Eye Witness

“A Pleasant Tomorrow” Eye Witness
Timing is everything. Just ask Milo and Rainy of the West Boylston-based indie-folk duo Eye Witness.

After the band's bassist wasn't quite working out, Milo — Eye Witness' singer, songwriter and guitarist — went on Craigslist to find a replacement.

Enter Rainy, who, a few days earlier, posted an ad on the class-ified website that emphasized her drumming prowess and mentioned, in passing, she owned a bass.

Eye Witness already had a drummer and Milo was solely interested in a bassist, but he sought out Rainy anyway, sight unseen and sound unheard.

“I almost didn't respond at all because I was intimidated by playing bass because I was better at drums,” Rainy said. “I didn't want to play bass. And then he talked me into it. ‘No, these are like, literally, the easiest songs ever!'… So I said, ‘All right, all right, all right.' So I did. And I thought he was cute.”

Initially corresponding through email, Milo had no idea that Rainy was a girl, until he was added as a “friend” on her MySpace account. Rainy said concealing her sex is due to the “creep factor” and the notion it's a “novelty” to have a girl in a band.

“I don't want you to see me first and then say, ‘Well, actually I do want you in my band because you're a girl' or ‘I don't want you because you're a girl,' ” she said. “So I just ignore the whole thing.”

Starting out as a trio in 2007, Eye Witness became its current two-piece configuration in 2009 and has been ever since. Milo proposed to Rainy in June 2008 (onstage at Ralph's, no less) and the couple wed in September 2009.

A Worcester native, Milo didn't start playing music until his junior year at St. John's High School in Shrewsbury. He took it upon himself to learn the guitar. Eye Witness is the only band he has ever been in.

Thanks to Dave Grohl, Rainy, who was born in Worcester and grew up in Lancaster, started playing drums when she was 12, was a member of the UMass Minuteman Drum Line and has been in garage bands as long as she can remember.

As musical influences go, Milo rattles off Bob Dylan, Townes Van Zandt, Leonard Cohen and Billy Bragg, while Rainy cites Mission of Burma and Foo Fighters. They both worship Tom Waits.

For Record Store Day this Saturday, Eye Witness will be performing a free gig at noon at That's Entertainment, 244 Park Ave., Worcester, and 2:30 p.m. at Newbury Comics, 551 Boston Turnpike, Shrewsbury.

Timing of another kind comes into play with the release of Eye Witness' tongue-in-emaciated-cheek titled “A Pleasant Tomorrow.” During a period in our country's history when people are out of work, out of food, out of time and out of patience, “A Pleasant Tomorrow” is a fist-clenching, rebel-rousing, thinking-man's (or thinking-woman's) record that addresses poverty, war, mortality, civil and labor rights and the raping of Mother Earth. And those are the upbeat topics.

The album opens with “Which Side Are You On?,” an impassioned protest song with plenty of heart, soul and hooks that will pull you in no matter what side of the picket line you find yourself on. More indebted to Billy Bragg's take on this classic union song (written by Florence Reese in '31) than the more famous Pete Seeger or popular Dropkick Murphys' versions, Milo's uneasy, quivering croon and his gritty, hands-on guitar playing capture the rich legacy of the working-class blues. Rainy's haunting background vocals, as well as her percolating drum playing and ingenious use of a shaker, add depth and texture to the proceedings. While it is most unlikely that neither of them have faced the plight of the song's protagonist, both sound genuine and give the listener plenty to rally behind.

Not one to mince words, Milo snaps, “There is no purpose. There is nothing to gain,” on the antiwar parable, “It's Not Okay.” Despite all the useless bloodshed, Milo finds momentary solace in the campfire standard “Kumbaya,” as warmly sung by an accordion-playing Rainy. Milo - Telegram and Gazette

“A Pleasant Tomorrow” Eye Witness
Timing is everything. Just ask Milo and Rainy of the West Boylston-based indie-folk duo Eye Witness.

After the band's bassist wasn't quite working out, Milo — Eye Witness' singer, songwriter and guitarist — went on Craigslist to find a replacement.

Enter Rainy, who, a few days earlier, posted an ad on the class-ified website that emphasized her drumming prowess and mentioned, in passing, she owned a bass.

Eye Witness already had a drummer and Milo was solely interested in a bassist, but he sought out Rainy anyway, sight unseen and sound unheard.

“I almost didn't respond at all because I was intimidated by playing bass because I was better at drums,” Rainy said. “I didn't want to play bass. And then he talked me into it. ‘No, these are like, literally, the easiest songs ever!'… So I said, ‘All right, all right, all right.' So I did. And I thought he was cute.”

Initially corresponding through email, Milo had no idea that Rainy was a girl, until he was added as a “friend” on her MySpace account. Rainy said concealing her sex is due to the “creep factor” and the notion it's a “novelty” to have a girl in a band.

“I don't want you to see me first and then say, ‘Well, actually I do want you in my band because you're a girl' or ‘I don't want you because you're a girl,' ” she said. “So I just ignore the whole thing.”

Starting out as a trio in 2007, Eye Witness became its current two-piece configuration in 2009 and has been ever since. Milo proposed to Rainy in June 2008 (onstage at Ralph's, no less) and the couple wed in September 2009.

A Worcester native, Milo didn't start playing music until his junior year at St. John's High School in Shrewsbury. He took it upon himself to learn the guitar. Eye Witness is the only band he has ever been in.

Thanks to Dave Grohl, Rainy, who was born in Worcester and grew up in Lancaster, started playing drums when she was 12, was a member of the UMass Minuteman Drum Line and has been in garage bands as long as she can remember.

As musical influences go, Milo rattles off Bob Dylan, Townes Van Zandt, Leonard Cohen and Billy Bragg, while Rainy cites Mission of Burma and Foo Fighters. They both worship Tom Waits.

For Record Store Day this Saturday, Eye Witness will be performing a free gig at noon at That's Entertainment, 244 Park Ave., Worcester, and 2:30 p.m. at Newbury Comics, 551 Boston Turnpike, Shrewsbury.

Timing of another kind comes into play with the release of Eye Witness' tongue-in-emaciated-cheek titled “A Pleasant Tomorrow.” During a period in our country's history when people are out of work, out of food, out of time and out of patience, “A Pleasant Tomorrow” is a fist-clenching, rebel-rousing, thinking-man's (or thinking-woman's) record that addresses poverty, war, mortality, civil and labor rights and the raping of Mother Earth. And those are the upbeat topics.

The album opens with “Which Side Are You On?,” an impassioned protest song with plenty of heart, soul and hooks that will pull you in no matter what side of the picket line you find yourself on. More indebted to Billy Bragg's take on this classic union song (written by Florence Reese in '31) than the more famous Pete Seeger or popular Dropkick Murphys' versions, Milo's uneasy, quivering croon and his gritty, hands-on guitar playing capture the rich legacy of the working-class blues. Rainy's haunting background vocals, as well as her percolating drum playing and ingenious use of a shaker, add depth and texture to the proceedings. While it is most unlikely that neither of them have faced the plight of the song's protagonist, both sound genuine and give the listener plenty to rally behind.

Not one to mince words, Milo snaps, “There is no purpose. There is nothing to gain,” on the antiwar parable, “It's Not Okay.” Despite all the useless bloodshed, Milo finds momentary solace in the campfire standard “Kumbaya,” as warmly sung by an accordion-playing Rainy. Milo - Telegram and Gazette

"With their opening fist pumping salvo "United We Stand," this three piece from Worcester's anthemic message echoes the sentiments of Bob Geldof, the Clash, Billy Bragg, and the Alarm for change and unity for a better tomorrow. Though the sound of the band suffers a bit from lack of production values, the raw DIY approach only underscores the politically charged message of the band, who coyly describe themselves as "occasionally color coordinated." However their outfits match onstage, their music will make you rock out and even make you think." - The Noise

"With their opening fist pumping salvo "United We Stand," this three piece from Worcester's anthemic message echoes the sentiments of Bob Geldof, the Clash, Billy Bragg, and the Alarm for change and unity for a better tomorrow. Though the sound of the band suffers a bit from lack of production values, the raw DIY approach only underscores the politically charged message of the band, who coyly describe themselves as "occasionally color coordinated." However their outfits match onstage, their music will make you rock out and even make you think." - The Noise

Eye Witness, a politically charged, socially conscious folk duo from West Boylston, has something to say ~ and the voice to say it. Their latest CD, A Pleasant Tomorrow, an ironic title considering the weighty material, runs as cold, dark, and deep as the Atlantic, but their message is delivered with such passion and conviction that it cannot be ignored.

Principal songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist Milo proposed to multi-instrumentalist wife Rainy during a gig at Ralph’s in Worcester back in 2008. Together they have created one of the quirkiest, most charming and original musical acts to come out of the Worcester area in many years. Eye Witness is Dylan meets The Velvet Underground, but with a healthy mix of blues and the Irish punk attitude of The Dropkick Murphys.

The CD opens strongly with “Which Side Are You On,” a classic union song written by Florence Reese, the wife of a union organizer in 1931. Milo’s haunting voice and guitar blend well with Rainy’s percussion and backing vocals. Their minimalist approach lends a timeless quality to each song. “No More” and “You Can Run” point out the futility of war and the hypocrisy of nationalism and militaristic pride. Many songs have the weight of death hanging upon them. “Black Crow Blues” is a first person love letter from a dying man to his young bride. “The Alpha Male is Dead” questions leaders controlled by greed and profit at the expense of our planet and its people. - The Pulse Magazine