June 7, 2009, 8:00pm
The Summit
2210 Summit St.
(614) 268-9377
$8 in advance / $10 at door
Ages 18+, under 21 pays $2 surcharge at door
White Rabbits
http://www.myspace.com/whiterabbits
At first, it’s easy to mistake the White Rabbits for just another set of New York City dance-rock hipsters in the Clap Your Hands Say Yeah tradition, but a second look reveals a quirkier and more rewarding aesthetic. A sextet featuring two drummers and a piano player, the White Rabbits refer to their music as “honky tonk calypso,” and their cheerful blend of calypso, reggae and ska rhythms, plus secondhand music hall influences and big pop hooks, strongly recalls vintage Madness circa “Our House” and the moodier, more experimental side of the Specials and Fun Boy Three, via Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. The White Rabbits began in Columbia, MO, in 2004, when college students Greg Roberts and Stephen Patterson bonded while working at a local record store. Moving to New York in 2005, Roberts (vocals and guitar) and Patterson (vocals, piano and percussion) fleshed out the White Rabbits with guitarist Alex Even, bassist Adam Russell and dual drummers Matt Clark and Jamie Levinson. Signing with Say Hey Records in the U.S. and Young Turks Records in Great Britain, the White Rabbits connected with hot New York indie producer Chris Zane (Asobi Seksu, Les Savy Fav) to record their debut album Fort Nightly. Preceded by the dramatic first single “The Plot,” Fort Nightly was released in the summer of 2007. - ©1992-2009 All Media Guide, LLC
The Subjects
http://www.myspace.com/thesubjects
The members of indie rock band the Subjects met in a Manhattan high school while two were teachers (Dave Sheinkopf, Joe Smith) and two were students (Jimmy Carbonetti, Matt Iwanusa). After the students graduated, the band began playing gigs at bowling alleys and coffeehouses, while issuing a self-released EP in spring 2004. For the first LP they recorded in a basement in Maryland in summer 2006, resulting in With the Ease Grace Precision and Cleverness of Human Beings via Pretty Activity Records in February 2007. - ©1992-2009 All Media Guide, LLC
U.S. Royalty
http://www.myspace.com/USRoyalty
The able men of D.C.’s U.S. Royalty did their thing at Piano’s on Tuesday night. There’s a lot of talent between the four of them, and their drummer, the dapper Luke Adams, has Pro Tools chops which means the band is usually putting down ideas in their Chinatown studio as they please. The last time I saw these guys they headlined Hiro Ballroom, which was a great feat, but they also fit the bill as a bar band surprisingly well, and Piano’s was a pretty perfect venue for them to play their 2-week “residency.” What didn’t change from last time, however, was the string of excited girls in the front. Catch them at one of their DJ gigs and they’ll often spin remixes of their own jams as well as some probably-never-to-be-released mixes of some classics. (They spin somewhat regularly in D.C. and recently got remix treatment by Passion Pit’s Ayad under his Bo Flex project). Also, their lead singer, John Thornley, has energy, in voice and in bodily stamina, that would make most frontmen envious. And when he’s not seated at the keys, he prances the stage. A lot.
U.S. Royalty has all the makings of a great band and with two EPs under their belt, they are currently writing their first full-length. We’re waiting for it and we’ll keep you posted. - The Tripwire, Rez Avissar