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Echo 7 is a 4 piece, melodic rock band from Myrtle Beach, SC. The group was formed in 1995 by Ronnie O'Briant and Dave Sharrock. Originally a 3 piece called Strange Wayz, O'Briant and Sharrock spent the first few years developing their songwriting and live show while undergoing various lineup changes and a name change in 1997, giving birth to Echo 7. After building a local and regional following and recording their first full length, independently released studio effort called Trippin' On Destiny, Echo 7 was ready to do whatever it took to break out of obscurity and into mainstream success. By 2001, the band had solidified it's lineup with the addition of Frank Roop on bass and Jason Hearn on drums, and were starting to showcase for major and indie labels, all the while keeping a consistant nationwide tour schedule and opening for some big names like Live, Korn, Disturbed, Sevendust, Nonoint and Filter, just to name a few. The group soon acquired the expertise of Ardent Recording Studios' Pete Matthews, who produced the demos that would eventually lead to Echo 7 signing a record contract with In De Goot Recordings, an indie label headed by Bill McGathy of In De Goot Entertainment (3 Doors Down, Shinedown, Puddle Of Mud, Chevelle) in 2002. Matthews became a friend and confidant of the band and would, later that year, produce Echo 7's first In De Goot Recordings release, One Step Away. The 12 track disc was mastered by Michael Barbiero (Guns N Roses, Metallica, AC DC) and released in stores nationwide by Universal Music and Video Distribution Corp., in June, 2003. Their first single, title track One Step Away, received enough success at radio to consistantly chart in Active Rock's top 40 and the band hit the road hard. Starting as a support act for 3 Doors Down and Theory Of A Deadman, they then moved on to supporting slots with Chevelle, Marilyn Manson, Shinedown, Foo Fighters, and many others. Over the summer of '03, Echo 7 joined Finger Eleven on tour and from there, went on to be the supporting act for Queensryche on the second leg of their Tribe tour. The guys finished off the year joining 3 Doors Down, once again, for a hometown gig at the House Of Blues in North Myrtle Beach, SC. As Echo 7 took some time off for the holidays and reflected on the year past, they also looked forward to hitting the road again in support of One Step Away and the release of their second single to radio. Unfortunately, that opportunity never came. Echo 7 was abruptly dropped by In De Goot, only 6 months after the release of One Step Away. Disappointed and disenchanted with the music industry, the band made the decision to explore other avenues and opportunities aside from Echo 7. Jason went on to experiment with different projects until recently finding a permanent position in local southern rock/country group Black Label. Frank formed a new project called Tragedy Struck and also filled bass duties in the last days of local rock outfit Confliction. Tragedy Struck has since disbanded and Frank is currently between projects. Ronnie and Dave went on to form an acoustic rock duo called Act II and can be seen performing regularly around the Myrtle Beach, SC area. Echo 7 was by no means dead and buried though, as the guys kept in touch and remained great friends and, on 7/7/07, Echo 7 reunited for their first show in almost four years. A great time was had by all and the band played as if they had never gone away. One thing is for sure. There are plenty of friends and fans out there, who just can't seem to let Echo 7 be forgotten. Only time will tell what the future may hold so, keep checking back here for the latest goings on in the world of Echo 7.
