The Bravery embraces energetic tour, fans

The guitarist said he feels the band has learned and improved over the year.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
Whether you call it "neo-new wave," new wave revival or alternative pop, just the fact that the Bravery gets mentioned in the same breath with such bands as the Killers and Interpol means this New York City band is on the move.
"We agreed that we came at a good time, when people were ready to hear this kind of music but at the same time, for us, even though we played dance music and there's definitely an electronic aspect for us, it's really just approaching it with that traditional rock mentality," said Michael Zakarin, calling from outside of San Diego. "[And for the audience to] just let loose and go. It's not about standing there and thinking too hard about it. You have the album for that. For us, it's about coming to the show and kind of forgetting about everything else. And I think people are getting that."
Released earlier this year, the Bravery's self-titled album, which featured hit single and MTV2 favorite "An Honest Mistake," served its purpose of taking the group from rising New York City club act to national touring draw. The quartet ends its Stateside itinerary performing Saturday at the Agora in Cleveland.
Looking forward
Already the band is thinking ahead to its next album. Concertgoers can expect to hear new vocally driven songs "Angelina" and "Oh Glory," which Zakarin hopes position the band stylistically toward its sophomore album.
"There's definitely lots of ideas floating around and there have been for a while now," Zakarin said. While excited about the next disc, the guitarist won't commit to a 2006 release date. There's a sense that the band, which heads overseas next month to open for Depeche Mode, has earned a long vacation before any reconvening in the studio is required.
"We toured our butts off," Zakarin said. "For us, our live show is very strong and is a different angle from the album. It's much more energetic. There's more rocking, and it really shows how dynamic the band could be. So I think we solidified a good fan base this year."
Naturally, success presents itself with other opportunities and hurdles. This is something the Bravery has learned over the last year. In addition to being perhaps intertwined, stylistically speaking, with the Killers for the relative near future, the Bravery and the Las Vegas "Mr. Brightside" band remain linked due to a spat that took place in the press earlier this year. Zakarin won't comment on the particulars, but he does speak broadly about what the band learned during its breakout year of 2005: "We've kind of seen the trials of touring, and it's not nearly as glamorous as one might think," Zakarin said. "But for us, it was exactly the way we wanted it. We wouldn't have changed a thing. I think as a band, we've gotten way better over the year. We set goals; we tried to achieve them, and we did. We're obviously excited."