Careless Hearts and Northern Son Bring Their Classic Sounds to the South Bay

If you hear a familiar sound emanating from Nine Lives in downtown Gilroy Friday night, don’t be so sure that you’ve heard it before. While Careless Hearts and Northern Son, two of the Bay Area’s hottest original music acts, may be mining classic territory with their sounds, the musical gems they produce are of a whole new breed. 

With members hailing originally from Texas, Careless Hearts fuses the storytelling of old-school country with the raw power of classic rock into a modern sound that is both intricate and uplifting. 

“There are so many bands that require a lot of effort to understand their sound or their songs," said Paul Kimball, lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the group.
"We’re making real honest music, trying to make people feel better about the world we are living in, but that is easy to enjoy and get into."

Composed of Derek See on lead guitar, Brian Michael on bass, Morgan Hill native Eric Powers on drums and the multi-instrumentalist Jody Clarke on banjo, pedal steel and electric guitar, Careless Hearts looks to follow up its 2008 album, Hearts Delight, with a new EP set for release on April 2. 

“We’ve been going solid with shows since 2008, and we keep our standards very high, so the result is a show that is easy to come out and have a good time with,” Kimball said.

Northern Son is no stranger to the Bay Area music scene, but it brings its high energy-infused rock to Nine Lives for the first time. Pulling together the influences of Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, Wilco and Ryan Adams, Northern Son has pop sensibility without compromising its rock credibility. It's no wonder that its latest EP, Spin, has garnered Bay Area radio play on Live 105 and the new 92.3 in San Jose. 

Spin, the followup to the debut album, Wider Skies, has already produced two music videos, with a third on the way. 

Jeff Carmassi, the band’s lead singer and chief songwriter, attributes the band’s accessible sound to the collaborative process he enjoys with his band mates. 

“I’ll usually bring a song to the group almost finished, but each of the guys will add their own part, and in the end, we’ll end up with something we are excited about,” said Carmassi. 

Although frequently joined with “guests,” as Carmassi put it, there is a core group of veteran Bay Area musicians who make up the Northern Son sound. Brett Nunn, Jonathan Sontag, Sean Ghavi and OJ Montevirgen will join Carmassi at Nine Lives.

When Careless Hearts and Northern Son take the stage Friday night, they'll certainly add to an already loyal fan base. The show starts at 8 p.m. at 7430 Monterey St.

For more information, go to ninelivesclub.com or check out the bands at carelesshearts.com and northern-son.com.