A Brilliant Lie – Threads:Spinner and more

I have been heavily involved with local music for years and have made a slew of friends and discovered some of the best music available anywhere by going no further than my local music venues. Hell, at this point, most of my friends are people I have met just hitting a show at least one week. Cost ranging from free to about $10 to be on the front row or within a few yards from the stage; it is hard to beat for entertainment bang for the buck. Plus, everyone, bar none, have been approachable and just as passionate about playing as I am about listening to their work. All of us here at MN love what we do and could not do what we are doing if it was not for the artists creating what we love. Network a bit more and drive a few more miles out of town and the number of local bands available to support grow at an exponential rate. So it goes with my spotlight on Orlando’s own, A Brilliant Lie.

I have seen A Brilliant Lie a few times now after falling in love with their Alternative Rock/Hard Rock sound a couple of years ago. Tons of youthful energy and passion with humorous and sarcastic banter and almost constant inner-band ribbing are trademarks of A Brilliant Lie show. This is obviously a band of best friends that live, work and play as one tightly knit unit on and off stage. Very nice to see such a sincere and close bond between every member of this highly talented band. Being around for about six years now, A Brilliant Lie has earned its place on many Central Florida radio stations and have played with countless numbers of national and local acts at home or on numerous tours with releases Regarding Harry Lime (2011), Waking Vessels (2013) and are working on a three EP series called Threads. Currently A Brilliant Lie is on tour with Dallas’ Pseudo Future through the end of August 2016 and hit Jack Rabbits here in Jacksonville where I discovered that their second EP in their trilogy: Threads:Spinner is due for release on Friday, August 12^th with their CD release party taking place on the 8^th in Orlando. Following their first EP in the series last year: Threads:Cutter, I was able to procure a copy of the new CD and am again extremely impressed with the diversity and unique sound A Brilliant Lie has developed. Think singer/songwriter class lyrics with classic, Progressive Hard Rock compositions played to modern, Alternative Rock/Heavy Rock stylings. As stated on their site: “Hard to classify, easy to listen to”. Better a description than my feeble mind can come up with. Vocalist/guitarist Tara Lightfoot is truly one of the nicest and most engaging people one could ever wish to meet and has a strong, Rock voice that is clean, pitch perfect and very expressive without being overly pristine or rough or raspy. I honestly cannot think of pipes to compare hers to. Unique and one of the defining characteristics of A Brilliant Lie’s sound. Guitars are handled by Tara’s new husband Matthew Movens and Jason Lemrond. Movens plays rhythm and heavy leads while Lemrond plays leads and very interesting tap style sections that are unusual outside of solo, acoustic players like Andy McKee and Leo Kottke. Yet another cool quirk in ABL’s “outside of the box” thinking that separates their sound from their contemporaries. Bass player Nick Scout is a four string beast, being comfortable playing traditional lines or slightly distorted leads adding depth and atmosphere instead of just holding down typical bass rhythms. Rounding out the line up is drummer and crazy man Chris Lane. He is as fun to watch as he is to listen to throwing playful barbs from the back of the stage, always playing sideways so that he has better engage the audience and not be inaccessible, hidden behind his kit. I can’t quite pinpoint his exact influence but he definitely brings a heavier vibe to the party. Five diverse and talented musicians that make magic as one.

Songs on the new EP, Threads:Spinner include “Rise and Fall”, “The City, The Sound”, “This Means War” (my personal favorite right now), “You’re Not That Broken, Darling” and “Words For Deaf Ears”. In comparison to Threads:Cutter, Spinner is a bit heavier and more intense with more of everything Cutter gave us just over a year ago. Lyrics continue to be extremely thoughtful and realistic in a world shaped by unrealistic challenges and personal expectations from culture and life’s peaks and valleys. So good, in fact, they could be published as poetry just as well as song lyrics. Composition remains complicated and beautifully textured around the feel and emotional direction of each song. While never treading too deeply into angst and frustration, this album is a bit darker and heavier than previous material but never crosses the line into pure Metal. Just maturing as a band and playing what is currently running through their veins. If asked which EP I prefer, I would have to say both, when played together. Each stand strong alone, but being so well thought through, the trio is intended as a single group of songs. Buy them both and you will be aching for the third album and never become tired of playing either one. If A Brilliant Lie shows up anywhere near you, hit their show and don’t hesitate to talk to any of the band members. $10 to meet honest to god stars that would love to meet you too. Just the way they roll…