In the midst of their current U.S. tour the California 4-piece, Mellowdrone, took the stage Tuesday night at the Knitting Factory. The one-stop singer, songwriter and front man Jonathan Bates was joined on guitar by Tony DeMatteo, keyboardist/bassist Cami Gutierrez, and uniquely rhythmic drummer Brian Borg.
Box is an audacious debut from a band and Bates, who will continue to cultivate his aural inclinations into unexpected directions.
The Beta Band (featuring Stephen Mason, Robin Jones, Rich Greentree and John Maclean) have been honing their chops for years out of their native Scotland. Between July 1997 and July 1998, the Beta Band released three EP
With its mopey vocals and multi-layered arrangements, the second EP from
mellowdrone – go get ’em tiger – is what would result if Radiohead and the Cure had a jam/writing session for a locked away weekend – or maybe an
hour. In fact, the influences are so obvious it’s hard to pin point you’re
actually listening to mellowdrone, the alter-ego of singer/songwriter/musician Jonathan Bates.
