Alpine White - The Hale E.P.

Alpine White - The Hale EP

2011, Alpine White

San Francisco rock quartet Alpine White is born of the road. First generation German immigrants Colin (lead vocals, guitar, piano, drums) and Ian Denker (bass, vocals) formed the core of Alpine White, and were joined by friends Ivan Wence (guitar, vocals) and Javier Benavides (drums, percussion) in April, 2011. Songwriter Colin Denker strives to capture feelings in song, nearly eschewing traditional storytelling styles for the colors and nuance of emotion. Alpine White's debut EP, The Hale, is clear evidence of this mission.

Alpine White opens with "When She Gets Home", a nice bit of low-key pop/rock songwriting. Ultimately tuneful and driven with a solid chorus, The Hale EP gets off to a solid start. It does become evident; however, that Alpine White never really came to a solid conclusion to the song. The sudden cut-off chosen hear is jarring and essentially destroys the mood of the song. Alpine White struggles to capture the same energy and panache and the three remaining songs. "The Evidence", "Days And Nights" and "All The Weight" are unfocused musically, and never really establish premise nor presence.

Alpine White has something, although it's hard to define what exactly that is on The Hale EP. Colin Denker's middle-of-the-road pop/rock voice is solid and engaging, but doesn't really stand out in the crowd. Likewise, the musicianship is solid, but never really steps out of the safe zone on the four tracks presented here. There is a charisma that runs through The Hale EP, however, that is hard to ignore. It will keep you engage in spite of a sound that reflects a band that's still trying to figure out who they are. It's much too early to define Alpine White, and honestly, it was probably a bit early for an EP. A little time on the road together to let the dynamic of the full band set in would season the sound and approach. It will be interesting to see what Alpine White puts out next.

Rating: 2 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Alpine White at www.alpinewhiteband.com or www.myspace.com/alpinewhite.  Alpine White's website indicated The Hale E.P. will be available on November 1, 2011, but the EP appears to not yet have been released.  Keep chcking their website for more information.