Earl Greyhound ~ Three Parts Equal

Words and Photos by Joe Koch

The trio from the Big Apple is about to turn the music world upside down with their new album, due out this spring. I tried to get them to reveal the name of the new disc to no avail. "It's top secret," said Kamara Thomas (bass, keyboards and vocals).

However, the melodic hard-hitting band is nothing but ecstatic when it comes to talking about the new songs. "We've really grown as vocalists," says Kamara. Being categorized as a rock/soul sounding band, they really didn't access the soul side on their last album, Soft Targets. "We weren't that comfortable doing it," said Kamara.
"Now we feel more at home accessing those channels and hopefully they'll reveal themselves on the new album," added Matt Whyte (vocals, guitar and piano).

The blistering rhythm coming from Big Ricc Sheridan's 32-inch bass drum is a signature stamp on Earl Greyhound's sound. When you have a drummer whose influences are Tony Williams, Max Roach and John Bonham, you're bound to hear a contributing uniqueness.
"Man, I love talking to these young kids and telling them about all of my influences," said Ricc. "They usually go home and do some research and then it clicks. They see some amazing stuff with these drummers."

Big Ricc

Ricc isn't the only unique factor in the band. The other two components are equally impressive. Kamara learned to play bass for the band and holds her own as she creates harmonies with Matt that demonstrate their spectrum of possibilities. Matt's vocals and guitars are drenched with influences from the '70s straight through the '90s, making a perfect combination for such diverse musicians.

As they finish their tour with Portugal the Man, they will head to Los Angeles to record their follow-up to Soft Targets — whatever it is called — take a few months off and then it is back on the road. If you can't wait until then, check out their video for "S.O.S." It is some of the coolest shit that I've seen in years.

For more info go to http://www.earlgreyhound.com/