Gone But Not Forgotten

Have you ever found a new band that you really like, only to find that they break up a few years later? I bet we all have had this happen and its really disheartening. Lets face it, the music industry is a tough business and its getting harder and harder for bands to survive in our pop-culture society. A couple notable bands that formed and then disbanded only after a short time later are "Autopilot Off" and "Don't Look Down." You may or may not have heard of these bands before but they are definitely worth listening to.

"Autopilot Off" originally formed in 1996 under the name "Cooter" which was later changed due to legal reasons. They had one full length release under "Autopilot Off" that came out in 2004 called "Make A Sound." This album was really good and continues to be one of my favorite Cd's and their lead singer Chris Johnson also remians to be one of my favorite singers. You may recognize at least one song off of this album, "What I Want" which appeared on the video game SSX 3. I saw the album in the store the other day for under $5.00 and I thought It was a shame that more people didn't listen to these guys. The band is currently in a indefinite hiatus and who knows when or if they will ever get back together, lets hope for the best.

"Don't Look Down" was signed onto Nitro Records for a while and managed to release two full length albums and at least one EP that I know of. Their first CD was mediocre at best as they sounded just like any other pop-punk band but their second album was really well done. Their second album "fear In Love" was so great because the band changed their sound a bit and produced an awesome rock album that was very musically technical. This was a risky but great move for the band because at the time there were pop-punk bands forming all over the place and they all started to sound the same. They separated themselves from the crowd and I think they set a new standard. It's unfortunate these guys are still not making music.
If you are at the CD store or online and you happen to come across any of the music produced by these two bands, take the opportunity to buy it and give it a chance.

Autopilot Off- Nothing Frequency (MP3)
From the self-titled EP "Autopilot Off" (Amazon.com)

Autopilot Off- Clockwork (MP3)
From the Album "Make A Sound" (Amazon.com)

Don't Look Down- To All Our Saviors (MP3)
From the album "Fear In Love" (Amazon.com)