Montana, 1948

Ater a 2 hour drive down the peninsula and a quick-change in a Chevron bathroom, I found the tiny venue buried behind Los Gatos High School called, what else, The Venue. Speckled with skinny jeans, red lipstick, and underage smokers, i decided right away i liked this place. I could already hear my friend Ryan's sometimes raspy and always passionate voice (Brandon Boyd-esque) as i got my wristband and headed in..

January 16th marked Montana, 1948's first show.. Originally Vega, they filled the vocal spot with Ryan and created a brand new sound, a lot like Incubus (Morning View mixed with S.C.I.E.N.C.E. era), yet i'm searching for another resemblance too -- can't quite pin it down. They are finishing up recording their EP right now, and hope to have that available any day now. As they are still in the works with recording and writing songs, they played a short set of about 5 songs and sounded really solid. I especially liked the emotion of "Lie Through Your Teeth" and the energy of "The Other Side of Me." Plus, I was impressed with the drummer, Charlie, who never stopped smiling.. Oh yea, and Ryan created a new cure-all drink after he woke up not feeling 100%: jack and coke with a hint of coffee.

Montana, 1948 is: Ryan Lafferty (Vocals/rhythm guitar), Dan Prull (Lead Guitar), Raza Malik (Bass) and Charlie Maynard (drums).

These guys really have talent. Stay tuned for a few recordings this week or next.. It's nice to hear a band with such great talent across all levels. They seem like they've been playing together for a long time.

Oh! and if you want to hear them now and you live in the Santa Clara area (their stomping grounds), tune in to SCU's radio station 103.3 around 2:00pm on Wednesday for a listen..

Next show: February 20th at The Venue with Audrye Sessions and The Pilot's Wife