The Alternate Routes
The Alternate Routes are a young, dynamic rock band with a strong emphasis on songwriting and storytelling. The band, which recently released its debut album, Good and Reckless and True, was formed in 2002 when vocalist/guitarist Tim Warren and guitarist/vocalist Eric Donnelly began collaborating and found that despite different respective styles and major influences, they shared a similar vision of the songwriting process and a strong desire to develop a style that was uniquely their own. Once bassist Chip Johnson came aboard, the nucleus of the band was complete.
The past year has been something of a whirlwind for the band. Shortly after being signed by StarPolish Management, the Alternate Routes headed to Nashville to record their first full-length album, Good and Reckless and True, which was produced by noted Nashville producer Jay Joyce (Patty Griffin, John Hiatt, Rubyhorse). The album, which was recorded during a furious three weeks of sessions, was tracked live in the studio, with many of the performances captured in a single take. Sitting on the drum throne for most of the album’s tracks was Brad Pemberton, who has played with Ryan Adams and Bobby Bare, Jr. among countless others. In the brief time since it was released, the album has been among the best sellers at the Awarestore (www.awarestore.com), and is already garnering acclaim from both fans and critics alike.
Good and Reckless and True is filled with compact, melodic songs with intensely personal lyrics colored by a dark sarcasm, and which explore a wide palette of human emotions. The songs, which are both refreshingly new yet imbued with a sense of timelessness, are brought to life by the interplay between Warren’s distinctive voice, which has been compared to artists as diverse as Damien Rice and Ryan Adams, and Donnelly’s memorable, melodic guitar work, which fuses his knowledge of jazz with his love for distinctive song-oriented players such as Clapton, the Edge and Elvis Costello. Anchoring the group – and driving it forward—is Berklee-trained Johnson’s energetic, propulsive bass playing, which is informed by his admiration for bands such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam. Though individually the band’s members have obvious influences – notably the Beatles, Pearl Jam, The Band, Elvis Costello and Tom Waits – collectively the ensuing tug-of-war to reconcile those influences results in something surprisingly cohesive and quite unique: the Alternate Routes.
As compelling as their debut album is, the Alternate Routes is really a band that comes alive when they take the stage. As Mike Sembos wrote in the Fairfield County Register, “The Alternate Routes are one of the few groups that tackle both writing and performing with the same zeal, and have the talent to back it up. They play radio-friendly rock with charismatic vocals, good changes and a solid beat.”
