The artists formerly known as Omnisoul

The Crash Motive, an all-UD-alumni band that’s been a Delaware favorite since it began performing as Omnisoul several years ago, has been on a roll of national attention, with an album released in October and some air time during Super Bowl XLII in February.

Front man Derek Fuhrmann, AS ’04, inspired by listening to such bands as Radiohead, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, began playing guitar as a UD freshman and soon teamed up with more experienced musicians to form Omnisoul. Keyboardist Jaime Orlando, AS ’03, joined Fuhrmann first, followed by Josh Berger, BE ’01, on bass; Tyler Ingersoll, BE ’01, on drums; and guitarist Shawn Manigly, BE ’05.

While still students, the five musicians began playing in the Newark, Del., area and won a University battle of the bands competition. Their song “Waiting (Save Your Life)” began topping the request charts on Delaware’s top-40 radio station and was later used in the 2005 Fantastic 4 movie.

Omnisoul changed its name to The Crash Motive last summer, and the band’s first album, Consequence, was released by Wind-Up Records in October. A review of the album in Drum! magazine says the band “demonstrates the sort of pop-with-power sensibility that career dreams are made of.”

“The Crash Motive is hot,” the review says, adding that the album “delivers more than its fair share of chart-potential tunes.”

The band has received other national attention through a football connection. The single “Not Giving Up” has been played on ESPN’s NFL Live, and about 20 seconds of it was heard on the telecast of the 2008 Super Bowl. The song also has been featured in promotions for NBC-TV’s Friday Night Lights, on the “Madden 2007” video game and at sports stadiums around the country. z