Check out the review from BC's newspaper The Heights....
The Heights - Arts & Review
Issue: 09/02/03
Former frat party cover band shows promise
By Mike Meyer
Local Boston band Busker formed in the early '90s as The Blue Route at The Villanova University and served as a cover band at frat parties. A few years later, they moved to Boston and played the local club scene at T.T. and the Bear's Place, The Middle East, The Kendall Café, and Harper's Ferry. Then The Blue Route broke up in 1999.
Fortunately for their faithful fans, Paul Dubanowitz (lead vocals/ guitar) and Kevin Bannerton (drums/ percussion/ guitar) of the original The Blue Route joined with Mind the Gap multi-instrumentalist Chris Telep to form Busker.
Now a few years into their tenure, the band has been working the bar and club scene, forming a loyal fan base, and writing enough material for their newly- released album Gargoyle. The group describes themselves as "Acoustic Pop/ Rock with some folk influences." On the album the group transitions between electric guitar-driven rock songs and slow, mellow ballads. On the ballads Busker sounds reminiscent of early '90s Colorado college rock group The Samples.
The album opens with the uplifting "On the Wall." Although the words are not religious, the song sounds somewhat like contemporary Christian rock, and the energy of the song, that could easily be a hopping live song, isn't translated onto the studio version. The songs improve as the album progresses with the sweet-melodied "Angelina." Busker relies on simple acoustic guitar and drums as a vehicle for the Dubanowitz's longing lyrics.
The band switches tempo with the hard-rocking "Willy" that sounds like a mix of Big Head Todd and the Monsters and The Goo Goo Dolls. The next song, "World On Fire," the best on the album, begins with harmonica and the mellow pace and subtle voiceovers complement Dubanowitz's voice.
On "Let it Ride," Dubanowitz sounds like Todd Pipes from Deep Blue Something singing "Breakfast at Tiffany's." The group experiments with a little crafty guitar picking that enlivens the song.
"Since You Left Town" is the best of the electric songs, combining thumping bass lines with a raging lead guitar and hammering drums. The final two songs are straightforward, relying on the same formula as the rest of the album.
Busker shows promise in several songs on Gargoyle. Those moments where the band recognizes their strengths and communicates the energy of their live shows onto the album provide promise for the former college frat party band.
Busker will next appear at The Skybar in Cambridge on Sept. 20. For more information check
http://go.to/theskybar.