Live Review - Sleeper Agent @ Studio at Webster Hall

If you are a band that wants to make it in some sort of fashion, playing New York City is not just the place to do it, for most bands it is a privilege that they have even gotten that far. For a Monday night, the packed Studio at Webster Hall was home for Kentucky rockers Sleeper Agent first New York appearance after spending most of the year recording and touring to gain a buzz for their forthcoming debut via Mom + Pop Music. At first look, the members of Sleeper Agent all look like they belong in other bands or characters we have grown up with, the rhythm section looks as if they should be in a metal band, guitarist Josh Martin looks like Shaggy from Scooby -Doo, keyboardist Scott Gardiner looks like he can be Cedric Bixler of Mars Volta's twin brother and the singing duo of Alex Kandel and Tony Smith look like the characters Pip and Estella out of Dickens Great Expectations with their heavy flirtatious and sexual tension, you just hope by the end of every song they kiss or embrace - yet they do not and tease us into the next song. For whatever the band may appear to be, they make it work, their sound is a catchy, dare I say, pop-rock filled with clever hooks and sing-a-long choruses and their live show is an all out free for all. With a room full of heads bobbing up and down and bodies swaying left to right, Sleeper Agent proved they were worthy of playing the city that never sleeps and those in attendance were lucky to see them. In an hour long set, which also featured a very unique cover of The xx's "VCR," Sleeper Agent looked as if they had no intention of stopping, with their debut, Celabrasion out next month, its not only worth a listen but this is a band worth embracing.