What makes an album from any band really work and become a classic, at least for me, is a strong mix of intelligent lyrics and good musicianship, with the emphasis on the lyrics. Beloved, The Minor Profits’ recent debut, fits that mode.
Now, that said, the Profits won’t be playing stadium tours near you anytime soon. A lot more goes into that kind of “stardom” than solid songwriting and musical muscles.
But if what you’re looking for are tunes that shine and that make you think while you dance the night away with the one you love, turn your ear this way.
Principal songwriter Bob Lichty, who also plays keyboards, acoustic guitar, and saxophone, has his ear to that place between real life and the universal, where a song dug out from his life becomes a song he might have dug out from your life.
In the disc opener, “You Never Let Me Down,” Lichty and vocalist Luke Kahawai, along with the rest of the band, create a song for all of us guys who just can’t get this “relationship” thing right, regardless.
Opening with Kawahai’s powerful voice alone, the song’s narrator muses: “You never break my heart, baby / You always hold it just right / Don’t know why I keep tearing yours / Don’t know why I can’t mend it every night.” When the band kicks in after the first line, they underscore Kawahai’s broken lament.
But things don’t stay down for long — because that’s not the way of things. In the next song, “Good Life,” the dour mood gives way to an upbeat celebration of life and love that wouldn’t be out of place on a John Mellencamp project.
Other favorites: “Nobody Calls Me Baby,” which features the narrator from the opening song trying to defend himself to his buddy at the bar when he should be home working on that relationship. “Tell Me Once” finds the guy back at home trying to make amends. And “I’m Not Above,” which is one of those songs that fishhooks into your brain, finds our hero giving in to love: “I’m not above / Being in love / I’m not above playing the clown / I’m not above / Being in love / As long as you are there.”
The Minor Profits are comprised of five men who all do other things with their lives but who share a passion for music that has led them to create this excellent disc.
In addition to Lichty and Kahawai, Andrew Hauser anchors the songs with a strong percussion base, Andrew Kreider, who also contributes songs with Lichty, provides guitar, and Steve
You’d have a hard time finding a better independent project to spend your listening dollars on. Visit the band at myspace.com/theminorprofits for the album, the latest news, new songs, and more.
