These Wheels are bound to travel far
45Wheels: Ohio's hidden gem that won't remain hidden for long.
Last night at Canal Street Tavern in Dayton, Ohio a young, local (Yellow Springs native) four piece band called Wheels played to one of the most receptive crowds I've ever been a part of. Every song was met with loud applause and cat calls, some of which addressed the band members by name, or nickname.
This band has been well known in Yellow Springs for a while now. If you’ve been on Xenia avenue in the last year there’s a good chance you’ve them playing in front of the store windows or in Toxic Beauty Records (220 Xenia Avenue, second floor). And now the word is starting to spread about this precocious quartet with the release of their first CD entitled "Fields on Fire."
They have a stripped down-folk style with a single guitarist, mandolin player, percussionist/ harmonica player, and double bass player. They have a sound that is similar to the leader of today’s folk revival, namely Mumford and Sons, Dr. Dog and the Avett Brothers, with vocal harmonies reminiscent of Simon and Garfunkel, and instrumentation similar to American Beauty-era Grateful Dead; something to please every music lover’s sensibility.
The most impressive aspect of the band, however, is their original sound. Many bands their age are doing watered down covers of Jimi Hendrix tunes and plagiarized Jimmy Page solos with heavy distortion masking all their mistakes, but these young musicians are playing fully realized originals with their own distinctive voice. The majority of their set, an impressive 90+ minutes, was original compositions from all the members of the band, all of which featured mature, poetic lyrics and rich melodies. Even in their covers, which included a song from Dr. Dog song and the Avett Brothers, amongst others, you can hear their distinctive style. This is indicative of a band that has found its own voice and has confidence in their sound.
These kids put on a good show as well. The crowd was very responsive and appreciative, insisting on an encore after the set was over, during which Wheels played a brand new song they’ve written entitled “So Fast.” All in all it was a very enjoyable show.
If these kids keep this up, I expect we will all be hearing a lot more from and about them in the future.
You can follow them on their website or facebook page, complete with a few sample songs:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/wheelsmusic
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