Silvertide: Show and Tell September 2004 By: Lauren Jonik

With blistering confidence well beyond their years and charisma only matched by musical skill, Silvertide is proving that rock and roll is indeed alive and kicking. Energetic, raw, and melodic, Silvertide's debut full length CD on J Records, Show and Tell, embraces a sound that's rich with driving guitars and complemented by lead singer Walt Lafty's lyrical intricacy.

Opening the CD with the pounding drums of the first single, Ain't Coming Home, the tone of the album is immediately set: this is a musical coming of age roadtrip with the top down, hair flying in the wind. Continuing the journey with Devil's Daughter, a song that reminds that everything is not always as it first appears, the album makes a pit stop in California Rain. With a nod to the band's hometown, Walt Lafty paints a descriptive picture of being three thousand miles away from home--- and a loved one. I brought my rain to California / All the way from Philadelphia, PA / And on the way, my tears fell for ya / I brought my rain to California.

An irresistible invitation to join the ride, Blue Jeans, is a catchy, in-your-face, in-the- moment anthem that brilliantly demonstrates Silvertide's most elemental genius: the uninhibited ability to pour heart and soul into a song and walk the edge of rock and roll as if they were born to do it. Heartstrong, one of the many songs that showcases the superb and complementary talents of lead guitarist Nick Perri and rhythm guitarist Mark Melchiorre, Jr., is an introspective ballad that wanders to a crossroads in love. My head's lost, but I'm heartstrong. Standing in the intersection of hope and uncertainty, Lafty sings I just can't stand to see your smile from a picture frame. . . All I wanna do is touch your face and take you far away.

The poignant Foxhole Jesus Christ warns: Brothers, sisters, if peace were in this war, it would have already gunned you down. It crescendos to a series of prolonged climatic moments and prevails through the aid of Brian Weaver's solid bassline and Kevin Frank's emotive drumming.

Show And Tell comes full circle from the beginning when Lafty declared: Ain't turning back / It's my time to fly / Too many decisions and not enough time / But I always did like the thrill of living in the unknown / So pucker up mama 'cause / I ain't coming home in Ain't Coming Home. Silvertide proves beyond a shadow of doubt that if the old saying is true and "home is where the heart is," then they're already there.

http://www.silvertidemusic.com