When you think of a one-man-band, images of some bearded troubadour clanging away on all manner of multi-instrumentation strapped about his body may come to mind. It’s a somewhat antiquated notion of performing with no need for band members other than the lone wizard flailing away to his own rhythm.

In the last few years, technology has caught up with those lone musical geniuses who can rock out alone in the studio (and sometimes live on stage). If Trent Reznor could perform drums, guitar, bass, keyboards and sing live like a rock-god all at once, let’s face it – he wouldn’t need his backing band to be Nine Inch Nails.

Stereo Tongue – the musical creation of Florida-native Tim Grissett, is one of those lone musical wizards toiling away in Rock & Roll seclusion, perfecting his kick-ass fusion of 1980s arena rock, power ballads and 21st century alternative hard rock that sounds both retro and modern at the same time.

Except for working alone, the comparisons to folky one-man bands and tortured angst-filled industrial rock end there. Stereo Tongue (named after he experienced being licked in the face by his two dogs) is focused more on love songs, real-life emotions and rockin’ out to have a good time, and Tim likes it that way.

“I want fans to get a few minutes of enjoyment from my music,” he says. “Maybe just to make them smile, think of someone special, or remember a time in their life that relates to one of my songs.”

Stereo Tongue or Tim as a musician at all, almost never happened. His first song was written at about five years old and featured a tale about Tim riding his tricycle down the road and crashing into a car. He started out strong, playing brass in school and becoming proficient on piano. Tim’s obsession led to playing in bands, most notably China Sky, who recorded one album and landed local radio airplay. China Sky toured for about a year and split up, with Tim joining many another bands and touring over several years. The last band whose members would “get really messed up” between sets prompted Tim to “cut off all my hair, pack up my stuff, and I started listening to news radio.”

Tim’s symbolic break from the life of a musician lasted for over a decade. He spent those years building a business, working ungodly hours and becoming successful, but says something was missing.

“I realized I was alone, and that’s when I got back into playing music, and it was there for me.”

Tim bought a new guitar and played at home, with no plans to record or write songs. Those plans changed when he met and fell in love with a woman named Alice, who later became his wife and one of his main musical inspirations.

“I wrote my first song in years for her, and was inspired to write more and have been popping out songs like crazy,” he says.

Tim’s recording output turned into Upstairs, his first release under the name of Stereo Tongue.

With more songs in the works for Stereo Tongue’s sophomore album, you’re sure to get more of the best fist-in-the-air, lit-cigarette-lighter-waving, back-seat-making-out, good time music you’ve ever heard. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.