Seven Mary Three
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Annie’s/ Cincinnati, OH
Review by Hunter Embry, Indiana University Southeast
In 1995, Seven Mary Three released American Standard, an emotionally talented rock album that stemmed or at least hinted at early Pearl Jam. Seven Mary Three, along with its workhorse songs, “Cumbersome” and “Water’s Edge,” ran to the top of the rock charts, and like many before and after, they fell even faster. Over the past 13 years, Seven Mary Three has continued to tour and record, releasing several complete albums and apparently its fans still notice.
Hundreds of people, most of whom were in their thirties, crowded near the muddy banks of the Ohio River to get drunk and sing those catchy rock songs with Seven Mary Three in front of an intimately close stage. “Don’t go down to the waters edge. They did it once, they can do it again,” singer Jason Ross pleaded with the audience in an agitated tone during the chorus to “Water’s Edge.” The burly redheaded singer wore an extra long beard with a strip of grey down the center.
His flannel shirt, black jeans and shit-kickin’ Doc Martens were just what the crowed expected, as one guy regurgitated warm Budweiser across the floor and tried to spread it out with his foot as if no one noticed. Strangely enough, no one did. It could’ve been the shockingly well-performed band with spot-on drums, groove-matching bass lines and near-perfect guitar work, or it could’ve been the massive Aqua Net-haired woman that sat on her man’s shoulders exposing her massively sagged breasts, shoving them at the band. “Now that’s some old Seven Mary Three shit,” joked guitarist Thomas Juliano after the song.
The band proceeded to play tracks from most its CDs, including the title track from Rock Crown, a folk-ish rock follow-up to American Standard. Like most resilient bands, Seven Mary Three sounded better than on record. The music was heavier, grittier and longer. Ross, the main songwriter, was wild-eyed, emotional and sincere. Shifting from pleasantly smooth to aggressively angry, Ross’s voice sounded at home while he slammed on his telecaster.
Like one elderly man who stood in the thick of the wild crowd, focused and bobbing his head, wearing a shirt that said, “Shut Up and Rock,” Seven Mary Three did just that. Members have lived the quick life of music and while they will probably never be as big as they once were, Seven Mary Three continues to keep control of their talent and stay solid in a shaky environment. People respect that and continue to drink in honor of it. From all those fans who made it down to the waters edge, cheers to Seven Mary Three.
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