The Statesmen transformed from an average Geneseo bar into a jamming concert venue last Saturday night as Syracuse-based band Silent Fury performed a two set show.
According to the group's Web site, Silentfury.net, lead vocalist and guitarist Mick Fury has been recording and performing for almost a decade and was nominated for the Syracuse area's Grammy music award.
The band's other members, who according to Fury have been together for only a handful of months, include skillful drummer Josh 'Wildman' Dean and talented bassist Branden Kuersteiner.
The show opened with a rendition of Green Day's "Brain Stew" that brought a refreshing, energetic atmosphere to the bar. As the night progressed, the band continued to rock the Statesmen crowd with popular songs including "Move Along" by the All American Rejects, "Can't Stop" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, "It's My Life" by Bon Jovi, and Maroon 5's "This Love."
With each number, Fury, Dean and Kuersteiner added their own flair to the music, using dynamic showmanship and musical abilities to entice the Saturday night crowd.
Silent Fury also performed several tracks from their most recent album, Sunday Stilettos, notably "Kick Down My Door," a slower song about relationships that is reminiscent of the work of Third Eye Blind but with a more punk rock flair.
"Faded Glory," a slow ballad about reminiscing added a nice change of pace to an otherwise pumped up concert.
Off one of their earlier albums, the band performed the track "I'm In Trouble Again," dedicating it to all of "The Fighting Irish fans at the bar" and eliciting a raucous cheer from the crowd. The song had a touch of country rock and a strong beat which Fury added to with an impressive guitar solo.
Throughout the night, Silent Fury's playing was consistently strong, and the addition of live music to the evening was a great improvement over the piped Top 40 that had been playing prior to the band going on at 10 p.m.
Silent Fury's show at the Statesmen was part of their current tour entitled "Coming To a Bar Near You," which, according to Fury, consists of "100 dates and started about a month back."
Fury described the genre of Silent Fury as "power rock, a subgenre of rock." He stated that his style as a guitarist comes from his influences the Beatles, Ozzie Osbourne and Journey.
Kuersteiner cited his appreciation of "a lot of jazz, blues, and funk" as influencing his bass playing, while Dean revealed that two of his biggest influences have been drummers John Bonham from Led Zeppelin and Neil Peart from Rush.
According to Fury, this show was the "third or fourth time" that the band has played at the Statesmen.