Civalias

I'll give credit to where credit is due. I found out about Civalias from a great blog Let Me Like It. So I really can't take credit for this dig. BUT, when something is this good, it deserves to be found by any and everybody. Civalias is the project of Adam Stidham. Adam's from Southern California but his sound is similar to that of Aqualung and Coldplay. His songs are melodic and simple, somber and restrained.

His EP you.me.we., is filled with one great song after another. We Got Company and Something Real are the standouts, but really I could have chosen any of them. Something Real starts out with a lone piano before giving away to a wash of vocals singing, We can live without the worry because we survive on something real. It's all about loving someone for who they really are. Civalias' voice is reserved and quite amazing. His cover of Muse's Starlight is beyond words. He transformed that song and, in the words of any of the American Idol judges, made it his own...dawg.

Civalias- Myspace
Starlight-

The Boxer Rebellion

First post of 2009. Sorry I've been out of the loop for so long. Between the holidays and work (and the fact that there really haven't been any bands that are getting me excited lately.) But the drought ends with The Boxer Rebellion. Their 2nd album Union, hits iTunes next week. From London, The Boxer Rebellion are relatively unknown over here, but I suspect that won't last long. They play a style of music that isn't particualarly new but the way they do it makes all the difference. NME recently said that this band will alter your life. I don't know about that, but they are pretty dang good.

The song that really got me into them was Evacuate. It starts off with a trance like guitar riff and builds to a melodic urgency. I would say that these guys sound like a grittier Muse. The lead singer has a great voice;he puts so much passion into every line. The Boxer Rebellion are on the verge of something, I guarantee.

The Boxer Rebellion- Myspace
Evacaute-

Air Traffic

Grab your blender. Got it? OK, add 1 cup of Muse, 1/2 cup of Coldplay, a splash of Vodka, and a teaspoon of rock salt. That last part is more to emphasize the rock part. Air Traffic is not just a problem that faces airplanes on a daily basis, they are a great unknown band from the U.K. Until now.

They perfectly mix the piano-ness of Coldplay with the soaring, pleading vocals of Muse. Their album Fractured Life, is a great mix of catchy pop tunes with a rock edge. Driven by great melodies and lyrics that make sense when you read them, Air Traffic provide music for the person who just wants to sing out loud.

The song Time Goes By, reflects what it feels like to fall in love with someone who doesn't feel the same, as lead singer Chris Wall sings It's you that I need/I'm sure it's always been, with an urgency that you wish more bands would employ.

The most heartbreaking of the bunch is the song Empty Space, written after a friend of the band died in a car accident. Wall sings with just a piano There's a void that I can't fill/An empty space I can't replace/with anything at all. He paints a very realistic picture of the accident and how he dealt with the passing.

Air Traffic provide a change of pace from all the bands who think they have something to say but usually fall short. And even if you aren't into songs with meaning, take a listen to Just Abuse Me which is bound to put a bounce in your step with its ode to letting someone doing whatever they like...to you.

Air Traffic- Myspace
Time Goes By(Live- Acoustic):