Southwest has been good to Lions

South by Southwest has been good to Lions. In 2008, the band not only scored a management deal from Steve Hutton/Uppercut Management at the conference, but also secured a synch license to make its song "Metal Heavy Lady" a playable track in "Guitar Hero 3."

"We made friends with the Activision guy after a few beers at some stupid after-party somewhere in Austin. I guess we make friends easily," vocalist/guitarist Matt Drenik says with a laugh. "Metal Heavy Lady" has gone on to sell 3,000 downloads, according to Nielsen SoundScan. "We were the little band that can."

The Austin-based crew combines '70s hard rock and psych elements, perfected by veteran artists like Alice Cooper, with buzzing, stoner guitar riffs and Drenik's strong wail. His speak-singing on songs like "Start Movin' " and the title track from the album "No Generation" have earned comparisons to Rage Against the Machine.

The band released "Start Movin' " in late 2007 but decided to rerelease it in late 2008 to capitalize on increased exposure from "Guitar Hero." From there, it secured synch licenses on Showtime's "Californication" and placed several songs in the new FX series "Sons of Anarchy." Michael Fey from Chime Entertainment recently joined the team to find more licensing opportunities.

While synchs are helping line the band's pockets, Lions considers its impressively tight live show to be its bread and butter. With help from day-to-day manager Jeff Sackman, the band has toured with Toadies, Blue Cheer and Local H and opened for such bands as the Misfits, Russian Circles and Early Man. After finishing a follow-up to "No Generation," the band plans on touring the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe, with booking help from the Helter Skelter Agency and publicity from Duff Press.

Contact: Jeff Sackman, manager, jeffsackman@gmail.com; Steve Hutton, manager, stevehutton@earthlink.netWilliam Fitzsimmons has signed to Downtown Recordings imprint Mercer Street, which will release his album "The Sparrow and the Crow" May 31 . . . Chris Pureka released her "Chimera" EP Jan. 20 . . . The Noises synched 10 songs in "One Tree Hill" and "The City" in January.