New Music: The Heroic Enthusiasts - "Shine!"

New Music: The Heroic Enthusiasts - "Shine!"

As much as I love stumbling onto hidden gems, I am always appreciative of those moments where a friend or colleague goes out of their way to recommend new tunes that I may have otherwise not have picked up on. I received a message regarding the Rochester, NY-based alternative rock band The Heroic Enthusiasts which was capped off with the phrase, "I thought it might be up your alley." Needless to say, they know me all too well.

So who exactly are The Heroic Enthusiasts, exactly? In doing a bit of research, I was fascinated with the backstory of the band's name. According to the band's official site, the inspiration was drawn from a Catholic friar named Giordano Bruno, who lived in Naples some 400 years ago. If you know anything about religion and science, the two don't always mix for some people and centuries ago it was deemed as heresy. You can imagine that the Catholic Church didn't take too kind to clergy being too engrossed in math, science and philosophy. Eventually, Bruno met his fate by being burned at the stake. Bruno was responsible for the literary work Gli Eroici, or "On The Heroic Passion," which was further translated to "The Heroic Enthusiasts."

At it's heart, the band is comprised of two core members: vocalist James Tabbi and guitarist Thomas Ferrara. The duo have clearly been inspired by the work of alternative/new wave acts such as Echo and the Bunnymen, R.E.M. and The Smiths. What is evident in the single "Shine," is that the writings of Bruno permeate every chord, every lyric. The late friar found his passions worth dying for and for Ferrara and company, that spirit holds true in their songwriting. 

Released in summer of 2016, The Second Three EP is available now on via JamTom Productions. You can purchase it here on iTunes.

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