Rock band plays at Paws without singer

The rock band Alethia performs Friday, May 1, 2009 at the Local Scene concert in Paws. The band has been playing without a singer since they formed in October, 2007.

Alethia hangs out after a performance. From left to right: drummer Alex Falbo, guitarist Anthony Falbo and bassist Paul Steindler. (Photos by Rachel Beth Ahrens / May 1, 2009)

Alethia, an alternative experimental rock band from Glen Arm, Md., performed Friday night at the Local Scene concert in Paws, without a lead singer.

The Campus Activities Board hosted the concert, which was their last event of the year and the last on campus event for local bands. Other bands that played were Getting to Goodbye, What's the Verdict and Crash Boom Bang. Alethia had microphones on stage, but none of their members sang throughout their thirty minute slot.

Guitarist Anthony Falbo said he was trying to develop his voice, but it was a work in progress. He additionally said that the band never had a singer.

Finding a lead singer for this band isn't easy.

"We've auditioned a lot of people," drummer and junior history major Alex Falbo said. "In terms of what we were looking for, we haven't been able to find one yet. Our music is heavily instrumental, so even if they were to sing, they won't be singing a lot."

Bassist Paul Steindler said that the group was more worried about getting “somebody that isn't going to sound how we want them to sound and they're not going to be good for our type of music.”

Although the band has been playing instrumentally for the whole time, there is a reason for why they still want one. "We do have lyrics," Falbo said. "So the songs do have themes, and the names correspond with those themes."

The band has been playing and recording since roughly January of 2008, according to Falbo, and it has been successful despite not having a frontman.

"Instrumental has worked," Falbo said. "We have a strong following, we just produced a demo, we have merchandise, we've been playing and we created our own venue in Timonium. And it's hard for instrumental bands to get gigs. We've been told, 'How do you expect to sell tickets if you don't have a singer?'"

However, the band has already played at other venues and built a following. "We played at the Recher twice," his brother Anthony said. "So we bring a crowd consistently, but without the singer, you have to step it up instrumentally to fill in for that."

"You need lots more melodies," he continued. "The bass needs to be very tight with the guitar, combining melodies and progressions, sometimes switching off parts and the drums always have to hold down perfectly."

Alex Falbo has played drums since he was 4 and works intensely with his brother Anthony and Steindler. "My brother writes the songs, I structure them and Paul also writes a couple of the tunes as well," he said. "So this is a very collaborative effort and we definitely don't want to have just anybody singing for us."

Freshman psychology major and Getting to Goodbye bassist Matt Taylor was impressed with the band. "It was my first time seeing them, but I thought it was really interesting because they don't have any vocals," he said. "I thought it was a good show."