The Albertans Residency Open for The Subjects The Cameo at The Lovin’ Cup Cafe Brooklyn NY April 23, 2009 Written By Turhan Caylak Photographed by Misha Jenkins   Opposite Photo: Joel Bravo The Albertans

First off, I prefer anointing this band as The Albertans (as opposed to The Albertans Residency), mainly because I think it’s cooler to say and if anyone has a problem with that, let’s meet up behind The Cameo and figure it out.

At 8 o’clock sharp I arrived at The Cameo at The Lovin’ Cup Cafe with two chums. At the door we were told by a little guy with shaggy hair that The Subjects weren’t playing until 11:15. This was 8 p.m. guys! What the f**k were we gonna do now? Imbibe more libations, ingurgitate more burgers?

Ian Everall of The Albertans	Joel Bravo of The Albertans

Turns out that the guy with the tousled mien at the front door was in The Albertans, the group who would play before head-liner The Subjects. Joel Bravo was his name and being incredibly nice, he personally walked me and my cohorts into the space where he would be jamming in a couple of hours. Pointing out the display of luminescent fiber optics hanging over the stage, Mr. Bravo went on to explain that he designed, engineered, or had something to do with it. Impressed with his style and unassuming character I asked him for his set list. I told him that I wasn’t there to review his band and he was like, “You should.” I was like, “F**k it.” So I did. And you know what: I’m glad I did.

Joel Bravo of The Albertans

The Albertans (Residency) is a band from Canada led by Mr. Bravo, a Milwaukee native. Bravo’s stage presence is stellar. “High Noon” displayed a well constructed and melodic musicality reminiscent of one of my favorite groups, Band of Horses. Mr. Bravo, along with Ian Everall, the band’s bassist, seems to be headed somewhere. Where they’re going is already written, yet unknown. However, they’re all in sync and appear to have a goal in mind while they session together.

Lanky drummer, Curtis McLean, kept the beat as the fools on the stage worked their magic. I couldn’t keep my eye off his licking style during the tunes, “Furniture.” “Marie,” “Anna Rose” and the show’s closing number, “Jackpot,” which, until last night, had never before been played for an audience.

There’s one more kicker to round out the group’s look and that’s its hot women, Krystin Monaghan and Alison Yip. These girls came through with honesty and alacrity. The bottom line is, I want this gaggle of musicians to make it. Who knows, maybe they’ve already arrived on a small scale. That notion would seem to fit this group’s image. They’re not pretentious; they work well together, and seem to have a good time being on stage. I look forward to seeing them again and chatting it up with Mr. Bravo and his right hand man, Mr. Everall.

David Sheinkopf of The Subjects	David Sheinkopf of The Subjects

After a well-deserved smoke break I re-entered The Cameo to engage the night’s closer, The Subjects. Garnering info over the web waves I understood that this quartet met in school, high school. They weren’t even in the same class, well, they were, but two of ‘em were students and the other two were teachers. Yeah, you read that right.

Joe Smith of The Subjects

Members-Only-jacketed and with a grease-ridden hairdo to back it up, lead singer/bassist, Dave Sheinkopf, (“The Teach,” I’ll call him), opened with “Hardway,” and instantly, I was hooked. Lyrically, “Sheinkoph” is a musical whistle. Matt Pickles, the band’s rhythmic life and soul, schooled us with “Time,” “Edge,” “Purple,” and “Swept.” Those tunes are well organized and systematically on track with the band’s purpose. These two different generations of musicians, hanging out and jamming together, showed the audience that we’re all alike when there’s a drum kit, two guitars, and a microphone in front of us. These guys just do it better than us. That’s why we pay and they collect. That’s why we pine and they write. That’s why we stand while they sit and play.

Joe Smith, keyboardist/guitarist, sat there and did nothing but rock it. He even took a break from his residence on the chair and switched jobs with Mr. Sheinkopf. Pickles, the other “Teach,” rocked it as a drummer should. ”Coward” and “Winter,” the show’s closers, were the crowd pleasers for the night.

The Subjects have a long life line ahead of them. However, I have a problem with head liners who don’t act like head liners. Sing for you supper, brothers. We buy tickets and you are supposed to make us go crazy. Loud or soft, be like your drummer. So, no matter how big you get, no matter how many fans you gather, no matter how many hits you get on your web page, be gracious and celebrate while you’re on the stage. Got it? Cool.

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