#The Lowry Agency

16 Dec 2015

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Virtuoso Guitarist Mike Martin Releases the Single “Wherever You Are”

Guitar virtuoso Mike Martin (http://www.mikemartin.net) releases his new ballad single “Wherever You Are” digitally on iTunes and cdbaby (http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mikemartin2). In an excerpt from his blog on releasing this single Mike states, “Wherever You Are” was written in January of 2005 as I was preparing to head to the UK and EU for the first time touring with both heavy metal bands Fozzy and Stuck Mojo for about five weeks. Being prone to OCD and feeling quite anxious about the tour preparations both logistically and mentally, in a calm moment in the chaos this ballad came out of my head!

It was written and a demo comprised of just two acoustic guitar parts was recorded in about an hour the day before my flight overseas. I enjoyed being a heavy metal animal on the road and forgot all about this tune for a while. It was only performed one time live on the radio in Atlanta, GA as part of a promotion for a show I was performing locally later that year and was put away. Until now…

I have delayed work on my follow-up album to “2 of 5” for a number of years due to my touring, writing and recording commitments with other projects, so I have been going through the archives looking for songs that would be fun to release as singles while I’m finishing up my new album “Drive” which I expect to release in Spring of 2016.

The title of this piece is for my wife. She has held me together through all of the roller coaster highs and lows of this music career and when I am traveling, I often look up in the sky to get my bearings and send her thoughts of missing and loving her wherever she might be at that moment in time. The release date is also perfectly timed with the 20th anniversary of our meeting.

Thanks so much for reading. I hope you enjoy!”

Mike Martin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-mxPfwyZ-4
The single is available on CD Baby for only .99₵ and his previous single “Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel” is .50₵ and his CD “2 of 5” is now available during the promotion of the new single for only $5.00.

The Lowry Agency is a full service artist management/development and promotions agency. Primarily they work with musicians, actors, speakers, voice over artists, entertainment companies as well as music coordination/supervision for film and TV.

For more information about Mike Martin please visit the web site and social media accounts:

www.mikemartin.net
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mike-Martin/17079764604 https://www.youtube.com/user/Mike2of5Martin
http://www.twitter.com/mike2of5martin

More information about The Lowry Agency can be found at http://www.thelowryagency.com.

Media inquiries for Mike Martin:

The Lowry Agency
www.thelowryagency.com
615-881-4559

The official press release can be viewed here: http://www.prlog.org/12518865-guitar-virtuoso-mike-martin-releases-his-new-single-wherever-you-are.html

07 Nov 2015

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Club Fantasci Live Stream From The Southern Hobby Retail Expo

David Lowry of Club Fantasci will be live streaming Sunday night November 9th, from 7:30 – 10:30 pm CST from the game night at the Southern Hobby Retail Expo.

The Southern Hobby Retail Expo is a chance for retailers to come and check out what Southern Hobby Supply has to offer in terms of distributorship, support and marketing. Don’t miss this chance to watch what Southern Hobby Supply is doing for the industry!

Live Stream of the Southern Hobby Retail Expo in Nashville, TN Nov 9th, 2015.

David Lowry of Club Fantasci/The Lowry Agency talks with publishers about their latest releases and upcoming projects.

00:30 Scott Morris – Arcane Wonders
09:18 Tony Gulloti – Greenbriar Games
21:17 Dan DiLorenzo – R&R Games
34:30 Josh – Grey Fox Games
41:47 Stephen Bounocore – Stronghold Games
52:50 Jules Vatour – Asmodee Games
1:01:40 Sara Erickson – Iello Games
1:09:40 Paul Hagan – Wizards of the Coast
1:18:00 Ryan Skinner – Cryptozoic
1:27:55 Robert Villnave – Cool Mini or Not
1:35:34 Rhea Friesen – Steve Jackson Games
1:51:20 Travis Winter – Atlas Games
2:06:08 Nathan Murrary – IDW Games
2:24:15 Charlie Agel – Privateer Press
2:33:15 Clayton Capra – Legion Supplies
2:39:49 Josh Githuns – CGE Games
2:49:54 Maureen McCardill – Fireside Games
3:00:20 Upper Deck
3:09:58 Steve Samson – Bezier Games
3:21:54 Michael Richie – Rather Dashing Games
3:28:53 Tom Vainikka – Play More Games
3:49:07 Howard Hsu – Dex Protection

Check out and subscribe to our Youtube Page or just following along here on this page to watch!

Thanks for your support and we hope you enjoy!

27 Oct 2015

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The Lowry Agency In Association With Arcane Wonders Release A New Mage Wars Arena Video

We had the immense pleasure of working with Scott Morris and Arcane Wonders again on a second video for the Mage Wars Game series. In this video, we built up the combat example of “Brogan vs. The Hydra” found on page 30 of the new Mage Wars Arena Core Box Set. Thank you Scott and Arcane Wonders for their incredible support and we sincerely hope this video brings to life the thematic awesomeness of Mage Wars Arena.

Company Website: http://www.arcanewonders.com/

Company Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arcanewonders

Company Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MageWars

Company Twitter: https://twitter.com/MageWars

Company Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/100746770073454853640/posts

If you have any questions about how we can help you with your video product, voice over, music production or any other type of media please contact us here: Contact

[video_lightbox_youtube video_id=”2yzpbnu5FKU” width=”800″ height=”600″ auto_thumb=”1″]

Official Press Release Here: http://www.prlog.org/12503044-new-mage-wars-arena-by-arcane-wonders-video-developed-by-the-lowry-agency.html

If you like what we bring you, please vote for us here: http://www.boardgamelinks.com/links/details/1420

Club Fantasci on Facebook: www.facebook.clubfantasci

Club Fantasci on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/clubfantasci

Club Fantasci on Youtube: YouTube

Club Fantasci on Google+: Club Fantasci

23 Sep 2015

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The Lowry Agency Announces Their New Quick Sell Video Series

The Lowry Agency reveals their new quick sell series for games targeted for industry distributors and retailers.

Sep. 21, 2015 – Nashville, TN. — ] The Lowry Agency (http://www.thelowryagency.com) in association with Club Fantasci (http://www.clubfantasci.com) have announced their new video series entitled Quick Sell to the board game, role-playing game and card game industry. The series is based on a growing need for publishers to distinguish their game from other games coming out at such a rapid pace in this new era of gaming.

The Quick Sell series came about after several meetings and conversations with several industry professionals after seeing a need for deeper marketing and positioning in the industry. With so many new games coming to market through traditional and crowdfunding sources, the ability to cut through the white noise is more important than ever.

“The Lowry Agency is dedicated to bringing top notch marketing tools and skills to the gaming industry in an effort to bring sales to a new level. With the “cult of the new” phenomena going on, we felt like it was extremely important to develop a tool for publishers and distributors to help get their games in front of the people selling them. To help them generate interest, knowledge and selling points for the retailers and their staff. It’s a learning tool that if used, should help everyone on all sides of the industry.” States David Lowry – President, The Lowry Agency

The first game in the series to be featured is “Nevermore” by Smirk & Dagger Games (http://www.smirkanddagger.com.) “Nevermore” is a unique drafting style card game designed by Smirk & Dagger President Curt Covert with spectacular artwork by Hannah Kennedy. “Nevermore” is loosely based on “The Raven” by Edgar Allen Poe.

David Lowry also runs the board game/role-playing game blog Club Fantasci (http://www.clubfantasci.com) in which with the help of several other people, review board games, wargames, role-playing games, post industry interview, host contests as well as act as a news source for the industry.

Contact for Smirk & Dagger Games:

Curt Covert

smirkanddagger@gmail.com

ABOUT THE LOWRY AGENCY

The Lowry Agency is full-service artist management/development, public relations and promotions agency. We work with musicians, actors, speakers, voice over artists, entertainment companies, music coordination/supervision for film and TV, board game industry and event promotions.

Media Inquiries for The Lowry Agency:

Contact: David Lowry

david@thelowryagency.com

Official Press Release here: http://www.prlog.org/12494895-the-lowry-agency-announces-their-new-quick-sell-video-series.html

Club Fantasci Link: http://clubfantasci.com/2015/09/23/the-lowry-agency-announces-their-new-quick-sell-video-series/

21 Aug 2015

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New Mage Wars Arena by Arcane Wonders Video Developed by The Lowry Agency

The Lowry Agency/Club Fantasci in association with Arcane Wonders developed a new 7-step battle demo video for Mage Wars Arena. For more information about video production, please contact The Lowry Agency here.

Find out more about more about Mage Wars Arena here: http://www.arcanewonders.com/category/magewars

Arcane Wonders: www.arcanewonders.com

For more information about The Lowry Agency: www.thelowryagency.com

If you like what we bring you, please vote for us here: http://www.boardgamelinks.com/links/details/1420

Club Fantasci on Facebook: www.facebook.clubfantasci

Club Fantasci on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/clubfantasci

Club Fantasci on Youtube: YouTube

Club Fantasci on Google+: Club Fantasci

26 Feb 2015

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Falling Stars – War of Empires

Falling Stars – War of Empires

4X strategy game available on Kickstarter and Steam’s Greenlight with a gameplay video, screen shots and plenty more on the way!

Feb. 26, 2015 – PUEBLO, Colo. — Lock ’n Load Publishing (lnlpublishing.com(http://lnlpublishing.com/)) and Riveted Games, LLC. are thrilled to kick off Falling Stars – War of Empires Kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/david-heath/falling-stars-war-of-empires) and Steam Greenlight(http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=387410923) campaigns. Falling Stars – War of Empires is a 4x turn-based strategy game where players vie for control of the galaxy through politics, space warfare, exploration and more. The game will be available on Windows, Mac and Linux. “We are very excited to be working with Riveted Games and to be bringing this game to the public“ said David Heath, President of Lock ’n Load Publishing. Philip Devine, President of Riveted Games, commented “Lock ’n Load has been great at supporting our project. ”

Get more information on Falling Stars – War of Empires from its official product page (http://lnlpublishing.com/falling-stars-war-of-empires) and be sure to visit our developers forum area (http://forums.lnlpublishing.com/forums/falling-stars-war-…).

Check out the gameplay video on YouTube (http://youtu.be/5-3yodxE8Lw) and be sure to subscribe to the Lock ’n Load Publishing channels to see more great promo videos. Box art and other art assets are available from our Press Media Area or by contacting press@lnlpublishing.com(mailto:press@lnlpublishing.com).

ABOUT LOCK ’N LOAD PUBLISHING, LLC.

Lock ’n Load Publishing, LLC. are a leading developer-publisher in both the table top and video games. Since 2006 Lock ’n Load Publishing has developed and published 75+ of historical, strategy and fantasy games with many award-winning titles in their portfolio spanning both digital and table top platforms. Lock ’n Load Publishing’s mission is to provide new game designs and redefine how people play games.

Media Inquires for LnL Publishing:

Contact: David Lowry

press@lnlpublishing.com

Official Press Release here: http://www.prlog.org/12429740-falling-stars-war-of-empires.html

30 Dec 2013

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The Best Rock CD’s of 2013

I was going to do a Top 10 list but honestly even after two weeks of thinking about it, these CD’s are the only ones that stick with me. I feel these are the best rock releases in 2013 and what great releases they are! This won’t be a surprise to some of you as I have been posting about some of these since the day they came out. Yes, they are that good!

I am not going to gush over these as some of them I have done reviews for already and I want you to make your own judgements. Give them a listen and if you like, buy the music and spread the word. They all need your support.

1. Maragold

The debut CD from Maragold is perhaps the freshest most original sound I have heard from a rock band and years if not the last decade. The band featuring world renown guitarist Greg Howe and company could be the scariest set of musicians this side of Dream Theater on one CD this year. Relative unknown singer Mehgan Krauss is the real deal and sings circles around just about everyone out there right now. She should be a household name and God willing, will be. Part of the reason this took the top spot is the absolute surprise at how good this CD was as a whole. Everything from songwriting, hooks, playing and production were top notch. I was not expecting this from a guitar hero as so many have not come out with strong band CD’s in their career with the exception of the gentleman in the number 2 spot.

You can read the rest of my thoughts in the CD review I posted in April here: http://lowryagency.wordpress.com/2013/04/03/cd-review-maragold-by-maragold/

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ornDuLHaeto&w=560&h=315]

2. The Winery Dogs

The Winery Dogs CD is a masterpiece of blues rock featuring guitar virtuoso and underrated singer Richie Kotzen, former Mr. Big band mate and bass virtuoso Billy Sheehan and of course Mike Portnoy widely regarded as one the best drummers alive today. They only reason this wasn’t #1 on my list is because it is basically a Richie Kotzen solo album. It wasn’t different enough from I hear from his usual work. Not that that is a bad thing, it just wasn’t as suprising as our #1 placement. I won’t bore you with my thoughts twice as you can read them in this CD Review I did here: http://lowryagency.wordpress.com/2013/07/31/the-winery-dogs-cd-review-by-david-lowry/

3. Steve Lukather – Transition

Legendary studio guitarist and founding member of the band Toto, Steve Lukather released his 6th solo CD Transition in 2013 and it is brilliant. Well pretty much everything Steve touches is but this CD really hit home with solid songwriting, relevant topics and a more natural guitar sound. As always Steve’s playing was melodic and amazing and his ability to evoke many different moods with music is a rare thing from most bands these days. Here is my CD review for Transition: http://lowryagency.wordpress.com/2013/02/07/cd-review-transitions-by-steve-lukather/

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG7xPJGfzwA&w=560&h=315]

4. Queensryche

After all the drama settled and the band Queensryche was able to get their music out, it was a treat to the ears and it felt like coming home! This is the Queensryche CD we have been waiting for since “Empire.” The band has returned with a strong singer, strong songs and a revived sound that takes us back to classic Queensryche and puts a smile on all our faces.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcGYjLLXIG8&w=560&h=315]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_Eer13yWrU&w=560&h=315]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_34YZaER70&w=560&h=315]

5. Dream Theater

Prog rock legends return in 2013 with the self-title “Dream Theater” and a return to a more melodic feel with less heaviness which isn’t a bad thing. Dream Theater broke through with 1992’s “Images and Words” one of my Top 3 CD’s of all time and this new CD has a bit of that in it. Dream Theater has come full circle with this project and the addition of Mike Mangini has fueled the creativity machine to bring forth the best Dream Theater effort in years. Don’t get me wrong, they have never put out a bad CD. This is just a touch above the more recent efforts.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoVAUUFjl0I&w=560&h=315]

6. Stryper – No More Hell to Pay

Stryper returns in full force on this CD! Their strongest effort since “To Hell With The Devil,” this is the CD we have been waiting for since the return of the band. Michael Sweet is in fine form vocally and the songs are hook laden and in your face at the same time. Stryper has always been a talented band and underrated musicians as well as excellent live performers. This CD just gives us reason to make sure and not the miss the tour!

7. Delana Steven & The Beggar Saints

This is the biggest surprise on this list as DeLana Stevens & The Beggar Saints are a local Nashville band that is trudging through this morass of a music business trying to make it. When they sent me this CD to listen to, I was blown away by how great the songs were. DeLana and her band learned what many do not, how to write a really, really good hook and rock song. It was so good, I did a review immediately. You can read that here: http://lowryagency.wordpress.com/2013/08/15/delana-stevens-and-the-beggar-saints-cd-review/. DeLana Stevens & company bring back a classic rock sound very much like Heart and Delana is one of the most powerful and accurate singers I have ever heard. Watch this band as I am hoping for big things to come for them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYfT5Ti4Q54&feature=share&list=PL5C78D31C61C1F24F&index=2

25 Nov 2013

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Club Fantasci 2013 Board Game Awards Program

Club Fantasci announces the release of a new awards program focusing on board and role-playing games.

David Lowry the board game column editor is announcing the release of their new Club Fantasci 2013 Board Game Awards Program to feature the very best in the board and role-playing games industry.

“The gaming industry has being growing at an amazing pace for over a decade but yet there are still so many people who are unfamiliar with all the new types of amazing games that are coming out. We want to introduce these games to the public at large and encourage more social activities between families and individuals” says Lowry.

Previously the Geek Eccentric Board Game Awards.

14 Nov 2013

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Live From Music City with Michael Lee Firkins

Michael Lee Firkins - Yep

“Live From Music City,” a radio show on blog talk radio (www.blogtalkradio.com/live-from-music-city), welcomes guitarist and musician extraordinaire Michael Lee Firkins who will talk about his brand new release “Yep” and will share about how to tackle the issues an independent musician must face on a daily basis on “Live From Music City.”

Date: Nov 26th, 2013

Time: 5:00pm CST

Length 30 Min

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/lfmcradio/2013/11/26/live-from-music-city-with-michael-lee-firkins

Facebook E-vite: https://www.facebook.com/events/255939404553669/

04 Sep 2013

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Practice? Yeah Right…

I can’t tell you how many bands I have been a part of or worked where people would show up for rehearsal and someone (usually more than one) hadn’t practiced the material to be gone over in our rehearsal time. This is extremely bad when it is music that has been played for years within the band and the members can’t remember their parts or are just involved in to many other projects to take one seriously enough for it to be viable. In my experience it tends to be the same people over and over again. Always with some excuse whether it be work, family etc… but mostly it’s just people who don’t have the drive and discipline to take it serious. They would rather watch their favorite shows on T.V. or go out partying with their friends. This is a major problem within a band and needs to be dealt with immediately.

This Meme popped on my Facebook stream yesterday and it is of course an ageless problem within the entertainment community especially music. I consider it one of the major roadblocks for entertainers to overcome in order to have a decent shot at making it in the business. It is extremely important to deal with this sort of behavior immediately. How can a band or entertainer make it if the people involved are dead set on making it happen. That means putting forth every effort to be prepared. I for the life of me can’t figure out why so many musicians struggle with being professional or understand how completely critical it is for them to be prepared at all times for anything that might pop up. I quit trying to help bands get booked because they were never ready for a last minute gig. Their set lists weren’t done because they only knew so many songs and what was usually the reason? Someone in the band wasn’t learning the material or just didn’t think it was necessary to have a nice set list to draw from.

This eats away at the core of a band. People start to get irritated with each other and stop trusting each other. People will start to develop a “why should I bother” attitude because they get tired of working harder than everyone else but the people who keep letting the band down, expect to be equal partners and get paid the same while doing almost none of the work or having the work ethic it takes to succeed. This is about the most disrespectful behavior you can have in a band. Many of the other members are sacrificing time with family, friends or other things they love to have a real shot at it, but there is always some asshat that just doesn’t get it.

This isn’t a business that pays you for showing up. This is a business that pays you for hard work, work ethic, being prepared and having the ability to act at a moments notice if you are needed to fulfill a last minute opening. This also plays into people working with you. I make it abundantly clear from the get go before working withy any artist that we won’t work bust our ass for an artist that isn’t busting theirs. If this is a problem, they get cut. How can you expect anyone to bust their ass and do all the grunt work you don’t want to do, when you can’t even do the one thing you are brought into do. Learn your songs and put on the best show possible. You can’t do that if you spend all your rehearsal time learning songs that should have already been learned before the rehearsal at home. Rehearsals are for working on song structure, correcting small mistakes, developing set lists and most importantly performance. NOT LEARNING SONGS!

This of course is not a new revelation by any stretch of the imagination but yet things never change. The business is constantly changing, but musicians don’t. Same old story, same old song and dance. It’s a new business kids, gone are the deals, the money and now the people willing to working for nothing to bust their ass for a bunch of lazy musicians. Get with the program or get out.

To all bands and entertainers out there. Deal with this now or you will get absolutely nowhere. If it is a repetitive problem, fire them. Find band members that are willing to give 100% to make it happen or prepare to sit in anonymity for a very long time if not forever.

Good luck!

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