Murfreesboro five-some The Compromise has managed to harness that elusive brand of catchy, melodic pop-rock that makes the girls swoon, but their style walks a fine line and it seems completely plausible that at live shows they might occasionally give in and just rock out.
Besides, chicks totally dig that.
I can see them now, stomping their feet and playing and crooning earnestly. Unfortunately they’re a pretty clean cut bunch (if you ignore the facial hair), which also separates them from a lot of Murfreesboro music, so there will be no emphatic shakes of the head, throwing their tousled rocker boy locks about. Darn. That’s my favorite part.
Their six-song EP, Between Love and Hate, is the best of both worlds. They can throw out the “na-na-na na-na-na” chorus like they’re in Blink 182, but tend to those tender moments like a latter-day Good Charlotte.
Lead singer Brandon Bell has a clear, strong voice. Again, we’re talking marketability here folks.
These songs could be crossovers you hear on 102.9 The Buzz (at least in their old format) but occasionally hear on 107.5 The River, too. Why aren’t these guys making way too much money and writing songs about how hard it is to be a rich rock star yet? They just need a week with one of those stylists who know what kind of tight pants make the MTV gen buy in, and they’d be good to go.
There’s something effortless about liking this collection of songs. I can’t be ashamed, although it’s not exactly fodder for the hard-core elitist music lover snobs. They wouldn’t be caught dead playing “Thou Shalt Not Worship False Billy Idols” turned up loud with their windows down. But that’s their loss, really. Any song with a Billy Idol reference in the title deserves that.
These are damn catchy, well rounded, accessible pop-rock songs. So, ya know, if you’re into that kind of thing, these boys are for you.
Between Love and Hate was released May 17 and will be available at The Compromise’s May 29 show at Exit/In, and locally at its July 11 performance at Wall Street. Or, I’m sure, if you ask real nicely, they’ll find a way to get you a copy.
