RiffDraft

A year ago, I walked into my local coffee shop early one morning and noticed a flier for a band called the Redwalls. It was an “in studio” black and white picture of a few Strokes-like guys singing into mics. The caption said something about them having McCartney/Lennon like vocals. I rolled my eyes at that. That’s a convenient and often inaccurate comparison.

They were going to play at a local record shop in a few weeks. I didn’t mark my calendar. When the date arrived, I was too drained to go out and see a band I was sure would disappoint. A couple of days later I check out their website (http://www.theredwalls.com/) to see what I missed and I immediately realized that I had made a mistake. They didn’t sound like McCartney/Lennon, they sounded like the fucking Beatles! Seriously. These guys reproduce the Beatles sound, in the same way hip hop artists sample old records.

The first song that struck me was “Thank You”. That hooked me. The lead singer’s voice sounds like John Lennon, George Harrison, and David Bowie are trying to come out of one mouth, with Lennon getting the upperhand.

I waited impatiently for their debut album, De Nova, to arrive. Once it did, I wasn’t as blown away as I expected. However, yesterday, I downloaded their first album from eMusic, and I’m excited again. It’s pretty amazing. Listening to it, you’ve got to remember, these guys are just kids. 19 or 20, tops. Just like another band I know.