My hometown made me mighty proud last night. I have mentioned the Hourly Radio before, reviewing their debut EP, Lure Of The Underground, and even gave away some tickets to their NYC show last night. That being said, last night was the first time I have had the opportunity to catchy their live show, which is really damn good.
After grabbing a few drinks at one of my favorite bars in NYC (Burp Castle), I rolled over to The Annex. For starters, this Dallas band loves their smoke machine. I think they pumped out more fog onto that small stage than most groups use to fill up an arena. We waded through the fog up to the front of the stage when frontman Aaron Closson kicked off their set.
The Hourly Radio opened up with the first track off their debut LP, a cool instrumental called “Travelsigns.” Big, shimmering guitars soared over the crowd, with a sound that is definitely powerful enough to fill a much larger venue. On songs such as “He Said / She Said” and “Please Forget,” bands including Placebo, JJ72, James and U2 all came to mind when pinning down their influences. Closson’s vocals do have a similarity to Tim Booth and Brian Molko with a higher range and wavering falsetto.
Two of the standout songs of the night were “Deaf Ears” and “Crimes Does Pay,” both easily being hit singles in the making. With anthemic melodies a la U2, big shoegazer flavored guitars that create beautifully dreamy soundscapes, the Hourly Radio is truly a band to watch out for. As they ended with the huge closer, “First Love Is Forever,” I was blown away once again by the power these four talented musicians possess on stage.
It really has been a while since I have been able to praise a Dallas band. Their album hits online retailers on June 27, which I highly suggest checking out. For more information, rock these links:
www.thehourlyradio.com
www.myspace.com/thehourlyradio
