Echelon

There are two bands called Echelon; Echelon,an Indie/Alternative band from Essex in the United Kingdom and echelon, a metal band from GONZALES, Louisiana United States Myspace.com/echelon.

Echelon, United Kingdom

This band split in 2006 and members moved on to form Magistrates

Guitarist Mark Brandon and vocalist Paul Usher met at an early age and played together in various lineups, however became serious about a career as a band following the recruitment of drummer Andrew Grant. Following a series of local gigs, the band caught the ear of rock legend Alan McGee in early 2004 who would subsequently sign the band to his Poptones label later that year.

The band gained momentum, supporting bands such as The Others and The Boxer Rebellion and doing their own headline tour surrounding the release of their first single Plus. The single received airplay from renowned DJs such as Steve Lamacq and Tom Robinson, who made it single of the week on his BBC 6 Music evening show. The single also received airplay from XFM where the band did a live session. The debut single Plus was released on the 8th November to positive reviews, and charted at Number 57 in the Official Charts, a great accomplishment for a relatively unknown band.

Cited as the 'kid brothers' of Radiohead, Echelon moved into 2005 touring consistently and recording the follow up to Plus and filming the corresponding video. After an appearance at Glastonbury the delayed follow up single Windows Shut/This Room (a double A-Side) was released on 17th October. Although appreciated by Radio One DJ Zane Lowe the single failed to match the airplay of the debut, reaching number 12 in the Indie Charts.

echelon from GONZALES, Louisiana United States

The spark to this flame initiated when Peter Kingsley (vox) and Mclain (guitar) joined up to pass time in the most anti-social way possible, writing metal. This duo intersected with Pif (guitar) soon after his migration to Baton Rouge, LA. This new trio shared such an immeasurable passion for music that cohesion was instantaneous. The foundation was assembled. After a whirlwind of possible drummers and bassists, Chad Besse was inducted on drums and Heath (a former band mate of Pif) controlled the bass. Initially the group focused solely on practice and progressing, yet without even playing a show they had a fan base spreading like wildfire simply due to word-of-mouth. Soon after the first few local shows, bands had invited Echelon to play numerous shows in Louisiana and Mississippi. So many invitations were given that Echelon went a nearly four months before they were free to bring their unstoppable energy home to Baton Rouge.

After the departure of their drummer, friend, and brother Chad Besse, Echelon tried tirelessly to fill Chad's shoes. After a short stint with a temporary drummer, Echelon found Iowa native, Aaron Wells, and offered him the position as the new drummer. Based on their ever expanding tidal wave of a reputation for blowing crowds away and impressing local and national bands alike, Wells uprooted and moved to Baton Rouge to join the metal cartel. Wells brought with him a powerful drive and level of determination, as well as, a fresh new way of looking at Echelon as a whole. Since his incorporation, Echelon has continued their assault. With a unique new line-up, Echelon is now touring on their newly released Negative Space EP, writing new material, and striving to have the most entertaining, energetic live performance metal has ever seen.