Grand Unified Theory is a refreshing indie rock band from Berkeley, California. Lead singer Jerry Chen croons like a more tolerable Conor Oberst, and leads his three piece band through a promising ten song debut.
GUT’s sound is quite accessible, but tracks such as “Unclaimed Song #2″ show that they aren’t afraid to experiment a little. The best I can describe their sound is the following: A blend of 90′s underground mid-west rock (seems to be quite popular these days) combined with local infuences (Pavement, etc). The result is a surprisingly mature and impressive disc, considering this is just their first effort.
Hopefully this band will be able to gather a following, because I truly think this could be a band to watch out for in the near future. They even managed to throw in some nice piano and synth arrangements for good measure. If this is a debut, then I can only imagine how good their next album will be.
P.S. – The cool art on the liner notes reminds me of something out of a Roald Dahl novel, or maybe even that creepy children’s book, The Stinky Cheese Man.
Grade: B
Hugh Miller
Unfinished
Janurary 28, 2004