The Story

“What is Punk?” was a difficult question for a long while, it still is. A question without
an answer. Now, with a growing market of ambiguous and generic bands calling
themselves rock and roll, a new question goes without an answer: “What is Rock
and Roll?” Since the days of Chuck Berry and Elvis, “rock and roll” has been used
as an adjective to describe everything from hairstyles and body piercings to actions
of moronic celebrities on daytime talk shows. The focus of Rock and Roll has all but
vanished. Statewide Emergency is hell bent on bringing it back. Inspired by recent rock
pioneers such as Radiohead and Queens of the Stone Age, Statewide has embarked
on an experiment in Rock and Roll. Joe Kovack, from Colorado’s Marquee Magazine
described them as “Somewhere between Led Zeppelin and Them Crooked Vultures,
with a slice of post-punk sprinkled throughout”. Through heavy riffs, raw lyrics and
an element of experimentation, Statewide Emergency is returning to what Rock and
Roll first meant – freedom. Freedom to experiment with sounds, freedom to express
themselves musically, freedom to do something completely different. Freedom to not be
wrapped up in a genre that faces mediocrity and to rise above the modern expectations
of rock music.

Their debut release, Another Point of View, did nothing short of set the standard for
future rock albums. The first track “Midnight Creeper”, received airplay on 93.3 ktcl.
Indie 105.1, and the band appeared on 99.5 ktvr and radio 1190 for interviews and live
sets. Carnivorous Carnival – their sophomore EP, released in May 2010 – only built
upon the first album by showing a band capable of experimentation and evolution within
their craft. The Boulder Weekly’s Chris Calloway described the album as “stoner rock
with enough swagger to split the seams on a pair of polyester skinny jeans”. Over the
course of these two releases Statewide Emergency captivated the music scenes in
Denver and Boulder, with Eli – Boonin Vail from The Boulder Weekly labeling them as
the “latest local explosion”. The release of Carnivorous Carnival was marked by a near
sold out show at the Boulder’s Fox Theatre (650 capacity).

Along with headlining the fox theatre, the band has headlined clubs along the Front
Range including Casselman’a and Club 156. They have also been an opening act at
both the Bluebird Theatre and Fox Theatre for national acts such as Badfish and The
Swayback. They have appeared at a number of festivals including the Boulder Creek
Festival, the Capitol Hill People’s fair, Localpalooza, South Park Music Tour, and others.
The first track off Carnivorous Carnival, “The Inside”, was their first song to have an
accompanying music video, which featured the orbs of Gailynn Voss. These orbs have
appeared in photo-shoots as well as at their concerts as part of their light show.

Shortly after the release of their debut music video, Statewide Emergency relocated
from Boulder to Portland, Oregon to work on their presence along the west coast. Once

arriving in Portland and reforming with two new members, they began playing along
the northwest debuting the new lineup in Portland at Kelly’s Olympian. They have
also received airplay in Portland on 107.1’s “the rock zone”. Look for them on tour this
summer.