THE EXPLORERS CLUB A couple of years ago, I bagged some on this Charleston sextet for aping the Beach Boys a little too well. As good as they were, the band’s 2008 debut, Freedom Wind, teetered on the verge of tribute album/covers LP. But the band has recently released a trio of free EPs online that suggest they’ve gone crate-digging further into the era to good result. In addition to “under-construction” versions from their upcoming release, Grand Hotel, they cover Burt Bacharach, Vanity Fare and the Classics IV. It’s unabashedly soft rock, but these guys have found a paisley niche of their own to explore and, more importantly, they do it well. Opening for locals Elonzo. $7. The Evening Muse.
This article appears in Jan 10-16, 2012.
