Stars Go Dim

Hear it Now

Songs

Video

Come Around

You know that catchy song on Channel One News you can't get out of your head? If it has a trendy pop-rock sound with a side of soul-filled vocals, then your ears were feasting on a track by Stars Go Dim. But, then again you probably already know that since you voted for the band as the Hear It Now Artist of the Year.

If you haven't heard of Stars Go Dim, here's the dish: This Tulsa-based band emerged onto the music scene with the support of their MySpace fan base and their affection for posting videos. In fact, this foursome -- vocalist Chris Cleveland, guitarist Joey Avalos, bassist Michael Wittig, and drummer Lester Estelle -- started gathering fans before they had even recorded their first song.

Stars Go Dim cooked up interest in their music by making more than 13,000 friends in a few months on MySpace and documenting everything from writing songs to jam sessions. "So we came up with this idea, of building fans, though from day one with no music," bassist Michael Wittig told Tulsa Today. "We started videotaping everything. These guys would be writing songs and I'd be in their face, annoying them, taking pictures and stuff. But we were releasing that stuff constantly, so all these people were watching the whole thing evolve."

Despite this quirky beginning, the band is quickly becoming popular in places other than their MySpace page. In 2007, the band opened for acts like Switchfoot and Daughtry. They also shared the stage with The All-American Rejects, Paramore and The Roots.

In addition to this appetizing menu of gigs, Stars Go Dim released their first album in October 2008 and will release their second album, Love Gone on August 4, 2009.

Among their accolades like the Artist of the Year, Stars Go Dim also won the 8th Annual Listener's Choice Award from Country Music Television and the Nashville Songwriters Association. "We just love to write songs that make you want to sing-along," admits Avalos.

Yet these popular and award-winning lyrics didn't appear on the page magically. The artists created a dynamic between two fictional love-letter writers to inspire their songs from the first album. "It wasn't until I had written twelve or so songs that we realized what we had," says guitarist Joey Avalos. "It's really this intricate mess of a love story that will unfold itself with our full-length album."

Hungry for more Stars Go Dim? Be sure to check out the Hear It Now playlist, watch the "Come Around" music video and check out photos of the band below.

—Christa Fletcher