Hawthorne Heights want to "take rock music back"; beat the majors

With their sophomore full length, If Only You Were Lonely, due out tomorrow, Victory Records act Hawthorne Heights has made a call for fans to help "take rock music back." The email, sent to the hundreds of thousands on the band's mailing list, had this to say:

You buying our album tomorrow has much greater meaning than simply supporting Hawthorne Heights. ROCK music needs
your support. Our society and culture has put rock music on the backburner. If our album can debut at #1 all of us
will have taken ROCK music back to the top of the charts where it belongs. You might ask, how has ROCK been put on
the backburner? A current example is an artist that we are up against called Ne-Yo. Many people are saying that
Ne-Yo is going to outsell us because Ne-Yo has had a tremendous amount of over the top, mainstream media coverage.
His album will be in stores tomorrow. Radio has played his single 160,000 times. Our single has been played 3,800
times. We know that does not seem possible but it is the truth. Ne-Yo is on a major label. Hawthorne Heights is on
an independent label.

ROCK music needs to win tomorrow. Independent needs to beat Major tomorrow.

For the entire text of the message, click Read More.

Tomorrow, our second album, "If Only You Were Lonely" will be in stores. We are reaching out to you because
Hawthorne Heights can use your help. We need you, your friends and anyone else you know that likes ROCK music to
buy our album tomorrow. The only reason we are able to be a band is because of your support. Without you we would
not be able to do what we do.

You buying our album tomorrow has much greater meaning than simply supporting Hawthorne Heights. ROCK music needs
your support. Our society and culture has put rock music on the backburner. If our album can debut at #1 all of us
will have taken ROCK music back to the top of the charts where it belongs. You might ask, how has ROCK been put on
the backburner? A current example is an artist that we are up against called Ne-Yo. Many people are saying that
Ne-Yo is going to outsell us because Ne-Yo has had a tremendous amount of over the top, mainstream media coverage.
His album will be in stores tomorrow. Radio has played his single 160,000 times. Our single has been played 3,800
times. We know that does not seem possible but it is the truth. Ne-Yo is on a major label. Hawthorne Heights is on
an independent label.

ROCK music needs to win tomorrow.

Independent needs to beat Major tomorrow. If all of you
take action we can create history. The mainstream media may not choose to fully embrace this ROCK band from
Dayton, Ohio but all of you have. No one can take that away from us. It cannot be bought because it comes from the
heart. That is what makes us different. Your support means everything to us and is the most valuable thing that we
have. You are the people that we depend on. This is as much about you as it is about us. You hear our voices every
night. Now, we need to hear yours. You see us at our merch table every night. We need to see you in the stores
tomorrow. We cannot come out on top without you. Passion and music with real meaning has a chance to beat out what
the media forces down our throats. No one expects us to win. We need to prove them wrong. They underestimate us.
Please help us create history tomorrow. This is a `call to arms', a `battle cry', not just for Hawthorne Heights
but for all of the other great ROCK bands and independent labels that we all love. All of us deserve this and it
is something that we can do together.