Scenes From The Underground: Gainesville Glam Bands

Glam will never die as long as The Future Legends live. Take your Gary Glitter records and Roxy Music T-shirts, bury them in the sand, stomp down hard, but you will not slay this beast. Even if you built a time machine, traveled back to 1942 and killed both Mick Ronson and Robert Smith as babies, The Future Legends would still save the soul of glam. They are that good!

The Future Legends formed in February of last year, and they have already established themselves as one of Gainesville's best live acts. Their shows feature enticing dramatics, and lead-singer Eric Legend has a dynamic stage presence. With elaborate stage costumes and an active smoke machine, the Legends know how to command an audience.

In addition to their stage show, The Future Legends' songs draw the listener in with dark glam-goth hooks. Songs like "With You", "The Next Tomorrow", and "Wish I Was in London" are reminiscent of 1980s bands like The Cure and Bauhaus. Despite these retro-80s influences, the Legends make their sound seem both unique and utterly contemporary. This is partially due to the extremely fine playing of the instrumental Legends. Sarah Zachrich (bass), Brian Kennedy (guitar), and Jason Legend (drums) create a flexible, yet solid groove that allows Eric Legend to act out his romantic morality plays with relative ease. It is a show that holds your attention.

The Legends have finished an album with local studio whiz Mike Rotolante. The CD is tentatively titled "The New Romance", and should be out in stores soon. Check out The Future Legends (w/ The Familiar) at Common Grounds Friday, February 16th, and again with The Remedies Friday, March 23rd, also at Common Grounds.

--J. Maggio