Nephews Mantra: Have Fun

The garage band is a staple. In the mid-nineties, California Dreams, an entire series based around a band, ran for four seasons. Walk into any bar in Columbus and you will see their flyers. Spend any time on My Space and you will learn everything about them. They aren’t original… But unoriginality shouldn’t be mistaken for staleness.

The Nephews underscore that point. After listening to only three songs in their opening set (which I arrived an hour late for at CBR… bleep you Map Quest), I was impressed. As I exited during their final set, I was thoroughly impressed. The quintet is bold, unique, and they clearly enjoy what they are doing. Most importantly, they understand what the majority of those people on the flyers and My Space forget…

The trick with a cover band is self-actualization… They are not singing or playing original material… Everyone already knows the drumbeats, the guitar chords, and the words by heart… Their challenge is to not spin sacred material… It’s what ninety percent of the contestants on American Idol do and Simon always applauds them for their interpretation of the song… Screw their interpretation… I don’t care their take on a classic… A classic is a classic… Just relate the classic… Don’t try and reinterpret it…

Despite a diverse set list (one of the most diverse and impressive I have ever heard), the Nephews don’t try to reinterpret… They let the song carry the moment… Greg, the lead singer is masterful at this… From Better Than Ezra to Weezer to Sister Hazel, he doesn’t try to make the song something its not and in the same token, the band doesn’t become something its not… Greg makes you remember the first time you sang those songs with the radio, the first night you heard them, the first experience you had with them…

His energy is also remarkable… That’s the other trick with cover bands is they can sound amazing… But since everyone has heard the product, the salesmen must be more spectacular… Greg is… As I have said before with venues in this city, energy can’t be faked or manufactured… It is either there or its not… The crowd must feed off of something… Tonight, they fed off Greg…

They also fed off his remarkable instrumentalists, led by lead guitarist Dominic… Nicky has impressive range… From the renowned baseline on “Under Pressure” to the more intricate but fiercer rhythm of “Hash Pipe,” Nicky does not relax… From the moment I walked in to the moment I left, he was the same aggressive, entertaining presence… Every bit Greg’s equal in presence and skill…

The most entertaining member of the band (from my vantage point, their most outgoing member) was Tony… The senior member of the band easily fluttered from guitar to keyboard and back… All the while, laughing, joking, playing to the crowd… While Greg and Nicky were the lead musically, Tony may have been the one who most stood for what this band and this experience was about…

I’ve often seen division three scores flash across the bottom of the screen while watching the Buckeyes and thought, “what’s the point?” They wont make millions. They wont be watched by hundreds of thousands… They’re just playing for pride and family… Why do it? Tonight, the Nephews reminded me of why… They reminded me that no matter the stage or standing in life, you must have fun. You should have fun… Otherwise, what’s the freaking point?