Some relationships drag on for years, never really going anywhere, before unceremoniously sputtering out. Though it’s impossible to say exactly what the future holds for San Jose indie quartet Get Married, things are certainly looking up.
Formed just last year, the band is already taking things to the next level, inking a one-year deal with Wiretap Records. The L.A.-based label will help Get Married reissue and distribute their excellent debut EP, Four Songs.
The aptly titled four-song set showcases Get Married’s potent synthesis of classic sounds plucked from the recent—and distant—past. Recorded last January at Panda Studios in Fremont, Four Songs is fueled by a nostalgia for early rock & roll and doo-wop, as well as first-wave emo and shoegaze.
Influenced by the likes of late-’80s and early-’90s acts, such Galaxie 500 and Sunny Day Real Estate, the members of Get Married are equally enthralled with the work of Elvis Presley and The Beach Boys. In fact, frontman Jaake Margo started Get Married as an Elvis cover band, before the group started writing their own songs.
Merging a no-frills aesthetic with bright, catchy chord progressions and vocal arrangements, Get Married build songs that ride high on waves of fuzzy guitar tones, shoot the curl through a compendium of doo-wop, swing and rockabilly flourishes, and come out the other end in a glistening mist of Sun Records-style harmonies.
“Grenadine,” which follows a story of unrequited love, feels like a Grace Kelly-starring, malt-shop romance—only punctuated with revved-up guitars and snotty, punk melodies.
This summer Get Married are taking their show on the road, playing a string of dates in the Pacific Northwest before returning home to play the Art Boutiki on July 28. After that, plans are in the works for a national tour and a new EP, currently titled Into the Cosmos.
While San Jose certainly holds a special place in their hearts, looking forward, Get Married have their sights set beyond their hometown.
“We’ve been talking as a band about moving to L.A.” Margo says. “We’re all in our 20s and if we’re going to do this, then we need to be closer to the action.”
Get Married
‘Four Songs’
Various Digital Outlets
