BAM Column: Oklahoma City’s Diamond Ballroom next stop on Carney’s wild rock ‘n’ roll trip

Posted by brandy

on June 16, 2009 at 8:00 am

Carney

A version of this BAM column appears in Tuesday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.

Carney’s wild ride rocks, rolls

Considering the weird, winding trip Carney has taken over the past three years, guitarist Zane Carney believes the band’s name has more significance than just his last name.

“In essence, that’s why the name Carney fits,” he said in a phone interview from the band’s van on the way to a New Orleans show. “because, yes, it’s been very like carnival. It’s been just like ‘what is going on?’ But things are starting to come to fruition and come clearer, over the past, gosh, even like three months or so.”

The band - Zane Carney, his older brother Reeve Carney on vocals and rhythm guitar, Jon Epcar on drums and Aiden Moore on bass - is bringing its lyrical blues-rock music and high-energy live show tonight to the Diamond Ballroom. The rockers recently embarked on a tour with their electro-pop pals The Veronicas.

Carney also is releasing today on iTunes their first official single, the bluesy five-minute jam “Love Me Chase Me,” plus the bonus track “Mr. Green.”

“We’d love it to be all over the radio, that’d be awesome, but I think it’s more of an introduction to what we sound like,” Zane, 24, said. “It kind of jumps all over the place. … It’s almost like a sampler.”

The band has been making the rounds at some of the country’s biggest music festivals, playing Bonnaroo, Outside Lands and Beale Street last year. They are set for Tulsa’s DFest and Lollapalooza this summer. But the members’ history goes back to their school days in Los Angeles.

“We actually had a band when we were kids with one other member … when I was 10 or 11 called the Bluesberries,” he said with a laugh. “We had one show and then we broke up.”

The current band first made its mark selling out a weekly gig at L.A. Irish pub Molly Malone’s. In 2006, Interscope Records signed Reeve as a solo artist with the then-revolving band, but once the group settled on a lineup, the focus shifted.

“We were writing songs together more often - we were opening for Jonny Lang at the time - so we thought of a band name … and now were all as a band involved,” he said. “It’s been a long road … but it’s been a good ride.”

Carney spent a year recording an album but later scrapped it. They rerecorded it “guerilla style” in 17 days on little money and less sleep, and felt the latter version better fit their evolving sound.

“What we’re doing now is what we want to do,” he said. “Some people keep calling it ‘new classic rock,’ which I don’t know what that means, but I think that’s awesome.”

And the wild trek rolls on: The band isn’t sure when the new album will be released because Reeve, who has a part in Julie Taymor’s upcoming film “The Tempest,” is a finalist for the lead role in her musical version of “Spider-Man.”

In concert

The Veronicas, The Pretty Reckless and Carney

When: 6:30 tonight.

Where: Diamond Ballroom: 8001 S Eastern Ave.

Information: 677-9169 or www.diamondballroom.net.

-BAM