Ryan Allen & His Extra Arms - Heart String Soul

Crunchy power pop par excellence." - Powerpopaholic "What the Replacements might have sounded like if Tommy Stinson had been their main singer and songwriter." - Pearl Before Swine "Instantaneous hooks and exuberant riffs." - Deep Cutz "[A] well-honed brand of '90s-tinged fuzzy-rocky-pop cartwheels." - Real Detroit Weekly "Hi guys. My name is Ryan. I play guitar and write songs. I've been doing it for a long time. There's a whole bunch of records in existence that I've written and/or played on, with bands that have silly names like Thunderbirds Are Now!, Friendly Foes, Red Shirt Brigade, and Destroy This Place. I even made a solo record back in 2011 where I played almost all of the instruments (guitar, bass, and all the drums). Some people really liked it. A few years ago, I decided to give the solo thing another go. I wrote a bunch of songs, started recording, and well... it didn't really work out. So I scrapped most of the songs, waited awhile, and then started over with a fresh set of new experiences under my belt. Starting last summer, I decided to try again and record it at my parents house in my dad's home studio. I recorded it with my dad Brad Allen engineering, my best friend Sean Sommer (Destroy This Place) on drums, and 11 very personal songs that I felt truly defined me as a songwriter and as a person. There are songs about my wife, my son, my family, my friends, and my time spent playing music over the past 15 or so years. It's a record that I could never have made at 21, 25, or even 30. I'm glad I waited until now. The songs feel right, and they come straight from my heart. After we finished recording the album, we sent it to Andy Reed (the Verve Pipe, An American Underdog) and he warmed it up with analog goodness for a stellar mixing and mastering session. I think it sounds great. Anyway, out of all the records I've made - under the pressure of labels, to try to remain relevant, or even just to say I could do it - I made this one for me. Lucky for you, you can have it, too.