One of the many reasons why we fell in love with music is its ability to constantly re-invent itself. We are quite confident that not everyone in your ‘circle’ knows the same musicians, singers and songwriters. So, each and every day a new band presents itself to you via word of mouth, the Internet or the radio. These communication channels have introduced us to new music of the past and the present.
Recently, we became acquainted with the Washington, DC band, Atlas, which consists of vocalist and guitarist, EJ Morgan, bassist and vocalist, Andrew Vilar and drummer, John Schaffer. Named DC Deli’s August Band Of The Month, the trio released a music video for the track, “Shotgun”. There is no way to categorize this song in one genre. Atlas throws it all into the mix with “Shotgun” and we have zero complaints. The instrumental rifts trigger the hard metal angst within us and the edgy alternative vocals ignite the rocker flame within us. These pairings of metal to instrumentals and rocks to vocals are not stagnant throughout the track. Atlas stirs the pot, musically, and comes up with new genre couplings as the song progresses.
The spontaneity of the track’s sound coordinates well with the images of the video. Donned in colorful and quirky attire, the video opens up with the trio performing in front of a top-notch graffiti decorated brick wall. The “Shotgun” video has elements that remind us of the spunkiness of ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel Air’ intro, just with the 90s rock sound, rather than that of rap playing behind it. The vibrant graphics remain prominent throughout the video and so does the outlandish styling of the trio. Atlas performs in gas masks, primary color skin suits, banana and monkey suits and drag.
Music is supposed to be a means to liberate yourselves from pain and/or a way to deal with hurt through healthy means. Somewhere between chart topping success and album sales, musicians and singers drifted away from these intentions of music. Atlas is not one of these misdirected bands. The trio has the musical skills, the passion and the humor that help keep our marriage with music strong.
by Lonnie Nemiroff