Back in 2015 New Jersey guitarist/vocalist Micky James was on the road to stardom with The Karma Killers. The band had been signed to Shep Goodman’s Dirty Canvas/Island Records, released an EP ‘Strange Therapy‘, went out on the road as part of the Vans Warped Tour, and played a showcase at the 2016 SXSW Festival. James was also featured in Vogue Magazine. It was a whirlwind of sorts, but ultimately the flame burned out just as fast and The Karma Killers called it quits in 2018.
James didn’t waste any time though. He quickly released four tracks as a solo artist ‘Give It To Me Straight‘ ‘Tie Me Up,’ ‘New Heart,’ and ‘Rest of the Best‘ (featuring NY pop-punks Dreamers) in 2018 followed by ‘Walk the Line‘ and ‘Cry Baby‘ in 2019.
Once again, his career had momentum and then 2020 happened. Not one to sit still, James released another track with ‘Kings’ in 2020 and then gathered his band that includes Karma Killers drummer Josh Grigsby, guitarist Ryder Stuart, and bassist Adam Jessamine set up at Philadelphia’s iconic opera house The Met and recorded an impressive live set.
Musically, these tunes fall somewhere between The Struts and The Strokes, and no doubt James knows his way around a hook; there are some serious earworms here. The studio tracks are polished and earmarked for the charts, but this live performance makes a case for James to be a household name. He carries himself with the star power of Freddie Mercury and Bowie, like he was born to be a rock star.
This 35-minute set plays like an episode of Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert and let’s hope we can all be in the audience soon.
