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A friend of mine that attends Husson College in Bangor, Maine announced to me that Sam and Yuri would be playing at her college, and asked if I wanted to go. Being a fan of the local band I of course said yes! I learned that evening that there would be three other bands playing, two bands local to Husson, and one other that she didn't know about. I decided to review the show and showcase to you, dear readers, some of Maine's finest talent!

Action Kitten Team: The first to step on stage was a three-piece band local to Husson College that went by Action Kitten Team, but we shortly learned that it was an on-the-fly name for an on-the fly band. Travis, the singer/guitarist announced that he had written a few songs and had invited the other two to play with him on stage for the show and that under normal circumstances they did not go by Action Kitten Team and that he would come up with a better name later (we think that's a good idea). They kicked it off with a short song called "Hello" that set up their sound similar to mid-90's fluff punk meets millennium-inspired power pop (Think River City Rebels meets Bad Brains at an improvised Bouncing Souls show).

All of the songs they played clocked in at under two and a half minutes, but were all excellent! They were catchy and fun to watch and rock out to, and that's all that I ask from my fluff punk.

Mines of Paris: Next on the stage was Mines of Paris that played a shockingly incredible set (To be fair with local bands around here it's either a huge hit or a cringingly bad miss, so I wasn't sure what to expect!). They blew me away with their talent. Singer Ron Belanger whipped out vocals that sounded like Matthew Bellamy of Muse and Steven Patrick Morrissey. They were straight-up no frills proto-indie rock/blues inspired and when they whipped out a cover of Black Keys' "I Got Mine", I was hooked!

I was impressed by the smooth voice that is absolutely iconic to the genre of music they play from Ron Belanger, the incredible guitar solos from guitarist Josh Kimball, and greatly enjoyed watching the playing styles of Lowell Davis (bass) and Joey Freeman (drums). All in all, they were a lot of fun to watch, and I enjoyed every second of it!

The Jonee Earthquake Band: They played on a sixteen inch riser in a small college student Union to 100 Exam-stressed kids but killed it like they were playing Madison Square Gardens. They touched on several different styles: rockabilly, outlaw-country, oi-punk, surf, and straight up rock! Their Ramones cover of "I Wanna Be Sedated" sounded more like Dark Side era Floyd than CGBG punk, before it broke into a mashup of Go Ask Alice (Anti-flag style) but they played it with such conviction that it worked!

The Jonee Earthquake Band was phenomenal to watch, with band members jumping all over, and Jonee himself looking like a young ZZ Top turned captain hook. Their rockabilly/surf fusion sound got burnt-out kids up and out of their seats jumping around and having a great time. It was so much fun to watch and they played with such energy that it reminded me of a Rockabilly Sex-Pistols and The Clash's bastard child.

Sam and Yuri: There are three new performers since I last saw Sam and Yuri play live, but they are just as amazing as I remember. The addition of bass/violin/drums and an extra guitar have rounded out their sound to something much fuller and richer, resulting in a Simon and Garfunkel meets Guster sound. Their new material from second album "Pushaw Lake" is reminiscent of the first record "Drip and Bleed" with the addition of fuller harmonies and matured lyrics while even newer material not yet recorded takes a more upbeat sound while staying true to their musical maturity that was what attracted me to them in the first place.

The performance was much more interactive and high energy (even though the very college-rock nature of their songs is laid back) than they had been in previous times I've seen them, perhaps attributed to the addition of the rhythm from the newly added drums and a more modern-rock influence to their newest material. The set ended with a Wu Tang Clan cover and the irony oozing from the five semi-suburban white boys from Maine was not lost on the crowd.

I was midly disappointed not to hear any songs from their first record, but perhaps the lack of nostalgia is evidence of Sam and Yuri storming full steam ahead in to the future of their band.

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