By RAYME SAMUELS

Spooky, soothing and exotic are the sounds you hear when our Band of the Hour takes the stage.

Fight Like Animals wants to make sure that all consumers of its music are well fed and having fun. Named after an inspirational yet graphic painting of two animals fighting for their lives, this act is clawing its way to the forefront of the Miami music scene. Things were jumpstarted for FLA as they quickly earned a record deal with Granny Annie Records just mere months after finishing their first few songs, along with an endorsement deal from Gibson. Starting out as a duo, the band has now one sole member, the mysterious and creative Rostislav "Steve" Vaynshtok.

Spooky, soothing and exotic all at the same time, Steve’s music feeds off of the sweet energy that Miami audiences can bring, and he easily admits that the city has had a profound impact on his sound. He is also big on music coming out of San Diego right now, along with older sounds like Frank Zappa and Black Sabbath and even Jamaican reggae and dancehall, including Marley and Capleton.

Mastering syncopation techniques to make music a dynamic experience for the listener, his creations represent a power struggle often between rhythm and strong leading sounds. "I feel like every song is something special and they’re so engrossing for me to play, I just hope people can feel the song, crawl inside it, stand up and just look around at this temple I’ve built them," he said.

Spouting self proclaimed hippie ideals, Steve wants to use his music to generate not only new ways of thinking but also financial resources to fund charities and organizations around the world dedicated to alleviating pressing causes including civil, human and animal rights. Be on the lookout for the release of the single Drywall Canyon which was scheduled for an April release along with a 5 track EP shortly thereafter. A full album is in the works, to be released in early 2011.

Visit Fight Like Animals online at www.grannieannierecords.com.