Listening Party: Scene Sweep Greer

Listening Party’s “Scene Sweep” takes a quick, casual look at some of the musical talent in (or at least adjacent to) Spartanburg County using MySpace’s local music search. It works like this: I type in a local ZIP code for a local community to find the available performers in that area; I’ll listen to a few songs by seven of the more interesting-looking acts; I’ll tell you what my first impressions are of the music. It’s simple, fast and (hopefully) a good window into that area’s music scene. And, with any luck, it’ll be entertaining as well.

This week, we’re taking a look at Greer, the mid-way point between Spartanburg and Greenville. As a small township, Greer actually has a lot of things going for it, including at least one decent coffee shop — Cafe Mundo — and a neat-looking little downtown. But what about their local music scene? Is it up to snuff?

There’s only one way to find out.

1. Stealing Scarlett: To their credit, this self-proclaimed Christian rock group doesn’t shy away from the fact that they sound a lot like gothic rock band Evanescence. If you like that subgenre, you’ll probably enjoy Stealing Scarlett’s sound. Their recordings are actually quite well produced, if a bit derivative for my tastes. I quite liked “My Broken Lullaby.”

2. Christon Owens: There was only one demo version of one song to listen to, and since she wrote it, I’m inclined to be fairly forgiving. “Baby Break My Heart” isn’t a great song, but lyrically speaking it’s certainly no worse than stuff you’d hear on mainstream country radio. Owens doesn’t have a mastery of her voice yet, but I’d definitely be interested in hearing more of her work as she figures out her sound.

3. Grey Water: Oh … um … gosh. What can I say here without sounding really, really mean? The music kind of sounds like a light rock demo track you’d get on a mid-range Casio keyboard from back in the late 1990s. The vocals are … I mean … wow. Well, let’s just say that they appear to be coming from a sincere place. Listen to the first 45 seconds of “Harold’s Song” if you want to know what I’m getting at, and you’ll know all you need to about the band.

4. Monty Craig: Jazz standards with a touch of improv to keep it fresh. Craig is clearly quite talented, and seems utterly comfortable in his chosen genre. It doesn’t do much for me, since I’m generally ambivalent about most lounge-type jazz, and since the intention of the music is often to blur into the background. But in terms of overally quality, there’s a lot to like here, and Craig is obviously quite good at what he does.

5. Maq Sense: I’m not certain how active this group is — the page hasn’t been logged-into since June — but I thought I’d mention it since the music isn’t bad at all. Rapper Ben Huslin clearly has something on his mind with songs like “Lost,” and producer C-Magik can certainly put together a decent track. Definitely worth a listen.

6. Alan B: It’s not every day that you run across a “Christian / Jazz / Neo-soul” act, and I have absolutely no idea what that’s supposed to sound like. Judging by Alan B.’s discography, I’m guessing it means something along the lines of “pointless light jazz noodling for people to ride elevators and wait on hold to.” It’s perfectly proficient on a technical level, but it’s also totally forgettable.

7. Rob Sumwalt: This was a nice little surprise. Sumwalt is a not only a decent singer and guitarist, but he’s also a talented pop songwriter in the style of someone like John Mayer. If you like that style, all of his songs are more than listenable. I recommend starting with “Fly,” which features just Sumwalt and his guitar, and recorded with very little in the way of studio trickery.

Now comes the best part: Where you chime in. Tell me what you think of these performers, or of other acts from the Greer area that I missed.