I’m absolutely convinced that if Henry David Thoreau were in a band in this day and age, he would probably lend his talents to The Gloria Record. There are so many highfalutin, 11th grade words that I can use like effervescent, transcendent, and what-have-you that describe this band; and I would have to say that these words are more than accurate. There is a sense of ethereality when listening to the Gloria Record that it is hard to describe without using such cliché words.

I Was Born in Omaha from the album Start Here, begins with a soft acoustic accompaniment to the weary yet powerful vocals of Chris Simpson (from classic emo band Mineral). It doesn’t take too long for the electric guitar to take over and for the music to hit you full force. It’s the last few minutes of the song that pack the greatest punch. The song puts the listener into an almost phantasmagorical (there’s one of those big boy words) state and by the end Simpson repeatedly wails the words “dream over”, as if trying to rouse the listener out of unconsciousness.

Unfortunately, The Gloria Record was a very short-lived band. They were able to produce two EPs and one full length album, Start Here, each work being very solid and well produced. I would highly recommend a listen, if you can get your hands on Start Here; there is not a bad track on the whole album.