Graham Colton Band - Drive

One summer a few years back, there was a stretch of concerts I went to where I somehow managed to see the same opening band three times. A national act at the time and touring on their debut, they had somehow managed to open for Our Lady Peace, then the Toadies, then some festival type concert. Each time I saw them, I thought they were perfect were they stood. Oleander was the band, and they just seemed to be in their environment. Not a groundbreaking band, but fun enough to enjoy and just genuinely happy to be there. Nice guys, who put it all out there and just wanted to have a good time, you got the sense they would never be a main act at a huge venue, but were just a perfect band to enjoy and get the crowd going before the main act. Some bands are like that. This summer I took my girlfriend to the John Mayer/Counting Crows concert and had a bit of déjà vu. The opening band was The Graham Colton Band, and while the middle class crowd talked and ignored, I noticed that the boys on stage were putting on some darn catchy tunes. Their set was energized and fun and made a nice warm-up. Now their sophomore effort, Drive, falls into my hands, and I get a chance to hear what the studio side holds for these lads. What I found was a good little album from a band destined to rule the second stage. The disc is somewhere between rock mainstream and singer/songwriter fare. It starts off on a nice note with “Don’t Give Up On Me” before jumping into an immediately catchy “Since You Broke It.” The album flows between upbeat sing-a-longs like “First Week,” “Cigarette,” and “How Low (Breakdown)” and more laid back tracks like “Morning Light,” “Cut,” and “All The World Tonight.” “Cigarette” stands out as the leader of the first pack and “Cut” stands a cut above those in the latter. This is one of those albums that could easily stay in your player the entire summer yet never be an all-time favorite or have you running to tell your friends. You might never find yourself throwing down $35 to see these guys headline a big venue, but seeing them on the bill would put a smile on your face as a nice little addition to a concert. Full of quality songs and good energy, but lacking the spark to take them to the top level just yet, The Graham Colton band might be a concert opener for a while, but being a minor league all-star isn’t a always a bad place to be. Very worth a listen if you want a nice feel good album. [www.grahamcoltonband.com]