Welcome to The Alt-Country Club

Everyone knows the saying, “You can take the boy out of the county, but you can’t take the country out of the boy.” Substitute “band” for “boy” and you’ve created the perfect bumper sticker for The Moderate—a local DC band with a flair for alt-country, rock and roll, and the blues. With two of its four members hailing originally from North Carolina, their roots are clearly grounded in country music. But it’s the kaleidoscope-colored leaves, which are saturated in other musical influences that make their sound truly unique. As the band prepares to release its first full-length album later this month, they also prepare to prove that they are anything but moderate.

Photo by Jesse Kimes

The Moderate came out swinging with its first EP, AM/FM, which featured songs displaying a simple, yet genuine sound that captured the essence of alt-country. The beginnings of a band started years before with a childhood friendship between two of its members, Jim Dempsey and Drew Marks.  “Drew and I met in 6th grade and have been best friends since then. Over Christmas of our 7th grade year, we got our respective instruments and started making (not the prettiest) music together,” says Dempsey, lead singer and guitarist. Once Dempsey and Marks (who plays drums and percussion) graduated college they decided to move to Washington, DC. During the past year and a half, the Moderate released an EP; lost and found a bassist (Tracy Epperson took over after original bassist Mike Maoney from Maryland left to pursue other projects); and added another guitarist, Ian Burke, who also plays saxophone and provides backing vocals. Dempsey remarks that, “[The additions] have been a godsend for The Moderate. We have certainly never felt so cohesive as we do now.”

And it shows. The band’s latest album, The Rest is Up to You, continues to display the band’s many talents and highlights their development without sacrificing the music that has earned them a strong following. Like the EP, this album features songs that are uncomplicated by overproduction, yet each is richer and a little different than the next. Some songs wrangle the listener’s ears with a bit of country twang, while some wail with a more traditional bluesy sound that can make the heart ache with each note. Also featured on the album are three rerecorded songs that originally appeared on the EP, including “Lost Boy” and “Blue Eyes/Barflies”. “I think that these 3 songs fit in with the group of songs we wanted to put on this album,” says Marks. “Those are some of the first songs we wrote and they, in my opinion, have held up over time.”

The success of many legendary country singers such as Hank Williams and Patsy Kline is due in part to their heart-felt, thoughtful, and even gut-wrenching lyrics that can make the listener relate or feel as though they have inconspicuously snuck a peek into a personal diary. Like many that have come before them, The Moderate bravely sings of personal sadness, confusion, and life’s lessons. “Mistakes” features an internal monologue that stems from Dempsey’s struggle with substance abuse. “I went through a real rough patch between the ages of 17 and 22, and to be honest, there are more than a handful of people that are surprised I lived through it,” says Dempsey. “That said, I wrote [“Mistakes”] a few summers ago when my sister was pregnant with my nephew. If you can tell, it is basically me (present) lecturing me (past); at the time.  I think it was my way of wishing away all the hurt so [my nephew] would never have to go through those painful, pointless struggles that I did.” Of course lyrics are nothing but a poem without music to back it up. In “Mistakes”, Marks’ drumming skills shine as he maintains a steady and exact rhythm, while still managing to exude high energy. Epperson and Burke also prove their talent as they bind it all together to create a seamless composition.

The Moderate currently tours back and forth between North Carolina and Washington DC. In fact, all of their upcoming shows–except for one in Norfolk, VA—are in theOld North State. “I think it’s exciting to…play for folks that haven’t seen you in a while,” says Marks. However, DC should not take it personally. Dempsey adds, “Still, DC is where our lives are now and we have great friends and a great musical community here too.” The Rest is Up to You is set to release later this month and the band plans to promote it throughout DC in September. So maybe you can’t take the country out of the band, but you sure as hell can teach it a few tricks.

Check out The Moderate at www.themoderatemusic.com or www.myspace.com/themoderate.