Oxford Train

Oxford Train started life back in 2010 when the Rochester, USA based  Steven Bower (guitar / vocals) and Nate Boyd (bass) reignited a childhood friendship, prior to adding Phil Geiger (keys / vocals) and Brian Mohr (drums) to the line-up, creating a jazz / blues tinged Alternative Rock band.

Oxford Train

Oxford Train

Incredibly busy touring, the band has also found time to release their debut EP Mister Oxford Train. Whilst the music is carefully crafted it doesn’t fall in to the trap of sounding like production line-material, retaining a heart and soul which gives an underlying urgency to the out-put. The musicians evidently have strong compositional and instrumental abilities, which lifts the band in to the spotlight.

Generously carved melodies are injected with influences from Reggae to free-form jazz, whilst a Blues core ensures a continuity of style that makes sense to the audience. My ears are particularly pulled towards the powerful percussion and bass, which lay down a strong direction on which layers of instrument decorate the material. For some reason I am reminded of a Christmas tree, which is probably due to that compositional style which is topped off by a vocal a pitch or two higher than would necessarily be anticipated, which rounds off the whole sound.

While the music is well structured and delivered the essential element of a performance band is retained in recording and I would hazard a guess they are ones to catch a live setting. There is an intimacy which would work comfortably in smaller venues, yet sufficient power to fill the void of an open air event.

website

Mister Oxford Train is available on Mister Oxford Train - EP - Oxford Train*

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