Linwood

Linwood is a rock band based in Cleveland, Mississippi. Principals are Bo Lindsey and Scott Coopwood, with musical support from Barry Bays (bass), and Rick Shelton (drums).Linwood's music is raw, honest, and powerful. Music trends are not important to Linwood. "We write what's in hearts and what we really feel, " says Lindsey. "Our songs are timeless and we hope that if you listen to them now, a year from now, or ten years from now, that they will still be relevant".Music is what brought Lindsey and Coopwood together - almost 15 years ago while both were taking the medical school entrance exam."Between sections of the exam, Scott and I would visit and somehow we started talking about music and that was the day when all of this started", says Lindsey.Lindsey's band during that time period at Delta State University was the top alternative rock band in that region of Mississippi. Coopwood, who had played in bands throughout the eighties and released several records with his bands Perfect Strangers and Yazoo Beach to critical acclaim, had grown tired of the music business by 1992 when he met Lindsey. However, before he completely exited the music industry, Coopwood invited Lindsey to bring his band into the studio to record a few tracks."My band recorded with Scott, then not long after that when we all graduated from college, we broke-up and we went our separate ways," says Lindsey. "I lost touch with Scott for a few years after I moved out to Kansas City. When I returned to Mississippi years later, I ran into Scott and we started talking about how we both missed music and then we started talking about writing some songs together."After talking with Lindsey, Coopwood started thinking about picking up his guitar again."It's funny how that works, " says Coopwood. "If you really have the music bug in you, it's with you for life, regardless of how long it can be dormant. Three years ago, I would have told you that I'd never play a guitar again, and that the creativity I once had for writing songs was also gone. That has turned out not to be true. If music is really in you, it will always be hidden deep down. It may be sleeping, but it hasn't gone anywhere."The two began writing together and after 22 songs had been recorded at Coopwood's studio, demo cd's were sent out to 15 people along with a form in which Lindsey and Coopwood asked their friends to rank each song. When the forms were returned, the two re-cut 12 of the best rated songs at Coopwood's studio with Coopwood producing. They mixed the project at the famed Ardent Recording Studios in Memphis with Jason Latshaw."So much has taken place at Ardent, just so many great records have been made there, " says Lindsey. "The whole experience of spending time in those great rooms made us better in so many ways."Linwood: Powerful, emotional, hard-hitting, honest. NEWS and REVIEWS Jersey Beat – Great CD review by Joe Wawzyrniak. "Okay, so I had another typically hard, grueling and exhausting day at my crummy job. So, what do you think I did to give myself a much-needed little pick-me-up? Well, if you say listened to a really fine, tuneful and exciting rock album, then you just won yourself a banana, my friend. Now, let's get to this particular album. Does this baby have extremely robust and passionate vocals from a singer with a nice voice? You bet. How about pleasingly complex and melodic arrangements complete with steady drums, alternately sweetly ringing or awesomely funky guitars, and firm, fluid basslines? Right again. Are the lyrics very smart and thoughtful to boot? Oh, yes they most certainly are. Do you think I dug this album a whole lot? Of course I did. Otherwise I wouldn't have bothered to whip up this favorable review in the first place."
http://www.jerseybeat.com/world-according-to-wawrzyniak.html
Cosmosgaming.com – Excellent CD review by Chris Dahlberg posted on 7/4. "Offering a melodic and heartfelt alternative rock style, Linwood's music is very addicting to listen to and feels truly genuine. As opposed to the raw/heavy styles often seen in mainstream hard/alternative rock, Linwood's vocalist is extremely melodic and sings from the heart. Offering extremely mellow singing with lyrics that you can tell the band wrote themselves (as opposed to some bands where you can tell a corporation wrote their songs for them), the compositions showcased here are very catchy. At times the vocals do sound a little far away, as if they were mixed at the same volume as the instrumentals but this is ultimately a minor flaw and doesn't hurt Burn Effect that much.
The instrumentalists of Linwood have written songs that often make use of acoustic guitars to give their music a very organic feeling. As opposed to the hard edged radio rock of today, the songs on Burn Effect remind me of the mellower alternative rock of the 1990's, but this isn't to say that their sound is dated. Rather, this is just an indication that Linwood would like the scene to return to the heart felt mellow rock of the past, and they are definitely a band that could pave the way for that to happen.
Linwood's Burn Effect is not only a great debut for this new band, but also the first release from Scott Coopwood's own Wax Saw Records. As a first effort for the label, this album is extremely impressive and here's hoping that both Linwood and the record label are met with considerable success. This is a band that has a clear vision and has made it work, and hopefully with a few more production tweaks next time around we could have a group at the true top of their game."
http://www.cosmosgaming.com/articles.php?id=1366&article type=review
Rock N' Roll Experience – Mixed "3 star" CD review by Bobby Suehs in July/August issue. "…the truth of the matter is, musically, Linwood are good…they are talented writers, they know how to organize their music…I gave the band 3 stars because they are not bad, they just fall flat on writing memorable songs on this cd. Sorry guys, I'm not slamming you, I'm just offering up my honest opinion!"
http://www.angelfire.com/rock/e4/july2008.html
Guestlist Magazine – Mixed CD review by Erica Glanc posted on 7/24. "Linwood's album "Burn Effect" is very easy to understand, first off. The lyrics are uber clear and the singer does not get overpowered by the bass or drums. The one problem that I did have with this album is that the verses and songs seem repetitive and short. The tracks vary from about two and half minutes to a little over five minutes. Which, probably, is the average for songs nowadays, but in some songs, a listener could tell that many of the same verses are being repeated a great deal. Though, the thoughtful and well-worded lyrics make up for the repetitiveness. Linwood's album is very mellow with an Ok Go kind of sound, just not as much energy, creativeness, and no treadmills. Personally, the songs are too slow for my taste. The tracks are mellow, but not drone-ish. They could use a bit more of a kick, more of a rock-ish sound. Speaking of a rock-ish sound, 'Circle' is worth a listen to. Don't get your hopes up, its not rock- but it's the closest that any of the other songs get to upbeat and the songs lyrics speak to everyone, 'And you believe. You're better than me…' So, with that said, since I am not better than anyone else, I believe every individual should make up their own mind and judge for themselves whether Linwood is worth a listen, or two."
http://www.guestlistmagazine.net/reviewsl