Hot Rod Circuit is a damn good rock band that started out as The Antidote in Auburn, Alabama in 1997. Their brand of loud guitars, bass, and drums was an instant hit. For a while, they opened for bands like the Promise Ring and TGUK when they came through the area. The Antidote was so popular, it was named the best unsigned band by Musician magazine in 1998.
After growing tired of that scene, they moved to Connecticut and changed their name to the current moniker. They quickly became one of the most popular bands in the tri-state area, and released their album If I Knew Now What I Knew Then on Triple Crown Records. Then they toured. Relentlessly. They drew quite a following opening for the likes of TGUK, At the Drive-In, and Jimmy Eat World. They also released a self-titled EP, a split with The Anniversary, and another full length entitled If It's Cool With You, It's Cool With Me, and are set to release another entitled Sorry About Tomorrow. You can also hear them on a few comps that they've contributed to.
Hot Rod Circuit is comprised of:
- Andy Jackson: vocals, guitar
- Casey Prestwood: guitar
- Jay Russel: bass, back-up vocals
- Mike Poorman: drums
Hot Rod Circuit's sound can be described as emo-core, indie rock, or anything else, really. I'm not a big fan of labeling music, but theirs is really, really good.
Update: according to a friend of mine, some girl on MTV's The Real World was wearing a Hot Rod Circuit t-shirt on a recent show. So now you have no excuse.