Musically mature artists avoid filler on abbreviated album

The Early Evening's Cost of Living, a five-track EP, features two distinct sounds. The band's funky, groove-oriented sound has greater pop appeal and its simple, reflective ballads suggest a dignity often associated with folk music. The Early Evening seems to borrow from a number of influences that include folk, funk, blues and even country to spice up its straight-ahead rock sound. The lyrics drift between philosophical or spiritual ideas and the more standard formula of relationship based themes. \nChief writers Dave Daeger (singer and lead guitarist) and his brother George Daeger (also on vocals and guitar) are the more prominent members of the band. Patrick Riddle's contributions on keys fill out the sound, but occasionally make him sound more like a production tool than a member of the band. The harmony vocals and blues and country influenced guitar lines further shape the sound. One of the more impressive musical concepts heard here is bassist Matt Sutphin and drummer Jonathan Surratt's tasteful display of subtle dynamic shifts that help the songs progress from one section to another.\n"She's a Trickster" features the rhythm section laying down some solid beats under Daeger's powerful singing, here reminiscent of Michael Hutchence (INXS). "Delicious Skin," although lyrically unexciting, is quite interesting musically. The song's verses sound a lot like Aerosmith's "Last Child" and the chorus is very similar to U2's "Hold me, feel me, touch me, heal me." "Cost of Living" and "Far Away Thinker" rely on lyrics that confront heavier, more spiritual issues while "I've Been Missing" deals with being on the road. \nThough it's hard to judge from just five songs, the disc indicates that these guys are musically mature enough to avoid the meaningless album filler many artists don't. This sampler shows that the band has an identifiable sound, thanks mostly to familiar sounding the Daegers' voices and down to earth writing.