Bonus mp3:

Last weekend, Holy Roller was made available for pre-order at several on-line retailers. But, if you are somehow able to wait until March 10 to purchase it, you might want to buy it directly from Sounds Are Active--who promise to immediately hook you up with free digital versions of the tracks, well before the disc arrives in the mail.

Oh, and speaking of free downloads, at some point in the coming weeks, Sounds Are Active will also be releasing 20 bands/74.4 minutes!. The digital compilation album, which draws its title from this documentary, will feature "Come Closer," as well as tracks from Denton acts Record Hop, Fight Bite, Florene, Darktown Strutters, Mom and The Heartstring Stranglers--as well as 13 other local bands and artists.

So why the heck is a label based in Long Beach, California, releasing a local music compilation and how did Shiny get hooked up with Sounds Are Active? 

"It's an interesting story," says Seman. "The label is run by Chris [Schlarb] of I Heart Lung. And, three or four years ago, the Castanets and I Heart Lung were coming to town, and some other band dropped off the bill. And, I remember, Glen Farris calling to ask if we wanted to take the vacant spot. And I loved the Castanets, so, of course I said we'd do it."

And that's how Shiny met Schlarb, Seman says, and after that show, the two kept in touch. Then, last year, after seeing Schlarb perform a solo gig in Austin, Seman presented him with a finished copy of Holy Roller.

Those familiar with Shiny know how intense and transparent the band's live performances are, but that's something that Seman says has been difficult to capture when recorded. Until now.

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"On Holy Roller, working with Matt Barnhart, somehow, for the first time, we sound exactly how we should sound," he says. "When we'd gone into the studio to record before, we'd never been able to capture how we sound when we perform live."   

Schlarb liked the album and said he'd like to put it out on Sounds are Active. The rest, as they say, is history. A few months later, Schlarb asked Shiny if it wanted to put together an EP that would be available for download on the label's Web site before the label released Holy Roller.

"We thought about it," Seman says. "And instead, we decided that we'd take whatever additional exposure and coverage that we had to get some of that exposure for our friends as well."

So, in a few weeks, when you're downloading 20 Bands/74.4 Minutes!, maybe shoot Michael Seman a thank you note...