By Liliya Velbovets
Colors by themselves can be bright or boring, but together they create a beautiful picture where each color blends with another and enriches general design. Members of the local band Hender just celebrated their colorful creation in a new CD release where each member shines with talent.
?Crunchy guitars, catchy melodic lyrics and electric crowds have ignited something, which is set to explode,? said Hender band members describing their new album on their Web site.
Members of the group said they spent almost a year creating this album and faced a lot of obstacles on the way. Now as the album is finally finished, the musicians have distributed copies to every local music store.
?We could hardly wait for the release,? said Mark Hender, the band?s lead singer. ?This is so exiting.'
Mark Hender?s self-titled band literally came a long way to get together and record an album. From locations all around the world, including the United States,
each member adds his own style to the band. Mark said their music is a ?unity of beautiful colors? because each member contributes his background to the band?s unique sound.
Lead guitarist Santiago Michalek from Argentina brings Latin flavor to their music. According to the band?s Web site, Michalek was the last one to join to the group. His guitar style filled in the gaps where the band was once lacking.
Kit Wilkins comes from England and brings some ?Beetles? spirit to the Provo band. Wilkins has played in many alternative bands but said he felt like he hadn?t reached his full potential. Mark said that in Hender, Wilkins feels like he fits in.
?He is a musical genius,? Mark said.
Mark came from Florida and has been a classical musician all his life ? playing jazz trumpet, French horn and piano since his childhood. As a lead singer of the band, he said he has found a new side of his talent and can now progress in a different style of music.
Wilkins and Mark met through their mutual friend who heard them playing and thought they would sound great together.
?As we staged several gigs in Borders and other places, we found a crowd of fans who actually liked what we played so we decided to create a band,? Mark said.
Bryan Henrie, the bass guitarist, comes from Georgia and is a BYU student. According to the band?s Web site, Henrie?s unique funky bass lines and progressive background perfectly correlates with the style of the band.
Henrie said music for him is a creative outlet that lets him explore hidden corners and get away from logical thinking and pressure of school.
?I?m a shy type of guy and music gives me opportunity to shine and express myself,? he said.
Henrie said he learned of the band while looking at advertisement cards on the bulletin board in the Wilkinson Student Center.
?The band was searching for a bass player so I called them, and they liked my style,? Henrie said.
He said their music is high quality and people will enjoy their new album. In order to get a complete appreciation of their talents, Henrie said it is useful to look beyond their recorded music.
Hender?s next live performance is Friday at Circuit in Midvale, located at 7711 S. 700 West. The show starts at 7 p.m. and the cost is $7. Also check out the band?s Web site www.hendermusic.com for more information and music samples.