Can you say liner notes?
"Adastra-Latin for We Steal Your Girlfriends."

Everyone few generations comes a band that changes people's lives. For some it was the Beatles, for others it was the Clash. Then there was the Pixies, and Nirvana. However, it looks as though that torch has been passed to a new band. A band so hot it makes a Buffy marathon look like a Golden Girls marathon. This is of course the one and only Adastra.

I first met Andrew and Noah in my math class on my
second day at high school. They sat down right beside me for reasons unknown. I remember Andrew talking a lot, about the most random things, and Noah piping up with a "Yeah" or "Sweet." At first I didn't listen to what was being said. But when Andrew proclaimed in the second week of school that "N'Sync has some phat beats,"
I laughed out loud. Andrew seemed actually proud to get this quiet freshman like me to laugh at him. From then on, I began to listen everyday. As the year progressed, I heard them talk about music, which introduced me to new bands I hadn't even heard of. In Noah, I met a kid who knew as much as about Zoog Disney shows as I did. Math soon became my favorite class, and not because of the actual work. It was my only opportunity to hang out with the funniest kid I knew at the school and nicest kid I knew at the school. Even the times when they ripped into Tenacious D or my dandruff, I still found it funny. They were both part of the cool kids; they didn't need to be nice to me. But they were, and that's what sets them apart from most so-called cool kids.

I was introduced to Ben during band that year, and never really got to know him well while he was at Atlantic. But as I became better friends with Noah, I talked to Ben more, and learned that he was a really nice and funny guy, just like his younger brother. Keith on the other hand, well, I just recently started talking to him when he came to Atlantic this year. He soon proved to be a different guy than his brother in someways. A little more shy, a little more quiet, he still is a great guy, like his older bro. They seem to be a great foil to each other, and both groups of brothers actually seem to love each other. There is a strong bond of friendship between the two that I learned goes way back. It's nice to know a band where the members are good friends.

I have never really talked to Nick, but he has been nice to me. And jesus, that squirrel is crazy.

As a band, when I offered to film them, they were cool with it. And seeing how good of musicians they were really opened my eyes to a new side of all of them. I knew that they were musicians before, but first-hand viewing of them exposed me to a talent not often seen in local band. I can actually say that I have seen the ups and downs of their short history. I witnessed some of their first practices, when they didn't even have a name. I was there when they had their first public performance, at the Pompano Indoor Skatepark, and kind of, well, sucked. And of course I was there when they played the Factory, and amazingly won the battle of the bands with their best performance. If there was ever a more clear example of the talent in Adastra, it would be in the fact that they won a battle of the bands without even being around for two months.

So as they go to the studio to make their first cd demo, which could lead them to stardom, I write this. Even if they don't become big, or just break up in the next few months, it won't matter to me. Becasue this is one of the few times in my life when I can say that the experiences were worth it.

drew r.



*This is not to be intended as kissing ass. These are just my feelings about the band and its members. Sho liz.

2 Rusty Razors | Cut me