Elumba Ebenja and Alexis Hosticka review the two bands performing Monday night at 7 p.m.
Harding will be hosting Ha Ha Tonka, an up and coming band from Springfield, Mo. on Monday, Oct. 24. They will be performing in the Administration Auditorium at 7 p.m. with The Belle Brigade.
Drummer Lennon Boone, guitarist Brett Anderson, lead singer Brian Roberts and bassist Lucas Long are the band Ha Ha Tonka.
They are an indie rock band who signed with Bloodshot records and have been making music together since 2001.
Soulful, passionate, spiritual and upbeat are words that can be used to describe the expressive acoustics of the band. While the band’s melody represents an indie genre, you can also hear a bit of southern rock, country and folk harmony in the mix.
The favored single “Unusual Suspects” has had more than eight thousand hits on YouTube within the last few months.
The April 5, 2011, release of their latest album, “Death of a Decade,” has fans raving as the band tours nationwide performing various hit singles.
The single “Death of a Decade” is one of many great clap-along songs on the album.
The new album has had positive appraisal from The Washington Post and The Huffington Post. The track “Usual Suspects” was featured as the National Public Radio song of the day on April 27, 2011. The band was also featured on an Ozarks episode of Travel Channel’s “Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations.” So while it may not have hit the mainstream music industry yet, it is getting recognized.
So make sure to come by the and check them out when they open for The Belle Brigade Monday night.
-Elumba Ebenja
The Belle Brigade will be performing on Monday, Oct. 24 with the doors opening at 7 p.m. and Ha Ha Tonka opening in the Administration Auditorium.
The group has an indie style that is fairly laid back and very acoustic. Although I am not a huge fan of indie, I found their songs still catchy and I enjoy their folk song vibe.
The Belle Brigade is a sibling group with Barbara Gruska on drums and brother Ethan Gruska playing piano and guitar.
They have generated a great deal of good press since their first album was released earlier this year. The band’s song made it onto the soundtrack for the fourth Twilight Saga movie “Breaking Dawn,” which releases Tuesday, Nov. 8, with their song, “I Didn’t Mean It.”
“Sweet Louise” starts off slowly, almost “courting” the listener into the song like a boy courting a girl, which the song is about. The tempo picks up with the first chorus as the singer begins to proclaim his love, which begins to drive him crazy as he falls head over heels. However, the lyrics become a bit repetitive as they sing, “I just fell in love and I couldn’t help myself” over and over.
One of The Belle Brigade’s most popular songs, “Losers,” speaks to those who aim high but fall short, relating to the second-bests who do not get to share the lime light. It is basically the band’s proclamation to the world that they do not care what anyone thinks of them. Frankly, I found the song a little too slow and was much less impressed than with the other songs I listened to. It was also just sort of depressing.
The group definitely has talent and potential, but they do not fit my musical tastes. Find out for yourself what to think about them when they make their appearance on the Admin. stage.
