Former Queer "AMERICAN IDOL" Contestant Releases New Album

POP RECORDING ARTIST AND FORMER AMERICAN IDOL CONTESTANT

DARIO 

RELEASES BRAND NEW ALBUM  REVOLUTION (DELUXE)

Los Angeles, CA - Pop Singer Dario has announced the release of his 7th studio album, "Revolution (Deluxe)”.  The highly anticipated album drops May 5, 2015 on Amazon, iTunes and all other major music streaming sites and select retail stores.

Revolution is being re-released off the back of the hugely successful Evolution album last year and features new songs including a Spanglish version of the hit “Save You”. The first single “Backlash” already broke the Top 40 in its first week snatching the #28 slot on the National Independent Digital Radio Chart!

The Tucson AZ native has been on a meteoric rise to success. The former American Idol contestant got his early start at a Search for Stardom convention, and was invited to audition for a handful of independent record labels. Since then, he’s toured with Beyonce in her Destiny’s Child days, opened for Ashanti, and sold nearly a million albums. 

In the 10 years he’s been in the business, he’s recorded 7 albums, had two headlining tours and a single, “Fallback,” get some major radio play. Dario’s last album "Evolution" hit the top 100, then the top 50, and broke through the Top 10, hitting number four. He went on a seven-month-long 62 tour dates nationwide - with about 80 percent of “Evolution” tour stops being Pride events. The LA based pop singer nearly double attendance at Lexington 2014 Pride Event and repeated the phenomenon at the close of the tour in Sarasota, FL.

His Evolution tour was building off of the success of Dario: Undiscovered and the series’ 2.5 million viewers. The singer filmed his trials of the music business for the reality show "Dario Undiscovered," which broadcast online its inaugural season. The show was originally slotted to go to a television network for season two, but Dario declined so he could focus on "Evolution.”

While his highly anticipated seventh album titled Revolution (Deluxe) will hit stores nationwide and iTunes May 5, Dario’s schedule won’t be slowing down any time soon. He’s now in the process of solidifying tour dates for 2015 - Dario will once again hit the road to promote the new album with a first stop June 25 in Deming, NM.

Pre-order on Amazon: HERE.

For more information visit Dario’s official website at: www.DarioOnline.com

SICK OF SARAH Go On Tour!

by Lauren Wood

That's right, you heard it correctly. Queer all-female band Sick of Sarah are embarking on a full tour of the US starting today!

Sick of Sarah, alongside duo Uh Huh Her, are actually the only current lesbian band I listen to; my music taste is generally stuck in the 1970s. I don't think you need any more proof that these ladies are worth a listen!

Check out their tour dates here:

You can find more information about tickets on the band's website, http://sickofsarah.com/.

Up & Coming LGBT Music: Mount Sharp

Brooklyn-Based Fuzzcore Trio

Mount Sharp

Premiere Music Video "Icarus" on Impose Magazine

“A mixture of distant and echoed vocals drift in and out of ghostly, sometimes eerie pop guitar, displaying a plethora of influences, and making for an uncomfortably enjoyable (or enjoyably uncomfortable) listening experience.”
-The Deli Magazine

Check out Brooklyn-based fuzzcore rockers, Mount Sharp and their brand new music video for "Icarus" that premiered yesterday on Impose Magazine. Check it out HERE! Impose says, "The “morning streaked glow” of dawn from Mount Sharp’s trio of Sarah Wood, Ryan Zumsen, and Bryan Bruchman is accompanied by a romantic short film that shines the light of day on the feelings and thoughts that are often reserved for restless nights."
 

More Info:

NYC-based “fuzzcore” trio will release first single, "Icarus," off of their forthcoming EP Weird Fears, set to release later this summer. “Icarus,” premiered on CMJ, who described the track as, “sublimely summery.” Check out the feature HERE. The collection of tracks on the upcoming EP features soft crooning and aggressive shouts. With up-tempo drum beats, distortion-drenched guitars and melodic bass lines, Mount Sharp’s distinct sound comes into fruition.

Having met in Portland, Maine, Sarah Wood (Vocals/Guitar) and Bryan Bruchman (Guitar) ended up as roommates in the Gowanus neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, working on songs at home and building the foundation for what would become Mount Sharp. Joined by their friend Ryan Zumsen on bass, they got to work crafting songs about “science and bad decisions” and started playing shows in late 2012. The band is an amalgamation of inspirations, past and present. With inflections of Fleetwood Mac and Joanna Newsom, the band also cites indie powerhouses Yo La Tengo and Dinosaur JR. as influences. The band has played major New York music festivals including CMJ and Northside, and just completed a 4-week residency at Pianos in NYC.

Now in their third year of playing together, the threesome have honed their sound and put out an EP that is simultaneously accessible and original, jangly and ornate, and subtly in your face. “It’s the kind of summer music I need,” says Knox Rd. Lookout for more from Mount Sharp!

Club Skirts DINAH SHORE To Host OFFICIAL WOMEN'S PARTY at the 2014 GAY GAMES!

CLUB SKIRTS DINAH SHORE WEEKEND

TO HOST THE ONLY OFFICIAL WOMEN PARTY AT

THE 2014 GAY GAMES

Cleveland, OH – The legendary Club Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend – the biggest lesbian event of its kind in the world – is confirmed to be hosting the only official Gay Games-sanctioned women party this summer in Cleveland, Ohio.

The announcement comes on the heels of the massive success of this past April’s Club Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend in Palm Springs, CA, which broke all attendance records and garnered extensive national and worldwide media coverage.

Impressed with the outstanding achievement of Mariah Hanson – the mastermind behind The Dinah – and her team in organizing for over two decades such a high profile event featuring such an elite group of high caliber performers, organizers of the 2014 Cleveland Games handpicked the event producer extraordinaire to exclusively produce the official lesbian party for Gay Games 9 (GG9).

“We’re immensely honored to be joining forces with the entire Gay Games 9 team and have no doubt our combined efforts will turn this incredibly formidable LGBT Sport and Cultural event into the best one ever,” says Mariah Hanson, founder and producer of Club Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend.

The bash dubbed “The Victory Party” will take place starting at 8:00pm EST August 13 at The Velvet Dog, Cleveland's premiere nightclub & dance destination for 15 years.

“We are thrilled to be teaming up with Mariah Hanson and beyond excited to be bringing such a staple event in LGBT culture to the Velvet Dog,” says club manager Georgina Karim.

Voted Cleveland's BEST Nightclub for the past five years in a row, The Velvet Dog is located in the warehouse district, a bastion of nightlife in the heart of the city.

"The Dinah team is honored to bring our special brand of high octane event production laced with first class entertainment and music to Cleveland’s Gay Games. We couldn’t have picked a better host location than the Velvet Dog, the premiere nightclub in Cleveland. Plus we love the idea of a rooftop patio! We're expecting a sell out crowd and plan to deliver an unforgettable event, Dinah style,” says Mariah Hanson.

The “Victory” party will mark Club Skirts’ second Gay Games participation. Hanson previously produced the largest women's event in 2006 at the navy pier in Chicago, IL, showing Club Skirts’ enduring commitment to securing the nicest locations available to showcase the host city.

Presented by the Cleveland Foundation, Gay Games 9 is one of the biggest sports & cultural festivals in the world and comes to the Cleveland and Akron areas August 9-16, 2014.

“Here at Gay Games 9 we are excited to welcome everyone to our region and especially all the women of the world and what better partners to collaborate with then the most Amazing, Club Skirts, The Dinah. This will be "THE" Party to attend for all of the women.  So, come celebrate "Participation, Inclusion and Personal Best"  as we embrace and unite as one, “ says Michelle DeLozier, Gay Games 9 Culture Co-Chair.

Open to all adults - regardless of sexual orientation or athletic ability - Gay Games 9 will host 11,000 participants from all over the world (including countries where homosexuality remains illegal and hidden), and will feature more than 35 sports, band and choral competitions, and community and cultural events.

Launched over thirty years ago, the large scale, weeklong event is about more than just an Olympic-style sporting competition with spectacular ceremonies and parties; it is first and foremost about a celebration of the LGBT community and a celebration of the spirit of unity and diversity.  This message holds particular significance as Ohio, while recently ordered to recognize out-of-state gay marriages, still remains in the nationwide race to legalize same-sex marriage in its own state.

Both Mariah Hanson and organizers of the 2014 Cleveland Games see the event as not only a chance to show that the industrial Midwest can be gay-friendly, but also as an important potential catalyst for change.  

Hanson has been sending a strong message of inclusion through the Dinah.

The event has not only come to embody the very notion of living life out loud, but has also been systematically transforming lives.

“Club Skirts has been passionately committed to extending its involvement beyond the actual Dinah in promoting and showcasing the rich diversity of our LGBT talents by engaging in and supporting events that create and enhance opportunities for our community,” comments Hanson. “We look forward to Gay Games week and can’t wait to ignite Cleveland's lesbian nightlife.”

Stay tuned as Mariah Hanson will be announcing the headlining act in the coming weeks.

Tickets to the event are $25 per person, or $50 for VIP, which includes bottle service opportunity, and access to all VIP areas in all three floors as well as the spectacular roof top patio that overlooks the entire city of Cleveland.

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For More information about Club Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend “Victory Party” go to: www.TheDinah.com

Information about Gay Games 9 is available at: www.Gaygames.com

Follow us on Twitter: @dinahshore