Kevin Burdick
True Stories…And Other Fairytales
Self Released
Street: 07.11.05
Kevin Burdick = Garth Brooks + Broke + Kurt Bestor
It is easy to make music that sounds “indie.” The most difficult music to write and play and actually pull off would have to be adult contemporary. There are so many boundaries and limitations that cannot be crossed or the music comes off sounding extremely trite and cheesy. Kevin Burdick takes the leap into adult contemporary and does a very good job at making sure most of the boundaries aren’t crossed: vocal lines are extremely prominent, only the normal major key signatures are used and there is a hint of religiousity throughout the entire album. His voice is a little more country than you would expect, and his lyrical style is more on the narrative side, walking the line between country and new-age. The songs are written with excruciating perfection. Burdick’s website compares him to Billy Joel, Elton John and Ben Folds, but the only similarity between them and Kevin Burdick is the use of the piano as the focal instrument. This is as far from indie as you can get. –Andrew Glassett

Kohabit
Beyond These Confines
Self-released
Street: 05.18
Kohabit = Killswitch Engage + Trivium + As I Lay Dying + Dryline
Unfortunately, much of the intensity delivered from Kohabit’s live show does not flow though to their recorded works. Then again, a lot of bands tend to wind up that way. Kohabit does pack a melodic metalcore punch, though. The guitar-playing is exceptional, though the production does suffer slightly. It seems as if, had the band focused more on the heavy parts of their music and left out a majority of the melodic stuff, things would be less scattered and more focused. It is when the clean vocals and melodic interludes come in the album loses its pacing and structure. Also, it is in those melodic moments that it seems as if they lose their originality, and let all the rehashed, uninspired stuff seep through. However for what they have created, it is a good listen. With the talent this band has, they could easily create something the local and American scene could embrace viciously. –Bryer Wharton

Larusso
A World Behind The Mask
Hibiscus Zombie Records
Street: 03.06
Larusso = La-sucko
People use the term “knee-jerk reaction” to describe how they respond to something without thinking about it first. My knee-jerk reaction to hearing this CD was hysterical laughter. I immediately tried to get my co-worker to listen and have a good laugh, too, but she was busy and so the laugh came later. Then I thought, “Although this is terrible, I don’t want to be too harsh in my review since these are fellow Utahns I’m dealing with here.” But you know, when it comes down to it, I realized I would be doing them a huge disservice to pretend this record wasn’t pathetic. The ridiculous lyrics and vocals about heartbreaks and wussy-worthless crap do the most damage, but that’s not to say that the atrocious blend of punk-pop-rock-emo-indie don’t trash it too, though, because that’s a huge factor in this record being La-sucko. Larusso ought to pick a genre and go with it. It’s too bad, because with a record label that has the word “zombie” in it, you’d think its artists would be much more reputable. – Jeremy C. Wilkins

Medicine Circus
I Wish I Were An Eight Track
Self-released
Street: 12.01
Medicine Circus = Kid Rock + Meatloaf + Wasted Life
So Medicine Circus—as far as I can understand—is four dudes (Ben, Stearman, Brian, Justin) who are all past their prime (if they ever had one), but have a lot of dead time. They have been friends since high school; they were the fat kids that were kind of computer literate and into cars, but all said and done, they were particularly devoid of any talents or passions. So they grow up, got decent-paying jobs, married their neighbors’ daughters, drank Coors, and decided that neither their 40-hour workweeks nor Internet porn addictions were fulfilling enough—so they started a band with their Epiphone equipment in the basement. They all listen to rock; they started a rock band. They all listen to starchy, fruitless rock; they produced this: I Wish I Were An Eight Track. – Spencer Young

My Pet Monster
Allison
Self-released
Street: 10.03
My Pet Monster = Lollipop Guild + White Stripes + one microphone
MPM is the solo project of Nick Bryson from local eccentrics The Lollipop Guild. The best part of this recording is how anti-recording it is. It sounds like it was recorded with a single microphone and it is obvious that there was little to no preparation for these 10 songs about heads exploding and interpersonal relationships. In some of the louder tracks, you can hear the buzz of the snare drum in the background. The singing is loud and terrible and invested 100 percent. It was embarrassing to listen to when there were other people in the room, but in privacy, the songs are very endearing and slightly funny. The songs may seem a little immature at first, but slowly they become the product of some pretty severe honesty. –Andrew Glassett