Romulus Rex takes step toward maturity on ‘Frequent Seas’

Ah, the concept album. You know the classics: the Who’s “Tommy,” Pink Floyd’s “The Wall,” bombastic spectacles such as Genesis’ “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway,” and more recent examples such as My Chemical Romance’s “The Black Parade” and Sufjan Stevens’ “Illinois.”

Usually a band releases its concept album a few recordings into its career, after it has built up enough of a fan base that listeners will pay attention. Not so with Bar Harbor’s Romulus Rex. They went straight for it with their first album, the classic-rock inspired “The Forest” – and what’s even more unusual is that they wrote and recorded it when all four band members were only 16 years old, for a very elaborate art project for school.

“It’s sort of man versus nature,” said guitarist Welly Bacon, now 18 and a very recently graduated senior at Mount Desert Island High School. “It’s a really bizarre story about a magical forest, and about how humans are destroying the environment. We were basically a bunch of idealistic young hippies back then.”

Bacon, drummer David Palazola, guitarist-pianist Chris Doyle and bass player Fox Schwach have grown leaps and bounds in the two years since “The Forest” came out. That fact is nowhere more apparent than on their brand-new second album, “Frequent Seas,” for which a release party is set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 16, at the Grand Theatre in Ellsworth.

Two full-length, all-original albums is quite the accomplishment for any local, unsigned band – let alone a band of teenagers (albeit ridiculously talented teenagers). Bacon said that while “Frequent Seas” is still distinctly Romulus Rex, it’s a more natural, organic album than its predecessor.

“Well, it’s not a rock opera, for starters,” he said. “It has some themes to it, sure, but the music is more mature. I find it a lot easier to listen to. With ‘The Forest’ we’d try to write lyrics about the story and make them fit into the song. These songs were just pretty natural.”

Romulus Rex combines straightforward rock riffs and vocal harmonies with some more experimental sounds, thanks to Bacon and Doyle’s open-minded approach to arrangements, and their ability to play off each other as guitarists. Think Led Zeppelin, combined with the fuzzy, weird guitar sounds of Sonic Youth.

“Sometimes I won’t play regular chords, and I’ll just play things that sound interesting,” said Bacon. “It’s unconventional. Chris and I play stuff that isn’t like rhythm and lead. It’s the two of us working together.”

A series of daily extended jam sessions brought the boys closer together as musicians and friends, as did as a number of performances in the MDI-Ellsworth area, including a well-received multimedia concert of “The Forest” at the Grand Theatre in 2005.

Though they all graduated from high school last weekend and plan to attend college in the fall (Palazola and Doyle will go to Berklee College of Music in Boston, Schwach will attend New York University and Bacon will go to Connecticut College), they remain committed to the band.

“It’s something that we won’t be able to break, even if we try. We’re all the closest people in each other’s lives. I think it’s really rare to have friendships like ours in high school,” said Bacon.

“We also have two albums and a bank account,” he added.

Romulus Rex will play at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 16, at the Grand Theatre in Ellsworth. Tickets are $18 with a copy of the new album, “Frequent Seas,” or $12 without the CD. “Frequent Seas” can be purchased online at amazon.com and at cdbaby.com. For more info, visit www.myspace.com/romulusrextheband. Emily Burnham can be reached at eburnham@bangordailynews.net. For more local music, arts and nightlife, click on the RockBlogster icon at the bottom of bangordailynews.com.