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Jet Black Sunrise shines in first show

By Gaveliers, The Gavel Media Team, on October 26, 2009 3:59 PM

By Lauren Skogsholm, For the Gavel -

Everyone around here is feeling the pressure of midterms and oppres­sive college schedules. Now imagine being in a band, tacking on additional time every week for endless hours of practice, songwriting, and recording at every possible chance, and booking occasional gigs in downtown Boston. How does anyone manage to do that?

The guys of Jet Black Sunrise have figured it out, and they seem to be doing something right. Formerly known as Perfect Mercury, the band released their debut album Running Through Crossfire in November 2007. Now, with the recording of sopho­more album The Casualties of Sleeping well on its way, two new band mem­bers, Jay “Rojo Grande” Schneider on bass guitar and JC “Jesus” Zwisler on drums, join veterans Tom Farrell, A&S ’11, and Nick Fede.

“Jay and JC have breathed some fresh air into the band…They’re beasts,” Fede said, who plays guitar and shares lead vocals with Sch­neider.

Farrell, the lead guitarist and a ju­nior at BC, finds it difficult at times to manage his course load with his band activities, which includes traveling to Northeastern University to practice with the other members a couple times per week.

“It’s hard to play and focus on music with all the work I have to do in my major, which is not music” Far­rell said, who gave up the possibility of a Berklee education to pursue a philosophy major at Boston College. Nevertheless, he is still enthusiastic about the band’s progress.

They describe themselves as hav­ing a ’90s indie pop-rock style. But hoping to continue with the matura­tion of their music, they have become more active around the college and local music scene as possibilities con­tinue to present themselves. A couple weeks ago, they took advantage of the opportunity to play at All Asia in Cambridge.

The venue was small, but it was big step for the band as their first show together. Despite the limited space, Jet Black Sunrise still con­nected with the crowd through their chemistry and talent — not to men­tion their comedic interludes between songs. The set list was a mix of mostly their own songs, including “Pictures” and “Move On,” and also featured covers of Gin Blossoms’s “Hey Jeal­ousy” and MGMT’s “Kids.”

Afterward, the guys seemed pretty satisfied with the show.

“All of our free demos were taken!” Tom said, referring to the sampler EPs of their upcoming full-length album that were available.

Farrell said that he hoped their performance met the expectations of friends and family present.

Although Farrell says that he is doubtful he could make a career out of music, he is certain that he would love it if it happened. For now, he says he just wants to take it one step at a time. Based on the warm recep­tion and mildly obnoxious chants for an encore at their latest performance, they certainly seem to be living up to the hype.