You don't have to be familiar with Pinwheel’s music to know they are destined to become a defining sound of the early twenty first century. The group has been busy in the studio working on their sophomore album and has recently added a new member to the group, but everything we have said before about Pinwheel remains the same, if not improved. This was evident at Pinwheel's recent concert, on Friday, February 21 at Don Hills, Manhattan's Greenwich Village, where I was reminded beyond a reasonable doubt why I am a Pinwheel fan.
The night's top crowd drawer was the rumored performance of Glamnation, a group comprised of some of rocks legendary performers (including Slim Jim Phantom of the Stray Cats, Eric Dover of Slash’s Sank Pit, Teddy Z of Guns and Roses, with Ryan Roxy and Stephan Adika), but fans of rockers Sicks Deep and O-Tep were on hand and in numbers. And while this crowd was not necessarily the atypical Pinwheel crowd, it was clear Pinwheel hit a post as onlookers grooved along to a highly intense performance. Even when a few in the audience left the floor or rudely sat on the edge of the stage Pinwheel performed 150%. Lead singer Sal Scoca even took the time to welcome and thank the fans of O-Tep who waited patiently for two hours until their group performed.
However, the true testament to any performance is the music. Pinwheel performed material that will surely be included in their second album, so I honestly did not know what to expect. I was pessimistic that the group would be able to top the solid production of Dear Blue, but I was completely wrong and gratefully so. As with the songs from Dear Blue, a deep song purely about emotions, each song's production exceeds expectations. Usually bands that write their own music result in a monotonous sound, but Pinwheel breaks this stereotype. Sal has a deep, poetic way of drawing the crowd to the meaning of his songs, even when they are about the most outlandish things and unlike the other performances heard throughout the evening Pinwheel delivered an array of distinct and diverse music that rocked hard.
Pinwheel's newest member Chris rounds out the former quartet, then trio, and quartet again. The new Pinwheel, soon to be Crash Boxx is the real group. Sal rocks the mic, Vic Pena is a master on bass and Pete Santagada continues to impress us with his drumming skills. The latest addition, Chris, on guitar, fits the group and seems like he belonged right from the beginning. He fits the group like a glove. The chemistry among these four guys is indistinguishable to a new fan, and I guarantee when all is said and done within the next two years Pinwheel will be the ones drawing massive crowds and ruling the Top 40.
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