  They SHOULD know the VALUE of that and the only way they would refuse is if you are a direct competitor of theirs.

As of right now there are WAY LESS websites of Anderson SC businesses than there should be! It is simple and affordable enough.  Any business that has a business card or a physical location SHOULD by NOW have their own website. how far you choose to take that is up to you and how you want people to percieve your business online.

So lastly, if you are reading this and you have a business in Anderson SC and you DO NOT have a website you NEED to ask yourself why not?

City Lights Under The Bridge or C.L.U.B. for short is Anderson South Carolina’s hottest new restaurant in the downtown Anderson area. The premise behind City Lights is to make GREAT FOOD FUN as is evident by their motto of “If It Isn’t Fun, We Don’t Do It”.

But, don’t let the FUN FACTOR fool you. This restaurant MEANS BUSINESS when it comes to their food. Not only do they have a world renowned chef in the kitchen, they also go the extra step to INTEGRATE their menu into their entertainment. For instance, with City Lights being run by people from the thespian persuasion why wouldn’t their Appetizers be called “Preludes” or their Lunch be referred to as their “Matinee”. Yes my friends when City Lights does a menu they actually put thought into it. Hence, the fun factor!

In the way of entertainment while you dine, to be honest you may NEVER know what to expect. They have and will have magicians, gong shows, trivia, Jazz musicians, local Anderson SC bands, comedy acts, murder mystery dinner theatres or even a M.A.S.H. Themed Party! And that folks is ALL within their FIRST MONTH of being open!

They also have a fully stocked bar, outside dining and witty and clever things all around. Seriously, if this place does NOT wake up the Anderson downtown nightlife… Then sadly I think nothing will!

Now, unlike most other businesses in the Anderson area, the players involved in this get-up realized early on that if they were going to make a Grand Entrance, then they had better go all out. Early on the adopted and WANTED to get their special place ONLINE and out to everyone, so without further thought, I was commissioned to create their website.  Now I knew from the get go that their site had to be special. It had to have first and foremost easily accessible information, I mean really THEY ARE quite a busy establishment. So the site would need to be laid out in a fashion that encompassed ALL that they do and plan to do.

I started by taking their NAMING THEME onto the website. So at the food menus you will see their drama inspired naming conventions (with some help of course to guide the newbies). Secondly, they needed a nice Calendar of events and of course Photos of their events. Lastly, we threw in a handy dandy newsletter to keep everyone up to speed with everything going on. Not to mention they are actively online with Twitter, facebook and SurfAnderson.com to reach the MOST people that they possibly can.

All in all, although I have not been to City Lights yet (I do plan on attending their M.A.S.H. Theme party on the 25th of July and will definitely do a write up on that), they are off to a GREAT and UPROARIOUS start!

So in closing if you are into FUN and FOOD be sure to make your reservations on their website (Under the RSVP link) or call them at 864-642-0888 for the latest scoop on what’s going on in the little but loud town of Anderson!

-Joey Stubblefield

You can catch SYN live at Blackey’s in Seneca SC on May 8th 2009!!!!

1. Where do you both hail from and a little about yourselves?

Charlene: I’ve lived in Greenville for the past 6 years, but I was born in CO, grew up in HI,Lived in OR and CO again for a bit before moving here. I’m not incredibly well rounded as far as interests go, I love music and animals.

Daniel: I’m from Seneca, SC — so not too far away. I enjoy walks in the park and… just kidding! I’m kind of just an average guy, just substitute a love of music for a love of sports. I’m also a big fan of videogames, but lately the games that are coming out are kind of disappointing and get old after a while - maybe I’m just growing up? I’m also a huge fan of The Office and.. that’s really about it. Oh yeah, I really enjoy good movies. And by good movie, I mean along the lines of 28 Days Later or There Will Be Blood.. not Summer Action Flick #23 (although I am looking forward to Terminator:Salvation).

2. How involved are you in the whole process from start to finish? Meaning do you write, perform, produce, market, etc.

Charlene: Definitely completely involved in the whole process. My artist friend, Nicole Toro, did the album cover for Access: Denied. Daniel and I both contributed to the press kit artwork. I make the colorful graphics. We both write, perform, and record. Our mastering was outsourced at ECR. I’m actually making fliers for our upcoming shows right now.

Daniel: That’s kind of a tricky question for me. I entered the band rather late, so a lot of material was already there for me–I just had to learn the guitar parts. Other songs, like The Robot Song and Endless Hall, didn’t have established guitar parts, so I was able to create completely new melodies, butit’s still kind of different from being part of the writing process from the beginning. But we are working on some new material.

It’s in the very early stages, but its already apparent that’s it going to be much more balanced in terms of creative ideas. I really respect and enjoy Charlene’s writing style, so I can’t wait for her to make my ideas sound like something worth listening to, haha. But, going back to the first project, I was very involved with Recreate the World. That song wasn’t as complete as the rest when I joined, so I got to put my two cents in on things like when certain instruments should come in to create certain dynamics and, obviously, I got to write my own guitar parts.As far as performance.. I perform, haha. Guess there’s not really much else to say about that. I just play my guitar parts, but maybe in the future I’ll play some synths, piano, or whatever when necessary.

As for marketing, Charlene does a great job with that. It’s kind of funny because I’m about to graduate from Clemson with a degree in marketing, so it seems like I should really be in charge there. But Charlene is just really great at networking and has great initiative. She’s doing everything right by the books, but I suppose it’s a little hard to compare marketing for a band with business to business marketing, eh?

3. Where would you say you pull inspiration from (not bands)?

Charlene: I’m inspired to inspire others. I mostly lean toward writing empowering lyrics that encourage people to not just go through situations, but grow through them.

Daniel: It’s kind of weird, but because I deal primarily with music and no sort of lyrical content, my inspiration comes from things like new sounds or software.. For instance, a really cool softsynth is likely to inspire an idea for a melody or serve as a starting point for an entire song. Things like music theory can also inspire me. Finding as many ways as possible to incorporate “wrong notes” using music theory usually gets me pretty excited–or writing in a crazy time signature (so far my craziest was 13/8.. And the time I layered a 5/4 rhythm over a 4/4 rhythm.. that was fun).

4. If you could open for 2 bands who would they be?

Charlene: NIN and Ladytron

Daniel: It would definitely make a lot of sense to open for a band like Ladytron. We’re electronic and we have a female singer, so it would make a great fit as far as genre and fans are concerned. I’d also love to open for Muse, but that’s solely to have a chance to meet them in person. I love that band.

5. What do you think would be the perfect venue for you to play? I honestly don’t have a specific venue in mind as being perfect.

Charlene: As long as there are people to play for who enjoy our music, then I’m happy.

Daniel: Hmm.. I can’t really say for sure. I’ve only been to a handful myself. I will say though, in general, it’s important for us to establish really close connections with our fans, so smaller, cozier venues are probably best for now.

6. How instrumental do you feel the internet is for today’s up and coming artists?

Charlene: It’s a virtual double edged sword. It’s a fantastic medium to network as you have access to billions of people world wide. However, since it is so easily accessible, it severely waters down the vast pool of musicians. There are so many bands online that people get jaded and it can be a real challenge to get peoples’ attention. I feel like because of this it is even more important to play out live and build your fan base that way.

Daniel: It’s weird; we were talking about this just the other day. The internet is obviously an essential tool to help artists reach their fans and stay in touch. But it’s also getting out of hand with the lack of quality control and the infinite amount of bands on the web today. I feel like some musicians think, “As long as we have a Myspace page or website, people will find us and we’ll succeed.” But the truth is, building meaningful relationships with those virtual fans is still necessary and by no means a substitute for forming relationships with fans in person. I guess I’m saying, you have to have some presence on the internet, but not because it makes it easier or equals success. It’s just a new prerequisite for being a band.

7. We can’t ignore where we are geographically, so with that, what would be your pitch to have people that are unfamiliar with your music to come see you perform.

Charlene: We’re kind of like bacon ice cream. When you hear about, you’re like, dude, that’s just weird. But then you think, well, bacon is the candy of meats, so you give it a try. And it’s actually a surprisingly delicious treat with a distinct and sophisticated flavor only bacon can provide. Here is a link to the recipe for it:http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/theclog/2008/10/06/a-double-scoop-of-the-meat-flavor-please/

Daniel: Very true; the majority of people here don’t listen to electronic music. However, I hear phrases like, “I’m tired of  the radio,” more often these days. I think some people are ready for something new, but they don’t know what. So, at the very least, they can give us a shot, right? It’s different, but it’s goodmusic. We put on a good show and you can even sort of dance to some of the songs. I mean, surely someone out there wants to dance to something besides rap.

8. Given that your music is highly electronic in nature how intense is the creative process for a new song? Would you say that it is a totally different process than perhaps a rock band’s process?

Charlene: The creative process I don’t feel is any more or less intense than the process of another typeof band, it’s just a little different in some ways. The first difference is that we don’tget together and “jam” on ideas, we’ll email ideas back and forth to one another until the songis complete. We decide if the song will transfer well in a live setting, and then decide which partswill be played by who, and then program the other parts to play on the sequencers on a trigger type system.

Daniel: Actually, I would say the writing process simply varies from band to band. For instance, in another electronic band, the writing process might be completely different from how Charlene and I write music. It’s all about how different people go about creating music. I do tend to write a little bit differently when I’m composing electronic music by myself, though — it’s a bunch of looping, repeating, tweaking sounds, overlapping certain parts, subtracting certain parts, etc.

It’s really easy to play the “Producer” role and try out a bunch of different arrangements because of the copy/paste structure of software. Whereas if I were recording a guitar song by myself, it would be more free flowing… improvisational in nature.But,at the same time, I could imagine an electronic band jamming a bunch of electronic sounds and tweaking them after a take, and I could imagine a band that copies and pastes different takes after a recording using software.I guess what I’m getting at is, there’s a tendency to act differently depending on the genre, but it’s not like electronic has to be a certain way and a “live band” has to be a certain way.Looking back..

Maybe the easiest answer to your question might have just been, “Yes.” Haha.As far as intensity of song creation.. I say that’s always the same. No matter what genre of music a person is making, it’s always going to be extremely difficult and exhausting to make it the best possible song it can be. It’s going to take a lot of time and effort either way.

9. What instruments/tools/gear do you use and recommend? I use a combination of vintage and new synths.

Charlene: I feel like they both have their place and I wouldn’t be able to recommend just new or vintage. I like the vintage synths for their “look” and the vintage sounds. The new synths are better for recording and easier to program since most come with software and are USB/midi. I prefer the vintage synths for live application because they have that unique retro futuristic look, and are easier to manipulate in a live setting since they weren’t designed to hook up to software.

Daniel: I use the Line 6 Vetta HD II for all my guitar sounds and effects. It’s really an incredible device. It’s all digital, but sounds great. It has over 80 different amp models and several really cool effects that help define my SYN sound. On the software side, I’ve played around with demos of Native Instruments products. They make extremely good products, and I’ll probably end up purchasing Batter 3 and maybe Absynth at some point.

10. How do you achieve such a multi-faceted sound with only two people, or is that where Frank Diva comes into play?

Charlene: LOL, Frank is a cardboard robot I built to be our guitarist when Seven Year Night was myself, a drummer, and a bassist. We played shows with the guitar track mixed in with the samples/sequences, and we sat Frank on Stage with a guitar hero controller strapped on him and his hands velcroed to the guitar. As hokey as that idea seemed, Frank turned out to be very popular.

People made me promise that I would still bring him even though SYN is under a different formant and now has a live guitarist. The key element to Seven Year Night’s sound is layering, there may be only two of us, but we incorporate a lot of synths/eqiupment/effects in our live shows.

Daniel: It’s true, we can only perform so many elements live, so we’re very grateful for Frank Diva!

11. What is your best and worst experience playing live and what did you take from the experiences?

Charlene: My worst experience playing live was when the stage monitors completely failed for the first 4 songs or so into the set. All of my synth outputs were running directly into the house PA, so on stage all we heard were the acoustic drums, and the bass out of the bass cabinet. Thankfully the drummer was working with a click track, so we weren’t off with the programming. I could vaguely make out the synth and the vocals as they bounced off the far wall and back.

It was pretty weird singing to music I couldn’t hear, as well as not being able to really even hear my singing. What I learned from that is to not rely on the house PA to run my outputs to directly, so I bought a keyboard mixing amp. I also learned that Seven Year Night sounds pretty funny with only drums and bass.My best experience playing live was actually at Ground Zero. It’s a great place to develop a loyal and supportive fan base. Mick and the staff there are all super nice as well, we always had a great time playing there.

Daniel: Honestly, I’ve only played a handful of live shows in my life–maybe about ten. They’ve all been good experiences as far as I’m concerned–nothing differentiating enough to separate a best from worst. I got a free meal once for doing a jazz gig with a friend at a restaurant; I guess that was my favorite experience before SYN.

12. Would you find it offensive or flattering to be asked to do tracks for a movie?

Charlene: Even if it were a terrible movie, or maybe just grossly inappropriate, I’d still be flattered.I may not agree to it, but I’d still be flattered that they considered us.

Daniel: I’d love to do tracks for a movie. It would be challenging in a good way, I think. On the one hand, you have the source for inspiration right in front of you, but you also have to find a way to match it with your own creative approach.

13. Last questions.. Since it is Earth Day.. Paper, Plastic or Re-useable Tote?

Charlene: I don’t like paper bags because the jagged edges scratch my arms when I reach in them. I reuse or recycle any plastic bags that I get and the Re-useable totes are usually pretty cute.

Daniel: Re-useable tote sounds like the safest answer–I’ll go with that.

Interview Question By: Joey Stubblefield (SurfAnderson.com)
To have YOUR BAND Interviewed contact Joey - Joey@SurfAnderson.com / 864-356-1195

Enjoy!!

I have a really great pushpin for sale. It is blue. Has very little use, and still is somewhat sharp. There is however, a slight bend in the steel shaft. With the proper tools, this could easily be corrected. Very mentionable, despite the minor imperfections of this finely formed blue pushpin, is that it dates to circa 1992′. Where were you during that year? This pin could really bring some wonderful old memories to light. But if your memories for 1992 were not pleasant, I would say, that is not to worry about, as this pushpin is only appraised and suspected, as circa 1992. So, technically, this pushpin is a great party starter for any alumni event, or memorial circa 1992. Sure to be a real conversation getter.

The push pin will be carefully packaged in a clear sandwich bag, for protection during transit, or for display as is. The sandwich bag, while not as special as the pin itself, is also very collectible, and dates to the summer of 2008. For many of us, this was a summer of love. Another clever and noteworthy fact about this pin, is that it was purchased in the state of Florida. and brought to NY by car in 1998-99. Also this pin may have originated from as far away as hong kong or Taiwan, so this pin has some serous history, and mileage, by car, and possibly trucks, planes, and boats. How’s that for a pushpin’s history ??!!

The asking price of .32 cents may at first seem high, but is just the asking price, and also a very special and unique item. Ask yourself deeply within what this gently used pushpin could mean to your collection, before haggling price. However cash talks.

The pictures provided are of the actual pin, and are not studio portraits or some random stock photos. Please notice how photogenic this pin is, even with a simple homeowners camera. It also mentionable, as seen in the pics, seems to take on different personalities in different lighting. In the last picture, the pin is shown situated in a cork memo board to show it’s functionality and many years of continued function.

The other pins in the photo are not for sale at this time, however the USPS stamp is. We are presently accepting offers for it. Notice how unobtrusive this pin is , and blends well with other pins on the board. We have two blue ones, so naturally this was our first choice for thinning the collection, and extra cash during these unique times.

Please contact us to schedule an appropriate time to view this fine push pin. If it seems we’ve made any error in describing the push pin, or you feel you can help us to better describe this wonderful item, please don’t hesitate to assist. We have described this item as honestly and accurately as we can. we are not professional collectors, but have collected many similar items for years, and this one has brought us much joy, as we are certain it will to you and your family.

So most bands in and around Anderson are stuck slipping in a few of their songs in between the popular covers. Which is great other than the fact that sometimes you have to sit through 12 minutes of pink floyd.

What follows is an ongoing, tentative list of the more popular rock bands that populate the venues around Anderson on the weekends and even thoughout the week.

UNDONE - (Now dis-banded) but many of the members still play in other bands around town. One member is even in 2 bands right now. UNDONE at the time we were frequenting their shows was comprised of
Marc - Lead singer
Anthony - Bass guitar
Brad - Lead guitar
Jason - Drums/vocals

Anthony and Marc were the founding members and surprisingly one of the ir first ever songs was later the big hit that Anderson locals were looking for. UNDONE pressed a record on a budget, had t-shirts was playing 20+ shows per month and even got gigs at the local wild wings (which is a hard gig to get on occasion). The competed in Audition Atlanta (The rock edition) and did very well, top 3 ranking. They had a following at almost any bar or club they played. UNDONE also did a lot of charity benefits at the popular club Simon’s and even doing 3 live shows for the local website SurfAnderson.com drawing in more than 80+ members from the website at each show.

UNDONE also won the Anderson Independent Mails BEST BAND in Anderson award, TWICE. The last time the band hadn’t played together for more than 6 months. This also sparks some issues as to where have all the good bands gone? But that is for another time. UNDONE got a lot of airplay on 93.3 the planet’s locals live broadcast and many fans were constantly calling in and supporting their favorite band. They also did an MTV Pool Party that featured 2 popular VJ’s from MTV, performed in front of many Clemson UNiversity students.

Although UNDONE has been apart for more than just a few months now, they still ahve fans and after hearing that they had won the BEST OF recognition again from the local Anderson, SC newspaper there have been rumors of an upcoming show… we shall have to wait and see.

-Joey Stubblefield

They have really nice tournament size pool tables as well as many bar box size pool tables. Dazzlers also is host to an APA team for both 8-ball and 9-ball. Their pool room is located away fromt he dance floor and stage area but still close enough to enjoy the tunes.

Dazzler’s has karaoke on Saturday nights and any other time you are sure to find your favorite songs on their updated jukebox, they receive downloads automatically with all the latest hits. There bar area is fully stocked and they have drink specials constantly. The bar area also serves the pool room area for the pool players convenience.

Dazzlers has recently remodeled and now have a stage and dance floor area. They have several local bands that play your favorite tunes, you can call up to Dazzlers anytime after 5pm to find out about any upcoming shows.

All in all Dazzlers is a great place to go relax, shoot a game of pool, sing karaoke, dance and have a few drinks with your friends. Dazzlers is also a private club, which means you need to be a member. As of the time of this writing membership is free and after that you will just need to sign in as a member when you enter at the door.

Dazzlers Sports Bar is also open on Sundays and they do serve their full bar menu.

There hours are normally from 5pm until closing, depending on the events of the night the closing time varies. So, if you are looking for a home away from home to have a great time Dazzlers Sports Bar definitely gets two thumbs up. So go up and introduce yourself and have a great night.

-Joey Stubblefield

It begin with a members appreciation party one month after official site launch, to boost membership, the site advertised a huge members only party for the first 100 members. Live band, open bar and even a custom made cake to celebrate the 100 member milestone. The site managed to get 100 members without the use of traditional costly advertising in only 13 days!

That members only party led to many others that year, headlining such rocking acts as UNDONE, ADISON CROFT and ORIGIN UNKNOWN. Better still, all bands played for free knowing that they were creating a following. And they were right, later that year the band UNDONE was in the running to win a prestigious ATLANTA award as top band. In support dozen’s of the sites members made the 2 hour trek to pay back and support UNDONE to a top 3 position in the southeast.

SurfAnderson.com has been alot of things during its tenure as Anderson’s FIRST and only online social networking site and NOW it breaks down the barriers between online and offline once again.

Enter the FIRST ANNUAL Surf Toy Bank! Members donating money online to buy needy children presents this Christmas. So we are once again bridging the gap between the cyber world and the real world.

If you are a band that plays in and around Anderson, SC there is a site called Surfanderson.com. this site operates similar to MySpace in that you can have a customizable profile, upload your sogs and others on the site can add your songs to their profile’s built-in music player. So aside from the obvious of promoting your gig dates, location and times you can also interact with other members on the site.

By leaving FRIEND ADD comments, writing blogs and uploading pictures, you can ALSO put your band in the sites BAND DIRECTORY which is located under the DIRECTORY menu link.

SurfAnderson.com also has “Surf Invasions” where people from the site decide to get together OFFLINE and meet up somewhere, usually this meet-up revolves around a local band playing at one of the many popular bars or night clubs in Anderson.