Emporia's Radio City would claim it plays rock and roll. No "indie" this or "alt" that, just plain rock music. And that proves both charming and a hindrance. The band's debut EP, Tonight's Not The Night, is promising yet relies too heavily on modern-rock songwriting tropes. With mostly repetitive, radio-friendly structures, the four songs tread over commonplace breakdowns, working in guitar solos that sound complacent. The group's stab at a ballad, "All Alright," is the most problematic track on the EP, exposing the major flaws of this relatively young band. The song emphasizes the averageness of lead singer Eric Brendan Murphy's voice, and the harsh vocal harmonies aren't helped by the sloppy mixing job. On the other hand, the demolike quality of Tonight's Not the Night gives it a lo-fi appeal that subverts the blandness of mainstream rock. The record also has a little alt-country inflection, which shows up on "Coming Down Easy," and though Murphy's voice comes up short of the notes he's going for, it's tightly constructed and damn near rollicking. It often sounds as if Radio City is shooting for the right of the dial, but the best moments here are reminiscent of rootsier indie bands, such as Lucero. Instead of cobbling together influences, however, Radio City should strike out on its own.
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my asumption would be that the author of this revue HAS NOT SEEN THIS BAND LIVE- i did last night at crosstown station,on a whim,mind you, and this is EASILY the BEST LIVE BAND from ANYWHERE AROUND HERE ive seen in a long time.
my huntch is the comments on the cd have more to do with the fact that it was probably done on a shoe string budget and of course the mix is shit(i actually havent even heard it but that is fairly commonplace with a bunch of young kids recording a glorified demo?)
i think its safe to say this band could easily take over the top ranks of the great bands currently on the scene. they are part Replacements,part early Tom Petty and have all the hooks to leave you humming along all the next day-which i have done today which lead me to search and see if there was any info on them on pitch.com and here i am!!
RADIO CITY:please save ROCK AND ROLL in its true form.
my asumption would be that the author of this revue HAS NOT SEEN THIS BAND LIVE- i did last night at crosstown station,on a whim,mind you, and this is EASILY the BEST LIVE BAND from ANYWHERE AROUND HERE ive seen in a long time. my huntch is the comments on the cd have more to do with the fact that it was probably done on a shoe string budget and of course the mix is shit(i actually havent even heard it but that is fairly commonplace with a bunch of young kids recording a glorified demo?) i think its safe to say this band could easily take over the top ranks of the great bands currently on the scene. they are part Replacements,part early Tom Petty and have all the hooks to leave you humming along all the next day-which i have done today which lead me to search and see if there was any info on them on pitch.com and here i am!! RADIO CITY:please save ROCK AND ROLL in its true form.
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