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BANDS: Punk & Ska INTERESTS: Venues ETC... About LOTD
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No Second Troy at Iota Club and Cafe in Arlington, VA - 9/14/04
No Second Troy would be an apt description for many moviegoers sentiments about this summers big-budget blockbuster, which featured little more talent than that of Brad Pitts chiseled jawbone and glistening upper thigh. However, any sack of wine knows No Second Troy is not merely a protest call against the 2004 flick, but the title of a 1910 poem by William Butler Yeats. And, any D.C. rock aficionado has heard of the group named for this work one of the best unsigned bands in D.C., according to the AOL CityGuide, and one thats a lot more endowed than any portion of Brads anatomy. No Second Troy is not the second and certainly not the first band to use a poem title as their moniker. The Doors copped theirs from William Blake, Robert Zimmerman was a fan of Dylan Thomas, and Tears for Fears were poets who didnt even know it. But NST pianist, organist and vocalist Mike Beach swears that Yeats provided a cool name, not a symbol of the bands mentality. [No Second Troy] is a bitter poem about unrequited love and Irish revolutionaries, Beach stated after the groups performance and CD release party at the Iota Club & Caf in Arlington on September 14. It doesnt reflect the bands attitude on life. But perhaps this group of generally clean-cut, nice guys who gave away free CDs, stickers and T-shirts at the concert and showed no vices besides occasional sips of beer and a cigarette-smoking bass player is innocent to an even deeper connection with the brooding verse theyve adopted as a title. Harvard Law-educated Beach was correct about the unrequited love aspect of Yeats work (the poem addresses Yeats infatuation with Irelands Joan of Arc, Maud Gonne), but didnt acknowledge that this theme also surfaces on Fall. Wharen, the newest addition to the band, pleaded with a cheating beau to be honest in Misbehaving: Im wearing his heart out on my sleeve/what else can I say? he implored. Musically, Vijay Shankers tense, repetitive snare in this number provided a pulse that came from severe anxiety or severe sexual frustration. Another of Yeats motifs that is mirrored in the bands make-up besides the Irish factor brought in by guitarist/vocalist Tom McCarthy and bassist Ian McGee is the rise of the underdog. For Yeats, this meant Irish nationalists taking a stand. For No Second Troy, this means trying to establish themselves as a label-less group in a world where unsigned generally translates into unheard. Another struggle is distinguishing themselves from the household names theyre already being compared to: Coldplay, Remy Zero and Ben Folds Five, among others. Luckily, judging from the CityGuide review and a packed house on a drizzly Tuesday evening, No Second Troy is making a quick departure from its unheard status. Though Beach says NST recognizes the influence of other bands (Radiohead and the Finn Brothers are included on the list), the group has been successful in creating a distinct sound. The subtle electronics are much more approachable than those of the Yorke/Greenwood clan, and though they have taken pointers from BF5s piano-driven rock, NST which actually HAS five members switches it up with the inclusion of elements of both jazz and blues. McCarthys solo riff during Tall Buildings had one audience member comparing him to Eric Clapton (though he later admitted to being slightly biased as the guitarists former college chum). Beachs piano solo during the same song went so far as to rouse high-pitched screams from the mostly 20-something females in the crowd, as did McGees bass section in the crowd-pleaser New Mexico. No Second Troy is something of a rarity as a cohesive unit of gifted soloists who know how to share the spotlight. These displays of genuine musicianship are what will continue to separate the band from the rest. It seems No Second Troy is related to the movie Troy after all: the band has none of the films budget-blowing funds and a hearty helping of its sorely missing talent. Yet again abiding by its name, No Second Troy is refusing to take second place.
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