The Westbury Boys
The Westbury boys propositioned me. That doesn’t happen to me very often. In fact in the music scene it never happens. The Westbury boys were my first. And boy did they make me feel special.

The proposition: The Westbury boys offered to buy me beer, pizza and my ticket to their show if I would attend their show at Jerry’s Pizza and do a write up on my blog about their music.

I wrote Westbury back thanking them for the invitation to their show and told them that although I was flattered, they didn’t have to buy my ticket or beer or pizza to see their show. I also told them that I won’t go to Jerry’s Pizza by myself anymore after being slammed into a brick wall by trouble-making punkers the last time I was there, so I wouldn’t go unless I could find someone to go with me. As an added inducement, Westbury mentioned that Diary was playing too. I had been dying to see Pablo Alaniz’s band Diary.

I asked Westbury what kind of music they played. Greg Kalar, guitarist and vocalist of Westbury described their music as:

“We’re kind of an amalgamate of music. Nothing super hard, nor super soft. Think if… American Football had a love child with the Foo Fighters, and asked Elvis Costello to be the Godparent.”

Elvis Costello, the Foo Fighters and American Football… what an interesting description of their music. I was intrigued. I wanted more information. Westbury’s myspace site describes their band as:

“Mix the former members of a power rock band, the bassist from the best garage band to ever have a singer with an Afro, and add in the best drummer to not yet have earned a high school degree to form the power quintet Westbury. Still in its infancy, Westbury promises to not be the best band in the world, nor save rock and roll. However, Westbury wants to kick your head into high gear with tunes to move the upper portion of your arm in the air.”

Unfortunately Westbury doesn’t have any songs up yet on their myspace, so I still didn’t know what their music sounded like. I could only imagine it from Greg’s description and their profile on B.U.M.S.

I found out later from NL that the Westbury boys had been busy propositioning all the scene writers hoping to get at least one of them to come to their show and write about their music. Both NL and I agreed, that was great marketing! I was just tickled pink to be included in their marketing/propositioning scheme, to be considered one of the ‘boys’ of local music scene writers.

The Westbury boys marketing scheme worked. NL and I went down to Jerry’s Pizza Tuesday night to meet those clever Westbury boys and hear their music and to finally see Diary.

Westbury was already performing when we went down to Jerry’s historic basement of Bakersfield underground music. I stood next to a beam and listened to the Westbury boys onstage performing their own blend of rock story-telling music. Their own blend of Elvis Costello, Foo Fighters, American Football and rock and roll. It was refreshing. And I was glad that the Westbury boys propositioned me into coming out to Jerry’s Pizza on a Tuesday night.

The crowd was full of young normal music loving kids. Not a trouble-making punker in sight. I’m sure Greg Kalar of Westbury thought I was crazy for saying I wouldn’t go to Jerry’s by myself based on the crowd that showed up to hear his music.

Greg Kalar saluted me and thanked me for coming from the stage as he ended one of their rock-opera melodies. He introduced himself after the show and talked about his music. He's a music major from CSUB who believes you should make music because you have to in order to breathe or you shouldn't be making music at all.

Keep a look out for the Westbury boys and their rock and roll story-telling music… they've got something unique to share with the world.  posted by Matildakay at 12:12 PM