In Charlotte’s wide-ranging Music Scene, there exists so much talent, ever present any day one might travel out, but few may hold a candle to Jay Garrigan & his co-conspirators as they premiere themselves as The Eyebrows tonight at Snug Harbor.
Jay, along with Shawn Lynch on drums, have had a long history together, playing in such past bands as Poprocket and Emotional Rescue. Darrin Gray, on bass, had played alongside the two over many years within CLT’s venues, and together the three combined form The Eyebrows, an 80’s/90’s sound-inspired pop-rock powerhouse.
Jay’s keyboard strokes within the background of “The Red Dress” and “Not the Same” flow over like the tide combined with Shawn’s beats and Darrin’s riffs, belaying the deepening lyrics in the second track of “Volume”, the band’s first collaborative piece. “It Comes Down Hard” hits like a mash-up of The Talking Head’s style and The Barenaked Ladies’s narrative in dressing together an upbeat atmosphere with a pointed response to a former situation. One of my favorite tracks, “Avocado”, throws me for a loop as the ridiculousness of the vocal’s and direction of the music are as if Weird Al was suddenly covering The B-52’s Rock Lobster.
All & all, I find myself running back to each song as their nostalgia presence combined with the band’s whimsical yet underlying lyrical tones blow up into something marvelous in nature. The band’s years on the road, synthesizing their individual sound into something greater, like an Alchemist aspiring to their Philosopher’s Stone.
Tonight, over at Snug Harbor down in Plaza-Midwood, will be their latest performance out with the Charlotte crowd. With Party Battleship opening at 9pm and The Eyebrows bringing their LP “Volume” to life at 10, it’s sure to be powerful evening, perfect to spice up the long Labor Day weekend. Entrance is only $5, so come on out and support your local artists!
Reporting From 20XX 