Philadelphia-based Valencia was discovered by Rob Hitt from his box of demos in late March 2005. Within 10 minutes of listening to their three-track offering, he knew that he wanted to sign them. “I immediately felt there was something very special about Valencia,” says Rob. “It was 3 am, but I was so moved by their music that I called them and offered to release a full-length without hesitation.” A week later, Valencia became part of the I Surrender family.

Formed less than two years ago, this quintet creates an infectious blend of guitar-mangled, multi-layered, melodic rock reminiscent of early Saves the Day fused with Thrice, but with Valencia’s own unique personality and character. Meet the band and it’s clear what drives this character. The ideas and personalities of the musicians in Valencia are anything but familiar in today’s saturated scene. Perhaps this is a function of their checkered backgrounds—Shane (vocals) worked as a beer-man during Eagles games; JD (guitar) gave up a full soccer scholarship to play in the band; Brendan (guitar) was one of only 32 people in America to get sued by the RIAA for file sharing; Max (drums) builds his own instruments and immigrated from Philippines via cargo ship; and George (bass) worked in an Alaskan fish cannery one summer. Whatever the case may be, this relatively young act’s amazing musicianship, mature song writing ability and professionalism are impressive. In fact, it’s fair to say that Valencia, as a whole package, is on par with or surpasses the skill of any of the scene’s past or present favorite bands. You can find the band on tour all summer on this year’s Vans Warped Tour.