Cloverton's debut EP

There's a new band on the rise and I hope you will take notice. Their name is Cloverton and they honed their distinctive melodic piano-driven rock in the houses, coffee shops and Churches of Manhattan, KS, before cutting their debut self-titled EP. Full disclosure: two of the band members, Layne and Lance Stafford, are friends of mine. Further disclosure: they're also very talented.

Cloverton's sound is built around Lance's vocals and piano, but filled out with atmospheric lead guitar, quality backing vocals and the support of a very tight rhythm section. Their songs possess that inviting, sing-along quality shared by the best rock anthems and worship tunes. The soulful quality of Lance's voice may remind some of Mac Powell from Third Day, but it has an elasticity and range more reminiscent of Coldplay's Chris Martin. The style of piano rock on display here has an edge that invites comparison to the likes of Something Corporate, Jack's Mannequin or the Ben Folds Five. However, I should emphasize that Cloverton is forging a musical direction all their own. Their sonic warmth and intensity mixes beautifully with their hopeful lyrical refrains. They resist the heady temptation to be preachy and they never fall back on the overly sentimental and hackneyed lyrics that seem to come so easily to so many Christian 'rock' bands. Yet, there is a directness and an honesty that bypasses the roundabout 'hidden' message approach favored by so many rock bands composed of 'Christians'. This is simply a group of five humble souls sharing words of comfort and sounds of joy both with fellow-travelers and those who don't yet know they're on a journey.

In an introduction he wrote for The Book of Psalms published back in 1999 in the UK, Bono said, 'Music is worship; whether it's worship of women or their designer, the world or its destroyer, whether it comes from that ancient place we call soul or simply the spinal cortex, whether the prayers are on fire with dumb rage or dove-like desire... the smoke goes upwards... to God or something you replace with God... usually yourself'. Cloverton is sending their smoke in the right direction and I want a place around their fire. I congratulate Layne, Lance and the rest of the crew on an auspicious debut.

In a summer chock full of new albums from some of my favorite bands like Green Day, Rancid and U2, it is the songs of Cloverton that I can't get out of my head. Check em out for yourself on ITUNES or YOUTUBE.