New York Coolies Rachael Roberts and Emily Holder Groove to The Switch

What began as a typical Saturday night at Pianos, one of my favorite Lower East Side establishments, turned out to be an awe-inspiring event I will not soon forget. I sat perched on my bar stool nursing a stiff jack & coke while my friends flirted with strangers flashing smiles. The bartenders busily poured prescriptions to the eager patrons, erasing any aliments from the previous workweek. Suddenly the door opens to the performance area and I hear something very unique: this sound. This unbelievable sound that is flowing from the stage, attacking the airwaves and demanding my attention not because I have heard the guitar riff a hundred times before or because some Top 40 sap song is being covered, but because the beat is surprisingly original. The rhythm is refreshingly new. The lyrics are buoyantly echoing over the electronics. Could it be possible? Did I stumble across a band with some real creativity? Did hell finally succumb to February’s frost?

The Switch

The Switch is a band of alchemists who meticulously synthesize their individual talents into one infectious entity. The Switch do not just play instruments; they are a band of passionate musicians. Kai is the sultry songstress who studied opera for a year at The Manhattan School Of Music before transferring and obtaining a degree in Composition. Alexander, the synthesizer, piano and harpsichord prodigy studied with performance artist Meredith Monk and became responsible for accompanying her amazing vocals during rehearsals and scoring her new opera at the time, Magic Frequencies, which debuted at the Joyce Theater in November of 1999. Alexander was Monk’s first and only student. The same year he played for a performance that Yoko Ono presented. Chris is the bassist who was born and raised in Hong Kong before attending Harvard and receiving his Doctorate of Jurisprudence from Yale University. Dan integrates acoustic and electronic drum kits bleeding together the tribalism of ancient music with a postmodern electro beat. Joe is the guitarist and lead programmer of The Switch. He amalgamates the frantic friction of past and present genres and sculpts them into mesmerizing songs that are addictive, urgent and brilliant.

As their website states, “It is another dimension where sound shapes existence.” The Switch play pop songs without pretension and their stage show is nothing short of infectious. Kai adds, “Something I always try to strive for in our tone is that what we are presenting is universal. I believe this music is music for the whole planet. I think everybody’s ears are ready for it and I don’t think it is too electronic. The music is ready. It is ready for mass consumption by the world.”

Kai

In a world where the individual listener feels increasingly powerless, where most artists sacrifice musical integrity for monetary gain, where excuses are made and accepted for lip singing on Saturday Night Live, it is no wonder I was hesitant at first. Yet rest assured, The Switch have the power to combat the cynicism of this city. They offer a breath to the suffocating shallowness & artistic emptiness polluting our airwaves. They bring an innovative sound without losing sight of their primordial past and with that comes a renewed sense of hope and respect. The Switch create art in the air and they saturate the soul with their unique blend of intellect and passion, discipline and spontaneity, mysticism and sex appeal. They are a rarity amongst our generation’s mediocrity. It is time to turn them on.

Joe from The Switch

The Switch’s website is: www.switchedmusic.com. If you missed them at Pianos, you can catch them on February 18, 2005 at Trash Bar, 256 Grand Street, Brooklyn, NY, 9 p.m., $7 (includes open bar from 9-10 p.m.). March 26, 2005 at CBGB, 315 Bowery (between 1st and 2nd Street), 10 p.m. Check their website for future dates and details.

The Switch (seated) pose with Kristina Weise (far right), Emily Holder and Rachael Roberts (top row)