PureVolume

Members: Gene Smilek

In the genres of pop punk and indie, a good amount of bands have seeped through the cracks to stardom. Many of which come from the great tar heel state of North Carolina, but when it comes to the North Carolina's acoustic music scene there is only one name that stands out, Gene Smilek.

Gene Smilek began writing music early on in his mid teens but after a stroke of serendipity with a friend, was asked to play his music. Shortly after this, he recorded those songs in 2008 in his house in Powhatan, Virginia. A year had passed and since then he hit the ground running. He has played 50+ shows in over 7 states, sold 100's+ copies of his homemade 2008 Demo CD, 200+ Purevolume downloads, been featured in Scene Trash Magazine and various newspapers, 2 dates promoting on the Vans Warped Tour, and has shared the stage with major acts such as The Secret Handshake (Triple Crown Records), Mercy Mercedes (The Militia Group), My Favorite Highway (Virgin Records), Fight Fair (Triple Crown Records), The Bigger Lights (Doghouse Records), The Dangerous Summer (Hopeless Records), The Ready Set (Decaydance Records) just to name a few. This is very impressive for any acoustic artist but the reason that this is really impressive is that his music…is all instrumental.

In November of 2009, Gene went into the studio with producer and musician Ryan Jernigan to record a 6 song EP. Upon recording, there was only one title that came to mind to title this EP, Picture This. Picture This is an affectionate and appropriate title for this new EP because the music and melodies performed illustrate and paint a picture for the listener to visualize. With the way Gene Smilek has been moving and causing a stir, it can only go up from here