While back up north here in Nor*Cal for the holidays, I went to see my friend's band, the Federalists (a band I blogged about before on this very blog) at Great American Music Hall. One of the other bands, the Stone Foxes, were incredibly impressive. When they went on stage, I didn't know what to expect.....they were four guys who seemed pretty young and indie-ish. When the drummer, Shannon Koeler, started playing a bluesy harmonica melody, and then guitarist/singer Aaron Mort started complementing Shannon's harmonica work with his own tune, I became more and more interested in what was going on. As their set went on, I felt like I was in some type of time warp back to the late 1960s. The Stone Foxes have a great, throwback sound, one that calls to mind the 1960s folk rock sound that was so prominent. The songs have a slow, Southern sound to them, and each band member sings in almost an equal amount of time, which helps the band stand out as well. To me, they sounded like my new indie faves Fleet Foxes, if they ditched the acoustic guitars and played gritty, soulful rock & roll instead of gritty, soulful indie pop. The Stone Foxes have the same kind of rich melodies, tight musicianship, and passion as Fleet Foxes exhibited back at their El Rey show in October. They also are just as funny in concert, as Shannon, the drummer, had funny things to say throughout their set. Besides all the extras, the songs themselves deserved their own attention. It was amazing to see these robust, powerful songs being performed by a group of dudes who looked pretty young.
I'd almost go out on limb and say the Stone Foxes could soon amass the same buzz as the Arctic Monkeys had a few years back. If the Foxes' new album gets the attention it deserves, then this band could blow up on the indie scene in 2009. They don't have a label as of yet, but they are bound to get one sooner, not later. Let this blog serve as your heads-up about this awesome San Francisco band before it's too late.
They play next Monday the 12th at the Mint in LA. Go see the show.
---posted by Adrian
1 comment:
Saw them 2/21/09 at Lestat's in San Diego. Knew nothing about them, so I was stunned. Shannon is a super-skilled, intense drummer with great personality and brother Spence on guitar is truly the man out of time. All four are capable singers and songwriters to boot. Great, must see! Check out their cool website too.
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