Sometimes music flows through your veins...it’s in your blood; it’s an integral part of your DNA.  Such as the case with brother and sister Barbara and Ethan Gruska.  Their father is musician Jay Gruska, who has a few solo albums under his belt, has written several hit songs, and now composes for film and television.  Their grandfather is John Williams, the legendary conductor who wrote the film scores to JAWS, STAR WARS, E.T. and a thousand other films.  So it should be no surprise to anyone that the Gruska siblings would do what comes naturally, and explore their art with a brand new band.  In anticipation of next week’s release of their self-titled, debut album, The Belle Brigade played an exciting 8-song, 45-minute set Saturday night at the House of Blues in West Hollywood.

Barbara and Ethan Gruska’s lush, pitch-perfect vocal harmonies permeate through much of their music.  Listening to THE BELLE BRIGADE album, one can easily hear the influence of the Everly Brothers, Simon & Garfunkel and Fleetwood Mac...as well as a tip of the hat to the sounds of country music, folk, and bluegrass.  The songs on the album are bright, full of energy, and quite infectious, so it was a real thrill to hear them performed live.

At 9:00pm, The Belle Brigade hit the stage with the bouncy “Lucky Guy”...a song featuring short shout outs of “Hey Hey” and “Cumma Cumma Cumma” in the chorus.  This was followed by the medium-paced, rockabilly feel of “Belt of Orion”...a really beautiful song.  “Sweet Louise”, the opening track of their debut album, came next.  Simon & Garfunkel are all over this ong...which has the feel and spirit of their 60’s classic “Mrs. Robinson.”

Before performing the triumphant “Shirt”, Barbara Gruska told the audience that if they take off their shirts, they’d receive a free Belle Brigade t-shirt.  To Barbara’s surprise, a woman in the crowd happily took off her top.  This may be a common occurrence at a Motley Crue concert, yet not so much at a Belle Brigade show.  Barbara and the band were thrilled, and made sure the topless woman was taken care of.  “Shirt” sounded wonderful live...with its defiant chorus of “No one is gonna wear me out.”

“Lonely Lonely” featured the best of Ethan Gruska’s vocals.  An interesting thing about the band’s sound, is that the singers sound very much alike, and it’s not always the woman who is singing the high harmonies.  Ethan Gruska has an incredible, high-pitched voice with a rough edge, reminiscent of Rush’s Geddy Lee.  You could really hear the power of Ethan’s tone in “Lonely Lonely.”

Barbara Gruska is no slouch either.  She jumped on the drums and played and sang her heart out for “Where Not To Look For Freedom.”  With G Love and The Special Sauce drummer Jeffery Clemons joining in on percussion, the band played a joyful version of the fierce, hard-charging, and sweet song.

With the groove of “Rusted Wheel” playing in the background, Barbara introduced the band...which included Mike Green on drums and vocals, Aaron Arntz on keyboards, Keith Karmen on bass, Harlan Silverman on electric guitar, Ethan Gruska on acoustic guitar and vocals, and Barbara Gruska on acoustic guitar and vocals.  “Rusted Wheel” sounded great, as did the final song of the night...the lead single from THE BELLE BRIGADE album, “Losers.”  With the song’s proclamation that they “don’t care about being a winner...or being smooth with women, or going out on Fridays...being the life of parties...of if I am a loser, no more...no more”...The Belle Brigade truly left their mark on the packed House of Blues crowd.

This is a band to watch, listen and learn from.  You may not have heard of The Belle Brigade before, yet now that you have...you owe it to yourself to buy their album, listen to their music, and just enjoy...