Music: Sing It Loud still has to keep it down

It's probably not something they would want in the lead of this story, but the members of Sing It Loud are open about the fact that they still live with their parents.

That little detail is a good indicator of the Twin Cities pop-rock quintet's young age. It's also a sign of how busy the band is.

"We're never home anymore, so it wouldn't make sense for any of us to pay rent somewhere," explained Burnsville-reared singer/guitarist Pat Brown, the eldest member at 22 (the rest are 19 to 20).

One other not-so-little item of note that the group doesn't try to hide: It's not really a punk band, even though its debut album "Come Around" was released by punk-affiliated Los Angeles indie giant Epitaph Records. Instead, the group plays a catchy, bittersweet, emo-ish brand of radio-friendly rock more in line with such bands as All-American Rejects, Matchbook Romance or Minneapolis' own Quietdrive.

Guitarist Kieren Smith, who hails from Duluth, said, "We got a lot of flak from some of the old-school Epitaph diehards at first, but it's such a huge label now, it has a little bit of everything. If it was still strictly a punk label, it'd probably be out of business."

Calling last week from their van en route to a gig in Hartford, Conn., last week, Brown and Smith showed the bright-eyed excitement of young rockers on their first club-headlining tour, where they said they're drawing 100 to 300 people a night. ("And they're all here to see us and know our songs," Brown gushed.) Their enthusiasm was tempered with a touch of weariness from the hectic pace the band has kept up since releasing its debut last fall.

Sing It Loud will be on the road at least until fall. In June they join the Warped Tour for its entire two-month run. Their shows Saturday and Sunday at the Triple Rock are their only local gigs until the Warped caravan lands at Canterbury Park on Aug. 2.

"We owe [MCS] a lot," Smith said. "They definitely lit the fire under our band that got us where we are."

The album was produced by MCS guitarist Josh Cain, who took the group under his wing after they opened for his band at the Varsity Theater in August 2007 (SIL's fourth gig ever). SIL wound up with the same management company as MCS, and Epitaph founder Brett Gurewitz (of Bad Religion notoriety) was quickly on a plane to see the band perform at Burnsville's underage club the Garage. Gurewitz reportedly took them out to Perkins afterward and made them an offer.

Coincidentally or not, Sing It Loud signed to Epitaph just as Motion City was graduating to Columbia Records.

"It seemed to work out perfect," Cain said of the timing. "I needed to produce something. They needed a label. And Brett needed a new act. The stars aligned, and there was Sing It Loud."

Cain believes SIL is a good fit for Epitaph, whatever their music is called.

Lyrically and musically, SIL songs such as "Don't Save Me" and "No One Can Touch Us" are standard boy-loses-girl emo fare, with a little bit of an arena-rock/hair-band kick and synthesizer-fueled melodies. Brown said he and Smith wrote the bulk of the songs "when we were both going through these really crappy relationships, which sort of defined the band at first."

With ample time to define themselves, the band members believe this summer's adventures on the Warped Tour will be "our best time yet," as Brown put it.

Said Smith, "Warped Tour is the next logical step for us. We're trying to approach everything one step at a time and be smart about it."

End of Bees' buzz? After garnering decent radio play and landing atop City Pages' Picked to Click poll in 2007 following their debut album "The End," Mouthful of Bees have pretty clearly bumbled away their buzz with their eponymous second record, issued two weeks ago on Afternoon Records. The Minneapolis band has no shows booked to promote the album, and word is it's not even an active band anymore. One reason: Drummer Kate Farstad took leave to Germany, while her frontman brother Chris is still at college in Iowa.

Another reason is "Mouthful of Bees" clearly isn't meant for the stage. A complete change from the wiry rock on the band's debut (which I wholeheartedly praised), the new record is full of indulgent, atmospheric, experimental whir-rock and several cutesy, harmonized folk-rock songs that sound like Flight of the Conchords minus the punch lines. Coupled with the no-performance thing, this all seems like a cautionary tale of what happens when young bands get too enamored with their home-recording gear.

Also mixing it up: Former Twin Cities zen-folk-rocker Stuart Davis has been filming a new TV comedy series in his new hometown of Boulder, Colo. Called "Sex, God and Rock 'n' Roll," it debuted last week on HDnet and is loaded with quirky monologues and musical skits. If you don't have HDnet, you can watch episodes for a $5 membership fee on the site www.SexGod andRocknRoll.com.

Random mix It's probably a good thing for Sara Renner that the Minnesota Wild didn't make the playoffs. The contemporary Christian/soul/gospel vocalist -- who sings the anthem at most Wild games -- has had more time to prep for her two CD-release concerts, tonight at Westwood Community Church in Excelsior and Saturday at New Hope Church in New Hope (both shows 7:30 p.m., $10). Renner's fourth album, "All for Love," features a dozen originals she co-wrote with her band leader Nate Sabin and other collaborators. ...

More news from the local gospel scene: Sounds of Blackness will throw a 30th anniversary reunion concert June 6 with many of its innumerable alumni at the Wallace Fine Arts Center at Macalester College, where the contemporary choir originally formed. ... Another anniversary show from an entirely different scene, transgender metal favorites All the Pretty Horses mark their 15th year with a month of Thursday gigs at 7th Street Entry. Each night features a performance of a different album (next week's is "Queens and Angels;" 9 p.m., $7). ...

The 501 Club seemed to earn a resounding thumbs-up at its packed but still comfortable and acoustically decent grand-opening party last weekend, and so did the headlining band Retribution Gospel Choir, which played a batch of stormy new songs from a CD due later this year. The Duluth trio hits the road later this month to open for the reborn Meat Puppets (local date July 12 at 7th Street Entry). Frontman Alan Sparhawk also filled me in on his older band Low's next project: scoring a modern-dance performance with renowned choreographer Morgan Thorson, set to debut next year with support from Walker Art Center. ...

One of the finalists in the 10,000 Lakes Festival's Cosmic Breaks contest last year, Sepia Tone issues its debut CD with a party tonight at the Cabooze (9:30 p.m., $7). Titled "Progress Note," the disc alternately recalls the Tragically Hip, Widespread Panic and Blues Traveler (yes, it's a little schizo).