Joe Tell's Music Blog: Whiskey Reverb - Nathan Bates Rejects The Illuminati

Whiskey Reverb Soul Vibration Tour dates 2015

Whiskey Reverb's latest and greatest musical release is Nathan Bates Rejects The Illuminati.
I am reviewing this CD to support Whiskey Reverb, one of the best original bands from the current Buffalo, NY music scene.

First I must comment on the title of the CD, Nathan Bates Rejects The Illuminati, the title made me think "Who is this Nathan Bates guy and why did he reject the Illuminati?" so I googled Nathan Bates and there really is no world famous Nathan Bates to speak off. Maybe it's an offhand reference to Norman Bates? The title made me think how did Whiskey Reverb come up with this title and why did they use the title? The title piqued my interest and made me want to hear the music to find out what Whiskey Reverb is all about. I'm sure there is a great story behind the cool, hip CD title.

Onto the music, the CD starts off with a very cool prelude called Shake The Cage. The piano sounds, provided by Wade Benford, are very melancholy and the backwards guitar fades in right at the perfect moment.

Shake The Cage continues on into a funky, steady flowing rock tune with a ton of great sound effects throw into the musical palette to keep the listener's ears engaged. A cool indian sound featuring a sitar introduces a rockin' guitar solo played by Mike Cassidy. There seems to be a positive message flowing throughout the song. My interpretation is that if you want to change your life you need to shake things up a bit and break out of your daily routine. Shake The Cage sets the tone and the mood for the rest of the music to follow.

Something Good is a strong and positive song that starts off with the droning sound of an A note. The songs' sound is reminiscent of a great Coldplay or Oasis song with some Whiskey Reverb juice thrown into the mix. Jim Candytree sounds great and he takes this one out with a awesome vocal outro.

Thank U sounds like a soundtrack for a party, with a intro by A2J and a sweet chorus sang by Megan Brown. Thank U is a uplifting song you should play when you want to have a good time, better yet cue this song up when you are havin' a party to lift it up that much higher.

Dreamsong is exactly as the title suggests, an ethereal, soft flowing song that features Megan Brown on lead vocals. Dreamsong has the sound and feel of a song that can easily carry you away into a different state of mind if you let it. A dreamy song featuring a beautiful voice.

Nathan Bates Rejects The Illuminati is proving to be a diverse soundscape full of different musical genres and talented singers mixed into one cohesive unit, the band has proven to bunch of highly talented individuals halfway through the CD.

Between The Veil is up next, this song is carried by a uptempo acoustic guitar groove and a great lead vocal by Jim Candytree. Mike Cassidy adds some color to the groove, strumming an electric guitar into the mix. This is a strong, uptempo rocker. The rhythm section of Scotty Harrington and Tony Bales lay down a solid groove with Tony Bales throwing in some quick bass lines to help push the song along.

The Way We Live sounds like it has the potential to be a great rap song. The rhythm section sounds as if they're holding back but the groove is still tight. I can hear a stronger rhythm track that could make The Way We Live an awesome rap song with A2J grabbing the spotlight with his words. The tempo twists around as the song morphs into a unique mix of original samples and a erotic gasp brings a lead guitar solo in. The Way We Live is a unique song, it takes a few listens to "get" the groove. Great performances by A2J, Megan and Mike are highlighted on this experimental track.

Letters is a straight forward, acoustic rock song driven by the vocals of Jim Candytree and the keyboards of Wade Benford. After a tasty guitar solo by Mike Cassidy a double vocal by Jim and Megan takes this song out.

The final song, Keep It Movin' (EDM Remix) is sure to get you dancin'. This song would sound just awesome in a crowded dance club on a Saturday night dance marathon.

Congratulations Whiskey Reverb!
http://www.whiskeyreverb.com/

"Now that the cat is out of the bag, we (Whiskey Reverb) are proud to announce that we have officially signed on our first distribution contract with Projekt/Warner Bros. and a publishing deal with Seireenien/BMI. We are so excited for the opportunity to spread our music to a worldwide audience and feed that SoulFire. "

Buffalo Music Award winners and Tudor Lounge favorites, Whiskey Reverb are climbing the rock 'n roll ladder to success.
Whiskey Reverb can best described as "Psychedelic, sexy, funk rock from heaven" and they come highly recommended by JoTell.
With their recent Facebook announcement (goto https://www.facebook.com/pages/Whiskey-Reverb/262004595188) it's a fact that Whiskey Reverb have parlayed their back-to-back Hard Rock Buffalo Rising winnings (2012 & 2013) to even more juicy success...
W.R. combine a myriad of great musical influences, excellent musicianship and awesome stage presence into a complete rockin' party everytime they grace a stage. Good looks W.R.!

Now, just for you, here's Whiskey Reverb's "World's Greatest Hits"