The Cure Disciples

There’s a kind of intoxication that comes from the perfect live show, a bit hopeful, a bit melancholy, and very Friday. The last time I felt that was the first time I heard Sweden’s latest hit alternative band, The Mary Onettes. Playing since 2000, the four-strong group is comprised of one drummer and three pretty guitarists, with the vocalist as the clear alpha.

Playing in early November to push their latest album, Islands, they rocked Webster Hall Studio the first Friday in November, a cold long day when a cheap beer and blaring honest sad nostalgia made for the perfect entry to the weekend. A room packed full of friends and lovers, heads bobbing, and perhaps for women and gay men, a long stare at the trio lined up, guitars in hand, lyrics gently blaring. Picture it, a group of four very white men, but all with blond-auburn hair, all dressed in black, head to toe. The front man has longer hair, very Seattle in the 90s, and they have just the right blend of grunge and Euro hip. Of course, if Sweden is known as a being a neutral European state with great design exports, should we be surprised that a talented band figured out that three pretty men lined up crooning to the audience might be a winning strategy?

Listening to the The Mary Onettes, one just has to thank The Cure for pioneering to creation of addictive melancholy alternative rock. Still, what this Swedish talent offers is a variation on that depressing genre, a sort of upbeat melancholy that for a moment, when listening live, enables one to live in the now. Enjoy the tunes, the eye candy, the common affection, and just breathe through it.

As for tracks, the sweet melodies in Brick draw you in, while Void offers the hipsters a jumpy beat to bounce to, Puzzles offers the perfect travel companion and Explosion is the sad song we all occasionally need.

Currently signed to the Swedish label Labrador, we could easily imagine an American label’s marketing machine sexying them up, with new threads and the cover of a few indie mags, to start. Then maybe placement on a coming of age flick or a TV drama series. Because as we know, these are not the days of Bob Dylan; these are the times of Hannah Montana and the key to Peoria is often traded for a bit of one’s soul. Rarely is talent enough when in comes to “success” in America. So, the question these Swedes must ask themselves is–how badly do you want America?

The Mary Onettes albums are available on iTunes. Check out their MySpace page too.