Propeller Skies

Saturday night, I stopped by The Star Bar to catch The Sudden Rays. I was excited to see them play, as the band includes Chris Hoke and Justin Gray, two members of the late 3d5spd, and Kevin Wallace, one of the best drummers in Atlanta.

Prior to the show, my friend Joie warned me The Sudden Rays were significantly more mainstream than 3d5spd. I was a bit concerned, since listening to a mainstream band would totally shred all my hipster cred.

Once the band started playing, I realized the music was more accessible and less spacey than 3d5spd. However, Hoke has a unique voice and guitar playing style, both of which influence the sound of The Sudden Rays and elevate them above mere mainstream status. In addition, Gray’s solid bass playing and Wallace’s ass kicking drumming combine to form a punishing rhythm session.

The somewhat thin audience was treated to an excellent show. Based on the amount of applause I heard between songs and the high percentage of people paying attention to the show, most people were really into the band. As an aside, more than half of Envie was also in attendance.

In short, The Sudden Rays blew me away. This was a show well worth attending and I highly recommend checking them out.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 25th, 2005 at 16:12 and is filed under Concerts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.