Valhere

A baseball team always needs a utility player: a guy who can do everything moderately well, get paid a moderate wage and help pull runs in. He's not particularly special or spectacularly talented, but he gets the job done. It's not a bad gig - not everyone gets to play pro or semi-pro ball. Same goes for music, as tons of bands slog it out and learn the basics of playing, songwriting and production. The bars fill their stages, the audience empties the bottles and the band gets paid a small wage. More often than not, the name doesn't matter but what they sound like does. The ubiquitous sound will get more gigs, maybe a contract, perhaps a tour, more importantly it will get the job done. Valhere is the latest utility player on the modern rock field and they play for their own minor label in the relatively small market town of Portland, OR. They've built their own bullpen to record and work hard at their commitment to music. This is admirable and no doubt the majors will take notice. Who wouldn't? Randy Bowden, Andy Koontz, Scott Phillips and Mike VanYserloo sweat it out and work hard. They're ready for the big show, hence This Lonely Highway. It's even, not too weird and bland enough to do the job. All the songs sound the same and none of the lyrics try to hit a homerun. Indistinguishable from the rest of the hopefuls, Valhere may or may not strike it big. Who knows? This Lonely Highway heads to the locker room as soon as the game ends.