Townhall
“The New Song”
(Townhall Music)
This quartet has a hip, smart way of blending rock, jazz and blues styles into upbeat, punchy songs. They make it sound fun and easy, but there is a lot of serious thought behind this, I am sure. All members of the quintet were jazz majors that met at music school in Philadelphia. Their funky jazz rock is more of a sophisticated dance pop than a jazz fusion.
Townhall is thus like a cross between Steely Dan and Blues Traveler. The group’s multi-genre approach also does not move the band into being a loose jam band without a statement. The members are too well trained and sophisticated for that. This is advanced music that is still all about having fun, the sonic equivalent of a finely engineered sports car.
