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The best rock music, at its heart, has a youthful exhuberance, matched with skillful playing and a good sense of melody. It’s a winning combination, but it’s a rare one. And it’s all there in The Eddies. What they offer is a sonic explosion of lush, atmospheric mod inspired melodies. True, there is more than a smidge of post punk, surf and power-pop to be found amidst this trio’s music. They wear their influences on their sleeve with pride. But at the core of their songs is a clear affinity to the classic tune-smithing of the likes of Townshend and Weller.
Built around brothers Dean (l vox, bass) and Dale (b vox, guitars) Hoth, The Eddies released their first album, “In The Sunshine,” in 2004. The disc showcased the bands original material to good effect, highlighted by tight pop-edged rockers as “All Alone,” and “Life Could Be So Good.” The album picked up favorable press and airplay in 23 countries, including the U.S., as well as Yugoslavia, England, France, Germany, Scotland, Portugal, Spain and Australia.
Crucial to their sound, the recordings marked the beginning of a long relationship with producer Earle Mankey (The Beach Boys, The Cramps, Sparks, Concrete Blonde, 20/20 etc). Several drummers have kept time for The Eddies live show since their inception, with Mankey himself providing drums for the group’s most recent studio recordings.
The Eddies kept busy through 2007 with appearances on a several compilation albums, including “News of the World MKII” (“Queen of Hearts”) as well as tribute albums to Neil Diamond (“Sweet Caroline”) and Squire (“Debbie Jones”). The latter was a top ten hit on Mod Radio UK.
2008 finds The Eddies looking at their roots. For their sophomore release, “Twice Around the World,” the group pay tribute to some of their favorite artists, covering eleven classic tracks from the early eighties, including tunes from Squire, Manual Scan, The Risk, The Jetset, Chardon Square, The Little Murders and The Times. This is a Friday night album, meant to play loud, sing-a-long with and maybe even strum the occasional air guitar.
The future? It does indeed look bright ahead. Upcoming appearances include tribute albums to Manual Scan and The Jetset, while pre-production has begun on The Eddies third disc. All of which should be hotly anticipated by music fans the world over. Whether you are charmed by their driving originals or admiring their taste in covers, it’s clear The Eddies will continue to be a group to watch. They are firmly in the small group of bands who manage to capture the joyful spirit of rock that made us all fans of the music in the first place.
The Eddies "Twice Around The World" is available from CD Baby, Yahoo! Music Match, Apple iTunes, Napster, Amazon, Rhapsody, MP3 Tunes, AOL Music Net, Jam Records, Kool Kat Records, Detour Records, etc. and soon Target Stores.
-Bart Menoza, July 2008
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