Chronic Future

I remember the summer of '04, and on the radio was a really nice fun song called "Time And Time Again" by a band called Chronic Future. At first, I'm sure I thought "Yaaaaaaay! Another rap rock band we don't need! Whoo-hoo!!!" But that damn single caught in my head and wouldn't get out. So I had to do something! So I bought the album right before they were playing a show in downtown Dayton. Wrong move.

The band hooked me. The band had so much energy that you couldn't help but get caught up in their live show. I ended up seeing them twice (the second time because I had to trade in my Pixies tickets which almost killed me, a long story). I got to talk to Mike (the lead singer) a few times and he truely is a great guy. He's got the attitude that I so enjoy: more than willing to hang and talk to fans who really appreciate his/their music.

And their music. You hear the term "rap rock" and you immediately cringe. I know I do. But these boys, the inject their music with meaning. It's not about being angry, it's about knowing to what to do with that anger and change your life. It's actually uplifting music. Tracks like "Shellshocked" and "New York, NY" show you that these guys, just normal fellows from Arizona, have the songwriting talents of the some of the most lauded singer/songwriters. I'd love to see what Mike Busse could do on an acoustic record by himself some days.

Since 2004, they've been pretty inactive, not sure really why. But I do hear they're working on new songs. They have a few up on their myspace site. In all honesty, the first two new ones I heard, I wasn't really impressed. They were good demos, but just that, demos. Stuff that I think needed more work to fit into their sound a bit better. But then, the last new track came on. "If You Ever Run Away" has this very dreamy sound that I could see in the middle of one of their sets to settle the audience down. I definitely suggest downloading it.

*Reason I've been away:

Just finished up my quarter recently and I needed a break. Work has been crazy. I'm preparing for many shows in the next few weeks. My photos for The Static Age turned out like shit (but there will be a post on them in the next three posts), but my Taste Of Chaos stuff turned out great. I'll try to be better. Who knows what will happen.

End Of Reason*