On back-to-back shows in Arizona in early May, the LA Music Academy's Josh Allen had a first-time experience and what he hopes to be the first of many experiences. While preparing for a show at Big Fish Pub in Tempe. Arizona, on May 8th, Allen overheard the other band playing that night warming up for the show. Liking what he heard, Allen introduced himself to the guitar player. Allen explains: "I said, 'Hey man, how's it going? Did you go to school somewhere?' And he said, 'Yeah, I went to LA Music Academy.'" The player was Sean Woolstenhulme, formerly of Lifehouse and The Calling, getting ready to play with his latest band Radshaw. Arguably the school's most successful former student, using the Billboard charts as a measuring stick, Woolstenhulme has enjoyed being a part of The Calling's hit album Camino Palmero, which sold 2.5 million worldwide as well as Lifehouse's success with the single "Hanging by a Moment," which was the most-played radio song of 2001, according to Broadcast Data Services. What was it that tipped Allen off? Allen says, "It was the chords. The chords he was playing you don't learn by yourself, really. I mean, you've got some crazy guys out there, like Mike Miller [who has played with Chick Corea, among others], who is just a monster and learned everything by himself. But when you see a young person doing stuff like that, you know they've got some schooling."

For Allen, the following day was filled with excitement that included a radio show for K-FM in Tucson and opening on a show that included The Switch, Kottonmouth Kings, Lit, Puddle of Mudd, Pennywise, Papa Roach, and The Offspring. Allen said the experience of playing a show of that magnitude — a first for Full Blown Rose — was "Great and it was weird. Because the way things have been working out for this band, it's like the stars have been lining up for us. Sometimes we're a little skeptical if things are going to happen. Then they start to happen and we're like, 'Wow, this is amazing!' To be on a lineup with bands like that was really awesome because it made us realize that this really can happen." The booking came as a result of the video Full Blown Rose did for "Somebody Help Me," the theme song for the television show Tru Calling on FOX. The song has given the band a signature tune that people and audiences have already been responding to in concert. It wasn't just joining such an impressive lineup of bands that made the show a great experience for Allen and the rest of the group either. He was more in awe of what it was like to play a big show with professional sound engineers and stage crews at the band's service. He continues, "I thought since we were [comparatively] a no name band, we'd get no help, but they were fantastic. There was like twenty guys there doing different things, and they were so helpful."

And playing their music in a professional setting definitely had an effect on the group. "You know, when you play in clubs in L.A., and the sound man gives you crap or attitude, you don't want to deal with it — it bums you out. But to be there with people who are willing and want to help you — they're there because they really like the music — you get out there and think, 'This is cool!'"

What's next for Allen and Full Blown Rose? Allen says the band has changed a lot recently. With a newly installed bass player and drummer, fellow LA Music Academy students Peter Boskovich and Matthieu Lechevalier, the current lineup of Full Blown Rose has been hard at work rehearsing and fitting the new pieces together. In fact, recently, the three male members of the group moved into their producer's home for two weeks to "eat, sleep, and live it," according to Allen. Allen continues, "At first, Pete's elbow was messed up, so we didn't really play, but we watched other group's videos and watched ours and compared notes. Josephine [the group's lead singer] lived nearby, but she even stayed over for a couple days." Doing their homework: For Allen and the rest of Full Blown Rose, that's one experience they seem to understand they'll need to have if they're going to continue along their own road to success.

For more information visit:
www.joshallen.net
www.fullblownrose.com
www.fbrstreet.com