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"They don’t sound like anyone else. At all. Or at any point."

"500 Miles To Memphis have constructed something wonderful here."

"“Blessed Be The Damned”? Hell, yes. The Devil always has more fun, you see, and damn me, this is good." - Andy Thorley, Maximum Volume Music

"Blessed has so many catchy songs, it’s easy to find yourself tapping your feet along with the groove instead of taking notes or writing a review, and nearly impossible to find a favorite. In short, if you like rock, you’ll like this album. The mean mountain riff of the title track, the 90s punk of “No Doubt About It,” the bluegrass-cum-cowpunk of “In My Chest” – the album is just good from front to back and might be 500 MTM’s best yet." - Brandon Wheeler, CincyMusic.com

"Guitars crunch madly, spurred to high gallopby the same splendidly indomitable beat that's always propelled rock'n'roll. And robust vocals make fine topping for sometimes Celtic-informed "Americana Punk"-DC Larson's Jukebox

"this bunch blows their sound wide open as this sounds nothing like the last 4 entries. Aggression is always in fashion and the malcontent vets brought in as ringers here know how to turn it up to 11." -MidwestRecord

“500 miles to Memphis is a great American rock band that has been making infectious roots and punk music for years while managing to stay under the radar of the mainstream. This new record is everything that is good about rock ‘n’ roll.” - Ryan Smith (Soul Asylum, The Melismatics)

The Grove is a Cincinnati based rock band that draws from an impressive range of influences to forge their hard-hitting, yet emotive, signature sound. 

Built around the songs of lead vocalist/guitarist Adam Forsthoefel, the band has been described as, "The Black Crowes meets The Red Hot Chili Peppers"; careful listeners will also hear shades of everything from Stevie Ray Vaughan to the Killers. 

The Grove’s origins were in the band SomeDaze, started by Forsthoefel and drummer Jeff Voegele, who attended high school together in Anderson, Ohio. SomeDaze quickly became one of the hot upcoming bands in Cincinnati, with performances at local clubs and festivals as well as several appearances on Cincinnati’s local news channel Fox 19. While the band’s reputation grew, Forsthoefel became known in his own rite as a local guitar phenomenon. He was regularly invited to open Cincinnati Reds games at the Great American Ball Park with his rendition of the national anthem, and made the rounds doing interviews for local radio stations and NPR. 

After High School, Forsthoefel and Voegele moved to Athens, OH to attend Ohio University, where they started playing with local Athens players at venues such as Jackie O’s and The Union. Eventually they joined with members of the band Standing on Friday, and rehearsals began at their house on Grosvenor Street. These rehearsals at “The Grove” started becoming informal shows; it wasn’t long before the band that was born there became a mainstay of the Athens music scene, releasing their debut CD “Procuriosity” in December of 2012. In addition to playing in Athens, The Grove made frequent trips back to Cincinnati, playing local music festivals and at the famed Fountain Square. 

When Forsthoefel and Voegele returned to Cincinnati after graduation, they decided to keep The Grove alive and added new members to replace those it had left in Athens-Adam’s brother Matthew Forsthoefel on keyboards, and bassist Matt Holt (Bolt) holding down the low end. They then quickly got to work re-introducing themselves to the Cincinnati scene, playing local buzz rooms like The Northside Tavern, Bogarts, Madison Theater, Stanley's Pub, and The Backstage Café. The band continues to write and record new music while winning new fans with their energetic live show and solid musicianship.