Nobody plays rock music anymore. It's been replaced by ska, swing, hardcore, and "alternative," whatever that means. The Fairburns apparently mean to resuscitate late '80s/early '90s rock and roll, and do a fairly good job with it.
Lead singer Andy's vocals could easily be compared to those of Jason Pettit (Glisten) -- they're deep and throaty, yet not afraid to get emotional. Andy belts out lines such as this excerpt from "Professor":
His life's in a box and he hopes for sunshineAs you can see, the lyrics tread a fine line -- evangelical, but not evangelical; Christ-centered, but not Christ-centered; openly religious, but still artsy. The Fairburns are quite obviously a Christian band, but wouldn't run into problems trying to play secular bars or clubs.
That and a little nip of wine keeps him happy
Well, maybe not that happy
He says, 'Don't think I'm not you - don't think it's not true
I'm the picture of what loveless failure will do!'
He turns and says, 'Hey, son, what's your addiction?
Well, they might have one problem. Compared to the lyrics, the music is remarkably sub-standard. It's not so much that it's dated (though it is)--it's more that the music is boring, and played rather half-heartedly. If The Fairburns could just get excited about the music they're playing, they could be a truly great band. Until then, something's missing.
Michial Farmer 9/18/99
