…because I’m sure there are a lot of them. So there’s this band here in Salt Lake that I’m in love with, Fictionist, and I feel sort of evangelical about them. I started to mention this awhile back, and then I got sidetracked as I am wont to do and never did the follow-up post.

I heard these guys on our local indie station (which is a gem in itself) and was really impressed, then saw them live at a woefully underpopulated club and thought they were amazing. Nothing about them says “local band” to me – the production quality album is great (I bought it via iTunes, I’m assuming the actual CD is quality, too), the lyrics are thoughtful (with hints at deeper spiritual ponderings and you know how I love spiritual ponderings), the arrangements complex, and they are incredibly tight live—I don’t think the lead vocalist could hit a bad note if he tried, and the quality of musicianship by all of them is first rate.

And, maybe most impressive to me, was at that near-empty club they still gave a great show, despite the fact that a guy from the next band kept walking back and forth between the stage and “audience” (okay, me and my husband and like four other people plus the entourage) with pieces of his drum kit when he wasn’t busy laughing loudly at his own jokes. They did their thing and had a good time as if they had a full house. I love that. And I wanted to go up after and say I know what it’s like to go to an event and have 30 chairs set up and only have 2 of them filled, and I know, too, that you do your thing and have a good time, anyway, otherwise what’s the point?

It seems to me it’s much harder to break out as a musician than as a writer. Publishing has its issues, but the music business seems totally convoluted. If you can’t get on a Clear Channel station, is there any chance of going big? It’s such a narrow door to the kind of exposure you need for major success. Who knows what kind of great and worthy stuff is not getting through that door? This is why I listen to KRCL, subscribe to Paste, fire up Pandora, and take any and all recommendations from friends. And as your friend, I’m saying you should check out Fictionist and see if you like.

http://fictionist.net
You can preview the whole “Invisible Hand” album on their site.