Eleventh Dream Day

Live at Snagilwet

February 22

By Marc Hayes

Eleventh Dream Day kicked in their North American tour February 22 with a show at Snagilwet (I will call it by this name). It's difficult to describe the Eleventh Dream Day sound for you folks who aren't familiar with the band, but if you'll picture a band that combines the better elements of Neil Young and X, you'll at least be in the right ball park.

On this Friday night Eleventh Dream Day's scruffy, two-guitar sound was more distinctive than ever. The show had a certain elegance to it as well, featuring crisp post-modern pop, yet pleasantly aggressive. The band ripped and roared through a collection of songs mostly from their two Atlantic albums, Beet and Lived to Tell.

While Eleventh Dream Day has always had a Louisville connection (Janet Beveridge Bean, the band's drummer is a Louisville native), their recently released Lived to Tell has an even stronger Kentucky connection. The album was recorded in a barn at Cub Run, Ky. (near Munfordville). Instead of going into the studio, Eleventh Dream Day opted to bring the studio to them (the same mobile studio that has been used in the past by The Bodeans and The Rolling Stones). Set aside any misconceptions, Lived to Tell is a first-rate disc with the band's guitar-rich songwriting style coming across like never before. Since its release, Lived to Tell has been doing really well on the alternative and collegiate charts. It's a gorgeous record. Add it to your collection soon. I promise it will send up smoke from those CD players.