Alien Crime Syndicate

Space pop from the Syndicate - four men in black clothes backed up by laser lights and a dangerous enthusiasm for playing around onstage. ACS is composed of Joe Reineke (Also known as Joe Meice), singer-songwriter-guitar, Nabil Ayers, drummer, Jeff Rouse, bass guitar, and Jason Krevey, guitar. They play a decent heavy rock with lighter songs thrown in. I saw them at Bumbershoot 2000 and was most impressed by the audience. Seeing all the twelve year olds mosh and crowdsurf was great in a "Oh, that's so cute" way. Not quite my thing, but the kids there sure loved them, and they're certainly skilled.

Discography:
2 song unnamed 7"
5 song unnamed CD/EP
Dust to Dirt
From The Word Go

Their website is at www.theacs.com

Album: XL From Coast to Coast Artist: Alien Crime Syndicate

This happy pop rock group from Seattle released a new full-length album in May 2002 on V2 Records, titled XL From Coast to Coast. Starting off with their first hit single, Ozzy, this is indebatably their best CD yet, far surpassing the February '00 Collective Fruit release, Dust to Dirt. Although they are still relatively small scale, the band's style is reminiscent of big concert halls, with anthemy songs that are easy to sing along to.

Being a Washington resident, ACS's music reminds me of every Washingtonian's favorite outdoor venue, The Gorge, located in the southern part of the state. They have, to my knowledge, never played there, but can be found on a regular basis at small clubs in Seattle, and opening up for bigger tours in the larger venues. If you live in the area and don't mind hearing songs written for arena shows played in tiny nightclubs, definitely check out Alien Crime Syndicate.

Track list

1. Ozzy
2. Break the Record
3. My Happy Ending
4. Stranger
5. Figure It Out
6. Not Today
7. Softly
8. Ya Blink It's
9. Careless
10. Is It You
11. We Are