Occasionally  Brigham Young University will showcase local talent in live performances.  One of these many shows, called "Acoustic Explosion," is a free monthly event put on by the Student Activities Board that (as you have probably guessed) features acoustic guitars and their low-key instruments (there wasn't a single electric guitar or drum set in the house).  While the instrument set may be a bit more mellow than the mainstream, the sheer excitement and energy of these young performers make up for it.

With fellow music enthusiast TyTy at my side, notepad in hand and digital camera (with almost-dead batteries) at the ready, I was able to get some great footage of the concert.  Here's a few of my favorites of the night, with some commentary by TyTy and I.

Lebaron

Bob Lebaron - Rhythm guitar/Vocals
Chris Miller - Guitar/Backup Vocals
Mike Adams - Keys/Backup Vocals
Chris Rains - Bass
Troy Eddy - Cajon

Starting off our concert review is Lebaron.  The first thing I noticed about the band as they took the stage was percussionist Troy Eddy sitting on a cajon − which I had seen before and only known as "that one box that makes cool noises when you hit it for some reason."  I had always been intrigued by these musical instruments, which I have dubbed "the beat box," and it was good to see one again.  The guitar work by Bob Lebaron and Chris Miller blended together really well, and the keyboard and bass played by Mike Adams and Chris Rains wrapped it up real nicely.  I thoroughly enjoyed what this group had to offer.  Here's a video of their second song of the evening, "Drowning."

Another thing I really enjoyed about this band's performance was their sheer tenacity; Bob dropped his pick not once but twice during their first song of the night, but kept going despite the difficulty, strumming without it for the rest of the song.  Personally, I just thought the sound technician was messing with his volume switch on the sound board (I didn't notice the drop, to tell the truth).  If you check out Bob's blog here, you can find out what really happened with the dropped pick (and a fun on-stage "extra"), as well as get updates on the band as they come.

TyTy quips: It was nice to hear a full ensemble with bass and keyboard when many of the groups were sparse on some instruments.  They had a good, well-developed sound and some really nice chord progressions and melodies.

Check out Lebaron at Bob Lebaron's blog; he also has a MySpace page in the making at press time.
 

Early Summer

What I really liked about this duo was their attitude; they both look like they have a lot of fun when they perform, and it shows.  Their three-song set started off with both of them playing the acoustic guitar, but after that they moved to a guitar/keyboard combination.  Both sounded great.

But like I said before, their personality really made the performance.  Before one of their songs they mentioned that the audience can feel free to slowdance during the performance if they'd like; if you check out the other videos I recorded below, you can see it in action.  My favorite of the three songs they performed, called "Epic Nonsense," can be found below.  This song struck a chord with me because it reminds me a lot of the epic nonsense my friends and I would get into, and the guitaring is so good I didn't even miss the lack of percussion (on the contrary, it opened the window for the audience to supply it with clapping later on in the song, and it worked).  You really need to give 'em a watch.

TyTy comments: Although they were lacking a little polish, Early Summer did well and songs like With the Windows Down turned out to have excellent piano riffs.  "Epic Nonsense" had pretty ambitious guitar vamps which worked out for the most part.

Early Summer has a robust MySpace page, which can be found here; their Facebook page can be found here.  I also recorded a couple of their other songs that they performed tonight, which can be viewed here and here.

Our Dilemma

Casey Duke - Guitar/Vocals
Tarun Ash - Bass Guitar
Adam Wadsworth - Guitar
Peter Chun - Drums/Percussion

These guys were the closing act of the night, and they were worth the wait.  Despite the acoustic focus of the concert the band informed the audience that they usually have a harder sound with more distortion and the like.  Even then, they sounded great with acoustic guitars and only a snare drum and a cajon for the percussion section (percussionist Peter Chun was really fun to watch, a real crowd-pleaser). 

Their act was really well-rehearsed.  The vocals reminded me a bit of REM to tell the truth (I'm not sure why), but it was only that: just a reminder.  Our Dilemma has their own sound and let me tell you it is great.  They'll be playing at an upcoming Battle of the Bands event at BYU, and I have to say I'm curious to see how they'll sound when their full rock potential is able to be unleashed.

TyTy remarks: I couldn't help but think about how much they sounded like Jimmy Eat World throughout their songs.  Probably the most mature and well-rounded performance of the evening.  Each member played their part really well, particularly the drummer and backing guitarist.

If you want to learn some more about Our Dilemma, check out more at their website, which can be found here.  Also, I recorded another video of their performance, which can be viewed here.

- M.D. and TyTy

Acoustic Explostion is sponsored by the BYU Student Activities Board.  For more information about Acoustic Explosion, visit their website here.  Free downloads of some of the above artists and select others that have performed at previous Acoustic Explosion events can be found here.

All songs are copyright their respective owners.  All videos recorded on-site by the author.  Used with permission by the performers.

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