Having stumbled in half-way through the set Thursday night, I figured this was going to be a tough review to tackle. Two or three songs were enough for me to decide that I indeed enjoy the band, but that's not going to make for good copy! I had to get to the bottom of that question favored by three-year olds and smart-ass pre-teens: "Why?"
There was something strikingly familiar to everything Low Vs. Diamond was about on stage. Having spent most of my teenage years sneaking out and going to shows, I've developed quite the soft spot for the hard-working indie rock touring bands, which summer evenings so often yield. These guys had the look down pat: brooding and unassuming musicians backing up a brooding and . . . adequately assuming front man; the right amount of sweaty t-shirts and no-press button ups; tight pants which simply must be shared among band mates; and tactfully varied hair and facial hair styles accentuating each bandmate's individualité. I felt as if I were seeing my old friends in their bands on their tours, stopping through their home town on the way to Colorado -- only all grown up.
Just as grown up as the rockers themselves was the performance. With clear love for each song, these fellas have figured out what works in their vein of music and perfected it. They play equally for the crowd as for one another. Complete with frets-to-keys musician switcharoos, strong lead vocals, gorgeous little harmonies, a nice mix of grunge, pristine, and rockin' guitar sounds, they've worked out the kinks most bands don't realize exist.
There is something to be said for a group of guys in an up-and-coming band who are nice to boot. Nostalgia reared its head once again on my way out the door as I offered up my last dollar as a donation toward gas, booze, clean socks or coffee, and was prepared to go home happy when one of the band members tugged on my arm and offered me a CD.
After listening to the album a couple times and recounting my evening, I offer my final review:
Good show, solid CD, marketable sound. I look forward to seeing them in Pemberton and I've got designs on hearing them on the radio a few months down the line.
