Murder Mystery

Congratulations to Murder Mystery, my new favorite band. You guys have inspired me to write my first music post on this blog. A music review seems so overdue, and I have you all to thank.

Friday night my friend C. and I ambled down to the Lower East Side to see Murder Mystery play at the Mercury Lounge. Made up of a brother and sister duo that couldn't be cuter (Jeremy Coleman on guitar and vocals, Laura Coleman on drums), all four members of the band are adorably talented. Adam Fels is a spectacular bassist, and Graham Roberts, the newest addition to the band, is easy on the eyes, hard on the heart. Oh, he's also pretty good at the guitar.

I suppose this is part where I tell you who they sound like. In the words of Jeremy and Laura's older brother, "sort of like The Strokes meets the Beach Boys." I tried to describe them as "doo-wop-y," but that wasn't quite right, either. Honestly, I don't think I can compare them to anyone directly, which is a good thing. Although I will say that Jeremy's voice reminds me of the guy's from Silver Jews.

The band just returned from a US tour; the show on friday was their homecoming show. In other words, this band is about to blow-up.

Here's the meaty part of my review:

Murder Mystery is a band that actually has a great time when they play. They smile. There are dimples involved. And the four of them actually seem to like each other, and their audience. Their lyrics, for the most part, are happy. And there's no moping involved in the more serious songs. Indie Rock is dead, as far as I'm concerned, and Murder Mystery has proven that four kids can still get together and play music and it doesn't have to be pretentious.

Do check them out at their official site or their myspace. New Yorkers: they have an upcoming show March 6th at Piano's. I will be in Spain, but be there, or be square.