MARAH Indie rock band goes through lot of players

The band's guitarist said the band has accomplished a lot in 10 years.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
Musicians looking for a gig with a history of job security should seriously think twice about joining indie rock act Marah, which in a decade has employed 14 members.
"The funny thing about our band is we're almost like 10 years into this, five records into this, and my brother [Dave] and I sort of still have this hunger," said Serge Bielanko, calling from a coffeehouse in Brooklyn, N.Y. "And it's a hunger not necessarily for any financial gain, although that would be nice."
He added, "I think the trade-off for a lot of people who have come through this band is, that kind of work ethic and the amount of time and spirit you have to put into it versus what you get paid is often a downer after about a year on the road."
In explaining, Bielanko talks about U2 frontman Bono, who not only fronts the world's biggest rock band but has made significant inroads with his African debt relief crusade. Inspired by such accomplishments but admittedly on a smaller scale himself, the guitarist said Marah has accomplished a lot during its decade of indie rock, recording what he feels are respectable albums, touring the band's energetic live show and just experiencing life. He wouldn't trade these adventures for anything.
Maybe the best
On the outfit's latest album "If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry," which many critics are calling the band's best to date, Marah further explored its musicality by recording the entire album live, eschewing its past meticulous and laborious studio ways. Though not necessarily raw, the album does possess a folk rock backbone that can't be denied. The 12-track disc also falls somewhere between the band's roots rock and alt-country pigeonholing.
"I don't know," Bielanko said. "I've played music as loud and as crazy as Crazy Horse and then we've done things that sound essentially like Bob Dylan by himself. So, it's kind of strange. I think people have been trying for a long time to say this is what Marah is and they're really unable to do so accurately, which I'm most proud of."
Fans can decide on their own what Marah sounds like when the band comes through Cleveland for a show at the Beachland Ballroom Tavern on Wednesday and through Pittsburgh for a Nov. 12 date at the Club Cafe. The group's promotional materials cite drunken anthems of lust, songs of howling intensity and brute honesty as its calling cards of brilliance, both in studio and on stage. Bielanko agrees.
"Without trying to sound like I'm pumping myself up, I really feel like we're probably one of the best rock 'n' roll bands you can see live," Bielanko said. "And I think that for people that want to experience something that is not ... there's no bulls--- in our show. We'll play two hours and we'll be more tired than is even fair to us sometimes. But we'll collapse at the bar at the end of the night. Whoever is there, if it's 10 people or 1,000 people, we'll have a drink with them and say thanks for coming."