Hold Your Own

These guys are worth the drive down I-295.

A wickedly talented cluster of bands are spouting gutsy tunes all over Jersey’s Philly suburbs, boosting a burgeoning music scene shouldered by an intensely loyal local fanbase.

A couple hundred South Jersey die-hards filled the Grace Church in Haddonfield Friday night, chanting the lyrics, jumping and flailing for three of the area’s most active rock outfits.

Hold Your Own, a bold and dynamic rock group from Voorhees headlined the show, morphing the modest auditorium into an energetic venue, complete with strobe lights and fog as well as the familiar stage-dives and crowdsurfing.

Singer Rob Crews’ powerful pipes matched a poised presence on-stage, as he stood on a makeshift platform above the crowd, belting out tracks from the band’s new record “And Beyond,” which debuted Feb. 21.

Like seasoned pros, the guys left the stage without saying a word during their “last song,” only to come back out for an encore. Yes, an encore for an unsigned, local band at a church in Haddonfield — talk about swagger.

The ambitious group’s sound falls somewhere in the realm of alt-rock and power-pop, pulling some guitar and drum patterns from fellow Jerseyans Senses Fail and My Chemical Romance, but with a little less gloom.

The edgier rock contrasts the more well-circulated South Jersey acts Man Overboard (from Williamstown); Major League (from Mantua); and I Call Fives (from Washington) who fuel the latest U.S. pop-punk movement.

But Hold Your Own’s drummer Steve Iannettoni said locally, no one sounds the same.

“The coolest thing about our scene is we all sound different,” he said. “Nothing — and no one — is pigeonholed down here.”

That much was true at the Haddonfield show, where No Such Noise, a punchy ska band from Sicklerville, and Count to Four, a down-the-line pop-punk throwback from Barrington opened the show, each added their own flavor to the show.

Count to Four, a group who draws heavily from early-2000s pop-punkers New Found Glory and Rufio, recently finished a national tour supporting Baltimore’s All Time Low.
hold-your-own-south-jersey-haddonfield.JPGView full sizeSinger Rob Crews' powerful pipes matched a poised presence on-stage, as he stood on a makeshift platform above the stage, belting out tracks from the band's new record "And Beyond," which debuted Feb. 21. Bobby Olivier/The Star-Ledger

The guys agreed that friendliness between bands sets the South Jersey scene apart from other areas in the state and beyond.

“We always have each other’s backs,” guitarist Jay Miller said. “There’s a good sense of community here.”

Such hospitality came alive when Hold Your Own’s amp head conked out on their first song, and No Such Noise swooped in, swapped out the bum equipment for their own and the show continued.

Afterward, Iannettoni invited everyone to come down, hang out with the bands and hear what’s going on in his part of the state.

“The rest of New Jersey should see that something — a breakout in music — is happening in their state,” he said.

All three bands will be playing shows in New Jersey and in cities around the U.S. through the spring and summer. - Bobby Olivier/The Star Ledger

HOLD YOUR OWN

If Senses Fail or another post-hardcore type needs an opener, Hold Your Own would be perfect. The dudes from Voorhees have the sound down with a hint of All-American Rejects in the vocal. For a bunch of guys just out of high school, their songs are cohesive and mature. Definitely worth a listen. And thanks to an NJ.com user for the tip!

Listen to:

• "Bleed Fast Don't Cry"
• "Gin and Tonic"
• "Save You"
• "On to Another" - Bobby Olivier/The Star Ledger