Thursday, the Roadside Diaies bring their blossoming act to Cafe Amsterdam. Since I last saw them, early this year at the 19 Broadway-based flood fund-raiser for Tom Finch, this five-piece band has really been making the rounds. I've been trying to make the rounds more myself, and I'm overdue at this venue. Cafe Amsterdam's a spot I enjoy for the oppertunity of being close to the performers, and I also appreciate that the decibel levels don't ascend into aural-assault territory. Sometimes it can be diffucult to grab a table if you're not planning to eat during your stay, but to me that's a fair trade-off for the lack of cover charge.
I was intrigued when I first learned that the Roadside Daisies contained two-thirds of the vocal trio Copper Wimmin (singer/songwriters Sophia Ferrera and Alyx Benham, who play guitar and piano, respectively, in this band). I wondered how their rich and intricate harmonies would fare when merged with musical instruments. The short set the Roadside Daisies performed at the benefit (the lengthy roser mandated that each act would have time for only a few songs) made me think a little bit of early R.E.M., but without the somber overtones. The band didn't have much in the way of a Web site back then, but now the Roadside Daisies have sprouted up on their own site and the almost ubiquitous MySpace. From there, I see that I'm not the only one drawing such comparisons. With samples on the former and a few full tracks on the latter, you can get a good taste of their pop-oriented tunes.
The piano is especially prominent in the song "Somehow," which I don't remember being the case when I first saw them, but it adds up to even more compelling tunes than I remember. And on this same track, the vocals approach Cranberries territory while wisely avoiding the sometimes saccharine tones that well-known band's music occasionally favors. I also like the way the song ends: Everything stops abruptly, except that one lingering piano stroke. It echoes the definite resolution in the lyrics, and spikes it with the uncertainty of that future titular "somehow."
With acoustic and electric guitars, and the snappy rhythm section of drummer Jack Spirit and John Paul McLean on Bass, the music solidly supports the vocals wherever they go. Guitarist Jason Ferrera provides harmony and takes the lead on songs such as "Anchors," on esque while praising the circumstances for picking to stick around a certain area (and person). It makes me think about all the reasons I happily call this region my home. I also enjoy the expressed gratitude of the song "I Love, " with its dual female lead vocals and the time changes that create a jazzy feel when Spirit kicks into a "Take Five"
-stye shuffle on the drums.
The Roadside Daisies seem to be consciously creating upbeat and uplifting melodies from themes such as determination and honesty without sounding preachy or sappy in the least. That this promising group came together in a somewhat unintentional manner and now seems to be thriving speaks of the happy accidents possible in the universe: whether it be discovering musical harmony from an unscheduled collaboration or seeing fields of delicate flowers thrive on the ofter-trashed land strips that border the roads we choose.
Matt Kramer - Pacific Sun (Sep 22, 2006)