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Windy City Watch

It's hard to find a band better than Ezra Furman & the Harpoons.

This week’s Windy City Watch band doesn't actually hail from the Windy City - but they've made themselves a pretty comfortable home away from home here in Chicago. Ezra Furman & the Harpoons signed to Chicago based pop/rock label Minty Fresh late last year, and are wowing fans and critics.

Minty Fresh is another gem of the Chicago music scene; rating up there as one of my favorite Chicago based labels. You can thank Minty Fresh for some of the most infectious pop songs of the 90's, introducing The Cardigans stateside and being one of the first labels to release Liz Phair's music before her breakout debut, Exile in Guyville. The label still releases some top notch pop and rock artist today, such as the danceable and adorable French band Prototypes, nerdy folk infused electronic act Suburban Kids With Biblical Names and the amazing artist at hand, Ezra Furman and the Harpoons.

Since signing to Minty Fresh, they have released Banging Down The Doors, a collection of raw and rollicking tracks that make me dance around even when I'm doing the most mundane chore such as dishes or brushing my teeth. Lead singer Ezra Furman has a perfectly imperfect voice; while being a talented storyteller. What really blows me away is the band’s maturity. Their music is tight and the lyrics are detailed, something I would expect from a band in their thirties that have been playing for years - not something I would expect from a band comprised of college students that formed in their entirety just last year. Then again there are a lot of amazing and very young bands around today, so I guess we just got really lucky on getting to hear such talented acts at such an early age.

All members of Ezra Furman & the Harpoons are students at Tufts University in Boston. I hope they get a lot of free drinks at parties for being in such a cool band (you hear that Tufts University house parties? Give these guys a round!). I'm sure it never hurts while picking up the ladies to mention that your band just released their album on a real record label. Besides kicking out some rocking jams, they also seem like some very nice and funny guys. For a good chuckle read their "about me" section on their Myspace. Let's just say there are pancake wars and hydraulic space-mobiles mentioned, and both of those things always provide a good time in my book.

A fun group of guys is always a plus, but what really matters is the music. The band's new release has received amazing press, being called "frightening and brilliant," and heralded as "finally something with guts and fire!" They are also playing two showcases later this month at CMJ Music Festival, a New York based music industry festival that includes a plethora of buzz-worthy bands.

Sadly, the band isn't popping into Chicago to play a show anytime soon because they're rocking up and down the East Coast all this month, winning fans and breaking hearts wherever they go. But have no fear; I'm sure they'll be back in the near future to our fair city. In the mean time check out their music at their myspace, where you can download tracks directly from their page. You can also buy their album Banging Down The Doors from both iTunes and eMusic.

Posted by Lisa White on Oct 09, 2007 @ 12:00 am