Civil Discord

‘Such Sights To Show You’ is the debut album from Philadelphia’s Civil Discord. The five-piece band have recorded an eclectic mix of rock songs with influences from a whole gamut of genres, dating right back to the sixties and spanning all the way up to recent times. Oddly, the only decade that is not clearly heard is the eighties, however I’m sure there are some influences in there somewhere.
The group’s core comprises the song-writing and guitarist duo of Bill DeSpirito and Jay McKelvey, who also share lead vocal duties. They are ably supported by Chuck Mancini (drums), Al Gianchetti (bass) and Rich Canaris (keyboard), all of whom provide excellent backing vocals.
The three-minute ‘Shrooms’ with it’s heavy thundering bass that’s intertwined with lead guitar licks, gets the album off to a great start, while ‘Do You Remember’ is more laid-back with a sort of sixties/seventies Pop Rock vibe. McKelvey, who sings lead vocals on four of the songs, has a much rawer voice than DeSpirito’s smoother delivery, however the contrast works well within the fourteen-track release.
The songs where McKelvey takes lead vocals – ‘I Gotta Go’, ‘I Still Miss You’, Blew By the Blues’ and Shine On’ – remind me of The Nut Drivers whose debut album, ‘Crazy Locomotion’ was the first ever review I wrote for ‘Fireworks’ (issue #61). Similar to the North Carolina band, Civil Discord have dished up a smorgasbord of styles, ranging from the nineties Britpop of ‘Let Em Burn’, ‘She Said’ and ‘Blew By The Blues’ to the upbeat Folk Rock vibe of ‘Pints’, the utterly brilliant ‘She Cries On The Breakdown’ combines both the aforementioned genres also whilst adding some Celtic overtones.
Elsewhere, we have the atmospheric Indie Rock of ‘Nightime’, the funky ‘Get On Up’ 9which sounds like The Rolling Stones mashing it up with the Scissor Sisters), the Grunge-influenced ‘Might As Well Be Friends’ and the Honky-Tonk-feel-good of ‘Wanna Stay And Party’. I think you could safely say they certainly like to mix it up. There’s some seriously impressive musicianship throughout, and although the broad range of musical styles might not appeal to everyone, the band should be applauded for their efforts.
They may be Civil Discord by name, however, there is no intrinsic lack of harmony between these talented musicians.

Mark Donnelly - Fireworks Magazine, Issue 85, Winter 2019