25 Feb 11

Hey, blogspot readers, after dinner with a dinosaur, it was time to party at Elbo Room! Both floors of this popular Lakeview venue were in full swing with rockin' music when SouthSide arrived. Upstairs, her friends - The Real Jane Martin was entertaining fans and guests with songs and more as part of their North Of Nowhere CD release show. Meanwhile, downstairs, friends - A Friend Called Fire performed a unique show by covering themselves in celebration of the band's 3rd anniversary (plus they provided yummy nacho bean dip and chips for everyone to munch on). Also included in this lineup were friends, Along The Parallel (also debuting a CD) and Sonic Pistol as headliner.

SouthSide highly recommends checking out the alternative/acoustic duo known as The Real Jane Martin and their second CD, North Of Nowhere. Allan and Mark (along with a couple of special friends joining them on bass and harmonica) rocked the upstairs lounge of Elbo Room with a double set featuring a lively mix of classic and new songs. SouthSide enjoyed the vibrant energy heard from the lively harmonic sound and bass rhythms which perked up Jane's acoustic vibe ...giving the music more definition and a Blues tone (sometimes) especially during the instrumental bridges of certain songs. For example, the harmonic sound added some Blues to the ballad, Manhattan while in Another Day (with a few lines from Led Zeppelin's Going To California), the harmonics vividly added some hot spice within the downtempo groove. Even the closer, Eye Of The Tiger, retained that Rocky feel but under more of a soulful sound due to the mandolin rhythms woven into Jane's upbeat acoustic tempo. This reviewer also enjoyed how the harmonizing vocals (by Allan and Mark) painted vivid stories of the people highlighted in some of their songs yet also bringing out vibrant heartfelt emotions heard off the lyrics. Good example would be listening to Nine Miles in which the downtempo tone of this ballad wonderfully spotlighted Allan's falsettos in his voice ...or Better Than, where SouthSide heard him get truly emotional about a woman who seems to be an alluring mystery. Even during Jane's popular cover of Oops, I Did It Again (told from a male pov), there was less pop in his vocals but more heat and anger. Jane did a good job creating vibrant imagery as well from their lyrics like in the song, Manhattan (featuring Mark's spoken description of the bustling city brought to life during the chorus) or April (one can visually see the woman while listening to this song). Blogspot readers can expect a CD review on The Real Jane Martin's North Of Nowhwere but in the meantime, visit http://www.realjane.com or http://www.myspace.com/realjane for more information.


...thanks for cutting me off, Kyle... ~ Along The Parallel


It's been a long while since seeing this band rockin' the stage yet SouthSide felt honored witnessing one of their best shows to date, blogspot readers. Along The Parallel, also celebrating their debut CD release - Word Of Mind, packed their performance with more energy vibrantly heard in the music and vocals. This band dazzled and amazed the crowd with rip-roaring, hardcore riffs that kept heads banging to the melodic metal vibe. Check out ATP's Mercury In Retrograde (track 2) though the hardcore sound is a bit subdued, one can still hear the electric wizardry beating vibrantly inside the riffs during the instrumental bridge. Then switch to Marmoset Jones (track 4) where SouthSide's ears were completely immersed into the wicked metal-tastic guitar riffs. New song, Axiom (not on the CD) immediately hits you with a one-two punch without any intro yet watch out for the fiery guitar crescendo before blasting the ears with that ATP rock sound. If you truly want to do some serious headbanging action, blogspot readers, then listen to By The Way (track 5). Behind ATP's rockin' music, there's Mike (front man) pumping momentum as well as emotional angst into each song,. Every moment while on stage, he made the crowd feel the gut-wrenching screams from his voice ...not just hear them. His vocals did more than excite the fans' souls but also kept their heads banging to the metal sound especially when opening with Messiah's Anthem (track 3). However SouthSide believed Mercury In Retrograde was this front man's defining moment where he truly revealed that vulnerable side to himself vocally. The same could be said during the closing song, ATP (track 6) in which this reviewer felt the angst/frustration dripping from the lyrics. Blogspot readers can expect a CD review on ATP's Word Of Mind but in the meantime, visit http://www.atpband.com or http://www.myspace.com/alongtheparallel for more information.

Continuing where Along The Parallel ended, Sonic Pistol rocked out the lineup with one of their best performances as well, blogspot readers, This energetic metal/hardcore band wasted no time in kicking off their headlining set with a sonic BANG! However in SouthSide's eyes, this was a much stronger outting for the guys than their Double Door show two months ago. Minus one guitarist, Sonic easily rocked the Elbo Room stage harder with more umph vocally as well as musically that this reviewer could literally feel the angst/pain within Kurt's (Sonic's front man) voice. It was a real treat to see him expose his vulnerable side to the late night crowd which ultimately brought out the more in emotions inside the lyrics to songs like 9 Miles To Empty (SouthSide's favorite song) and Load. Kurt's vocal momentum certainly had not only the fans feeling his fiery fervor but also the band. SouthSide had never seen so much energy dispensed all over that the stage took a serious beating tonight, blogspot readers. So much in which Kurt had to stop in the middle of Load to catch his breath (and to introduce the band) before continuing. Besides other Sonic faves performed such as Redline and Still Breathing, the band premiered an untitled song (with few improvised lyrics)that had fans enjoying the rockin' guitar sound. This reviewer believes Sonic has finally found its rock niche and hopes to see more spectacular performances like this one ...the guys definitely gave this crowd one helleva show! Visit http://www.myspace.com/sonicpistol for more details when and where Sonic Pistol will be rockin' the stage again.


Until next time, support your local scene,
SouthSide