About
The Basics
American Music Standard is a hard rock band based in Memphis, Tennessee; a city famous for being home of the blues and the birthplace of rock n' roll. We take everything people love about classic rock — the style, the sound, the attitude — and crank it up a few notches for modern audiences. Along the way, we mix in our own artistic vision to create music that is truly new and original, while still paying tribute to one of the most influential musical genres of all time. The band strives to be an example of something that we believe is very true in the music industry today: rock n' roll is not dead, it's not in the process of dying, and it never will die. In fact, we believe that real rock (the raw, badass rock that people really crave) is still evolving and becoming bigger and better than ever.
Feel free to send an email to any band member (their email addresses are listed below), but if you're looking for a central point of contact, Ian Drake is the official band manager. He can be contacted about booking, press info, and more. Or tell us how much you hate our music. Either way, we read everything, and respond to most of it: ian.drake@americanmusicstandard.com
We're always trying to make our official website the best resource for fans, but if you're looking for other ways to connect with us, take a look at our other pages:
Meet the Band
Tyler Hopgood
- Lead vocals
- Rhythm guitar (electric & acoustic)
- Occasional lead & bass guitar
- Harmonica
- Piano/keyboard
- Lyricist & composer
tyler.hopgood@americanmusicstandard.com
Age: 31
Joined the band in: 2007 (founding member)
Favorite musician: Steven Tyler
Other interests: working out, hanging out with friends, Carolina Panthers, St. Louis Cardinals
Ian Drake
- Lead guitar (electric & acoustic)
- Backup vocals
- Occasional bass guitar, lead vocals, & piano
- Composer & lyricist
- Audio engineer
ian.drake@americanmusicstandard.com
Age: 33
Joined the band in: 2007 (founding member)
Favorite musicians: Jimmy Page, John Petrucci
Other interests: tennis, programming & software engineering, cooking
Former Members
- Dan Walters (2013): Bass guitar, keyboard, backup vocals
- Ashton Drake (2010 – 2013): Drums, percussion, composer
History
Early Years
Many of our fans ask us this question: "How did the band get started?" The driving force behind the formation of the band was the musical collaboration between Tyler Hopgood and Ian Drake. While they were still young kids, Tyler and Ian lived in the same neighborhood near Memphis. During the summer of 2004, Tyler heard about Ian living a few houses down the road and learned that he was a guitarist, so he called Ian to see if he wanted to be in a band. A few days after that phone conversation, they met in person and hung out for the first time. Tyler began teaching his new band member some songs on guitar, the first one being "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple. During the following months, Tyler and Ian began to hang out more and more, and their relationship as friends continued to grow.
It wasn't long before the two were best friends, spending virtually all of their free time together. And they were becoming better guitarists and song writers as well. During 2007, the two musicians practiced and wrote songs on a regular basis. Everyone they played for began to realize their potential. One of their first live performances was held at a local guitar recital. In front of an audience of about 50 people, they played a fast-paced blues song which they had written just for the show. The two guitarists took turns showing off as they alternated between playing rhythm guitar and improvising lead parts. This elaborate technique is still used by the two today, and has become a signature element of their stage performances.
An old picture of Ian and Tyler jamming together (literally the oldest picture we could find)
As the two friends got older, they began to get more serious about starting their musical careers. This meant searching for more musicians to recruit for the band. They tried playing with several people, including Reese Shackleford, Joey Danforth, Eli Poston, Bryan Young, and a few others. During this time, the band was constantly evolving; the band changed names, members, and styles multiple times. For example, during the summer of 2009, they played several shows as a band called Euphoria, which was run primarily by Joey Danforth and featured a unique style that blended rock, techno, and pop. That summer, Euphoria played in a Battle of the Bands and performed at a free cookout event held at a local park. They also did their first show at a professional venue: the famous New Daisy Theater on Beale Street. Despite the band undergoing so many changes, two things always remained the same: Tyler and Ian's friendship and their love for music.
At the end of the summer, Ian moved to Nashville. He immediately began to enjoy the city's rich music history. Taking advantage of the music scene there, Ian began to expand his knowledge of the music industry and had a chance to study and play with many talented musicians. He gained valuable experience as an audio engineer and session guitarist in some of the world's most historic studios, including RCA Studio B, Quonset Hut, and Ocean Way Studio A.
Meanwhile, Tyler's life wasn't going so well. As a result of his increasing drug use, Tyler was sent to a full-time rehabilitation center. For almost four months, Tyler was unable to play guitar or communicate with any of his friends (including Ian). Because of Ian's move to Nashville and Tyler's rehab, the two friends temporarily grew apart and put a hold on the development of the band.
After Tyler completed his rehab and made a successful recovery, Ian returned to Memphis for a few months, and they both saw it as an opportunity to keep making progress on their music. Ian and Tyler began to practice together more often, and they continued to write songs. They became more focused and dedicated than ever, and the two friends set out on a mission to advance their careers as musicians…
During the fall and winter of 2010, the band saw more progress than it had in the past few years combined. The first big step was finalizing the band name as "The Rock n' Roll Refugees." In addition, Ian began to take advantage of the contacts he had made in Nashville, and he started talking to potential label companies and producers. They also decided on their new drummer: Ian's younger brother, Ashton. Meanwhile, Tyler got the band a gig at the New Daisy. Fortunately, the show went very well for being the band's first show in over a year (and, more importantly, their first show under the new name). These were the early stages of the band that would later become American Music Standard.
2011
2011 was another strong year for the band. In March, they played a another show at The New Daisy. This time, however, The Rock n' Roll Refugees were the headlining band. Shortly after that, Tyler and Ian decided to take a break from playing live shows to focus on recording their music. Besides Ian's studio work in Nashville, the band had done very little recording before now, but they dove right in anyway. During spring and summer, they made a lot of progress and released several demos on the website to give people a taste of their music. Overall, the fans' feedback was great.
Armed with this new encouragement, they wanted to continue their momentum with recording, so they made an important decision: To record and release their first full-length album. Knowing how big of a challenge this would be, they sat down to carefully plan their goals for the album. They knew recording could be long and stressful, so most of fall was spent practicing and preparing for the recording sessions that were ahead. Ian invested in some high-quality equipment for his home studio and gathered an extensive amount of research from his first-hand interviews with various recording professionals he had met in Nashville.
When December arrived, the band was eager to start. The 3 musicians devoted all their time and energy to the recording process, spending almost a full month locked inside a 6'x6' sound-proof booth that Ian designed and built from scratch in his garage. During that month, there was only one short break to celebrate Christmas, but they made sure it didn't interfere with the tight recording schedule.
2012
The hard work paid off: when Ian travelled back to Nashville to start the mixing process in January of 2012, he was proud of how everything sounded. As they worked on finishing the album, the band was discussing something equally important. After a lot of careful consideration, they finally announced the big news at the end of February. From that point on, the band would no longer be called The Rock n' Roll Refugees; their new band name officially became American Music Standard. The band had been active under the old name for over a year, and it seemed like a huge change. But they were happy with their decision and thought it was perfect timing just before the release of their first album.
After months of recording and mixing, the album, titled No Morals, was finally released at the end of March on the band's website, Bandcamp, ReverbNation, and a few other sites. The lyrical themes on No Morals provided a powerful and intimate look into Tyler's struggle with drugs and alcohol, and this was amplified by the album's heavy rock n' roll sound. Excited fans who had been following the band's recording progress since early December immediately began purchasing their digital copies. Despite the many challenges that came along with recording their first full-length album in a newly-built home studio, the fans' support of No Morals made the album successful in the eyes of the band members.
In May, AMS joined long-time friends and musical partners, the Young Guns, and another local band at Minglewood's 1884 Lounge for an amazing show to celebrate the release of No Morals. Not only did the Young Guns play a great opening set for AMS, but one of the best parts of the night was when they joined AMS on stage to finish the show with Ridin' Free and Here to Rock. These moments, plus selling some of their first CDs to eager fans, made this show incredibly memorable to AMS.
The back cover of No Morals, used as the promo poster for the 2012 Minglewood show
The summer of 2012 was pretty quiet for the band, mostly because Ian left Memphis for 6 weeks to travel around Europe. While the trip was mostly for fun, he had another important mission: to study European music through first-hand experience with the locals and by immersing himself in their culture. Ian started his trip by visiting several historic music sites in London, including Royal Albert Hall, Earl's Court, Abbey Road, and more. But he spent most of his time in Spain, staying in cities like Valencia, Seville, and Madrid. He had a chance to study, play, record, and perform with several Spanish musicians, all while enjoying the local Spanish music scene. Ironically, Ian saw two American bands play, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Incubus, at a large music festival in Madrid, which was a nice reminder of home. Throughout his trip, Ian kept AMS fans updated about his journey by posting several articles on the band's blog along with a swarm of pictures and videos on the Facebook page.
When Ian returned from Europe at the end of the summer, it was clear what the band's next project would be. Inspired by their progress with the first album, Tyler and Ian agreed that it was time to start recording album number two. The first album had been a massive learning experience, and the band felt much more prepared to tackle the next one. Using their new skills and knowledge, they made several improvements to their recording process and overhauled the home studio with new gear and a new workflow. They began doing in-depth planning, pre-production, and practice.
Finally, in October, Ashton began laying down the first drum tracks. For the next several months, the 2nd album was the band's main priority. They did relentless recording sessions at the band's home studio in Memphis, while Ian frequently traveled back to his apartment/studio in Nashville to record some of his guitar tracks and begin mixing. During this time, there were only 2 short breaks from recording to celebrate the holidays and play a charity festival at the New Daisy to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House. It was a similar routine to what AMS had done with No Morals, but from the very beginning, Tyler and Ian had a very clear goal to make this album different and better. As the year came to a close, they could definitely see the pieces coming together to form an awesome album.
2013
By the time 2013 came around, most of the recording was complete and Ian spent most of his time mixing and mastering in Nashville. AMS was very happy with the early mixes, and they were already making plans for summer shows to promote the release. However, by this time, the band had learned about a very unexpected (but very exciting) complication in their music plans. Tyler informed the others that he would not only be getting married soon, but he would also be having a baby girl! The band knew this might make it difficult to play shows that summer, but at this point, nothing—not even these major life changes—could stop them from finishing the album.
After working since October, the second album was ready for release at the end of April. Its title, Blues Gone Bad, was very appropriate for its sound, which explored how traditional blues evolved into modern hard rock. The mood of the lyrics fit the music perfectly, telling an interesting story of romance and heartbreak. The story, pieced together from Tyler and Ian's own experiences with love and relationships, went like this: The first few songs started with the main “character” being single and searching for the perfect woman, eventually falling in love and watching that love fade quickly in the middle section of the album; the story continued with a heart-shattering breakup, finally turning the focus inward for the last few songs by exploring the emotional turmoil, resolve, and growth that occurs after an intense breakup. Just like their first album, Tyler and Ian were proud of the progress they had made after pouring months of hard work and creative energy into releasing Blues Gone Bad.
A few months later, the band made 2 big announcements. First, in August, they announced that Ashton was no longer interested in playing drums for American Music Standard. He would be leaving the band very shortly to pursue other musical interests and non-musical activities. The news came with mixed emotions. Ashton had provided his rhythmic skills and knowledge for two albums, several concerts, and countless other projects since joining the band in 2010. But he knew it was the right thing to do. Being Ian's brother, he offered to play as a backup drummer for a few more shows, but eventually the band would need to find a new drummer. To avoid any downtime, they started searching right away and auditioned someone that same weekend. Even though the audition went well, the new drummer had not committed to joining the band yet, so the search was not over.
In the wake of Ashton leaving and looking for a new drummer, Tyler and Ian made a second announcment. Dan Walters, Tyler's close friend who had been practicing with the band for a few months, was finally joining the band full-time as a multi-instrumentalist including bass guitar, keyboard, and backup vocals.
In September, the band played at a small local festival in Memphis. Ashton filled in on drums, and it was Dan's first time performing live with the band. The show was fun and the band sounded great, but after that, things suddenly began to slow down. The band knew Ashton was leaving soon, and they discovered that Dan's time with the band was limited because he was moving to California eventually. Not long after that, Tyler told Ian he had received a job opportunity and would be moving to Florida. With the members going their separate ways, Tyler and Ian knew it would be difficult to run a successful band. But, perhaps due to a bit of false hope and wishful thinking, they never officially announced a break up or hiatus…
2014 – 2017
For almost 4 full years, there seemed to be nothing but radio silence from the band. But in July of 2015, Ian quietly began working on a new recording project with Ashton, who offered to help Ian by laying down some drum tracks.
With drums recorded, Ian began to record bass, guitar, vocals, and piano. But Ian was working full-time and experiencing some major life changes. Throughout the course of 2015, Ian changed jobs, got married, and moved into a new house. The house provided a great opportunity to set up a new home studio, but unlike previous albums, he didn't have the usual help from Tyler. This, combined with everything else going on in Ian's life, forced the recording process to be put on hold for months at time, over and over again. Despite the interruptions, Ian was persistent. He had a vision for a 6 song EP that featured a mixture of older material he had written with Tyler which they had never officially released, and newer material that Ian wrote on his own.
Finally in spring of 2017, he had made enough progress to reveal this project to Tyler. In the meantime, Tyler had changed jobs, had another daughter, and moved to Georgia. But they still kept in touch and hung out occasionally when Tyler came in town to visit old friends and family. It was during one of these visits that Ian and Tyler got lunch and discussed the EP. Ian invited Tyler to join him and help finish the project.
That summer Ian began mixing and mastering. He was joined by Ashton, who acted as the assistant audio engineer. They could finally see the project coming to an end, so, to complement the release of the EP, they also decided to revamp the band website with a new design and fresh content. After sitting on half-finished material for over 2 years, Ian finally sent Tyler the final, mastered versions of the songs. The album became known as Reminisce, a name that Ian felt reflected it's musical style and lyrical themes, which covered topics such as nostalgia, uncertainty about the future, growing up, and returning home. Tyler was thrilled with the results and they made plans to release it as soon as possible.
Ashton in the recording booth, laying down Reminisce drum tracks on July 26th, 2015
Reminisce was released online on December 31st, 2017 alongside the new band website.
And that's how the band got where it is today. American Music Standard has big plans for 2018, including new music, new shows, and much more…