Filmstrip describes themselves on their Myspace as, “a band from Cleveland, Ohio made up of two brothers with white blood and an Arabic name (Matt and Dave Taha) who were raised by a catholic, a muslim, and a kuwaiti drop-out, and a guy (Nick Riley) who thinks Allah/God/Krisna/Buddah must be or have been, a drummer." I'm still wrapping my brain around this desription, and have been for a couple of hours. Nonetheless, they're really three irish dudes who are putting a little sheen on their in-your-face garage rock anthems. This track, "In My Mind," begins with fuzzy central riff and maintains a consistent Cleveland thumbprint throughout. We wear the furrowed brow of the blue collar. Our fashion is based on durability and we drink real beer in real bars. Our attorneys shake hands with steelworkers in rustbelt brotherhood. Filmstrip fights right in here. What initially pops off as something infectiously melodic is actually quite a bit more complex. These guys have chops and we're excited to hear the rest of the album. So much regional music rarely bounces out of the local scene that births it. I don't see that happening with these guys. They had the opportunity to play at Sundance recently and have enjoyed the flirtation with national exposure. We'll stamp our approval on it right now. If you're in Cleveland, there's no reason to be out of the loop. If you're from elsewhere, check out their myspace HERE. The band is having their record (self) release party at one of our favorite venues, Happy Dog, and will be supported by local favorites Hot Cha Cha and Founding Fathers.
