Marqui Adora, White Buildings

Timing plays a hand in every good thing, and bringing drummer Joe Shockley, and bassist John Tooker together with singer/guitarist Danny Ashe was no exception. Joe and John were in search of a lead singer when they happened across Danny, who already had a band called Marqui Adora. The men combined efforts with Ashe in 2004 to create a team with a serious talent for lyrics and layers.

Marqui Adora (mark-e uh-door-uh) hails from Miami’s land of sun, yet maintains a chilled sound that would never equate with a tan line. The band’s initial release, White Buildings is a tightly produced six-song offering that reveals a play-friendly dance and electronica landscape. These guys really know what they are doing in the studio, and the sound is not forced or over-manipulated. Ashe’s melancholic indifference brings out the emotion of each song, and he knows exactly how to turn each word without the need to try too hard — which is, by the way, one of the reasons White Buildings is so good.

The title track, where some of the bands’ influences can be heard best, is a sweeping ballad reminiscent of U2 circa The Joshua Tree, with a bit of REM thrown in the mix. “Die in a Disco” will get stuck in your head for days, and “Empty,” arguably the best track on the EP, was picked up by Nissan for its 2007 Sentra ad campaign. The band’s influences range from Pink Floyd and Duran Duran to the Cure, yet Marqui Adora does not mimic, and as a result White Buildings is fresh and breathes with a life of its own.

With a wealth of veteran musical and technical knowledge — and, of course, the addition of guitarist Howard Melnick — Marqui Adora will be around for some time to come, and we definitely want more.