MUSIC REVIEW- Bigger fish: Clare Quilty should blow dodge

Clare Quilty
at the Outback Lodge
December 13

It's quite easy to pledge your allegiance to just one avenue or genre of music. Once a region becomes known for having a certain kind of music, often times other groups are overlooked because they don't fit the established mold.

Charlottesville's music scene is a bit schizophrenic. One doesn't have to look hard to find bands in all flavors. The most overlooked are progressive bands. Some purists believe that those who incorporate loops and samples into their live show are cheating their audience, but let's face it, we're in a modern era where computers and electronics are part of everyday life. But just because someone has a computer, it doesn't necessarily follow that they can make good music.

Which brings me to Clare Quilty. Clare Quilty is one of those bands that could easily be overlooked here in Charlottesville– not because they lack talent, but because they're just not the kind of band you expect to hear around town.

As a matter of fact, it would probably serve them better to relocate to San Francisco or London where people make it their mission to seek out progressive dance hybrids. A band with style and sultry women such as Clare Quilty could do very well for itself in a place known for pumping out music of their sort.

Clare Quilty comes from the same school as Portishead, Morcheeba, or Solstice. It's mature melancholy music born of the marriage of electronic house, rock, hip hop, and downtempo jazz. The lead singer, a beauty of a blonde with a seductive voice and clever poetic delivery, claims center stage with mysterious poise.

The bass player, another hauntingly sexy item, provides the backbone for the grooves of the band. With those two as the main ingredients, the band obviously has a lot of potential– not to mention they put together a pretty decent recording that could get passed around and into the right hands if they play their cards right.

Yeah, Clare Quilty is a force to be reckoned with. Unfortunately, a brewing snowstorm kept lots of people from coming out to see the group at the Outback. Nevertheless, with the right backing, they just might be able to blow Dodge and make a big splash in a big city.

Clare Quilty
PHOTO BY DAMANI HARRISON

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