A Close Second
A Close Second was formed in summer 2007 by Alan Llave, Jeff Benson, Casey McDowell, and Jerome O'Neil. A Close Second is an energetic mix of Rock, Country, Punk, Blues, and Bluegrass music. The band is influenced by such great musical forces as Johnny Cash, The Beatles, Firewater, The Old 97s, Social Distortion, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Steve Earle and Justin Townes Earle.
Alan and Jeff have been friends for many years, and in that time, have collaborated on many projects. Early on they formed the band Disarray, which played around the Seattle area until 2001.
Since then, Jeff (drums/singer/songwriter), has played in a few other groups (Bash, Sherry Jerome, and Jordan Riley) and continued to hone his skills as a drummer and writer. Jeff's progressive rock influences give him a unique drumming style as well as a unique writing style. His musical skills are a real asset to A Close Second.
Alan (guitar/singer/songwriter) has focused on refining his skills as a guitarist specifically in the country/bluegrass genre. While favoring the classic tones of the early country and rock he keeps a fresh edge on his guitar work. Alan's quiet style and often dark lyrics lend themselves well to the overall sound brought forth by A Close Second.
Jerome (bass/singer/songwriter) is new to the music scene in Seattle. His straight ahead writing and playing style are an asset to a band that likes just that. In a band with many different influences and styles Jerome keeps the guys locked in musically.
Casey (Guitar/singer/Songwriter) has participated in several projects in the Seattle area. In 1995 he and a close friend formed the band Nojo on the Rojo. Nojo joined the flood of music to come out of the Seattle area in the mid and late '90s to play live regularly around Seattle. Casey left the band in early 1999 and has since been all but out of the music scene. Having participated in a few short lived projects since, he joined with Alan and Jeff to form A Close Second. Casey's blues rock influences help to pull the bands overall sound back a bit to the main stream.
