Saturday, March 13, 2010

Review: No Second Troy "Colors"


Washington DC's No Second Troy is out to blur the line between indie rock and pop with their upcoming release, "Colors". Surrounding classic introspective indie rock lyrics with melodic sensibility, No Second Troy is in position to make this a successful merger.

Another plus for the band is vocalist Jeff Wharen, who has that perfect tone for a rock singer - reminds me somewhat of Anthony Caleb Followill (Kings of Leon). The rest of the band is tight, effortlessly threading elements from across multiple musical genres into a fresh new tapestry.

One of my favorites on the record is "The Black and White Movie", both musically and lyrically. Keyboardist Mike Beach explains, "'The Black and White Movie' is an acknowledgment that we overanalyze our relation-ships and foolishly seek the perfection we see in Hollywood movies, thereby having our relationships fall into one of two categories - bliss or something inadequate, in other words, viewing the world as a black and white movie and failing to see all the colors and nuances."

The gentle and beautiful "Leap of Faith" is another strong cut, with Wharen showing his vulnerabilities in an earnestly touching performance. The back end of the CD is almost as captivating as the first half, with powerful standouts such as "Wake Up" and "Let It Go". "Golden Age" is another moving lyric about fatherhood, but it sounds like a demo and doesn't do the song justice.

No Second Troy's "Colors" will be available on iTUNES April 27. Check them out if you like The Fray, Coldplay, or U2.

iPOD-worthy: 3, 4, 6, 7, 8

No Second Troy on MySpace.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

LOVE NST!