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25		Guitar Hero Hero by Leetstreet Boys Incredibly fun solo, and an all around awesome song steeped in geek culture.
24		Mulholland by Blue Judy A great alt-rock favorite.
23		My Delirium by Ladyhawke This Kiwi brings you the sweet sounds of indie pop.
22		Beautiful by Brane Catchy rock, good luck getting it out of your head!
21		The Beginning by Stix Bones The grooviest smooth jazz song on JamLegend.
20		Minutes Away by Bury the Bully A great new alternative hit in 2009 from Bury the Bully.
19		Fire Away by Kill the Alarm Earlier in 2009, this band killed it with this rock song.
18		Flag in the Ground by Sonata Arctica Inspiring and epic - the essence of power metal.
17		Take Me Home by The After Midnight Project If it's late at night and you're home alone, this sweeping alternative track hits the spot.
16		Lie Through Your Teeth by Montana 1948 We hope to see big things from this local Bay Area band: a wholly unique sound.
15		This Time by Average Miller Its got a slow intro, but once the rock picks up it never lets down.
14		If This Is A Dream by Corporate Saturday The crunchy guitars make this song.
13		Bad Boy (For Loving You) by Top Johnny! One of the best classic rock songs on the site.
12		Heads Up, Hearts Down by I Fight Dragons These guys (and gal) blew us away when they played JamLegend on stage at their show.
11		East Coast Dreams by Standard of Living Mellow alt-rock that's great for warming up your fingers.
10		These are the Nights by Cavender Easily one of our all time favorites; if you like Paramore, listen to these guys!
09		In The Glades by Arts & Sciences Full of upbeat indie happiness.
08		Bandage for my Bleeding by A Chinese Restaurant If you like emo, you will enjoy this German band's song.
07		Beautiful Is Gone by The Ruse Its like U2 met Coldplay and had babies... amazing babies.
06		Open Your Eyes by Your Favorite Enemies If you like Evanescence, you'll love this group.
05		Into Forever by Imperial Vipers If you love a mean solo, check out these British rockers.
04		Good Enough by Honor by August More than good enough for this alt-rock masterpiece.
03		Infected by Rides Again This rock tune is truly infectious.
02		Deep Unknown by Stratovarius Fantastic power metal at its best.
01		Last, the undisputed champ of JamLegend... the top song of 2009... weighing in at 5.4M plays... Click here to play the #1 song on JamLegend.

Some people are so talented they've shared the stage with music legends like Steve Vai, Santana, and Michael Jackson before the age of 24 AND still have a blossoming music career of their very own own.  Such is Orianthi, an Australian by birth and half Greek by descent.  She learned to play guitar at age 6 and never looked back.  By the time she was in her mid-teens, she was opening for guitar god Steve Vai and jamming on stage with Carlos Santana.  Her most recent accomplishment was being asked to play guitar for Michael Jackson on his comeback This Is It tour.  Orianthi told the Boston Herald, "He watched my YouTube videos and loved them. He had his choice of guitar players, but I came in and played the ‘Beat It’ solo for him. Afterward he was so happy he got up and grabbed my arm and started walking up and down the stage area with me. He said, ‘Can you play once for me?’ He hired me that night. I wish he was still around. He made me believe in myself more, and I learned so much. Going into it, I thought it would be all about playing guitar solos. But the majority of it was playing chords and funky rhythms."

Always a rock fan at heart, Orianthi's own music has a strong backbone of rock inspired by her idols and mentors.  With producer Howard Benson (All American Rejects, Daughtry, My Chemical Romance), she and her band recorded the album Believe. People have compared Orianthi to other female acts in contemporary rock such as Evanescence, Avril Lavigne, Paramore, though there is something unique about her talent and her already-impressive accomplishments.  While Orianthi's music is hooky and infectious, don't expect her to fade like young pop stars with an expiration date; she's a true musician at heart, and we expect her success to continue as long as there is music!  You can play along with Orianthi's musical genius on JamLegend, where her song "According to You" is almost up to 100,000 plays.  For more info, please visit the official Orianthi website or her MySpace page.

Fairytales and romance may sound like wussy things to believe in, but what if you back it up with some lush orchestrations and backbone of goth and metal? That's what you get with Epica, the popular Dutch sextet, whose fifth album called Design Your Universe combines dreamy atmosphere with a solid foundation of rock. Mark Jansen's songwriting is the most mature to date, and is elevated by the hauntingly exquisite vocals of mezzo soprano Simone Simon which contrasts with the Mark's gruff demon-grunts.

Energized by the addition of a new guitarist, Epica set out to record a masterpiece. Mark says, "This album almost killed us. We worked our asses off and went much more into detail than ever before. There's nothing I would like to change now. This album sucked all the energy out of us but as it's for the good course you won't hear me complaining"  All the toil they put into their album paid off: Design Your Universe debuted at #8 on the Dutch music charts, cementing their superstar status in their home country.  To hear the product of Epica's blood, sweat, and tears, check out the track "Resign to Surrender" from their latest album on JamLegend. 

Epica has been touring in Europe in the final months of 2009, and are set to tour North America in early 2010.  All of their tour dates are available on their official site, as well as on their MySpace page.

 

There's no such thing as sibling rivalry with Ryashon, a brotherly duo from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that has been racking up hundreds of thousands of plays on JamLegend.  Both Ryan and Sean have been playing instruments since 2000 and are in their own respective bands, but in 2005 they decided to join forces to play music together as Ryashon (Ryan + Sean = Ryashon, get it?).  They write their own material such as "The Stone of Triumph" the title track from their album, and they also have the mega-popular covers of video game themes and Internet memes.

Speaking of the Internet, we're impressed with Ryashon's social networking savvy to connect with new fans and spead the word about their music.  One of their fans who found them through MySpace told them about JamLegend where they found even more fans and have increased their music sales.  The story of Ryashon and JamLegend is one of love at first sight:  they signed up as artists, then one of our trackers immediately jumped at the chance to track their songs.  "It just blew up from there!" they tell us, "Since we put our music on Jamlegend our album sales have at least doubled.  Not only that, but it has opened up our band to a whole new international audience. Our international sales have also increased and we couldn't thank Jamlegend and the players enough!"  Because Ryashon is a recording project that doesn't tour, the Internet is a crucial component in reaching out to potential fans and getting their music heard:  "We can say that we have received many messages online and emails saying fans have played our songs on Jamlegend, then came to our websites and loved the rest of our music.  This type of exposure is so unique because it allows people to have fun with your music in a whole new way!"

JamLegend is so proud to be able to help Ryashon and other grassroots artists connect directly with fans and increase their reach worldwide.  For more about Ryashon, as well as Ryan's and Sean's respective music projects, please visit the official Ryashon site and their MySpace page.

We found this totally mindblowing Christmas lights display inspired by Guitar Hero, though we'll pretend it was inspired by JamLegend.  The lights are actually hooked up to a Wii wireless guitar controller.  So with this display of rock-n-roll holiday excess, we wish you a happy and safe holiday season.  Thanks for supporting JamLegend in 2009.  We promise 2010 will be even more legendary!!

 

The seed that blossomed into Ladyhawke was a girl named Pip Brown from New Zealand, who liked to bang things together in a marching band wearing a uniform five sizes too big.  With a jazz musician as her stepfather, Pip began to play music at an early age--drums at 11 years old, then teaching herself guitar, keyboard, and anything else she can get her hands on.  She had an early taste of the touring life in the said marching band, drum majored by her stepfather, but she eventually found her calling in a rock band, Two Lane Black Top (named after the cult 1971 film).  The band was blessed with success, playing internationally and getting a support slot with Modey Lemon's tour culminating in a show at the famed South by Southwest music festival in Austin, TX.  As luck would have it, Two Lane Black Top disintegrated on the eve of the huge tour, leaving Pip alone on a plane to Australia where the tour was to start.

This solo flight to Australia was what crystallized Pip's desire to make her own music, taking 100% of the creative control.  She settled in Sydney and met musicians to collaborate with, but also began to work on Ladyhawke, her own music project.  Pip says that she and Ladyhawke are the two sides of the same coin--it's a different part of her personality expressing itself through music.  Inspired by the music of the 1970s and 80s, Ladyhawke captures the vibe of the era by using vintage synthesizers and taking the hook-laden pop song, but giving it a contemporary twist. 

At JamLegend, we have featured a song from Ladyhawke's self-titled debut album, "My Delirium."  We hope that you check it out and get a taste of Ladyhawke's take on some of the greatest decades in pop music.  You can find out more about Ladyhawke at her official website, MySpace, and Facebook!

Can we hear it for the pagans?  Monotheism has had a monopoly over the course of history (did you know that traditions of Yule, a pagan celebration of winter, was absorbed into Christmas?) but paganism is still alive and well, and Heathen Foray is the most exalted pagan metal band in Austria.  After nearly five years and a revolving cast of band members, Heathen Foray have now signed to a record label and released The Passage, their debut album.  They hope that "coloured riffs, burning solo or the great melody" will break the band out of the pagan and viking metal scene into the greater music world.  JamLegend is proud that Heathen Foray chose our game to spread the word about their music to new fans all over the world.  We have "Chants" and "Wolkerbruch" from The Passage ready to play on our site.  If you like your music on the heavy side, we suggest you give Heathen Foray a try!  And to everyone on JamLegend, we wish you all a happy Yule Tide!

For more info on Heathen Foray, please visit their official site or their MySpace page.  If you live in Germany, you can see them this month at:

29.12.2009 GERMANY, Annaberg-Buchholtz, Gleis3

28.12.2009 GERMANY, Bad Salzungen, Pagan Winterfest

27.12.2009 GERMANY, Essen, Black Troll Winterfest

What happens in Vegas shouldn't always stay in Vegas, especially when you try your luck and win a jackpot.  But jackpots don't necessarily mean a never-ending flow of quarters from a slot machine, it could mean a small opportunity that breeds success after success.  That's exactly what happened to Rick DeJesus of Adelita's Way.  Rick grew up under tough circumstances in Philadelphia, where many of his friends resorted to a life of violence and selling drugs, or victims of such crimes.  Determined not to fall prey, Rick moved to Los Angeles to try out for a VH1 show, then eventually ended up in Las Vegas living out of his car, taking what jobs he could to keep making an honest living.  Eventually, Rick's gamble paid off in the form of success as a musician--something many people dream about but only a few accomplish.

In Las Vegas, Rick formed a band with Chris, Keith, Derek, and Trevor--all very talented and accomplished musicians on their own right.  The result is a perfect blend of indie, hardcore, and rock-n-roll influences bolstered by Rick's songwriting.  It's been a difficult journey for Rick, but the richness of his experience informs the soulfulness of Adelita's Way.  Even the band name has a layered story behind it.  On tour in Southern California, the band made a detour to Mexico, where they were arrested and shaken down for money by corrupt cops.  All they had was a little bit of cash hidden in Rick's sock, which they spent on beer to calm their nerves before heading back on the road.  The bar, called Adelita, ended up being a brothel.  Rick had a meaningful conversation with one of the girls working there about her life and why someone like her would end up in a place like Adelita, and wrote a song about it.

Now, Adelita's Way is a powerhouse who can sell over 10,000 albums on their own.  Signed to a major record label, they're ready to grow by leaps and bounds, though Rick will continue to hold his experiences back home close to his heart for inspiration.  "Invincible" is one such song spawned from his walk through life.  We hope you enjoy the song, and playing along with it!

You can find out more about Adelita's Way via their official site, MySpace, and Facebook pages.  Their new self-titled album Adelita's Way is available on iTunes.  Adelita's Way is on tour right now in the US:

11/22/2009 Headliner's w/Aranada & Halestorm  Columbia, SC
11/24/2009 Amos's South End w/Aranada & Halestorm  Charlotte, NC
11/25/2009 Hooligan's w/Aranada & Halestorm  Jacksonville, NC
11/28/2009 Click's Billiards & Sports Bar w/Sick Puppies  Tyler, TX
11/29/2009 Sunken Garden Amphitheatre w/ Rev Theory, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  San Antonio, TX
11/30/2009 Verizon Wireless Theater   Houston, TX
12/02/2009 The Pavilion w/ Rev Theory, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  Lubbock, TX
12/05/2009 The Cotillion Ballroom w/ Veer Union, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  Wichita, KS
12/06/2009 Shrine Mosque w/ Veer Union, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  Springfield, MO
12/08/2009 Val Air Ballroom w/ Rev Theory, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  Des Moines, IA
12/09/2009 Sioux Falls Convention Center w/ Rev Theory, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  Sioux Falls, SD
12/10/2009 First Avenue w/Rev Theory & Sick Puppies  Minneapolis, MN
12/11/2009 The Midland by AMC   Kansas City, MO
12/15/2009 Bogart's w/Rev Theory & Sick Puppies  Cincinnati, OH
12/16/2009 Egyptian Room at Murat Centre w/ Rev Theory, Sick Puppies, Breaking Benjamin  Indianapolis, IN

Leaving home is one of the hardest thing you can do, but sometimes it's the best thing you can do as John Garrison has found out.  Already a successful musician fronting the band Budapest, John decided to uproot everything and move from London to New York City to pursue a different direction in his career.  Since leaving his native England, though, good things have come in spades for John, who has since toured the world with James Blunt, met new collaborators, and crafted an intimate, soulful album about leaving home--whether it's moving to a different city or traveling from town to town on tour--called Departures, which was released just this week on November 10.  Departures not only represents John Garrison's geographical uprooting, but also in the way he approached the creative process.  A self-professed control freak (he played 80% of the instruments on his previous release), John let go and opened up to collaborators in the form of Grammy-winning producer Matt Shane (Flight of the Conchords, Elvis Costello, Roseanne Cash, Dashboard Confessional) as well as musicians such as Natalie Clein, Karl Brazil and Paul Beard, some of whom he met through James Blunt. 

While constantly traveling from place to place can be an isolating experience, it seems that John never ceases to find fellow travelers as he circles the globe playing his music.  So it's not surprising to hear that people have approached John at his shows in various cities to tell him they discovered his music through JamLegend.  With players from all over the world, we're happy to know that JamLegend players can help keep John company wherever he goes.  After all, what are strangers but friends you have yet to meet, right?

John Garrison has an upcoming appearance at the Regal Room in London, England on December 19.  You can purchase his new album Departures from digital outlets such as iTunes or Amazon, or get a CD from CD Baby. For more information on John and his music, please visit his official site or connect with him on MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, etc.  And of course, if you connect with him in person, don't forget to let him know that you found his music through JamLegend!

LeetStreet Boys have taken music and gamer culture by storm with their catchy musical hooks, clever lyrics, and explosive energy.  Responding to major fan encouragement, the band to started to upload their music to JamLegend last April, where they won over thousands of JamLegend players with their hit anthem, “Yuri The Only One.”  Most recently, LeetStreet Boys was contacted by JamLegend tracker Rutger Jansen (better known as Ghullmantin) with a request to track ‘Guitar Hero Hero.’ Never to turn down a fan request, the band agreed wholeheartedly.