“Once [Page McConnell] walked in, Jason said to me, “How do I know this guy?” said Huffman, still beaming from ear to ear. “It was really loud in there when we were talking before the gig but he asked us some questions about how long we have been playing together. We played “Farmhouse” that night too.”
“He seemed like a real quiet guy. We liked him,” Jeff chimed.
Although they say they would be open to including a piano player of their own in the band, it seems they are content as a trio.
“You just have to see the live show to understand,” said Jake.
An unnamed bowler in the middle of his seventh frame turns to a buddy with a puzzled look on his face when The McLovins take the stage.
“Who are these kids,” he asks received only by a shrug.
Jake and Jason being juniors and Jeff a freshman in high school, his question has surely been asked before.
“I think people have a perception that when they go to a show, it’s awkward to see a younger band. Being young helps. We have an open mind and we are still growing. Our frontal lobe hasn’t fully developed,” said Huffman.
In fact, some frontal lobes were about to explode.
The band opened up with Tokyo Tea, a tasty multi-layered groove, which ventures into the unknown, before picking up where they left off with funky hi-hat, slapping and wah-wah pedal licks. Reggae rooted Milk Toast Man followed, allowing the audience to catch their breath, but not before another roller-coaster jam in Deep Monster Trance, a 13 minute experience of sound featuring up and down guitar runs and momentum filled drumming.
“That’s what so important for our show,” said Howard. “It’s a lot of different sounds and dynamics.” Calling Howard, aka AxLovin, a prodigy would be an accurate statement, but it did not start with music. His former babysitter, Melissa Buzzi who was in attendance recalled her experience with Howard when he was only two years old.
“He knew all the countries, the capitals and the flags,” she says. “He has the capacity to be great at everything.”
“I went through phases where all my interests were focused on one random thing.” said Howard, who met Jake at Rock Camp in Connecticut. “I learned all the flags, [laughs] I couldn’t name any of them now.”
The first of two live premiers and, self-admittedly, their most radio friendly track to date, This Town is a simple and fresh tune. Howard wrote the riff on a sick day from school when he had nothing to do but jam. The lyrics Huffman wrote were inspired by the innkeepers they met during their stay in Vermont the weekend they played at Nectar’s.
They rounded out their set with a solid cover of The White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army sung by Jason and their second world premiere Beadhead Crystal Bugger, a complex arrangement that took them close to three weeks to learn.
“Actually getting it down isn’t as hard as it seems,” said Huffman. “It is our music. We’ll mess up sometimes, but something really great happens from those mistakes.”
After a Purple Trees encore featuring an Another Brick in the Wall tease and a hammed up rock n’ roll finish, it was time to sign autographs and take pictures with fans while the band’s dads break down the stage.
“We’re the McRoadies I guess,” said Greg Ott, proud father of Jason.
Poised, the boys wear smiles and shake hands with fans and family. At no point when you look at them do you forget how old they are, no matter how mature the music sounds making the live experience even more fascinating. They are a band discovered by fans who want to share their music.
“It always feels good to make other people happy.” said Jeff.
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