I had been
listening to The Energy this week, getting ready to write this, and yesterday
saw a tweet from Gone By Daylight, another band, about going to the Jimmy Eat
World concert with James (Clifford, The Energy's bass player). I found that
cool. I like Jimmy Eat World, and they put on a great show.
Also, with no clear
reason for it, The Energy's song "American Disaster" reminds me of
the Gin Blossoms' "Don't Change For Me", and someone else had
recently suggested a Gin Blossoms/ Jimmy Eat World tour (both bands originated
in Arizona), and I would pay to see that. Usually that's an expression, but
literally, I would totally buy a ticket to that. (Gin Blossoms are currently on
the road with Sugar Ray, Smash Mouth, and Vertical Horizon.)
My point, rambling
though it may be, is that I enjoy this camaraderie between musicians, where
band members are not too cool to like other bands, or get excited about a show.
It keeps them human. The Energy (who lists Vertical Horizon in their
"Influences" section) may not be well-known, but are very much pros
in this fellowship, logging thousands of miles and hundreds of venues.
You can tell. They
sound professional. Footage of them at the Gramercy Theater shows them looking
very comfortable. They know what they're doing. They could use a bigger
audience. And more gigs.
The band's Facebook
page is a great place to start, with 9 tracks, 4 videos, and some photos. The
only regular video is for "Go To Girl", which works pretty well for
the content. Then there is the previously-mentioned performance, as well as two
lyric videos, for "Free" and "American Disaster". The lyric
video for "Free" suits the tone better, but there are come clever
pairings in the slide show for "American Disaster".
Musically, I love
"American Disaster" the most. It builds and feels upbeat, while
nonetheless being about failure. Perhaps its natural follow-up is "Hanging
On", though I am also pretty fond of "Until I Fall". The lyrics
are smart, often going somewhere other than you would expect. There is a bit of
a tendency towards the carnal.
The genre is pretty
much rock, but with a good range. "Free" is very funky, with a
possible gospel influence. Having gone through the nine songs several times, it
sounds to me as if each song has its own texture, which I appreciate, and there
are some very decent guitar solos. They're a solid band. They deserve their
audience.
Music is available
on iTunes.
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