Alibi

Alibi’s unique instrumentation, consisting of electric and acoustic guitars, upright bass, saxophone, piano and drums, generates an open music style synthesizing rock, jazz, pop and blues. This distinctive combination originates from the diverse backgrounds of the five members of the group, owing talent to their experience in jazz, classical music, and even a barbershop quartet.

Alibi’s music was once described as “…the instrumentation of Dave Matthews, the lyrics of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the voice of James Taylor.” Though maybe not entirely accurate, this view of Alibi captures their elusive sound. It’s hard – if not impossible – to compare Alibi with any one artist. Half a dozen obvious influences come to mind, though, such as: John Mayer, Santana, Pink Floyd, Ben Folds, Coldplay and Maroon 5.

Established by Reid Draper and Brian Grahn in 2001, the group started as an acoustic-rock duo, relying only on vocals, acoustic guitar, and upright bass to carry their message. The group’s sound began to grow with the addition of Ryan McMichael, who added a heavy element of jazz to their music, incorporating melodic piano and saxophone. After hearing the soaring guitar licks of a childhood friend, Draper immediately requested Rob Turer join the band as the lead guitarist. After a brief and impressive audition during a morning rehearsal, Sam Drazin was quickly added to the lineup on percussion.

Largely due to the young age of the group, Alibi began playing small venues such as local coffee houses, talent shows, and anywhere they could be heard. Over the short period of time since the group’s formation, Alibi has had numerous achievements, such as winning Exposure, a “Battle of the Bands” competition at Washington D.C.’s largest nightclub – Nation. After surpassing over forty Maryland, Virginia and D.C. bands, Alibi was awarded twenty-four hours of recording time at Cue Recording Studios in Falls Church, Virginia. Supplementing this with over 26 additional hours, financed by almost three hundred CD presales and numerous performances, Alibi’s debut album, Runaway, is now finally complete, and is currently available for purchase at various retail locations including: iTunes, Napster, Rhapsody, cdbaby.com, and TowerRecords.com.