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Earl Greyhound: Comparisons to Zep puts pep in their step |
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Written by Kurt Brighton
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Friday, 07 September 2007 |
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 As anyone who has ever seen a Woody Allen film knows, New Yorkers are famous for their understanding of how the world in fact revolves around them. For members of New York-based Earl Greyhound, that theory got blown out of the water in dramatic and delightful fashion upon playing a short tour in Japan this summer. It’s the other side of the world, but it’s also a whole other world.
“That’s what I love about being on tour as well,” said bassist/vocalist Kamara Thomas. “Like, in New York, when you’re here it’s easy to think it’s the only place that exists. You have friends that are always doing something, there’s always something going on. But that’s why it’s great to be on the road: you realize there’s really great things going on everywhere. Once you get to the other side of the world, you realize you’re not the center of the universe.”
The universe is indeed expanding for the band, which has continued to gain adherents to its hard-rocking style. This is a power trio in the old school sense, with Thomas accompanied by Matt Whyte’s guitar, which produces a Jimmy Page-like wall of sound that alternates between wailing and crunching, and everything in between. The trio is rounded out by the massive Ricc Sheridan, who plays drums massively as well, complementing Whyte and Thomas with more than a trace of John Bonham’s mad power.
Indeed, if you read anything about Earl Greyhound, you can’t get too far along without coming across a reference to Led Zeppelin. It’s a good shorthand technique to get you on board with an idea of what the band’s sound is like. But it’s also an unfortunate shortcut in the sense that it may sell them a bit short. This band is not derivative, and their songs go far beyond the Zep tag, including bits borrowed from jazz, pop and blues.
For Thomas, the comparison to Zeppelin is just fine.
“At this point we love being compared to Led Zeppelin,” Thomas said. “We think that’s the greatest band that ever was, so to be compared to them feels really fuzzy inside. We know that at a certain point it helps to have a certain way to communicate what a band sounds like, so we’re happy that it’s Zeppelin that people compare us to. We trust our inner originality enough to not be offended by the comparison.”
Upon returning from Japan, the trio holed up at a friend’s house in Connecticut and worked on new material, and they may trot out a few new songs this tour. In addition to the show at the Aggie, the trio is especially looking forward to their first Red Rocks gig.
“I’m excited to come to Colorado and see Red Rocks, for the Monolith Festival,” Thomas said. “I love nature of any size and scope. Just to hear music and play music with that kind of natural beauty is amazingly powerful.
“We’re excited to get back on the road and keep rocking people’s faces off.” | Only registered users can write comments.
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