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plainsman press (south plains college)
"cyrus boosts popularity by exposure on internet"
by caroline basile
(april 29, 2008 - vol. 50, issue 12)

it takes a lot for a band to get going and keep a solid fan base.

indie-art quartet cyrus has been working hard at that for the past seven years. cyrus formed in 2001 and played their first concert as a band on may 5, 2001.

the band consists of guitarist nathan timmons, drummer chris knight, pianist, guitarist and vocalist jude machin, and vocalist and bassist michael sanford; all of lubbock.

cyrus released their second album, "source" in december 2007 and have been touring locally in support of that.  the album was self-produced and self-recorded by the band and released online and in-stores.  their self-titled debut was also produced in the same manner.

members of the band draw on their favorite music for inspiration.  each member of the band listens to different genres of music, and they draw on that as their influence.

"our influences are all really different," says knight. "it's always something different for everyone and that makes for unique music."

the band formed as a result of member timmons, machin and sanford having known each other during their teen years, and timmons met knight while studying at texas tech university. machin is a current student at south plains college, while sanford graduated from s.p.c. with a degree in music.

"people want to ask us what we label ourselves as, and we have a hard time with that," timmons says.  "we're trying to do something that's a little bit unconventional but that is still accessible to people."

like most area bands, cyrus relies on the internet and sites such as myspace.com and ourstage.com to help expose their music to new listeners.

"it's a totally different ballgame than what it was in 2003, when we released our first album," timmons says.  "myspace.com and those sites weren't really around.  myspace.com has done a lot to change the musical landscape. as the internet has gotten more pervasive, it has gotten easier for people to hear about bands from denmark, los angeles, or lubbock.  you really have to work in person to build up the fan base, not just online.  you can have 800 friends on myspace.com, but you might be playing a show for only five people. you've got to work hard on both levels to reach new fans."

timmons added that cyrus has boosted their popularity due to exposure on the internet.

"it's a double-edge sword," timmons continued.  "being on a site like that gives you the opportunities to get more exposure. but on the other hand, it is the same for other bands, because they have the same resources you do to reach the same audience."

cyrus was recently voted no. 1 in the alternative-rock genre for the month of march 2008 at ourstage.com, which allows listeners to compare songs and vote for what they think is the better song.  cyrus was also voted as no. 2 among all the genres on the site.

"i hope we're a band that can write songs and have music that people can listen to and not forget after a few months," knight says.  "i hope there is something about it that will stick with them and make them want to listen to it again."

cyrus' most recent album, "source," is available at both locations of ralph's records and tapes in lubbock and on itunes.com.  cyrus will also be performing live in lubbock at the porchlight on may 3.  cover is $5, and doors will open at 8 p.m.