Unapologetically upbeat indie rock, AM radio power pop and electro sounds with lyrical subject matter about NYC, summertime, universal love and personal exploration.

13 MP3 Songs in this album (54:20) !
Related styles: ROCK: College Rock, ELECTRONIC: Electro

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Details:
âOne of these, days. One of these days, Iâll going to write a sad song,â says Johnny Gruber of the feel-good indie rock band Knock âEm Alive, âRight now, I just canât do it Iâm just having way too much fun.â

Johnny Gruber (aka âKnock âEm Alive) grew up on Manhattanâs Upper East Side when it was still known as Germantown, in 1970s gritty, grimy, teeming and explosively-charged New York City. Amidst the hubbub of the times, which included the Son of Sam, the great blackout of 1977 and the birth of punk, Johnny remembers sitting on the front stoop of his apartment building and tuning into great radioâWPLJ for rock, WKTU for discoâand devouring the sounds that poured from it; no matter the genre, his ears were open. Some of his musical favorites from that time included The Clash, Cheap Trick, Chic and Afrika Bambaataa

A move during his adolescent years, 60 miles north to Upstate New York, was no match for the city that was in his blood. Johnny quickly immersed himself in the culture of New York City: he explored the cityâs party, professional and spiritual scenes, but inside of him, a muffled musical voice was slowly growing louder and more insistent, tapping a steady beat on his shoulder, speeding up his pulseâ¦

Coney Island Ride, the debut release from Johnny Gruberâs Knock âEm Alive, is a blend of indie rock, AM radio power pop and electro , with some sugar-free bubblegum thrown in for good measure. The mood of the album is unapologetically upbeat and contagiously smile-inducing, convincing even the most emo of listeners that, in fact, life is good. New York City as a theme pops up often in the song lyrics, and Johnny feels gratified that, finally, heâs able to throw something of himself back into the mix of the NYC music scene, a scene that taught him how to dance as well as crooned him to sleep at night.

Coney Island Ride features eight songs, five remixes and one knockout music video. Serving as producers and remixers for the album were Roger Fife (Cyndi Lauper, Antony and the Johnsons, The Assassins) and Chris Campion and Tom Licameli (The Knockout Drops). Steve Henry (Wormburner) contributed backup vocals, and Johnny would like to point out that, like virtually every component of this work, all other musicians and contributors were based out of the greatest city in the world, New York City.