I recently met with the long-haired (well, mostly) rock Gods of Statesboro's Rising Tide, a hard rock band that originated in September 2013 with the band's front-runner, lead vocalist and guitarist, Grant. Actually some of you may know Grant, if not by name then by his signature air guitar jamming around campus. He's somewhat of a GSU myth and legend. The rest of the band follows suit — Cody on guitar, Aaron on the drums, Nick on guitar and keyboard and Devin on bass and back-up vocals.

Members of Rising Tide from left to right: Aaron, Nick, Grant, Cody and Devin.

The guys, just like all the bands I've spoken to in this process, were friendly, personable and seem to genuinely care, both about music and people in general. When I asked what their goals for Rising Tide included, the first thing they said was "to make more and better music for everyone." Though they identify as a hard rock band with some heavy leanings, they want to make sure they make music everyone can enjoy, and make everyone feel comfortable at their shows. "We don't care who you are; black, white, gay straight, or anything else, we want you there and having fun," Cody said about their shows.

Cody's aspirations include always being a band. "Ever since I was a little kid, I've always wanted to be on stage."

I asked the guys what got them into music, and their answer was both entertaining and surprising. For the majority of the members, games like Guitar Hero and Rock band are what spawned their love for music.

"After playing drums in the game, I asked my mom for a drum set," Says Aaron.

Some of the band's "worst" experiences have thankfully mostly been composed of technical difficulties, but apart from those they have been well-received by their audiences and the bands they have played with. They credit their best shows to the audience getting into the music and actively showing their support. Rising Tide has actually played a show with the band previously featured in this series!

Grant, Air Guitar Hero, also loves to write, and often writes movie reviews on his Facebook page.

Being in a band has helped the guys grow as a family and as individuals. Nick has learned communication issues, and Grant and Cody speak about the feeling of being successful. Grant mentioned the best experience is getting great feedback from the audience from songs they wrote, and it inspires the group to get better and to write more. The fellows in Rising Tide also take pride in the fact they don't fight as a band; at most, they poke fun at each other like brothers.

Nick can rap all the lyrics to Straight Outta Compton.

Rising Tide doesn't currently have any albums out, but they are working on an EP, expected sometime this summer and have a wealth of ideas for the progression of the band in the next year — so, definitely keep your eyes turned to the Tide for all your hard rock needs.

"You haven't seen anything yet," Says Devin, when asked if Rising Tide had anything to say about their fans.

The photo shoot with the guys was a lot of fun, they're all hilarious and super easy to get along with.

If you want to learn more about Rising Tide, you can check out their Facebook for upcoming shows and information on their future EP release!