Red Wanting Blue

Columbus, Ohio-based Red Wanting Blue has had a quite year. After struggling to rise above the college/small club circuit, the alternative rock act finally showed signs of emerging as major players. This past summer, the band performed on The Late Show with David Letterman for the very first time and toured incessantly in support of From The Vanishing Point, which came out at the beginning of the year. The combo of husky vocals and mid-tempo melodies might come off as a little too conventional, but the guys are good enough songwriters that they overcome those limitations, especially in the live setting. And you can bet that for this New Year’s Eve extravaganza, the band will loosen up even more. (Jeff Niesel)