Ear X Tacy In-Store March 12 - The Merediths

By John Bohannon

There is something about certain music that is just easily recognizable right off the bat - something that makes your ears tingle with joy, something that makes you remember why you still search for new bands that can change your perspective on music. Well for me, the Merediths are that band. The first time I let one of their songs caress my ears, I knew this band had something - that perfect interplay between members that only comes around once in a blue moon.

When the guys graced ear X-tacy with their presence March 12, you wouldn't have recognized them as more than a couple of regulars just floating around the store. But when they took the stage, a mood shift took place in that room. People that were lucky enough to wander in randomly during their set were immediately drawn to watch these five guys play these miraculous pop tunes that pull you in like a kid to candy.

The Merediths at ear X-tacy Records

As they played their set, I began to wonder just exactly why this band was so easy on the ears, just so damn fun to listen to. When you hear people say a band sounds like so and so, you usually beg to differ or think it sounds somewhat similar, but not dead on. The Merediths have managed to absorb from their mentors so well, that they have squeezed just about every influential band in the past 50 years into their music and hit it right on the bull's-eye. Their set included everything from a Pavement influence to a Beatles influence to even a cover of the Turtles "Eleanor" (which was a bit ironic considering I was standing with a girl directly to my right named Eleanor.)

This group not only records beautiful, layered pop tunes, but they play them live like they are played on the album (usually a problem with a recording with many layers). This probably is facilitated a lot by keyboardist Jonathon York, with his intricate setup on midi controllers and synth boards, because the possibilities are endless. Lead singer Joe Meredith shuffles around like a true indie-rocker as his aura exceeds his small stature.

Drummer Brian Haulter plays solid backbone beats and plays them damn well for just picking up the drums to play with this band, as Jesse Lucas helps keep the rhythm in line with his bubbly bass riffs, which stand on their own rather than follow the lead. As for lead, I'd love to see Mark Bryant's record collection, for his solos are mixtures thrown in from just about every genre you can think of.

So as these guys make the rounds in Louisville playing just about every place you can think of, stop by and catch them. As they are currently branching out to places such as Chicago and Oklahoma and gaining airplay on college radio, they may not be hanging around town too much longer.