The Irreverends – The Irreverends (2005)


The Irreverends
The Irreverends
2005

With a few bars of backbeat followed by a great harmonized guitar line, The Irreverends are off and running on their debut EP. The band powers through “Annalise” with conviction. The song could have come right off of Damn the Torpedoes, with chiming guitars and Adam White’s Tom Petty-esque vocal phrasing. It works and it’s catchy as hell. The band keeps rocking right through “Ghettos On Fire”, with some snappy drumming by Chris Keene.

The band slows things down on the reverb-soaked third track, “Evangeline”. This song has a long slow build that showcases John Brookhouse’s incendiary lead guitar work. His solo that starts at the 5:50 mark should be a primary exhibit in any case presenting him as one of the finest guitar players in town.

Closing out the EP is “Double Negative”, a country-tinged tune with the clever lyric “You don’t mean nothing to me.” The dynamic changes in the song are beautifully executed, building up and tearing down at all the right times. It’s a fitting way to close out this introduction to a dearly missed and under-appreciated Boston band.

Where to get it:

The Irreverends @ The Rosebud Bar 3.18.2011

The Irreverends have another of their semi-regular reunions, this time to kick off a birthday celebration in honor of The Rosebud’s Aimee McGrath.

These guys lay it all out there. Adam White is focused as he spins his tales. Chris Keene is absolutely on fire behind the drums. John Brookhouse is a guitar monster, bleeding solos out of his 335. Jason Murray, lead guitar player for The World Famous Dirt Mall Rock & Roll Band, doesn’t miss a beat filling in on bass (with a torn ligament in his thumb, no less).

Well done, gentlemen.

Hopefully The Irreverends will continue this tradition of getting together every now and again to remind people how good they are. Now if only they’d release that unfinished album…