Closed Campus

Closed Campus released their second studio album, "First Thought at Midnight." I must say the featured video on their Facebook page does send a message: Don't let the storms in your life stop you from reaching your goals. The song title is "LOST IN A STORM". Fabulous beat filled with smooth vocals and guitar riffs. I'm telling you #GasmNation this is a band that will be a force to be reckoned with, click on the link below to watch the video and follow the links on the page to download more of the Closed Campus songs. - Multimgasgeek

Closed Campus is a band that believes in making the most of each moment you have in life in order to reach your full potential whilst working hard and having fun along the way. The Texas-based rock trio got their name from Mora always seeing ‘Closed Campus’ signs around his high school. It was a name that Mora added to his growing list of potential band names. In March 2010 though, he was to perform with a few friends at a party and when the DJ went to introduce them, he told Mora that Closed Campus was a good one in amongst the collection. It was a combination of that DJ’s introduction and the response Mora got from others when he mentioned the name that made it feel right. Closed Campus also acts as a metaphor for how people can think sometimes. The traditional meaning of closed campus refers to not allowing students to leave during the hours of the day when they should be learning. Band-wise, Mora believes that “…people should not limit themselves in any aspect of their lives and be open-minded by allowing thoughts to come in and out of their minds while they learn about all the lessons that this world has to offer”. This directly relates back to Mora’s description of Closed Campus.Mora takes influence from bands like KISS, AC/DC, Aerosmith, Van Halen, Weezer, Everclear and Distortion – he listens to just about everything from 90s alternative to 50s rock. This diversity in influences comes through most strongly in his song writing for Closed Campus. Borrego brings in the influence of indie bands and artists in the electronic and dance music area whilst Irby enjoys listening to bands such as The Maine, Korn and Linkin Park. Their different tastes in music helps make Closed Campus creates a rich and textured rock sound.

The band released a track called Queen that Mora wrote in 2010 inspired by how he was feeling during that time in his life. He elaborates “I was experiencing first-handed how easy it was to act on crazy ideas when you’re in love”. The song and the accompanying video tells the story about a young couple who are tired of everyone’s opinions about their relationship. They decide to run away to Vegas to elope and freely live their lives. It is based around a fantasy that Mora shared with someone in an older relationship. Meanwhile, their self-titled album has songs about love, the world, hope, new beginnings and just having fun.

Closed Campus has been lucky enough to perform in many places, including an arena show. The release of their album was also a great accomplishment. Their most memorable moments as band though are when they get the opportunity to speak with a fan. Mora adds “there is nothing like meeting someone who knows the words to your songs and wants to take the time to meet you”. It is one of the best feelings in the world for Mora and it makes performing so much better. The trio are keen to travel around much more and perform to as many people as they can after all meeting new people from all over is in a word – fun. With not much left of the year, Closed Campus will continue to perform around Texas as well as working on recording their next album. Mora and his band mates love making people happy so they plan to keep doing that the best way they know – playing music. - Australian Musician Network

What was the ambitions of the band when you started? We really wanted to perform anywhere we could and make people happy.

Could you explain your music to someone that has not heard you? Our music is a mix of many types of influences. You will hear hard rock, alternative rock, punk rock, acoustic, and indie sounds.

Who writes your songs?/ who writes the music who writes lyrics? Generally, we (Rob and Angel) will write songs in the band. It goes back and forth. We constantly show each other new ideas for songs that we have and just take it from there.What are your songs about? We have songs about freedom, running away, love, partying, hope, etc. Many of the songs we write are usually inspired by some events in our lives.

Do you write your own material or mainly covers? We write our own material and love doing covers as well! Sometimes we add our own twist to the covers and have fun with them.

Have you made any albums?/If yes what are they? We released our self – titled album in 2012 and are in the process of making another!

Do you have any clips on YouTube?

Yes, you can find several hours of live performances, cover videos, music videos, and vlogs at our YouTube channelBest/worst gig you've played? We ' re dead serious when we say that every gig up to now has been amazing! There is nothing like playing your songs in front of an audience. It's tough to say if we have ever played a bad show. We just have too much of a good time and we don't try to be too perfect on stage. We give it our best and that is something you can always expect. However, there was that one time when our car almost exploded while we were playing....if you come see us play, we will be more than happy to tell you about it!

What places will you be playing in in the future? We will actually be performing at The Flying Walrus in McAllen, TX with DeRosa Promotions on November 6, 2014. They have been awesome to us!

What are the plans for the rest of the year? We will continue to perform around Texas and finish working on our new album.

How do you get psyched up for a gig? We usually enjoy hanging out with each other and blasting music as loud as possible before a gig. We get it in our mind that no matter where we are playing, it is a big deal and that we will perform as if its the last time we are ever going to.

What are your goals with your music? We want to continue making music for our fans and we want to perform at as many places possible.

Is it easier to get your inspiration from older bands or from bands more modern? We love listening to bands from the 1950s all the way to today's modern bands. In fact, we find inspiration from all types of music, no matter the time placement.

What are your sources of inspiration? There are many! It can be the people that have millions of reasons to be sad, but yet, are able to focus on the good in their lives and live each day to their fullest. It could also be when we go to a great rock show and are reminded as to why we started playing music in the first place.

What's the first step when making a new song? We usually always start writing songs with an idea for lyrics and then we move towards a recycled riff that we've kept and then we combine the two.

Besides your own music, what genres and bands do you listen to? We love listening to many types of bands and genres! Oldies, classic rock, alternative, punk, electronic, techno, country, metal, and indie! Some bands that we really love are band such as The Strokes, Social Distortion, Sex Pistols, Goo Goo Dolls, KISS, The Maine, Korn, Linkin Park, Johnny Cash, Everclear and more!

What do you hold most dear? We love making music and we are truly thankful that we get to perform for people when we get the chance. Making the most of each moment and giving our audience the best show possible is something we hold close to us.

When you are on stage, what do you fear most then? We are honestly the most scared in our lives when we are not on stage! The stage is simply where we feel safe.

What would you do if there was no music? Run away and hide....and then sooner or later come up with other ways to make the world a happier place!

How important are your fans? They are VERY important! We care about what they think and we constantly listen to what they have to say. We appreciate everyone that has ever listened to us and taken the time to see us perform. They have no idea how much that means!Describe your show, visually and musically We always strive to have an exciting and artistic show. We love paying attention to detail, where objects are placed on stage, lighting cues, and how we want the audience to feel in certain parts of the songs.

Do you have anything to add? Thanks again to everyone who has supported Closed Campus and we hope to see you and your friends at a show soon! - ROBEX LUNDGREN

Closed Campus — it’s right there in the name. These guys tell youthful tales of ill-fated relationships, inner struggles and of course, boozy nights. The alternative-rock trio (with a healthy dash of punk)
They’ve played at venues throughout the RGV, including Simon Sez, The Flying Walrus and Jitterz Coffee Bar among others. They’ve also played at Headhunters in Austin. You can catch them live tonight at Music After Hours at Archer Park in McAllen. “Took a Piece of My Heart” showed the vocalist’s punk roots, and seemed very Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day. The song had a catchy hook, and the musicians are clearly talented.“Starting Over” opened with frenetic power chords, and was reminiscent of Foo Fighters. I enjoyed the solo — it was odd and playful, and took me by surprise. This was a fun and energetic album to listen to. With a little maturing, I’ll be interested to find out what their next album sounds like. - The Monitor

Closed Campus opens up about the band in the review from RGV Music Mag. Link for full article. - RGV Music Mag

McAllen band Closed Campus plays a blend of hard, punk, alternative, acoustic rock to create a sound all their own. Angel Mora, the mastermind behind creating the band, talks about how his dream of starting the band began during his senior year in high school. During that time he wrote songs and contemplated creating the band. A year later, in 2011, he met up with Rob Borrego, Ben Ybarra and Karlos Rossel and started playing gigs around McAllen.

To make a name for themselves, Closed Campus has played in Austin, Laredo and downtown McAllen spots like Thirsty Monkey and Flying Walrus. They recently added Yerberia Cultura to their venues list. As a strategic plan to stay fresh for their fans, the band has made a conscious effort to only play once or twice a month, so that fans would recognize the times they played as special events.

Another strategic move the band makes is to release singles about once a month, then release a collection of them in album format with one or two new bonus tracks. Because they write and produce their own music, they are able to control the message in each track. They bring the same dedication and independence to each music video on their website http://closedcampusunlocked.com/music. While they know people who can assist in making videos, they prefer to produce their own and use them as a means to promote the narrative arc in the original song.

Currently, the band is promoting their latest album “First Thought at Midnight.” The title that was inspired by the group members’ insomnia and the fact that each track was written in the middle of the night. A band for millennials, Closed Campus shows the love for their fans by providing the single tracks on their website free of charge. Those interested in seeing them live can find their schedule on their web page or follow them on Facebook @ClosedCampus. - RGV Metroleader