Tao of Pauly

A New Hope for the Kwait Brothers Band is an article I wrote for Good News. It includes a partial review of their gig in New Hope as well as parts of an interview I did with Rob and Rich Kwait. Please check it out!

Listen to the KBB! A free MP3: Winds MP3 (Right Click & Save As to Download)

Here are some excerpts:

"My friend Mike Weiner called me and said, “I’m managing a cool band called The Kwait Brothers Band. You are going to really enjoy their music,” he insisted, “Their goal is to play music for a living and I want to see these guys win.”

After seeing my first live show, I’m rooting for them too. The Kwait Brothers Band formed in Philadelphia in 1998, where they have been playing locally. Most recently they expanded their base gigging in New York City and in the near future, playing in upstate New York and in Boston. The brothers Kwait, identical twins Rich and Rob, are the song writers and the driving force behind the band. Rich plays guitar and sings vocals and Rob plays bass, banjo, some guitar and vocals as well. The rest of the band include Ira Race on lead guitar, Jay Levin on organ and piano, Stephan Divincenzo on drums and Tania Alexandra on additional vocals and percussion.

The last time the Kwait Brothers Band played at John and Peter’s a month earlier, John Popper (from Blues Traveler) was in the audience and asked if he could sit in with the band. They agreed and Popper played five songs with the KBB, including a cover of the Grateful Dead song “Alabama Getaway”.

The KBB opened their show with a cover of the traditional song “When the Saints Go Marching In”. I was greeted by a slow, mellow and soothing version, which was my first real live glimpse of the band. They set the tone for the night with the first song because for the rest of the show, I kept having this feeling that although I am seeing and hearing their songs for the first time, the music and all of their original songs feel familiar. It’s like meeting someone for the first time and saying, “You remind me of someone, but I can’t figure out who…” And that particular comfortable feeling is attributed to the songwriting of Rob and Rich. Some of their lyrics are catchy, while others are simply profound.

Musically the KBB mesh exceptionally well together. Throughout the night each member consistently contributed individually and collectively. Not only was the quality of their play impressive, but they also listened to each other while playing. That’s something that not every musician and band is able to accomplish, especially during a live show and that contributed to the smoothness of their jams, evident during "Deering Banjo", the best song of the night which epitomized the essence of the Kwait Brothers Band: image provoking sentimental lyrics, silky rhythmic grooves, and distinct individual contributions from every member."

To read the full version of the article, review and interview, please visit: Good News.