Now comprised, Trent Reznor-style, of just one man—Anberlin's Stephen Christian, albeit with the odd sideman/acoustical helping hand—Anchor & Braille once featured fellow tousle-haired singer Aaron Marsh of Copeland. But they parted amicably when Marsh read the (raised) writing on the wall: A&B was to be a vehicle for songs that Christian felt were "too personal" for a full-on, shit-kick Rock Show. The project is now set to release its debut, Felt, this month, and Christian’s songs are surprisingly listenable—a tunesy minstrelsy of late ’90s Insta-Indie (Third Eye Blind, Tonic, Verve Pipe) thankfully lacking in the usual Tooth & Nail-style histrionics. And unlike fellow asymmetrically coiffed acousticos—we’re looking at you, Dashboard Confessional—A&B won’t tempt you to put your head through the windshield come the chorus. Is Christian reinventing the wheel? Hell, no. Then again, the wheel's been rolling along pretty good for a couple centuries or more.
Tue., Aug. 4, 9 p.m., 2009
