In the truest land of opportunity

"Obviously, sometimes you can't shut your feelings off," says Keene. "If we're having a problem, we try not to bring the band into it, but we're all best friends, and everyone [in the band] understands." In that sense, the music (and friendships) can be therapeutic. When any Mean Creek member comes to practice feeling unhappy about something, he says, "More than half the time we leave feeling a little bit better."

The pair that is Aurore Ouinjin and Chris Keene shared their thoughts for a Boston Phoenix post on "Couple Bands" back in 2008. After playing acoustic folk and simply calling themselves Chris and Aurore (like Matt and Kim!) for a few years, they added a rhythm section and are happy with permanent additions Erik Wormwood and Mikey Holland. For three years now they have been known as Mean Creek.

And yes, they do take their name from the 2004 indie movie starring Rory Culkan about secrets and bullies. I don't actually see the connection, although I could easily throw words around like "melancholy" "dark" or "intense" and try to make them fit. You can find a melancholy song on any album. And to be quite honest I don't even know what in the hell they do sing about. But The Sky (Or The Underground) is a clean record with tracks that mesh, vocals that complement each other, and music that can be appreciated.

I do know what this song is about though. With its simple, repetitive chorus and verses that peacefully address a specific social problem it is a traditional folk song. Opening screeches and escalating bridges that threaten to rip your face off, though, expertly take this track into modern day and place this band at a House of Blues or a Slim's rather than your local Cuppa Joe Joint. Check out Not To Dream:


Download Mean Creek - Not To Dream


Buy their first album and be the first to review it for Amazon! Come on, you know you've always wanted to be the first to know about music. Now you can be famous too.




Then you can go over to iTunes and get the newest album. Hell, be the first to review it there too!! Look at you!