The Corey Booth Project

"“Thank you for your submission! I really appreciate it. Your music is terrific! You're a very good songwriter and performer. You will make an excellent addition to the GRM Presents Showcase!” (Gran Royale Music, http://www.grm780.com/gran-royale-music/ via MusicXray.com) "
- Steve, Grand Royale Music, Grand Royale Music (Nov 12, 2010)
- Grand Royale Music

"“I enjoyed the music and the supporting materials. Your press kit accomplishments are impressive and show me talent AND lots of hard work. Nice job! The songs are polished, professional and memorable.” (Eugene Foley, www.FoleyEntertainment.com) "
- Eugene Foley, Foley Entetainment, Inc. (Nov 26, 2010)
- Eugen Foley, FoleyEntertainment.com

"Corey's writing style takes one into new areas of the Singer-Songwriter realm; as he ventures into a more heartfelt and honest avenue than most dare to today. Given time and exposure, I think the Corey Booth Project will be on many people's playlists!-(Denise V.,K94Rocks.com)"
- Denise VanHouten, K94Rocks.com (Jan 09, 2010)
- Denise Vanhouten

"Wow! I love this song (“When I’m Sober”). Really good. I knew it from the opening vocal entrance. Really good job! I'm going to feature it on song.cat today starting in a few minutes! Good luck with the voters. You may want to rally your fans as the competition can be tough. Voting lasts 24 hours aprox. Thanks for submitting! -Mike (http://www.SongCat.com via MusicXray.com) "
- Mike (SongCat.com), Song Cat (Nov 05, 2010)
- Songcat

"“Sometimes it's the simple pleasures that can outweigh the nonsense we face in daily life, and that's the message The Corey Booth Project delivers through their music. Corey and his percussionist Ned McGinn bring a simple approach to their music that can take you from a tropical breeze, to a long-winding, dusty midwestern road. Honing their skills through thousands of hours of touring has helped bring a polished approach to their live show, and to their recordings.” ~ Ryan Zschieshe – 102.7 The Rock, Sterling, IL"
- Ruan Zschieshe, 102.7 The Z (Oct 08, 2010)
- Ryan Zshe

"“Here’s another CD which impressed the test audience (to Southside’s surprise, since they’re mostly hardcore rock daughters). They liked Corey’s homegrown sounds of Americana/alternative rock that sometimes incorporated a little country or California sound. According to them, the five-track EP popped with rockin’ music, thus making it very difficult in choosing which song was their favorite! "
- Southside Review, Southside Review (Chicago, IL) (Jul 05, 2010)
- Southside Review

Going to see The Corey Booth Project open for Beau Davidson (of The Singing Bee and soap opera fame... Ugh. Don’t get me started) was one of those experiences that reminds me of the rock legend roots of Led Zeppelin. For those those of you unfamiliar with the story, allow me to recap: According to all sources that are neither reputable nor are they verifiable in a way that resembles real investigative reporting -- in fact, it may be more like urban legend, but it fits the larger point quite nicely -- that their career was made, in large part, when they opened for a much more popular band at that time, Iron Butterfly. According to the probably tall tale, the crowd liked Zeppelin’s set so much that when the kids of Iron Butterfly took to the stage the crowd chanted “Led Zeppelin!” so loud that it almost stopped the show.

No. That didn’t happen this time. But it should have.

The Corey Booth Project took to the stage at 8:45pm and opened with “Let the Sun Go Down” from their album Hurry Up and Wait (The Corey Booth Project, 2012). “Let The Sun Go Down” is a poppy rock song that echoes of compositionally of Tom Cochrane and the Black Crows infused with the early, ska-inspired pop of No Doubt. Lyrically, this song -- like the rest of the songs they performed from their CD -- presents a positive message. Or, at the very least, a life-affirming one. It tells the story of the end of a relationship; but rather than focus on the heartbreak like any one of 10,000 country songs (I’m underestimating, I’m sure...) the song focuses on moving forward. Yes, it has that ‘Do You Remember’ element to it in lyrics like “every single word you ever said, keeps running in circles through my head, from the night you finally surrendered” from verse one, to “and I will miss you so dearly, just like this endless comfortable feeling we got” from verse two.

But the chorus chimes in, carried by clean guitar licks, the steady heartbeat-like bass from Mitch Handel, solid drumming by Nate Mason, and percussion by Ned McGinn -- reminding us that even in a break up, there are larger issues. “Just let the sun go down tonight. It’ll be alright, it’ll be alright. Just let your eyes close, close ‘em tight. It’ll be alright, it’ll be alright.”

This isn’t the song you sing to yourself in the first days after a break up; rather, it’s the one you play over and over again after that initial sting has passed and you’re trying to remember how to live like a single person again and working past the anger, the disappointment, and the sense of failure that’s the fallout of every break up.

Corey’s songwriting is clean and contemporary, and geared towards being radio ready. The overall sound is fairly radio ready, too. “California” -- which is on the album but was not on their playlist at Kelly’s -- is a good example of one of those songs that could be heard on the radio tomorrow. There are times when the songs felt a bit too compact in the live performance -- though maybe it’s that jam band influence that I was wishing would be set loose a little for a live stage show.

As a matter of fact, the set seemed shorter than the time allotted for it. And although the regular guitarist, Dennis Shearon, wasn’t able to sit in for the gig due to a shoulder injury, the stand-in guy, Dan Banker (of the band “:Elleventh Hour”) was a stand-up guitarist who clearly knows his way around a fret board. But it was because it was clear that he knew what he was doing that I found myself wishing he was able to let loose a little more -- especially because it was a live show.

Because it’s one thing to be the opening act and get the short end because an all too pretty, barely singer/non-songwriter from reality TV that needs to read off the music stand and shouts, “How’s everyone doing tonight!?” like a karaoke crooner after each and every mediocre country cover tune is the headliner. (I would like to point out though, that Beau Davidson’s backup band -- made up entirely of regional and local talent -- did an amazing job in spite of the plastic front man. But it was all I could do to sit through three songs.)

But it’s another when the set ends short for no apparent reason, especially when the band plays mostly their own music -- which, to their credit, The Corey Booth Project did, except two covers, one of which was The Chicago band Bondo’s, “Fuck You I’m Drunk.”

The overall sound of The Corey Booth Project is a hybrid born out of the popular music from the tail end of the 20th Century and the first decade of the 21st. There’s a groundedness to it that speaks of Midwestern roots and a bit of cheeky humor that speaks of, at the very least, more than casual mistakes.

“Moonshine” is a good example of this. The song contains elements of rock with an easygoing rhythm that reminds me of jam bands like Phish and the Afghan Whigs -- without the jazz-inspired endless improvisations -- carries lyrics that are succinct, optimistic, and upbeat: “Everyday there’s at least a little bit of sunshine, if you keep your head in the clouds. And every night baby girl you’re my moonshine, you keep me drunk on the ground.”

The Corey Booth Project is one of those acts you don’t mind wading through less-talented bands to see, and one that, when opening for the far less-talented plastic singer as the headlining act, stands out even more as a band worth seeing. CBP plays the kind of music that can appeal to a wide range of listeners; with elements of what has ubiquitously been labeled “contemporary Americana”, a bit of late 90’s alternative rock, and echoes of the 00’s alternative folk sound that’s been filtering into contemporary pop music lately, though with much less skill than The Corey Booth Project. Theirs is a sound that’s pure Midwestern -- drawing from eclectic genres, layering the instrumentals and vocals with a professional touch, and giving the songs an articulate voice that rings out and reverberates in the regional music scene.


- Mick Parsons, AmericanRevolutionary.com

Corey's writing style takes one into new areas of the Singer-Songwriter realm; as he ventures into a more heartfelt and honest avenue than most dare to today. Given time and exposure, I think the Corey Booth Project will be on many people's playlists!-(Denise V.,K94Rocks.com)"Denise VanHouten - K94Rocks.com - K94Rocks