Live Review: Morning / Lift the Decade / The Sun Thugs of Rebellion / Negasilver @ The Palace 3-26-10

Morning...@ The Palace

The Negalution Begins at the Palace in Sparta NJ.

photos & review by rozlyn smith

A new venue in Sparta called 'The Palace' is hosting shows with local New Jersey bands. The promoters book bands in the rock genre, except for metal. However, a venue specifically for "harder" bands will be around sometime in the future. For a venue that opened less than a month ago, it seems to be thriving. The first show on March 5th sold out in advance. With all ages shows on Friday nights, this venue certainly gives kids in the area a place to discover new music and go hang out with their friends.

This show featured a band who was playing their first show outside of a cafe. The band, Negasilver, is made up of Mark Peteroy on acoustic guitar and vocals and Marcus Ramirez on electric guitar. Negasilver has been around since August 2008 and started playing in cafes late that winter. The band has graced the stages at such venues as Piano's Bar and Grill in Bloomfield and Van Gogh's Ear Cafe in Union, both in New Jersey. The band's sound is largely influenced by artists and bands such as Buckethead, Chris Cornell, and Candlemass. Though they have some heavy influences, the band has a very melodic sound to them varying between songs with vocals and strictly instrumental songs. The band seems to write songs influenced by some of their close friends; including an instrumental song called “Cape May Sunset” which was written for the band's friend, Franco, and also another instrumental song titled “Bloom” that was written for singer Mark's girlfriend (who is referred to from time to time as the Nega-Muse).

Negasilver

The duo is looking to add a bassist and a drummer, once they find musicians who could help them expand their sound. That night the band also put out their very first two song demo. The demo included the songs "Cape May Sunset" and "Free," which were both performed that night. By switching between vocals and instrumentals, this band brings something different to the table. Like Mark said to me after their set: "Stand up and join the Negalution!"

Son Thugs of Rebellion

Son Thugs of Rebellion (STOR) also performed that night. Strangely enough, they also need a bass player. Their sound had a rap/rock twist, yet their songs were pretty catchy, especially "Lampshade Bragade" and "Trippy Jelly Jam.'' They captivated the audience by combining a Disco Biscuit song with their own lyrics to make one truly inventive song.  Both guitarist and vocalist Ian Scotty Kurzer and drummer Keith Harris interacted with the audience both before, and after their set and hung around to provide support for the other bands.  This band was a lot of fun to watch and speak to after the show.

Lift the Decade

Lift the Decade, who I recently saw open up for Black Gold at The School of Rock, were up next. Their upbeat, catchy hooks, mixed with a few screams here and there, keeps getting better. Their cover of Taking Back Sunday's “You're So Last Summer" had the audience dancing and singing along with them.

Morning..., who played the venue's first show, were asked to play the venue again. The set started with “Sleep Like a Wide Open Window,” wooed the crowd with “Anywhere,” set the mood with “October” and then had the audience dancing to “Fight off Your Demons.” The audience shouted songs they wanted to hear the band play for an encore. Guitarist Albert Chua spoke up and suggested that the band should play “Business” everyone seemed to be in agreement with that song.

The show was a success and I'm looking forward to seeing what other bands this venue has playing there. Who knows, maybe the next big thing will come out of The Palace. Only time will tell.

Morning...

Lift the Decade

Negasilver

The Sun Thugs of Rebellion