Fivespeed
"Trade in Your Halo"
(Sunset Alliance)

Ever since the fall of Nirvana and the latest exploitation of punk rock, intensity and integrity have been in short supply in the US. The music in the charts has shown no sign of improvement, vacillating between vacuous synththetic dance pop and faux-aggro "I'm really pissed off" rock.

Things might be taking a turn for the better if all the major-label attention that Fivespeed has been getting turns into a decent record deal and national promotion. Sure, they're aggro. Yeah, they're a little bit punk. If you take a minute to listen to the lyrics, you'll realize that these guys are home-grown and for real. More than that, the songs are there.

So where does the major-label interest come from? Well, the band just happens to have a sound similar to what's been playing on alternative radio for the past while. Let's call it "convergent evolution." If I remember my biological principles correctly, that means that two completely unrelated species (different genotypes) evolve to have the same characteristics (phenotypes). It happens sometimes when a non-poisonous butterfly or whatever evolves to look like another, poisonous species. That way the poor guy or gal butterfly doesn't get eaten as often and he or she can live to reproduce another day. So now all the phony crap on MTV is going to have to look out. The genuine article is on its way.

The band is playing all over the valley, so don't miss your chance to see them while the crowds are still local-size.

Fivespeed tour dates: http://www.fivespeedaz.com/shows.html

-Jesse Christopherson, Foreign Correspondent from Costa Rica