Sanity Fare develops into complex band

The group is working on its second album.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
The stylistic evolution of Youngstown band Sanity Fare from hard rock to alt rock mirrors that of most bands. What began as angst quickly manifested itself into something more complex. And with that change, a new window opened that this quartet is still exploring.
"It really gave us a lot more room because you're not just restricted to this loud sound," said drummer Brian Yost. "And we could change a lot more and make the music a lot more dramatic, I guess."
He added, "We're kind of a mix between ... our crazy stuff is kind of an Incubus kind of thing. And then we have melodies like almost Dave Matthews and kind of the general happiness of Counting Crows."
Formed in 2002 as a quintet, the band went through a few changes before finally settling upon a lineup of Yost, Jeff Gargas (vocals, guitar), Nathan Doutt (guitar) and Nate Mahan (bass). Like kids in a candy store, the group wrote tons of material for its first release, 2005's 16-track "Pretty Basic."
Working on second album
Yost, a Champion High School graduate, said the hearty debut release, which was self-produced in the band's own studio, succeeded as a vehicle to get fans as many songs as possible. However, for its next album, the members of Sanity Fare are being a little more discerning. "Right now we're in the process of working on a new EP that hopefully will be done soon," Yost said. "We're recording at a studio in Akron. It's six songs and we've already got a pretty good buzz about that so I'm pretty excited."
Tentatively titled "My Friends Call Me Cactus," the upcoming release features such songs as the emotional roller coaster track "Direct Call to Goodbye" and prog-ish "Purple and Gray." Yost said the latter song has created quit a bit of optimism in the Sanity Fare camp.
"It's almost like Muse with that kind of tone but it has a Sanity Fare kind of vibe where it's happy," Yost said. "I think everybody in the band is excited about that song."
The 20-year-old percussionist added, "I [think] with just the quality of this that we can actually take it to the next level. We can send it places and send it to radio and we don't have to [second guess ourselves]. Because of the maturity behind it, I think that if this can't propel us to some level, then I don't know if it can at this point."
Local appearances
Having performed regionally, from Pittsburgh to Cleveland and around Youngstown, the members of Sanity Fare are hoping longer road trips appear in their future. In the meantime, you can catch the foursome at the FTF Records Local Bands Showcase on Friday at the Newton Falls Community Center in Newton Falls and at the YSU Summer Festival of The Arts on Saturday outside DeBartolo Hall at Youngstown State University.
When asked whether the Mahoning County area was good for an up-and-coming band, Yost said: "If you know where to look, it is. That's probably the hardest part. You can always get people to come to the shows but getting places to play are pretty hard. You just have to be willing to make people listen to you and make people want you to come play."