Erin Marie - Vocals
Amir DaBiri - Bass/Keys
Noah Thompson - Guitar
Cristian Ripoll - Drums
Female-fronted Tampa outfit Mr. Bella draws influence from every corner of the modern rock landscape to create their own genre-obliterating melodic style: an engaging, guitar-driven sound as ready for Contemporary Alternative radio as it is for the Hard Music format. Equal parts hook and pummel, Mr. Bella stands apart with their hypnotic rhythms, pop-inspired songwriting smarts, and a knack for the catchy stuff.
The band came together in 1997, with the idea of blending their various favorite sonics, from bouncy, infectious Old Wave through jagged, energetic New Metal, into their own new and unique identity. The dynamic results immediately struck a chord with music fans whose tastes run throughout the ambiguous terrain of modern rock fans who don't care what you call it, they only care that it's good. Mr. Bella's self-produced EP, Ka-Boom!, quickly sold out, and the group's mesmerizing live sets earned them a reputation as one of Florida's most buzzworthy new acts.
The 2002 release of "...premise" showed that the band had matured exponentially since the Ka-Boom! days & their command of compelling melody and the heavy groove had only grown stronger with experience and ever-increasing attention. They followed that with the darker and heavier "Too Far" album in 2006, which was signed to an online digital distribution deal and continues to receive great reviews. Their shows have become consistently among the Bay area's most talked-about live-music spectacles. Aggro-diva Erin Marie alternately snarls and soars over Noah Thompson's meaty, textured guitar work, anchored and deftly complemented by Amir DaBiri's throbbing, energetic basslines and the locked-in rhythms of Cristian Ripoll.
Mr. Bella gained the respect of their peers and an ever-growing audience by refusing to be pigeonholed, and creating their own eclectic yet immensely appealing post-alternative persona. They do their own thing - their own thing just happens to be a timely, spectrum-spanning interpretation of modern rock's best elements. Mr. Bella has supported such disparate recording artists as Hoobastank, Lit, The Exies, The Toadies, Oleander, Marcy's Playground, Plumb, Neurotica, Sumack, 10 Years, The Almost, The Safety Suit, and Full Devil Jacket and are currently performing showcases in support of their latest CD release, titled "Too Far". They have also began recording new material for their next release, with Brett Hestla (of the Warner Bros. band Dark New Day) producing and engineering the new tunes.
