Earlier this year, Mark Crozer and The Rels released their Planting Seeds Records LP “Sunny Side Down” on vinyl. Although a Brooklyn resident, Mark recorded the tracks with his band at Mitch Easter’s North Carolina studios with an emphasis on live energy interplay. The intro to “Here Comes the Storm” (streaming below) adopts backing vocal stylings reminiscent of the Beach Boys, keeping the mood light and airy, as it attempts to hold off emotional thunderstorms, soon to be delivered through the chorus, where a melancholic chord selection backing lyrics “to put a smile, on my face again” evokes an aching romanticism. An ending coda repeats the title like a mantra, drums rumbling across toms and a white noise build-up creating the sonic equivalent of weather borne chaos. The band will support The Jesus & Mary Chain (whom Mark also plays bass in) on an east coast tour that arrives at PlayStation Theater in NYC on 11/17. – Dave Cromwell
