The Mercy Alliance is a Washington DC based band led by songwriter Joe Rathbone and long-time DC drummer David Lopez. The band draws on influences ranging from the upbeat roots rock of Wilco and Alejandro Escovedo to a beautiful “down” in the vein of Joe Henry and early Neil Young. There are musical nods to The Replacements, John Lennon, Joe Jackson and David Gilmour.

Some Kind of Beautiful Story is the band's new album and features drummer Steve Bowman (ex Counting Crows) and bassist Brad Jones in addition to string work from long-time associate David Henry and creative keyboarding from producer Johansen.

We kick off with a good, solid indie track, 'Washington' which is a neat way to ease us into the band's style. 'All for Love of You' is a little more grungier than the other tracks on the album, and makes for an interesting change of pace.

Of this album's 9 tracks (37 min, 54 sec) my favourite song had to be the infectious, upbeat 'I Can't Do It'. It's memorable and will stick in your head for days.

This is an interesting album, and certainly one worth checking out if you're a fan of indie bands.

9

Nick Smithson