Date Signed: January 2020
Label: N/A
Band Members: Victor Viramontes-Pattison, vocals; Jesse Frimmel, drums; Matthew Fowler, guitar
Type of Music: Pop-Rock / Alt-Rock
Management: Jacob McKay - Fly South, [email protected]
Booking: Jason Parent - APA, [email protected]
Legal: Bryan Christner - BKChristner, [email protected]
Publicity: Stephanie Estrada - Big Picture Media, [email protected]
Web: arrowsinaction.com, instagram.com/arrowsinaction
Gainesville, FL trio Arrows in Action formed in 2019 while the three members were undergraduates at the University of Florida. At the same time, vocalist Victor Viramontes-Pattison worked at the student-run label Swamp Records where he met local music habitué Jacob McKay. The others were familiar with McKay through his music photography work, and since they all knew, liked and respected him, he was invited to manage the band. He’d always operated independently, but in the summer of 2022 McKay was tapped to join management powerhouse Fly South and brought Arrows in Action along. Fly South oversees the affairs of bands including Paramore, the Linda Lindas and Falling in Reverse.
“We met Jacob [McKay] when he was taking photos of bands,” guitarist Matt Fowler recalls. “He was super-hungry, went to shows and offered his photo services. He was lightly managing a friend’s band, and I think that Jesse [Frimmel, drummer] suggested that we ask him to manage us. We didn’t have a ton of management experience, but we had a feeling about him. Also, we didn’t know any other managers. We liked him a lot. He was methodical and organized in everything he did. There’s no one I trust more in the world than Jacob.”
“I recognized his work ethic when we were both with Swamp Records,” Viramontes-Pattison adds. “He was on the programming team, but he went way beyond that and helped artists do other things. Based on that, we knew he could help [us].”
Visibility is often key and being seen in the scene can bolster credibility. “We were playing a show in Gainesville with a band that he managed,” Frimmel recollects. “He also did some photos for us.”
Although originally from Gainesville, Arrows in Action now makes its base in the Midwest music mecca of Nashville. Built To Last dropped on May 26 and the accompanying tour will be the first nationwide jaunt for the trio. “We’ve headlined before on some short runs, but this is our first full U.S. tour, with a bit of Canada,” Viramontes-Pattison explains. “We’re excited about it.” The band has released four EPs and as many singles, but Built To Last is its debut full-length record. – Rob Putnam
