THREE HARD WORKING MIDWESTERNERS AND A SWEDE JAM AT UNIVERSAL CITYWALK – AND WIND UP WITH THEIR FIRST INDIE RECORD DEAL AND ‘ANOTHER HEARTBREAK’ GOING TO TOP 40 RADIO

It’s just a bit ironic that the super-infectious, high-energy pop rock single that marks the emergence of Hobart Ocean (www.hobartocean.com) is called “Another Heartbreak.”

Because as Top 40 listeners across the country groove to the single this fall – it is shipping to the format nationwide in September – they’ll be caught up in the beautiful romance these four fun, super interesting, L.A. transplants have been sharing with thousands of fans at Universal CityWalk this past year. No doubt they’ll also run to download the cool new Hobart Ocean app that the band has developed and made available on iTunes.

And when fans hear the whimsical story of how three small town Illinois musicians  hooked up with a Swedish drummer in L.A., scored a plum residency at the famed outdoor entertainment venue and were serendipitously discovered and signed by upstart indie label Swift Endeavor, they’ll realize that any notion of disappointment and heartache have been put on permanent hold.

“Another Heartbreak” was written and recorded with a basic living room studio setup when frontman Travis Leonard, bassist Jaron Lancaster and lead guitarist Steven Hopkins were living together in a condo in Tarzana. The three met drummer Mattias Hagstrom after they moved from their small Illinois towns to L.A.; Mattias had moved to SoCal from a small town in Sweden to study drumming at Musicians Institute in Hollywood.

They later brought the fully produced demo they created to producer Jimmy Deer for mixing at a studio in Hollywood that once hosted sessions for Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin.

Jay Hu, a onetime marketing manager at Jive Records who is now Managing Director of Swift Endeavor, was hanging out with some colleagues at CityWalk when one of them walked over to hear Hobart Ocean as the band dug into Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle.”

Hu says, “There were many factors that excited me about the band and eventually led us to sign them. Their songs and presentation were captivating. Travis was capable of making me believe that he was already someone famous. We love the passion and drive they bring to everything. They’re the perfect combination of talent and spark.”