For All Those Sleeping Biography
Mike Champa - Vocals
Jerad Pierskalla - Guitar / Vocals
David Volgman-Stevens - Guitar
Ethan Trekell - Drums
London Snetsinger - Bass / Vocals
Making it as a band today relies on several deciding factors – it takes talent, determination, a lot of faith that you can succeed, and that indefinable, unpredictable element – luck. Perhaps it’s no coincidence then that For All Those Sleeping titled their debut album Cross Your Fingers, for as a new Minnesota band battling the odds of breaking through, it doesn’t hurt to wish for a little extra help. However, rising from unknown local act to national notoriety in just over two years, armed with talent, drive and a lot of self-belief, it seems luck is already on their side.
Storming out of St Cloud, MN, Mike Champa (vocals), Jerad Pierskalla (guitar/vocals), David Volgman-Stevens (guitar) and Ethan Trekell (drums) met in high school, and formed For All Those Sleeping in 2007 after gaining London Snetsinger on bass. The band began as five like-minded individuals who enjoyed playing music together, but as their local fanbase grew, it became clear that their blend of pop, hardcore and a killer live set was a special combination. “Our first shows were extremely diverse,” notes guitarist David Volgman-Stevens. “Some nights we would be playing for large crowds with signed bands, and others we would be playing in barns with speakers for 30 kids. We just tried to play as much as we could, we didn't care where it was. But then we started headlining shows across the Midwest with bands that we had looked up to, in front of large crowds. To see things growing so quickly was very surreal for us.” The hard work paid off. As their shows grew and word spread, the band gained the attention of Fearless Records, who signed the band in the spring of 2010.
With the release of their debut album Cross Your Fingers this summer, For All Those Sleeping is ready to take their music to the world. Recorded with Cameron Mizell in Florida, the album puts a new twist on their old sound, with stronger melodies and harder breakdowns. “Recording the album was a blast, especially considering we were in Florida during winter while back home in Minnesota it was below zero degrees,” David adds. “The songwriting flowed easily - we have never had songs come together so well before. We are all really proud of the album.” Cross Your Fingers is a reflection of the band’s diverse influences, both in music and pop culture. The band’s love of horror movies becomes apparent on tracks such as "Outbreak Of Heartache", the song that inspired their striking album art, and . The band even drew on local history, weaving a narrative into songs like "Never Leave Northfield", a fictional story based on Jesse James and the James Gang's final bank robbery in Minnesota, and weren’t afraid to play with their sound, stripping down the music to it’s basics on tracks such as "Run Away", which David notes is “a love story about a couple that run away together, and the most melodic song on the album. We really tried to expand on the diversity of our music. Cross Your Fingers definitely has our heaviest and poppiest moments on it.”
For a new band already blessed with the talent, the team behind them and the growing fan base to help fuel the fire, they don’t need to wish for luck any longer – For All Those Sleeping may just be the wake up call the scene needs.
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