To make music and to make it in the music industry are, though related, two entirely different pursuits. Less than a year ago, Airto Zamorano, who recently spoke with the Vanguard, began piecing together a pop rock band with a savvy understanding of what it would take to make his ambitions a reality.
Landing gears
To make music and to make it in the music industry are, though related, two entirely different pursuits. Less than a year ago, Airto Zamorano, who recently spoke with the Vanguard, began piecing together a pop rock band with a savvy understanding of what it would take to make his ambitions a reality.
“I really went for the recording,” he says. “I started looking for people to help me put it all into one cohesive piece.”
His method of choice? Advertising through local news listings.
“I saw a lot of people,” says Zamorano. “I was very picky. I’m serious about what I’m doing, I work really hard, and I just don’t have the tolerance or patience to work with someone who’s not ambitious or easy to work with.”
After weeding through Portland’s vast catalog of individuals who treat band membership as a fashion statement, with a special eye for talent, thick skin and determination, Zamorano put together the official roster for “And I’ve Landed.”
In addition to lead vocals, former PSU student Zamorano lends rhythm guitar and keys. Seth Pioske took on lead guitar and backup vocals, and Garrett Jorewicz plays percussion. And I’ve Landed also recognizes a few “auxiliary band members” for their ever expanding live set; Tony Zamorano, Noah Hammarlund and Jose Peña.
As they began performing, Zamorano made it clear that this band was not a side project.
“We’re not doing this just for a hobby,” Zamorano says. “We’re going to do what we can do.”
These efforts are beginning to reap results. And I’ve Landed has been featured multiple times on the international Internet radio show, Fame Game. A panel of prominent producers, DJs and reviewers has made the band somewhat of a favorite.
Zamorano sees the recognition as a product of their style.
“Our [submitted] song is really mellow, it’s got a good range of emotion, which is really our sound,” he says.
The band also exudes a refreshing self-awareness rarely seen within the first year of development. They hold a respect for labeling and presenting themselves in an accurate, appealing way—a marketing ability that sometimes separates great local bands from nationally recognized acts. It is often far more beneficial to perfect a niche than to provide a mediocre attempt to please eardrums of varied inclinations.
“Alternative pop rock is kind of our thing,” Zamorano says. “I liken our sound to Coldplay and OneRepublic, so I think that’s fair, just based on vocal stylings and instrumentation.”
Zamorano recognizes the limitations that overspreading oneself can have, and the band’s sound reflects that accordingly. Their music is clean and crisp while remaining refreshingly under-processed. Clearly, they chose their art and their palette, and perfected it.
“You don’t do everything,” Zamorano says. “You do one thing.”
And that one thing for their debut album was to analyze love in all of its forms. Each song personifies an aspect of romantic, familial, platonic or even interspecies love. The anticipation, the sacrifice, the vulnerability, the conflict, loss and the dire differences between gender roles—it’s all there. The songs are rounded out with a serenade to Lucia, Zamorano’s Australian shepherd.
Perhaps most meaningful and jarring is the last track of the album, “Fin,” which is based off of a poem written by the father of Zamorano’s recently deceased friend and musical supporter.
“All the songs have a story,” Zamorano says, “that’s why we called it Love Story.”
The CD Release party for And I’ve Landed’s debut is fast approaching, and Zamorano wasted no effort,and accepted no shortcomings in presenting as epic a show as possible.
“I want a big stage,” he says. “I want a stadium. I’ve got that melodramatic brain, I want it to be grand with lights and fog.”
He’s wielded his inspiring idealism and power of persistency well. In addition to headlining the Hawthorne Theatre on a coveted Friday night, he scheduled a comedian to host, and DJ Afro Q Ben to lead the after party.
Zamorano explains how, despite a fairly new name and minimal experience, And I’ve Landed refused to settle for a Thursday night with ill-suited openers.
“In the end, [Hawthorne Theatre] let me pick the bands, the format, the time, the amount,” he says. “So the one thing is, if I don’t get bodies out I’m going to look pretty crappy.”
Ambitions aside, the band’s sound is full bodied and worthy of the recognition they seek. The vocals are powerful, the music is original and well executed, and the hooks will get effectively caught on repeat in your head.
Each song could be featured on a different CW show, if not for its mass appeal, then for its emotionally charged undertones and ease of listening. Though grounded by nature and self-determination, don’t expect them to stay still for long.
