Anthem

Reading Eagle Newspaper

LOCAL MUSIC SPOTLIGHT
By Ralph Janke

Anthem: a tribute to Rush at the Airport

It’s ALWAYS interesting to go see and hear an unfamiliar band, to take a chance and see what its capabilities are. So my wife and I went to Klinger’s at the Airport on a Saturday night in May to see a Rush tribute band known as Anthem.

We arrived at Klinger’s to a predominantly full dining room and bar area to experience this band, which traveled from the Lehigh Valley to perform its first professional gig with a new band lineup. Totally unknown in this area and with very little promotion and one week booking notice, this Easton-based band bravely set out for its musical journey in uncharted waters.

Seats emptied and filled again as the evening dinner crowd began to depart and music fans started to show. The anticipation in the venue was obvious as I scouted several music enthusiasts waiting for the music to start.

Then came showtime. Opening the first set , the band began with “Fly By Night” followed by “LImelight.” Playing three hours of exclusively Rush tunes, they did such mega-hits as “Tom Sawyer” and ”New World Man.” These are concert songs, as opposed to dance tunes. Several off-duty musicians (I love using that term) were in attendance to scope out this trio.

An introduction of this impressive tribute band is in order:
Pete Scarano plays bass guitar, keyboards and pedals. A natural tenor, he is a very good vocalist.
Dave Drzewiecki is on drums, playing with a well-grounded confidence.
Bill Smith plays single and double-neck guitars and pedals. Truly a licks and riff master.

Rush, the group that they emulated, is a Canadian band known for complex compositions and their philosophical progressive sci-fi hard rock style. As a world-class band, Rush has played all over the globe for decades and has drawn audiences by the tens of thousands.

For me, the highlight of the evening was when Anthem performed “The Spirit of Radio.” Smith started with the masterful opening riffs, followed by Drzewiecki with precision drum strikes and rolls along with Scarano joining in with some rock solid bass bottom; the group nailed it.

The several local musicians in attendance commented how difficult it can be to copy Rush with all the band’s high-tech applications. Many area bands have usually covered one or two of Rush’s songs, whereas Anthem had done three entire sets.

During the first set, the band ran into a few minor obstacles, which were seemingly resolved in a matter of minutes. As many musicians know, every venue is different when it comes to sound and acoustics.

I spoke to the band members during one of the breaks. Scarano told me he was pleased with the attendance, being that the booking was on very short notice. I asked Drzewiecki why he only had about 10 drums and he was told that’s all he was able to take on this trip. Devoted fans of Rush know that drummer Neil Peart has in excess of 40 separate sound-generating items. That being said, Drzewieki’s drumming replication was spot on.

The origin of the band name, Anthem, comes from a 1975 song from Rush’s “Fly By Night” album. Ironically, this tune is not in their song lineup, and it wasn’t necessary.
Some responses I got when asking some of the gig attendees were: “I’d definitely see them again”;”Love them, love Rush”;”They were exhilarating.”

Anthem will return to Klinger’s at the Airport on June 15! Here’s your opportunity to see and hear them, and there is no cover charge. Look me up and have a fist bump!

Contact Ralph Janke:
weekend@readingeagle.com - Ralph Janke