March 29, 2003
by Lynn Barker
We attended an appearance at Hollywood's The Knitting Factory early this week to sample the tunes of the hard-driving anti-pop band Fiction Plane featuring Brits Dan Brown on Bass, Backing Vocals and Keyboards, Seton Daunt on Guitar and Keyboards and Joe Sumner (Yes, it's true. He's Sting's son) on Lead Vocals and Guitar. These guys rock! They're energetic, absorbed in their music and Joe's stinging lyrics roast everything from failed relationships to users to love gone "Fallow".
Looking like Saturday nite in the dorm, wearing jeans, tennies and sporting zero tattoos, the band introduced themselves with "Hi, we're Fiction Plane and we're loud!", then played many selections from their first album "Everything Will Never Be Okay", including the title track, "Cigarette", "I Wish I Would Die", "Fallow" and others.
There is a touch of Sting's musical influence in Joe's writing and musical arrangements but with a modern, hard-driving twist that makes the sound all his own.
Originally, Joe had no interest in music and would rather play videogames then he discovered ska and grunge and his outlook on life changed.
Fiction Plane's Dan Brown contributed two tracks to the new album: "Everybody Lies," another strike against two faced people and "Wise," which makes the most of Sumner and Daunt's talented guitar abilities. The guys have known each other for years and spent three years just writing tunes, only a few of which appear on their first release.
We were impressed with Dan and Seaton's abilitiy to switch from electric to acoustic guitar or keyboards with the same professional level of skill. The group is also well... polite. No screaming at the audience...the volume is saved for many of their tunes.
These dudes are a group to watch. Still refining, changing and growing, they are passionate and obviously loving their sound and that kind of devotion can only lead to big success.
TeenHollywood.com
Photo Credit: MCA records and Lynn Barker
http://www.teenmusic.com/d.asp?r=33600&cat=1058&pg=1
