Sock Monster at Tierney's This Saturday

Parents Who Rock's Sock Monster will bring their brand of driving alternative rock to Tierney’s Tavern, 138 Valley Road, on Saturday, January 29, for two sets.

The band, John Paul Uva on guitar and vocals, Jim Kvoriak on guitar and vocals, Bob Terhune on bass and vocals, and Andy Yeates on drums, play a mix of smart covers—powerpop, alternative and punk “shoulda-been classics,” as they describe them.

“We play the stuff we love, the music that would be on the radio if we were programming a great station,” says guitarist Uva.

They find great songs from The Kinks, The Clash, the Replacements, Squeeze, Old 97s, and Elvis Costello, and mix them up with more alternative gems, covers like the Only Ones’ “Another Girl Another Planet,” Guided By Voices “Quality of Armor,” or the Jayhawk's "Save it For a Rainy Day," the track they contributed to the second Parents Who Rock CD, Let 'em Play.

“These are the songs that get us going—even if they’re not well known,” Uva explains. “A song like ‘A Million Miles Away’ by the Plimsouls. It’s a great song, and you know even if people don’t know it, they’re going to like it when they hear it.”

They serve up their take on the hits loud and with lots of energy. Uva, Kvoriak and Terhune all take turns singing lead, swapping vocals on verses and then chiming in on the choruses in gang-like unison; there’s a ragged, endearing quality to their best harmonies. The twin guitar attack allows Kvoriak and Uva to trade leads and rhythm, and adds more crunch to their sound. And the rhythm section of Yeates and Terhune provides muscular underpinning while packing a mean wallop that propels each song along.

The members got together to play a Parents Who Rock benefit show a few years ago, and found it so much fun they kept the band going. They’d all spent time playing with bands in clubs in New York and New Jersey in their spare time, before getting married, having kids and moving to the suburbs. Their band name reflects that more mundane reality—like missing socks in the laundry—which they took on when they left that bar scene behind.

The members, all Dads, still play occasionally with other bands (Uva performs with PWR founder Alma Schneider and the No Rehearsals and Ruby on the Vine; Kvoriak, until recently, played guitar with the late, great El Kabong!) and they play out together whenever they get the chance. They’ve performed at Art in the Park, the Crane Park Festival, Bradfest, and many PWR benefit shows, as well as at local clubs such as Tierney’s and Just Jakes.

With 11 kids among them, they’re always looking for their chance to be the ones in the family making the most noise.

Check out Sock Monster's facebook page here.

The show starts at 9 p.m. The Almost Canadians will be special late night guests. Cover is $5.