The Silents

While The Silents display rattle-and-hum overtures akin to U2, Nirvana-esque solidly grungy guitar, and Cure-ish overtones, the quartet’s keyboards give them a much more singular sound, one especially evident on the fourth, fifth, and sixth cuts as the band hit their stride midway through their first full-length CD. One of the more accomplished and self-assured local submissions in a long time, The Silents’ debut is not only one well worth waiting for, but also leaves one wanting more. - David C. Eldridge

The Silents' new self-relesed full-length, Sleepwalker, features black-velvet post-goth guitar trills against a framework of post-punk and hard rock: think Sisters of Mercy at their most melodic with the crunchiness of 70s hard rock. Despite the music's cool polish, there's an underlying cheeseball romanticism that makes this local foursome charming. - Monica Kendrick

Any band that kicks off a record with a song called "Eat Your Face" is alright in my book. It helps that the song is endlessly catchy, too, as are most of the tracks on "Sleepwalker," local act The Silents' new record. A good nostalgic ride through eighties alt-rock, the band neatly avoids any real tag, as its songs are actually quite different from one another. At times straight-up rock n' roll, sometimes indie-rock and, in moments, Joy Division, The Silents create a wide spectrum of appealing noise. - Tom Lynch

If The Silents keep pushing, while politely ignoring any style but their own, we may have the next break out band in Chicago, and could enjoy the pride of seeing a local band with integrity experiencing a long career. From the darkness of “Pistol Shock” to the party punk pop of “Saturday Nite Live”, they’ll keep you in the musical loop, beer in hand, cheering even if you know not why. - Phil Circle

An unsigned act out of Chicago that’s creating a bit of a story on their own is The Silents. Many Alternative stations have already caught wind of this band – specialty airplay on stations including Q101 Chicago, 99X Atlanta, WFNX Boston, KTCL Denver, KUPD Phoenix, KIOZ San Diego, WEND Charlotte, KTEG Albuquerque, KJEE Santa Barbara, WAVF Charleston and XM Satellite Radio has begun to pop up over the past month or so. Songs from the band’s Black and White EP’s have also been licensed for use in various MTV programs. The Silents are currently planning a U.S. tour for the Fall and are the topic of many a major label A&R meeting. Keep your eye on these guys. - A&R Worldwide

You've heard them on Local 101. Isn't that reason enough to check them out? If not, head over to their Myspace page and listen to "Easy Killer." Queens Of The Stone Age WISH they could still write songs this badass. Not quite rock, not quite punk, but definitely dangerous. - Q101