In today’s music scene, the block party never stops. All the silver windbreakers come out of the woodworks, the shell-toed ADIDAS get laced up once more and everyone never wants the dance party to end. With the newer craze of rock music blasting out of the old-fashioned stereos combining with the biggest wave of dance music in recent years, its arrival has sent a blaze of aspiring block party rhythm makers. Chicago’s very own dance rock troupe, The White Tie Affair, certainly has tapped into this hybrid fountain of musical dance and given the youthful kids a run for their money.
At first glance, the band sounds like a mixture of Cobra Starship with a little bit of Fall Out Boy, some old school R&B and boy band inspired harmonies. The production on the Chicago quartet’s re
cent album Walk This Way is done very well with enough pop-flavored candy to wheedle a wooden ship out of. The melodies are there for the disciples of pop to devour, and yet, as catchy and melodically pop-like as it is, there’s also another underlying to the belly of this young band’s catalog. Lead singer Chris Wallace certainly can hold a candle to his Chicago contemporaries from Fall Out Boy as he does possess a good voice, but it’s guitarist/programmer Sean-P that makes it all happen. From their tunes such as “The Enemy” and “The Letdown,” P’s programming and overall musical structures help to create vibrant, moody, tunnel vision-like atmospheres that take hold of your ears and never let them go. As mentioned before, they are a catchy young quintet, but there’s always something in the music that seems to leap out from each other time their songs are spun.
The band is currently on tour with The Medic Droid and Kill Hannah. They’re also gearing up for a final blowout night in Chicago’s very own master palace, The Metro on August 23rd. If you’ve got the guts, the glory and the dance in your pants, mosey on down wondrous Clark Street and hop into the Metro for a blast of a night.
The White Tie Affair 2008 Tour Dates:
08/22 – St. Paul, MN @ Station 4
08/23 – Chicago, IL @ Metro
10/11 – Tulsa, OK @ The Marquee
10/12 – Austin, TX @ Emo’s
10/13 – San Antonio, TX @ Rock Bottom Bar
10/14 – McAllen, TX @ Cine El Rey Theatre
10/15 – Houston, TX @ Java Jazz
10/16 – Metairie, LA @ The High Ground
10/18 – Tampa, FL @ Orpheum
10/19 – Orlando, FL @ The Social
10/20 – Jacksonville, FL @ Jack Rabbits
10/21 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
10/22 – Raleigh, NC @ The Brewery
10/23 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Steppin Out
10/26 – South Hackens, NJ @ School of Rock
10/27 – Buffalo, NY @ Xtreme Wheelz
10/28 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Ballroom
10/29 – Pontiac, MI @ The Crofoot
10/30 – Tinley Park, IL @ Mojoes Coffee House
11/01 – St. Louis, MO @ Fubar
11/02 – Des Moines, IA @ The House of Bricks
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