Judge for Building Rome

They say Rome wasn't built in a day, and Jon Heisserer would probably agree. As the vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter of St. Louis-based Building Rome, Heisserer has been working to promote his brand of bipolar, verge-of-insanity pop rock since the band was formed in 2003. After six years of writing, recording, playing shows, and promoting relentlessly, they have amassed some amazing results. Building Rome has recorded three albums and an EP, developed a mailing list of over 7,200 fans, played sold out shows at 1,000+ capacity venues, opened for Fall Out Boy on their “Thnks Fr Th Mmrs” tour, and have statistics on MySpace.com and Myxer.com that rival some major label acts.

For Building Rome's latest album, Nightmare, Heisserer's "unique way of writing quirky pop songs" (Riverfront Times) caught the ear of Steven Haigler (Fuel, Brand New, Pixies), who signed up to produce and mix the album during April of 2009. Several local and nationally-recognized artists appear on the album, including Tim Convy and Tim Ferrell from Ludo (Island/Def Jam). In addition, two of the songs that appear on the album were co-written with Ted Bruner (Katy Perry, Bowling for Soup, Plain White T's).

Along the way, Heisserer has found a group of solid musicians to complete the band. Brandon Armour (guitar), Tom Butler (guitar), and Brian Porter (drums) bring a new perspective to the music and live show. "Brian is the most solid drummer I've ever played with, Tom's backup vocals are amazing, and Brandon is an excellent guitar player. It’s really great to find people who are just as dedicated as I am to making it in the music business," notes Heisserer. “It’s been a long road, but we know that only good things can come in the future, no matter what it takes or how long.”