under shade

Remember when Dave Matthews turned the Pop Music world on its ear because he had the audacity to put violins and time changes into top 40 radio play? Well make way for the next wave of mold breakers with the arrival of UNDER SHADE. Absolutely indefinable and categorically brilliant, their debut indie release, Nightly Cricket Revival, is ripe with subtle piano virtuosity, perfectly placed vocal harmonics/doubles/counters, and complex time signatures. These guys are musician's musicians. I dare say even Dave Matthews would listen to "I Know" and sit back and say "Whoa!"

My personal favorite "The Sun Came Out For You" is an uplifting dare -you -to- sing -along theme that pulled me through some stressful moments. It's actually hard to pick a favorite, the entire CD is one of those you can play over and over and hear something new and mind blowing every time. The rhythms and vocals are hooky enough to play well on radio, but there are layers and layers of meaty musical mastery that the average listener will let flow over them without much thought.

There needs to be some serious kudos to the producers of this project who have been able to define every beat of the drum and pluck of the guitar string into a perfectly constructed 1001 piece jigsaw puzzle of stunning complexity. The story in the Under Shade bio says that noted engineers/producers Tony Castle and Mel Eubanks, were so knocked out by the band's innovative approach to music that they formed ToneDawg Productions specifically to work with the band and get under shade's music ready for the masses.... It worked. My only fear is that the masses are not smart enough to truly appreciate it how brilliant this band is.



- CD review by B.J. Barratt (B. Sharp Indie Showcase)

I called for Under Shade to be first up for the sound check.. My excuse was that I thought they had the biggest set up - it was actually no bigger than any of the other bands- truth was, I was DYING to hear if they really had the chops.

Then they kicked into a song....I dont even remember which one...I stopped breathing for a moment.

You know how some people (like my husband) can "name that tune" in 2 notes? Well, there are times when I can peg the quality of a band in 2 bars of music, like now. Thats all it took. They were, in a word, perfection. Everything was there, the groove was tight, the vocals were pure. We were in business, and this was going to be the best night of music New York has ever heard.

Having already been impressed at the sound check, (thank God), I was more than anxious to see Under Shade in full on performance mode. Theirs was the only set I saw in its entirety (except for the 2 minutes I stuck my head out into the bar area and yelled to some of the VIP's to get their butts in there so they wouldnt miss these guys).

With the foundation of the quickest, funkiest bass player I've ever seen on a small stage, Rob Dickey, and his brother Steve Dickey, unquestionably the best groove drummer since Jeff Porcaro, Under Shade began to move the crowd from the very first syncopated beat.

Add to that, ornate piano riffs from masterful pianist, Ruben van Pelt and brilliant acoustic guitar bits and powerful lead vocals from a beautiful (and I mean absolutely Hollywood beautiful) front man, Jason Cole...and you've got MAGIC. It is a combination that is rare and wonderful to behold. EVERY single song had a "WOW" factor, whether it was Ruben doing a killer piano bridge or Jason doing this very sexy "yeaaa-uh" thing he does as he pulls away from the mic and hits the groove. Heart pounding, knee buckling, somebody- get -these- guys -a -record -deal stuff!

- B.J. Barratt