Moving on, Rocking out, & Leaving it all behind

For the five members of Illinois-based hard rock band Red Letter Merchant, finalizing their band member line-up and releasing a new album are all signs of a band that has broken out of "regional band" status and earned their shot to spread their intelligent, from-the-heart raw modern rock coast to coast on a national level.

Red Letter Merchant's appropriately titled "Leave It All Behind" album is much more than just a new album: It has become a vehicle that is reinforcing and reinvigorating Red Letter Merchant's goal to share their music with the world.

Recorded at Chicago Recording Company by Chris Steinmetz and mastered at Bob Ludwig's Gateway Mastering by Adam Ayan, "Leave It All Behind" serves both as a bold new statement for the band and as a farewell to the past. Or, as the guys in the band put it, the album represents their new attitude of letting go of negative vibes and emotions to embrace hope and positivity.

Within the eight songs on "Leave It All Behind," Ryan Louis, Jason Ritter, Camron Yates, Jace Mitchell and Scott Neuweg tear through a raucous, emotionally-charged set of songs that conjure up an intoxicating mix of lyricism, musicianship and modern alternative rock. Red Letter Merchant's songs are about life, failure, forgiveness, love and finding your place in the universe-all subjects that anyone can relate to and believe in.

Ryan Louis' honest, narrative lyrics and soulful vocals combine with the pulsating bass and drums, churning rhythm guitar and soaring lead guitar solos to forge the power and intensity of Red Letter Merchant's modern guitar-driven rock. They are five friends who have dedicated their hearts and souls in Red Letter Merchant to craft accessible, edgy rock music that is catchy, melodic, aggressive and real. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.