Brightmillion

Comprising vocalist-guitarist Dan Holman and drummer Matt Lucich, this Highland Park, Ca.-based pop-rock unit formed in 2007 and within a couple years released an EP called Start of the New Day. Fueled by raw organic vegetables and making regular live appearances in and around Los Angeles, they quickly established a small but enviable local following. Their influences range from classic rock (The Beatles, Beach Boys, Buddy Holly, Bruce Springsteen, Led Zeppelin, Electric Light Orchestra, Aerosmith, Tom Petty) to more contemporary acts (Coldplay, Radiohead, Blur, Death Cab for Cutie, Green Day, Grandaddy, Augustana, Built to Spill); they also claim to have been spurred on by the work of Deepak Chopra, Tennessee Williams, Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Buckminster Fuller and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Whether any of those inspirations are actually audible in their music remains to be determined.