Dimitri’s Rail

Lately, there’s been a big increase in the number of Rock bands who have been submitting their work to the site. Not that there is a problem with that…the more bands who submit, the better.

Dimitri’s Rail’s sound as a whole reminds me of a band I covered a while back, Louder Than Love (Louder Than Love Review). They are firmly rooted in the alternative-rock sound, but aren’t a Nickelback clone by any means (*collective sigh of relief*).

They definitely have a unique blend of styles which will make them stand out from other bands in the genre.

Here’s a brief bio of the band:

Dimitri’s Rail originally hit the alternative rock scene in 2001. A project started by songwriter/front-man Paul Ehmer, Dimitri’s Rail has evolved over the last few years to become one of Texas’ best original live rock bands. Hard efforts have paid off leading to accomplishments such as a nomination for male vocalist / band of the year by the academy of Texas music, becoming a 94.5 The Buzz: Texas Buzz Featured band, and have been featured in such popular music festivals; Midpoint Music Festival (Cincinnati, Oh) Northgate Music Festival (College Station, Tx) and Austin, Tx’s famous SXSW. In 2003 DR released their debut album, “Seasons of the Weak” which was recorded at Houston’s renowned Sugar Hill Studios.

I definitely can detect a Layne Staley-esque vocal tone in Paul Ehmer’s (lead vocals) singing. The first song I thought of when I heard ‘Foo’ was Alice in Chain’s ‘Sunshine’ (the verses, at least).

Some of the guitar parts are reminiscent of a Rage Against the Machine song (‘Paint Me’), but don’t worry if you aren’t an RATM fan. Paul doesn’t get down on his knees and scream his lungs out in the name of rebellion.

The chorus of ‘Wake Up’ even sounds a bit like a Velvet Revolver/Godsmack type of vocal segment. I’m always hesitant to compare anyone to mainstream bands like those though, because there is always someone who is going to automatically pigeonhole a band into category X or Y because of it. Before that happens, let me say that the rest of the song sounds nothing like a song by either of those two bands.

Go find out for yourself what I mean by that. And by that, I mean listen to the track embedded below.

For more information on Dimitri’s Rail and to hear other tracks by the band, visit the Dimitri’s Rail MySpace Page.